[Download] "William A. Shaffer, Plaintiff in Error v. James A. Scudday" by United States Supreme Court " Book PDF Kindle ePub Free
eBook details
- Title: William A. Shaffer, Plaintiff in Error v. James A. Scudday
- Author : United States Supreme Court
- Release Date : January 01, 1856
- Genre: Law,Books,Professional & Technical,
- Pages : * pages
- Size : 71 KB
Description
Mr. Taylor objected to the jurisdiction of this court, upon the following ground: 1. By reference to the decision of the Supreme Court of Louisiana, it will be seen that the question raised as to the construction of the act of 1849 was not decided by the court. The court expressly said that they did 'not consider it necessary to decide that question.' 'The construction of the act of 1849, by the Secretary of the Interior, may be strictly correct, and yet it does not follow that the location of a warrant, under the internal-improvement law of 1841, which had been approved by the proper department of the Government, and for which a patent had been subsequently issued by the State, could be revoked, so as to destroy the title conferred by the patent. The question would have been different, if, after the passage by Congress of the act of 1849, the United States had granted the land away from the State of Louisiana. Such was not the case; and as both the acts of 1834 and of 1849 were grants of land to the State, we cannot go behind the patent which the State has granted.' From this it is clear that there was no decision against the validity of a treaty or statute of, or an authority exercised under, the United States, &c., &c., in the highest court of Louisiana; and that inasmuch as no error can be assigned or regarded as a ground of reversal, other 'than such as apears on the face of the record, and immediately respects the questions of validity or construction,' &c., therefore, there was no right to a writ of error in this case, and that the case must be dismissed for want of jurisdiction. 1 Statutes at Large, p. 85, sec. 25; Almonester v. Kenton, 9 Howard, 1.