By
authority of the United States, be it enacted by the Philippine
Commission that:
CHAPTER I
HOMESTEADS ON THE PUBLIC DOMAIN
Section 1. Any citizen of the Philippine Islands, or
of the United States, or of any Insular possession thereof, over the
age of twenty-one years or the head of a family may, as hereinafter
provided, enter a homestead of not exceeding sixteen hectares of
unoccupied, unreserved unappropriated agricultural public land in the
Philippine Islands, as defined by the Act of Congress of July first,
nineteen hundred and two entitled "An Act temporarily to provide for
the administration of the affairs of civil government in the Philippine
Islands, and for other purposes which shall be taken, if on surveyed
lands, by legal subdivisions, but if on unsurveyed lands shall be
located in a body which shall be as nearly as practicable rectangular
in shape and not more than eight hundred meters in length; but no
person who is the owner of more than sixteen hectares of land in said
islands or who has had the benefits of any gratuitous allotment of
sixteen hectares of land since the acquisition of the Islands by the
United States, shall be entitled to the benefits of this chapter.
Sec. 2. Any person applying to enter land under
the provisions of this chapter shall file with such officer as may be
designated by law as local land officer, or in case there be no such
officer than with the Chief of the Bureau of Public Lands, an
application under oath showing that he has the qualifications required
under section one of this chapter, and that he possesses none of the
disqualifications there mentioned that such application is made for his
exclusive use and benefits: that the same is made for the purpose of
actual settlement and cultivation, and not either directly or
indirectly, for the use or benefit of any other person, persons,
corporation or association of persons; that the land applied for is
non-mineral, does not contain valuable deposits of coal or salts, is
more valuable for agricultural than forestry purposes, and is not
occupied by any other person; and showing the location of the land by
stating the province, municipality, and barrio in which the same is
situated, and as accurate a description as may be given, showing the
boundaries of the land, having reference to natural objects and
permanent monuments, if any. Upon the filing of said application the
Chief of the Bureau of Public Lands shall summarily determine, by
inquiry of the Chief of the Bureau of Forestry and from the available
land records, whether the land described is prima facie subject under
the law to homestead settlement, and, if he shall find nothing to the
contrary, the applicant, upon the payment of ten pesos, Philippine
currency, shall be permitted to enter the quantity of land specified,
provided, however, that the option of the applicant, payment of said
entry fee and of the fee prescribed in section three hereof may be made
it five annual installments of four pesos each. These payments may be
made to the municipal treasurer of the locality who, in turn, shall
forward to the provincial treasurer the amounts received on this
account. In case of the delinquency of the applicant in the payment of
any said installments, thirty days after having become delinquent, he
shall lose ipso facto his rights to the land in question, shall not be
entitled to the reimbursement of the installments which he may have
paid, and the land shall become vacant and open to entry by another.
Sec. 3. No certificate shall be given or patent
issued for the land applied for until the expiration of five years from
the date of filing of the application; and if, at the expiration of
such time, or at any time within three years thereafter, the person
filing such application shall prove by two credible witnesses that he
has resided upon the land for the last two years immediately preceding
the day of such proof, and cultivated the land for the term of five
years immediately succeeding the time of filing the application
aforesaid, and shall make affidavit that no part of said land has been
alienated or encumbered, and that he has borne true allegiance to the
Government of the United States and that of the Philippine Islands,
then, upon payment of a fee of ten pesos, Philippine currency, or upon
the payment of the last of the five installments provided for in
section two, to such officer as may be designated by law as local land
officer, or in case there be no such officer then to the Director of
Lands, he shall be entitled to a patent, provided, however, That in the
event of the death of an applicant prior to the issuance of a patent
his widow shall be entitled to have a patent for the land applied for
issue to her upon showing that she has consummated the requirements of
law for homesteading the lands as above set out; and in case the
applicant dies before the issuance of the patent and does not leave a
widow, then the interest of the applicant in the land shall descend and
patent shall issue to the persons who under the laws of the Philippine
Islands would have taken, had the title been perfected by patent before
the death of the applicant, upon proof, by the persons thus entitled,
of compliance with said requirement and conditions. (As amended by Act
No. 1864.)
