He dismounted and came toward her holding a document in front of him with the practiced ease of someone who had done this before and expected it to work. Ma'am Roy Dunar I ranch about 15 mi east. He held out the document. I need you to take a look at this. She wiped her hands on her apron and took the paper and read it without changing her expression.
It was a land claim official looking territorial seal at the bottom. The kind of document that had weight simply from its formatting. Her name was not on it. The parcel boundaries matched hers closely, shifted north by approximately 200 yards, which included the cabin site, the garden, the creek access, everything she had built. This parcel is registered in my husband's name, she said, and transferred to me on his death.
That transfer is what we're contesting, said the second man. He was smaller than Dunbar with careful eyes and the precise neutrality of someone professionally uninvested in outcomes. I'm Perch from the territorial land office in Durango. The transfer document on file has a defect. What defect?
She said, not a question, a demand. The witness listed, and Edmund Cole was not, according to our records, a territorial resident at the time of filing. Under territorial law, land transfer documents require a resident witness. If the witness was non-resident, the transfer is technically invalid. If the transfer is invalid, the land reverts to unregistered status.
At which point, Mr. Dunar's prior claim. When was this claim filed? She said 3 weeks ago. Dunar said, "This land has been actively settled for 11 weeks." She said, "By me." She looked at Perch.
A prior claim filed against an actively settled parcel has no legal standing in this territory and you know it. That Perch said smoothly is a matter for the courts to determine. We're here to give you proper notice. She folded the document and held it out. Perch took it slightly surprised.
I know exactly what this is. She said Edmund Cole has been working the Durango to Denver freight route for 3 years. He was at that camp outside Canyon City when he witnessed this transfer and he had been a territorial resident for 3 years prior. Your argument about his residency has no merit. She looked at Dunbar.