May, 1966 President's Message

TITLE EWS ~ ~ 'l'HE OFFICIAL PUBLICA'l'ION OF THE ~" AMERICAN LAND TITLE ASSOCIATION ® ~~ MAY, 1966 PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE May, 1966 Fellow ALT A Members: Congratulations to Alvin R. Robin, Chairman of the Abstracters Section of ALTA for the complete success of the first Management Seminar sponsored by the Abstracters Section of ALTA and co-spon sored by the Small Business Administration. The 131 registrants from 26 states in attendance indicated their personal appreciation to Al Robin by a thunderous ovation at the Saturday luncheon. An ALTA milestone which can be pointed to with pride of accomplish ment. Well done, Al. The formation of our second regional land title association is well on its way. At a meeting of a special committee held in Birmingham, Alabama on May 6, a constitution and by laws were drafted. This regional association includes the states of Alabama, Georgia and Mississippi and John P. Matthews of Atlanta, Georgia and Maclin F. Smith, Jr., of Birmingham, Alabama are leaders in the formation of this new regional association. Our 7th state convention of the 1965-66 year was at Dallas, Texas, . April 21-23. Members of the Texas Land Title Association were as congenial and hospitable as we had been told they would be, we had a very good time, and thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity to attend this largest of the affiliated state association conventions. Their new convention format, two full days, was very successful. It provided an interesting, educational and entertaining business program. In May, Iowa, California, Pennsylvania, Washington, the Caro linas, and Tennessee will hold state conventions; the U. S. Chamber of Commerce its annual convention; and the Alabama, Georgia and Mississippi regional association an organizational meeting. May should be a busy and interesting month. Our deepest sympathy to Jim and Alice Robinson in the tragic death of James W. Robinson, Jr., April 11 as a result of combat in jury in Viet Nam. We attended funeral services held at Lyons, Il linois on April 22. TITLE NEWS THE OFFICIAL PUBLICATION OF THE AMERICAN LAND TITLE ASSOCIATION EDITORIAL OFFICE: Premier Bldg., 1726 Eye St., N.W., Washington, D .C. 20006 296-3671 FEATURES How Public Land Laws Will Be Reviewed 2 Milestone for a Title Insurance Company 8 1966 Mid-Winter Conference 10 DEPARTMENTS A Message from the President inside front cover In the News 30 In Memoriam 35 Meeting Timetable 36 ON THE COVER VOLUME XLV Members of the American Land Title Association owe a great deal to the staunch and farsighted pioneers who established the Association on a firm foundation many years ago. NUMBER 5 The splendid titlemen pictured on the cover were in attendance at the 1909 Annual Convention in Seattle, Washington. Only one 1966 of those men, R. G. "Stubby" Williams, is still alive. He is active in the title businesR and attends ALTA Conventions and Conferences regularly. He is the serious looking young man in the lower right corner of the photograph. JAMES W. ROBINSON, Editor FRANK H. EBERSOLE, Assistant Editor and Manager of Advertising Page 1 Members of the American Land Title Association are intensely interested in the work of the Public Land Law Review Commission. Following the 1965 Annual Convention, President Nichols appointed H. Eugene Tully as Chairman of a special committee to study and work with the Commission. Executive Vice President, William J. McAulifje, Jr., has been in close contact with Commission Staff Di rector, Milton A. Pearl, to whom we are indebted for this splendid article. Before becoming staff director of including establishment of Pu b 1 i c the Public Land Law Review Com Land Law Review Commission, Clas mission in August 1965, the author sification and Multiple Use Act, Pub had been a member of the professional lic Lands Sales Act, Wilderness Act, staff of the Committee on Interior and and amendments to Mineral Leasing Insular Affairs of the House of Rep Act. Mr. Pearl has been active resentatives. As consultant on public in land lands and mining, he was responsible work during his entire professional for staff work in the House on public career; he is an attorney and a Mem lands and mining legislation during ber of the American Institute of Real the 87th, 88th, and 89th Congresses, Estate Appraisers. Page 2 HOW PUBLIC LAND LAWS WILL BE REVIEWED by Milton A. Pearl ongress has established the In addition, and of particular C Public Land Law R e vi e w interest to the title searchers and Commission for the purpose of insurers, there are, among other conducting a comprehensive re outstanding reserved interests, view of the laws, ru !es, and reg mineral rights that have been re ulations applicable to those pub served to the United States in an lic lands b r o u g ht within the estimated 60 million acres of scope of the