Sec. 4. No lands acquired under the provisions of
this chapter shall in any event become liable to the satisfactions of
any debt contracted prior to the issuance of a patent therefor
Sec. 5. If, at any time after the filing of the
application as herein-above provided and before the expiration of the
period allowed by law for the making of final proof, it is proved to
the satisfaction of the Chief of the Bureau of Public Lands, after due
notice to the homesteader, that the land entered is not under the law
subject to homestead entry, or that the homesteader has actually
changed his residence, voluntarily abandoned the land for more than six
months at any one time during the two years of residence herein
required, or has otherwise failed to comply with the requirements of
law, then in that even the Chief of the Bureau of Public Lands may
cancel the entry, subject to appeal under proper regulations to the
Secretary of the Interior, and the land thereupon shall become subject
to disposition as other public lands of like character.
Sec. 6. Not more than one homestead entry shall be
allowed to any one person.
Sec. 7. Before final proof shall be submitted by
any person claiming to have complied with the provisions of this
chapter, due notice, as prescribed by the Chief of the Bureau of Public
Lands, with the approval of the Secretary of the Interior, shall be
given to the public of his intention to make such proof, stating
thereon the time and places, and giving a description of the land and
the names of the witnesses by whom it is expected that the necessary
facts will be established.
Sec. 8. Any person may file an affidavit of
contest against any homestead entry, charging that the land entered was
not unoccupied, unreserved, or unappropriated agricultural land at the
time of filing the application, alleging disqualification of the
entryman, non-compliance with law as to residents or cultivation, or
any other matter which, if proven, would be just cause for the
cancellation of the entry, and upon successful termination of the
contest, the contestant, if a qualified entryman shall be allowed a
preference right of entry for sixty days from said date.
The Chief of the Bureau of Public Lands or any public official becoming
aware of the existence of any of the grounds above stated, for
impeaching or cancelling the entry, may file formal complaint against
the entry on such ground which, if proven, shall cause the cancellation
of the entry.
Sec. 9. No patent shall issue under the provisions
of this chapter until the land has been surveyed under the direction of
the Chief of the Bureau of Public Lands and an accurate plan made
thereof, the cost of which survey shall be borne by the Insular
Government.
CHAPTER II
SALES OF PORTIONS OF THE PUBLIC DOMAIN
Sec. 10. Any citizen of the Philippine Islands, or
of the United States or of any insular possession therefor, or any
corporation or like association of persons organized under the laws of
the Philippine Islands or of the United States or any state, territory,
or insular possession thereof, and authorized to transact business in
the Philippine Islands, may purchase any tract of unoccupied,
unappropriated and unreserved non-mineral agricultural public land in
the Philippine Islands, as defined in the Act of Congress of July
first, nineteen hundred and two, not to exceed sixteen hectares for an
individual or one thousand and twenty-four hectares for an individual
or one thousand and twenty-four hectares for a corporation or like
association, by proceeding as hereinafter provided in this chapter,
provided, that no association of persons not organized as above and no
more partnership shall be entitled to purchase a greater quantity than
will equal sixteen hectares for each member thereof.
Sec. 11. Purchases made under the provisions of
this chapter of land previously surveyed must be made of contiguous
legal subdivisions. All lands purchases hereunder, whether previously
surveyed or not, in case the tract sought to be purchased exceeds
sixty-four hectares in area, must be taken, wherever possible, in the
form of contiguous squares which shall contain at least sixty four
hectares each, provided, That in connection with the purchase of lands
in one or more tracts of sixty-four hectares there may be purchased one
rectangular tract of thirty-two hectares, the longer side of which must
be contiguous to the square tract of sixty four hectares, or to one of
such tracts if more than one be purchased. In no case may lands
purchased under the provisions of this chapter be taken in such manner
as to gain any such control of any adjacent land, water, stream, shore
line, way, roadstead, or other valuable right as might be prejudicial
to the interests of the public.
