To meet in

on or before

have finished

Powers of

the boards of commission

ers.

Orleans, and the district of Louisiana,' to the best of my skill and judgment." It shall be the duty of the their respec- said commissioners to meet in their respective distive districts tricts, at such place as the President shall have directat such places as may be the ed therein, for the residence of the register or recordresidence of er, on or before the first day of December next; and the recorders, they shall not adjourn to any other place, nor for a registers, &c. longer time than three days, until the first day of the first De- March, one thousand eight hundred and six, and uncember, and til they shall have completed the business of their apnot to adjourn pointment. Each board or a majority of each board, till they shall shall in their respective districts, have power to hear their business. and decide in a summary manner, all matters respecting such claims, also to administer oaths, to compel the attendance of, and examine witnesses, and such other testimony as may be adduced, to demand and obtain from the proper officer and officers, all public records, in which grants of land, warrants, or orders of survey or any other evidence of claims to land, derived from either the French or Spanish governments, may have been recorded; to take transcripts of such record or records, or of any part thereof; to have access to all other records of a public nature, relative to the granting, sale, transfer or titles of lands, within their respective districts; and to decide in a summary way, according to justice and equity, on all claims filed with the register or recorder, in conformity with the provisions of this act, and on all complete French or Spanish grants the evidence of which, though not thus filed, may be found of record on the public records of such grants; which decisions shall be laid before Congress in the manner hereinafter directed, and be subject to their determination thereon:* Provided however, That nothing in this act contained, shall be construed so as to recognize any grant or incomplete title, bearing date subsequent to the first day of October, one thousand eight hundred, or to authorise the commissioners aforesaid to make any decision thereon. The said boards respectively shall have power to appoint a clerk, whose duty it shall be

Decisions of

the boards to be laid before Congress. Proviso.

The boards to appoint a clerk.

The decisions of the commissioners made final, with some exceptions, by the act of third March 1807, in cases of persons residing on thirtieth December 1803, and for tracts not exceeding one league square.

be transmit

claims, to be

to enter in a book to be kept for that purpose, full and correct minutes of their proceedings and decisions, together with the evidence on which such decisions are made, which books and papers, on the dissolution His duties. of the boards, shall be deposited in the respective offices of the registers of the land offices, or of the recorder of land titles of the district; and the said clerk shall prepare two transcripts of all the decisions made Transcripts by the commissioners in favor of the claimants to of decisions land, both of which shall be signed by a majority of in favor of the said commissioners, and one of which shall be claimants, to transmitted to the officer exercising in the district the ed to the seauthority of surveyor general; and the other to the cretary of the secretary of the treasury. It shall likewise be the treasury. duty of the said commissioners, to make to the se- Also report of cretary of the treasury a full report of all the claims rejected filed with the register of the proper land office or re- by him laid corder of land titles, as above directed, which may before Conhave been rejected, together with the substance of gress. the evidence adduced in support thereof, and such remarks thereon as they may think proper; which reports, together with the transcripts of the decisions of the commissioners in favor of the claimants, shall be laid by the secretary of the treasury before Congress, at their next ensuing meeting. When any Spanish or French grant, warrant, or order of survey as aforesaid, shall be produced to either of the said boards, for lands, which were not at the date of such grant, warrant or order of survey, or within one year thereafter, inhabited, cultivated or occupied, by or for the use of the grantee; or whenever either of the said boards shall not be satisfied that such grant, warrant or order of survey, did issue at the time when Grants antethe same bears date, but that the same is antedated or dated or otherwise deotherwise fraudulent; the said commissioners shall fective, not not be bound to consider such grant, warrant or or- to be consider of survey, as conclusive evidence of the title, but dered as conmay require such other proof of its validity as they clusive evimay deem proper. Each of the commissioners and Compensaclerks aforesaid, shall be allowed a compensation of tions of the two thousand dollars in full for his services as such; commissionand each of the said clerks shall, previous to his eners, clerks,&c. and their tering on the duties of his office, take and subscribe the following oath or affirmation, to wit: "I

oaths of of

fice, &c.

do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will truly and faithfully discharge the duties of a clerk to the board of commissioners, for examining the claims to land, as enjoined by an act of Congress, entitled "An act ascertaining and adjusting the titles and claims to land within the territory of Orleans, and the district. of Louisiana." Which oath or affirmation shall be entered on the minutes of the board.

