OCR Text |
Show FORTY YEARS AMONG THE INDIANS. 381 As Mexico is a dry country, no lands are of value except where water can be procured. As the country began to be prospected by foreign-ers desirous of stock ranches, etc., and also the more advanced condition of the government, it became appar-ent that these grants should be more perfectly denned, so that what land still remained to the government could be sold. As these old grants stood there was no cer-tainty even to a government title, as the grant could not be broken or infringed upon. The attempt to get these government lands and the failure to get titles has given rise to the idea that there are no good titles in Mexico. Whereas the titles of these grants are so good that they cannot be broken; and when there is any controversy between the government and land grants, the grants almost invariably win. Under the conditions it became necessary to cause a re- survey of the whole country. To bring this about the country was cut up into districts, and contracts let to persons to do the surveying, their compensation to be in part or whole or percentage of the lands left after the titled grants were defined. It now became a question between the old land owners and the surveyors which would get the most land. Where the surveyors could crowd in the lines they had the more land, while the grants sought at times to extend or reach the first allowance. This has given rise to much litigation, and even up to the present some few controversies are still going on. There is not much risk in buying old original grants that run regularly, without adverse claimants. In some few places there were small plats of good land secured to these surveyors by cutting off from the old grants. |