Sec. 12. An application to purchase land under
this chapter must be filed with such officer as may designated by law
as local land officer, or in case there be no such officer then with
the Chief of the Bureau of Public Lands. It must be executed under oath
and must state the citizenship of the applicant and his post-office
address; the location of the land desired, stating the province,
municipality, and barrio in which the same is situated, and as accurate
a description as can be given, showing the boundaries of the land,
having reference to natural objects and permanent monuments, if any; a
statement as to whether any part of the land is occupied or improved,
and that it is non-mineral in character, more valuable for agricultural
than for forestry purposes, and does not contain deposits of coal or
salts. The application of a corporation must be accompanied by a
certified copy of its charter or articles of incorporation. An
unincorporated association must show that its members are severally
possessed of the qualifications above required of individuals. In the
case of a corporation or association organized outside of the
Philippine Islands there must be attached to the application proper
documentary evidence that the law governing the transaction of business
in the Philippine Islands by foreign corporations or associations has
been complied with.
Sec. 13. It shall be the duty of the Chief of the
Bureau of Public Lands to examine all applications to purchase under
this chapter, and to determine whether the applicant has the
qualifications acquired in section ten thereof, and from the
certificate of the Chief of the Bureau of Forestry to determine whether
the land applied for is more valuable for agricultural than forestry
purposes. He shall report his findings to the Secretary of the
Interior, who, after proper consideration and approval of same, shall
order the sale to be made.
It shall also be the duty of the Chief of the Bureau of Public Lands to
appraise the land applied for under this chapter, which appraisement
shall not be less than ten pesos, Philippine currency, per hectare, and
in making this appraisal he may call to his assistance any provincial
or municipal official of the province in which the land lies, when the
land shall have been appraised, as herein above provided, the Chief of
the Bureau of Public Lands shall advertise the same for sale, by
publishing a notice thereof once a week for six consecutive weeks, in
two newspapers, one published at Manila and the other (if any such
there be) published near the land applied for, such notices to be
published in both the English and Spanish languages. The Chief of the
Bureau of Public Lands shall, with the approval of the Secretary of the
Interior, prescribe, in addition to the publication in newspapers, a
suitable method of posting notice upon the land sought to be purchased
or in the pueblo where the land is situated. The notices shall state a
date not earlier than ten days after the date of the last publication
of the notice in the newspaper published at Manila, upon which date the
Chief of the Bureau of Public Lands will award the land to the highest
bidder, or will call for new bids, or otherwise proceed as provided by
law.
Sec. 14. All bids must be sealed and addressed to
the Chief of the Bureau of Public Lands, and must have enclosed
therewith a certified check or a post-office money order payable to his
order, for twenty-five per centum of the amount of the bid, which
amount shall be retained, in case the bid is accepted, as part payment
of the purchase price: Provided, That no bids shall be considered which
are for less than the appraised value of the land.
Sec. 15. Upon the opening of the bids the land
shall be awarded to the highest bidder. If there are two or more
bidders which are higher than other bidders and are equal, and one of
such higher and equal bids is the bid of the applicant, his bid shall
be accepted. If, however, the bid of the applicant is not one of such
equal and higher bids, then the Chief of the Bureau of Public Lands
shall at once submit the lands for public bidding, and to the person
making the highest bid on such public auction the land shall be
awarded, but no bid received at such public auction shall be finally
accepted until the bidder shall have deposited twenty-five per centum
of his bid, as required in section fourteen. The deposits of all
unsuccessful bidders shall be returned at once by the Chief of the
Bureau of Public Lands. The Chief of the Bureau of Public Lands, with
the approval of the Secretary of the Interior, shall have authority to
reject any and all bids hereunder.