Agents to be Sec. 6. The secretary of the treasury shall be, and employed for each board of he is hereby authorised to employ three agents, one commission- for each board, and whose compensation shall not exers to oppose ceed one thousand five hundred dollars each, for the fraudulent claims. Their compensations and duties. Agent for the district of

Louisiana to investigate

claims to the

lead mines,

&c. and the commission ers, to make

purpose of appearing before the commissioners, in behalf of the United States, to investigate the claims for lands, and to oppose all such as said agents may deem fraudulent and unfounded. It shall also be the duty of the said agent for the district of Louisiana, to examine into, and investigate the titles and claims, if any there be, to the lead mines within the said district, to collect all the evidence within his power, with respect to the claims to, and value of the said mines, and to lay the same before the com. missioners, who shall make a special report thereof, with their opinions thereon, to the secretary of the treasury, to be by him laid before Congress, at their next ensuing session. The said board of commistreasury, to sioners shall each be authorised to employ a transla be laid before Congress. tor of the Spanish and French languages, to assist Commission- them in the dispatch of the business which may be ers authorised brought before them, and for the purpose of recor⚫ to employ a translator, &c. ding Spanish and French grants, deeds, or other evi His fees and dences of claims on the register's books. The said compensation translator shall receive, for the recording done by

a special report there

of to the secretary of the

him, the fees already provided by law, and may be allowed, not exceeding fifty dollars, for every month he shall be employed; provided, that the whole compensation, other than that arising from fees, shall not exceed six hundred dollars.

IX. 11.

28 February, 1806.

Sec. 3. So much of the act, intituled, * An act for ascertaining and adjusting the titles and claims

* Viz: The preceding act of 26 March, 1804.

recorder re

pealed.

ment of titles.

to land within the territory of Orleans, and the district Part of a of Louisiana," as makes it the duty of every claim. former act ant to lands, within the territory of Louisiana, to de- the deliverrespecting liver to the recorder of land titles a plot of the tract, ing of plots or tracts, claimed by him, is hereby repealed, so far of land to the as relates to claimants whose tracts had not been surveyed by the proper officer, under the Spanish government, prior to the twentieth day of December one thousand eight hundred and three. And the Commissioncommissioners appointed for ascertaining the titles ers authorised and claims to lands, within either the territory of to direct such Louisiana, or that of Orleans, are hereby authorised surveys as to direct the officer exercising the powers of surveyor think necesthey may general, within the same, to execute such surveys as sary for the they may think necessary, for the purpose of deciding ascertainon claims presented for their decision: Provided, Proviso. That the expense of executing such surveys shall be defrayed by the parties claiming the land, unless the same be claimed by a legal French or Spanish grant, made and completed before the first day of October, one thousand eight hundred: And provided also, To be held and it is hereby further enacted, that every such suras private vey, as well as every other survey, by whatever authority heretofore executed, those of the above mentioned legal and complete titles only excepted, shall be held and considered as private surveys only; and all the tracts of land, the titles to which may be ultimately confirmed by Congress, in conformity with the provisions of the act above mentioned, shall, prior to the issuing of patents, be re-surveyed, if judged necessary, under the authority of the person exercising the powers of surveyor general, and at the expense of the parties.

surveys.

IX. 39.

21 April

1806.

settlement

Sec. 1. Every person or persons claiming a tract of What shall land by virtue of the second section of the act, to be considerwhich this act is a supplement, and who had commenc- ed an actual ed an actual settlement on such tract prior to the first according to day of October, one thousand eight hundred, and had the second continued actually to inhabit and cultivate the same, section of the during the term of three years from the time when such act to which plement.

Viz. Act of 26 March, 1804.

this is a sup

Claimants to land under

the age of 21

years, con

actual settlement had commenced, and prior to the twentieth day of December, eighteen hundred and three, shall be considered as having made such settlement with the permission of the proper Spanish officer, although it may not be in the power of such person or persons to produce sufficient evidence of such per

mission.

Sec. 2. Every person or persons rightfully claiming a tract of land, not exceeding six hundred and persons who forty acres, by virtue of the act to which this act is a were not of supplement, shall be confirmed in his or their claims, if otherwise embraced by the provisions of the said firmed in their act, although the person or persons, under whom the titles, if their claim or claims originated, were not at the time when other the same originated, above the age of twenty-one years: Provided, That the tract of land thus claimed, had been for the space of ten consecutive years, prior to the twentieth day of December, eighteen hundred and three, in the quiet possession of, and actually inhabited and cultivated by such person or persons, or for his or their use.

claims are in

respects

regular. Proviso.

Times for de

livering notices in writ

Sec. 3. The time fixed by the act to which this act is a supplement, for delivering to the register of the ing of claims proper land office notices in writing, and the written to land in the evidences of claims to land in the territory of Orleans, territory of is hereby extended, till the first day of January next; Orleans exand persons delivering such notices and evidences, tended. shall be entitled to the same benefits as if the same had been delivered prior to the first day of March Righ's barred last; but the rights of such persons, as shall neglect so doing within the time limited by this act, shall be barred, and the evidences of their claims never after admitted as evidence, in the same manner as had been provided by the fourth section of the act, to which this act is a supplement, in relation to claims, notices and written evidences of which, should not be delivered prior to the said first day of March last.

on failure to

deliver them according to this act.

Sec. 4. The registers of the land offices in the territory of Orleans, respectively, are hereby authorised to appoint so many deputies, not exceeding one for each county in their respective districts, as they may think necessary, whose duty it shall be to receive, enter and file notices, and to receive and record written evidences of claims to lands lying in the county of