1202
AMERICAN HISTORICAL ASSOCIATION.
12 th Article of the law says the Empresarios shall receive (5) five Sitios (Leagues) of pasture land and (5) five Labors of farming land for each hundred families he introduces and settles in the State, but this premium can only be rec 4 for Eight hundred families, and the Empresario who in virtue of the number of families he introduces receives more than Eleven Leagues is obliged by the 13 th Article of the law to alienate the excess over Eleven Leagues within twelve years In regard to 1\fr. Harrisson I wilJ state to you the difficulty that presents itself to giving his heirs a title to land requesting at the same time that you would point out any course that in your opinion will obviate the difficulty- The authority under which titles in this Colony are granted was originally given by the Emperor on the 18 Feb 7 1823 after he was dethroned this decree or grant of the Emperors was presented by me to the Sovereign Constituent Congress and it was approved by them on the 11 of April and passed to the Supreme Executive Power for their approbation, and approved by them on the 14 of April 1823-The law of Colonization under which this Colony is settled requires that the land should be cultivated within two years from the date of the deed-Now the difficulty is this-wheither or not a grant can be made to the name of Harrison as he was dead before the date of the authority under which the grants are made-A. grant to his heirs who a.re not in the Country nor never have been might be objected to on the ground that they were not Settlers, nor inhabi- tants of the Country, tho. I think such a grant ought to be good on the ground that the heirs as the representatives of Harrison would have been entitled to the land had the grant been made to Harrison before his death and in equity, his death, before the titles could be issued, ought not to deprive his heirs of the land he would have rec 4 had he lived a little longer-but doubts may arise on the subject- Another pl::m that I have thought of is to grant a tract to Some in- habitant of the Country in tr·u.st for the heirs, for instance to you, in trust for the heirs of Harrison- • Another difficulty in the matter is as regards myself individually- promises are made for the whole of the 300 families and to admit more I must necessarily cut out some who have been promised- this subjects me to abuse from a certain class of the Settlers as you have seen and heard from personal observation-tho this I disre- gard and will arrange it in that way if it is considered satisfactory, or if no other plan can be adopted I can secure half a League to his heirs by giving that much out of my own individual property and rather than his hefrs should think that I was unwilling to do 11 in my power to let them have the land I will do so-The claims : 0 land here are rather novel in their nature and are not generally
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