Sec. 16. Lands sold under the provisions of this
chapter must be paid for in the following manner: The balance of the
purchase price after deducting the amount paid by check or post office
money order at the time of submitting the bid, may be paid in full upon
the making of the award, or may be paid in equal annual installments,
or may be paid in one installment at the expiration of five years from
the date of the award. All sums remaining unpaid after date of the
award shall bear six per centum interest per annum from such date until
paid.
Sec. 17. No patent shall issue under the
provisions of this chapter until the land has been surveyed under the
direction of the Chief of the Bureau of Public Lands and as accurate
plat made thereof. The cost of such survey must be borne by the
purchaser, if a corporation or like association, and if the survey be
made in advance of the regular surveys of the Island: but where the
purchaser is an individual the cost of the survey shall be borne by the
Insular Government. Patents shall not be issued until after the
expiration of five years from the date of the award, and before the
same shall issue the purchaser must show actual occupancy, cultivation,
and improvement of the premises for a period of five years immediately
succeeding the date of the award, and that he has not sold the land or
in any manner encumbered the title.
Sec. 18. If at any time after the date of the
award and before the issuance of patent, it is proven to the
satisfaction of the Chief of the Bureau of Public Lands after due
notice to the purchaser, that the purchaser has voluntarily abandoned
the land for more than one year at any time, or has otherwise failed to
comply with the requirements of the law, then the land shall be
reverted to the Government and all prior payments of purchase money
shall be forfeited.
Sec. 19. This chapter shall be held to authorize
only one purchase of the maximum amount of land hereunder by the same
person, or by the same corporation or association of persons; and no
corporation or association, any member of which shall have taken the
benefits of this chapter, either as an individual or as a member of any
other corporation or association shall purchase any other public lands
under this chapter.
Sec. 20. In the event of the death of an
individual applicant subsequent to the date of the filing of the
applicant and prior to the issuance of patent, the distributes of his
estate, as defined by law, may claim the privilege of being subrogated
to the rights of the deceased applicant, and if they consummate the
requirements of law for purchasing land hereunder, patent shall issue
to such distributes.
Sec. 21. If any land applied for under the
provisions of this chapter shall be actually occupied by any person who
is qualified to make a homestead or other entry under the public land
laws of the Philippine Islands, or by any native who is entitled by law
to a free patent such person shall be personally served with notice as
to his rights, and shall be allowed a preference right of one hundred
and twenty days within which to make entry or apply for patent.
CHAPTER III
LEASES OF PORTIONS OF THE PUBLIC DOMAIN
Sec. 22. Any citizen of the United States, or of
the Philippine Islands, or of any insular possession of the United
States, or any corporation or association of persons organized under
the laws of the Philippine Islands, or of any state, territory, or
insular possession thereof, authorized by the laws of its creation and
any by the laws of the Philippine Islands and the Acts of Congress
applicable thereto to transact business in the Philippine Islands, may
lease any tract of unoccupied, unreserved, nonmineral agricultural
public lands, as defined by sections eighteen and twenty of the Act of
Congress approved July first, nineteen hundred and two providing a
temporary government for the Philippine Islands, and so forth, not
exceeding one thousand and twenty-four hectares, by proceeding as
hereinafter in this chapter indicated; Provided, That no lease shall be
permitted to interfere with any prior claim by settlement or occupation
until the consent of the occupant or settler is first had and obtained,
or until such claim shall be legally extinguished; And provided,
further, That no corporation or association of person shall be
permitted to lease lands hereunder which are not reasonably necessary
to enable it to carry one the business for which it was lawfully
created and which it may lawfully pursue in the Philippine Islands.
