Page 6 College Station, Texas Wednesday, July 21, 1971 THE BATTALION ‘Potential classic’ Book relates ‘write-in’ retention of state rights how Texas surrendered mineral rights to 90 per cent of its lands in a salt mine dispute. Laws were passed reserving minerals on school lands yet un sold, but the state Supreme Court ruled in 1901 that unless land of fice records describing tracts had “mineral” written beside them the statute was invalid. A hurried “write-in” project by which Texas in 1901 retained mineral rights to state public lands is one of a series of por tions of a book written by a GIVE WE GIVE \&m Texas A&M faculty member. Dr. Thomas L. Miller’s book, “Public Lands of Texas, 1519- 1970,” will be published by the University of Oklahoma Press this fall. A $2,500 Association of Former Students grant made publication of the study possible. Miller describes in the volume “Land Commissioner Charles Rogan acted quickly,” Miller said. “He raised land prices to a pro hibitive level and got land office clerks to go through the records and write in ‘mineral’ or some times just ‘min.’ ” Thee ourt held this to be suf ficient to retain mineral rights, so Judge Rowan saved Texas mineral rights on 7,400,000 acres of school lands. Excluding Per manent Fund investments, the state acquired from it $1.7 bil lion revenue to run schools. Ta bles in the book show land re- cepits from 1835 to 1970. The book tells the story of Texas public lands from the time that Spain claimed Texas until the recent raising off the coast of a Spanish treasure ship sunk in 1553. Controversy over the treasure disposition led to defeat of Land Commissioner Jerry Sad ler. Also included among others is a table showing land grant reci pients and amounts, along with other state land uses and devel opments. In a brief history of the Gen eral Land Office and a biograph ical sketch of each commissioner is a section and picture on Earl Rudder, the late Texas A&M president, commissioner for sev eral years. A Texas historian who read the manuscript said he was amazed at the “tremendous amount of re search that has gone into the study. Relative to other studies dealing with the subject, Miller’s is a half century later, broader in scope, takes advantage of pre vious scholarship and develops the subject differently.” University of Oklahoma Press director Edward Shaw said the manuscript “holds the potan of being a classic in the fieli'l Member of the history hi articles on Texas land grants, positions and land usage, AI vious book, “Bounty and l>; tion Land Grants of Texas, 1: 1888,” was published in Ml A native of Commerce, he t| degrees from and taught at Texas State and UT-Austis addition to 24 years teachin; Texas A&M. FOR BEST TRY TRY Confused by conflicting "low price" claims? No need to be, because the place with the right price on every item every time you shop is Piggly Wiggly. Our Penny Pinchin' Prices are everyday low prices, for savings that add up week after week. For variety, quality, and the friendliest service in town, the right place to shop is the right place to save-Piggly Wiggly! BATTALION CLASSfflE| m BANANAS SAWAiaaPlUMS q*UFO|ZI\l/A #1^ . * zy 4 DELICIOUS APPLES CANTALOUPES / TASTE 11* , \y V 3*/ L—J ^*41 SEV* S WATERMELONS ONIONS WHITE 69c andup u#! WfIMOES 2 ^4.94 ■ 10c W0CNX)e^V»l94 CORN 3 vn^Pdces ihcDpjumfPi ^swjuly n-nw COFFEEMATE MA&ftHNE W * 494 OVEMBMEDBEMS »4.^804 OMAtfOAkBRiQUeiS ^ I0&*S9* RZUlTDPfNKd A HOUR m. 5 Vr 394 Bt&ung » ^ 54 aumm ^ m 594 AMsam » piffioMfOr I pewrY'/vP* &S&S« T ^304 BUffHUNfeuWL 9 Nr u«cn4 DECgfeR'5 (WHOLE. OMLV) PICNICS (oToQiB, MG' pec&Pt suceo MEDTChUCfl «394 « 39 4 BUTT HALF ‘fi 39415HAM1^HALF >6 3/4 P>ia