study. The objective land. is to determine whether, and to All Public Land Laws what ext e n t, revisions of the to be Scrutinized laws, regulations, and procedures are necessary. In other words, all of the pub For the purpose of this study, lic land laws-including the set "public lands" are defined as em tlement laws, disposal laws, and bracing all of the public domain mining laws-are to be brought of the United States-whether re under the Commission's scrutiny served or unreserved, but ex during its study period. Behind clusive of Indian reservations the need for the examination of all of the national forests, all of these laws are many factors. We the wildlife refuges and game all know that interpretations of ranges, the outstanding inter the mining laws have cast doubt ests which the United States has on the validity of claims that in reserved in land, the surface of years past w o u 1 d have been which transferred to pr iv ate bought and sold without question ownership for one purpose or an as interests in real property. As other, and finally, the mineral re the agricult•iral ch a r act er of sources in our offshore areas of the outer continental. shelf. Our preliminary summary of lands concerning which the Com mission is called to make recom mendations indicates a total of about 7 40 million acres, includ ing some 25 million acres of ac quired lands which are part of the National Forest and National Wildlife Refuge systems. This is near].y one-third the total land area of the United States. Page 3 some areas has changed to subur APPOINTED BY THE PRESIDENT ban or other use, reserved inter OF THE UNITED STATES: ests have interfered Laurance S. Rockefeller, of New with inten York City sive development; graziers have Governor Philip Hoff, of the State become concerned because, under of Vermont the Taylor Grazing Act, their H. Byron Mock, of Salt Lake City permits give them no rights in Vice Chairman Dr. Robert Emmet Clark, of Albu the land in which they have in querque, N.M. vested and which they have used Dr. Maurice Goddard, of Harris for 30 years; and there are a burg, Pa. multiplicity of other problems, Mrs. Nancy E. Smith, of San including the need for expanded Bernardino, Calif. recreation areas, areas in which APPOINTED BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: communities can grow, and lands Henry M. Jackson, Senator from upon which industry can flour Washington ish. Clinton P. Anderson, Senator from So it was that the law estab New Mexico Alan Bible, Sena.tor from Nevada lishing the Public Land Law Re Thomas H. Kuchel, Senator from view Commission was enacted, California the Commission m e m b e r s ap Gordon Allott, Senator from Colo pointed, and the work of review rado Len B. Jordan, Senator from Idaho ing the I.ands and the laws under APPOINTED BY THE SPEAKER taken. OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESEN Commission Has 19 Members TATIVES: Leo W. O'Brien, Representative The Commission is composed of from New York 19 members, of whom six are ap Walter Rogers, Representative from pointed by the President Texas of the Compton I. White, Jr., Representa Senate, six by The Speaker of tive from Idaho the House of Representatives, six John P. Saylor, Representative by the President of the United from Pennsylvania States, with the 19th member Laurence J. Burton, Representative from Utah chosen by the first 18 to act as Rogers C. B. Morton, Representa chairman. In other words, the tive from Maryland chairman could have come from In addition to choosing Repre anywhere and been a n y o n e; sentative Aspinall as chairman, when the 18 members met and the Commission, at its organiza chose Congressman Way n e N. tion meeting, ch o s e a Presiden Aspinall as their chairman, he, tial appointee, H. Byron Mock of therefore, resigned his represent Salt Lake City as vice chairman, ative position, to which he had and named the author as the been appointed by the Speaker of staff d i r e ct o r responsible for the Ho u s e of Representatives, day-to-day operations. and an o th er appointment was Following the organization meet made to fill the vacancy. ing of the Commission, we have The Commission membership is: been constantly en g a g e d in CHAIRMAN: Wayne N. Aspinall, the detailed effort of preparing Representative from Colorado. and entering upon the substan- Page 4 tive program. As if the subject the Secretaries of the Interior, matter of the Commission's study Agriculture, and Defense, the At were not awesome enough, we had torney General, the Administrator all the problems that are faced of General Services, the Chairman in starting a new appendage of of the Atomic Energy Commis the Federal Government, such as sion and the Federal Power Com acquiring staff, as well as space, mission, and the Administrator of and the "purchase" of supplies.

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