Sec. 23. Leases made under the provisions of this
chapter, of land previously surveyed, must be made of contiguous legal
subdivisions. All lands leased hereunder, whether previously surveyed
or not, in case the tract sought to be leased exceeds sixty-four
hectares in area, must be taken where possible in the form of
contiguous squares, which shall contain at least sixty-four hectares
each: Provided, That in connection with the lease of lands in one or
more tracts of sixty-four hectares there may be leased one rectangular
tract of thirty two hectares, the longer side of which must be
continuous to the square tract of sixty four hectares, or to one of
such tracts if more than one be leased. In no case may lands leased
under the provisions of this chapter be taken so as to gain a control
of adjacent land, water, stream, shore line, way, roadstead, or other
valuable right which in the opinion of the Chief of the Bureau of
Public Lands would be prejudicial to the interests of the public.
Sec. 24. An application to lease land under this
chapter must be executed under oath and filed with such officer as may
be designated by law as local land officer of the district in which the
land is situated, or in case there be no such officer then with the
Chief of the Bureau of Public Lands; and must show the following facts:
The citizenship and post office address of the applicant; the location
of the land, showing the province, municipality, and barrio in which
the same is situated, and as accurate a description as may be given,
showing the boundaries of the land, having reference to natural objects
and permanent monuments, if any, a statement as to whether the land
contains any improvements or evidences of settlement and cultivation,
and a statement that it is nonmineral in character, more valuable for
agricultural than for forestry purposes and does not contain deposits
of coal and salts. Corporations and associations shall be required to
file evidence of their legal existence and authority to transact
business in the Philippine Islands.
Sec. 25. All applicants for the lease under the
terms of this chapter must give notice, by publication and by such
other means as may be required by the Chief of the Bureau of Public
Lands, with the approval of the Secretary of Interior, of intent to
make application to lease the tract in question, which notice shall
state the date when the application will be presented and shall
describe as definitely as practicable the land sought to be leased.
Sec. 26. It shall be the duty of the Chief of the
Bureau of Public Lands to examine all applications for leases under
this chapter, and to determine whether the applicant has the
qualifications required in section twenty-two hereof, and, from the
certificate of the Chief of the Bureau of Forestry, to determine
whether the land applied for is more valuable for agricultural than
forestry purposes, and further summarily to determine from available
records whether the land nonmineral and does not contain deposits of
coal or salts. He shall report his findings to the Secretary of
Interior, who after proper consideration and approval of same, shall
cause the lease to be executed.
Sec. 27. The rate per hectare per annum for lands
leased under this chapter shall be fixed by the Chief of the Bureau of
Public Lands, with the approval of the Secretary of the Interior, and
shall in no case be less than fifty centavos, Philippine Currency, per
hectare per annum, said rent shall be paid yearly in advance, the first
payment being deposited with the Chief of the Bureau of Public Lands
before the delivery of the lease.
Sec. 28. Leases hereunder shall run for a period
of not more than twenty-five years, but may be renewed for a second
period of twenty-five years, at a rate to be fixed as above indicated,
which rate shall not be less than fifty centavos per hectare and shall
not exceed one peso and fifty centavos, Philippine currency per
hectare. Land leased hereunder shall not be assigned or sublet without
the consent of the Bureau of Public Lands and the Secretary of the
Interior.
Sec. 29. No land shall be leased under the
provisions of this chapter until the land has been surveyed under the
direction of the Chief of the Bureau of Public Lands and an accurate
plat made thereof, the cost of the survey to be borne by the lessee.
Sec. 30. The lease of any lands under this chapter
shall not confer the right to remove or dispose of any valuable timber
except as provided in regulations of the Bureau of Forestry for cutting
timber upon such lands. Nor shall such lease confer the right to remove
or dispose of stone, oil, coal, salts, or other minerals, but the lease
as to the part thereof which shall be mineral may be cancelled by the
Chief of the Bureau of Public Lands, with the approval of the Secretary
of the Interior, whenever the mineral character of such part shall be
made satisfactorily to appear, after due notice of the lessee.
Sec. 31. The commission of waste or the violation
of the forestry regulations by the lessee shall work a forfeiture of
his last payment of the rent and render him liable to immediate
dispossession and suit for damage.
CHAPTER IV
FREE PATENTS TO NATIVE SETTLERS
Sec. 32. Any native of the Philippine Islands now
as occupant and cultivator of unreserved, unappropriated agricultural
public land, as defined by the Act of Congress of July first, nineteen
hundred and two, who has continuously occupied and cultivated such
land, either by himself or through his ancestors, since August first,
eighteen hundred and ninety; or who prior to August first, eighteen
hundred and ninety eighty continuously occupied and cultivated such
land for three years immediately prior to said date, and who has been
continuously since July fourth, nineteen hundred and two, until the
date of the taking effect of this Act, an occupier and cultivator of
such land, shall be entitled to have a patent issued to him without
compensation for such tract of land, not exceeding sixteen hectares, as
hereinafter in this chapter provided.
Sec. 33. Any person desiring to obtain the
benefits of this chapter unit, prior to January first, nineteen hundred
and twenty-three file an application for a patent with such officer as
may be designated by law as local land officer, or in case there be no
such officer then with the Director of Lands. Said application must be
executed under oath, and must show the following facts: The name, age,
and post-office address of the applicant; That he is a native of the
Philippine Islands; The location of the land desired, stating the
province, municipality, and barrio in which the same is situated, and
as accurate a description as may be given, showing the boundaries of
the land, having reference to natural objects and permanent monuments,
if any; That the land is not claimed or occupied by any other person; a
statement as to date when the applicant or his ancestor giving the name
of the ancestor and stating his relationship to the applicant, entered
into occupation and began cultivation, and a description of the
improvements which have been made. If the first occupation and
cultivation is claimed through an ancestor, the applicant must show the
name of such ancestor and must file satisfactory evidence of the date
and place of his death and burial, in which case the patent shall issue
in the name of the heir or heirs of such ancestor as defined by the
laws of the Philippine Islands. (As amended by Act No. 2222).
Sec. 34. Upon receipt of the said application it
shall be the duty of the Chief of the Bureau of Public Lands to cause a
careful investigation to be made in such manner as he shall deem
necessary for the ascertainment of the truth of the allegations therein
contained and if satisfied upon such investigation that the applicant
comes within the provisions of this chapter, he shall cause a patent to
issue for the tract to such applicant, or to the heirs of his ancestor,
as provided in the next preceding section, not exceeding sixteen
hectares in extent: Provided, That no application shall be finally
acted upon until notice thereof has been published in the municipality
and barrios in which the land is located, and adverse claimants have
had an opportunity to present their claims: And provided further, That
no patent shall issue until the land has been surveyed under the
direction of the Chief of the Bureau of Public Lands and accurate plat
made thereof.
Sec. 35. Lands acquired under the provisions of
this chapter shall be inalienable and shall not be subject to
encumbrances for a period of seven years from the date of the issuance
of the patent therefor, and shall not be liable for the satisfaction of
any debt contracted prior to the expiration of that period.
CHAPTER V
TOWN SITES
Sec. 36. Whenever in the opinion of the Secretary
of the Interior it shall be in the public interest to reserve a town
site from the public land or to acquire lands for such purpose by the
exercise of the right of the eminent domain, he shall direct the Chief
of the Bureau of Public Lands to have made a survey if the exterior
boundaries of the land which he deems it wise so to reserve or acquire.
Sec. 37. Upon the completion and return of the
survey mentioned in section thirty-six the Secretary of the Interior
shall forward the same to the Philippine Commission with his
recommendations.
Sec. 38. The Commission, if it approve the
recommendations of the Secretary of the Interior, shall pass a
resolution reserving the land surveyed, or such part thereof as it may
deem wise, as a town site, and a certified copy of such resolution
shall be sent to the Chief of the Bureau of Public Lands, who shall
record the same in the records of his office and forward a certified
copy of such record to the register of the province in which the
surveyed land lies.
Sec. 39. It shall then be the duty of the Chief of
the Bureau of Public Lands, having recorded the resolution of the
Commission and the preliminary survey accompanying the same, to direct
a subdivision and plat of the land, in accordance with the directions
contained in the resolution approving the same, if such resolution
contain directions as to the method of subdivision, or if it contain no
such direction, then in a manner which shall to the Chief of the Bureau
of Public Lands seem best adapted to the convenience and interest of
the public and the residents of the future town.
Sec. 40. The Commission, by resolution, or in the
absence of action in this regard by the Commission, the Chief of the
Bureau of Public Lands, shall reserve from the land to be platted, lots
of sufficient size and convenient situation for public uses, as well as
the necessary avenues, streets, alleys, parks, and plazas.
Sec. 41. The plat of the subdivision shall
designate certain lots as business lots and the remainder as residence
lots, and shall also reserve and note the lots of land owned by private
individuals as evidenced by record titles, or as possessed and claimed
by them as private property: Provided, however, that the avenues,
streets, alleys, parks, plazas, and lots shall be laid out on the plat
as though the lands owned or claimed by private persons were part of
the reservation, with a view to the possible subsequent purchase or
condemnation thereof if deemed necessary by the proper authorities.
Sec. 42. All lots, whether public or private
contained in the exterior boundaries shall be platted and numbered upon
a general plan or system.
Sec. 43. The plat of the subdivision of the
reserve town site thus prepared under the supervision of the Chief of
the Bureau of Public Lands shall be submitted to the Secretary of the
Interior for presentation of the Commission for its consideration,
modification, amendment, or approval.
Sec. 44. The resolution of the Commission
approving the plat shall provide whether the proceeds derived from the
sale of lots shall be covered into the Insular Treasury as general
Insular funds, or as a special fund to be devoted to public
improvements in or near the town site, and thereafter the receipts from
the sale of lots shall be applied as provided in the resolution of the
Commission.
Sec. 45. Where the proceeds of the sale are to
constitute a fund to be devoted to public improvements in or near the
town site, the same be expended by provided by law or resolution of the
Commission.
Sec. 46. When the plat of subdivision is approved
by the Commission it shall be certified to the Chief of the Bureau of
Public Lands, together with the resolution approving the same, and the
Chief of the Bureau of Public Lands shall record the same in the
records of his office and shall forward a certified copy of such record
to the registrar of the province in which the land lies, to be by such
registrar recorded in the records of his office.
Sec. 47. All lots except those claimed by or
belonging to private owners and claimants and excepting such lots and
tracts as may be reserved for parks, public buildings, and public uses,
shall be sold under the direction of the Chief of the Bureau of Public
Lands, as hereinafter in this chapter provided, and the Chief of the
Bureau of Public Lands, with the approval of the Secretary of the
Interior, shall prescribe rules and regulations for disposal of lots
hereunder.
Sec. 48. All lots in the reservation which are
subject to sale as above provided shall, if in the opinion of the
Secretary of the Interior the value of the lots is sufficiently known
to make an appraisement useful, be appraised by a committee to be
appointed by the Chief of the Bureau of Public Lands, with the approval
of the Secretary of the Interior.
Sec. 49. The lots in any such town site thus
established and subject to sale, shall after the approval and recording
of the plat of subdivision as above provided, and after due
advertisement, be sold at public auction to the highest bidder but no
bid shall be accepted, in case of appraised lots, if the bid does not
equal two thirds of the appraised value, and in the case of lots not
appraised the bid shall not be accepted if in the judgment of the Chief
of the Bureau of Public Lands and Secretary of the Interior the bid is
an inadequate price for lot.
Sec. 50. Not more than two residence lots and two
business lots in any one town site shall be sold to only one person,
corporation, or association without the specific approval of the
Secretary of the Interior.
Sec. 51. Lots which have been offered for sale in
the manner herein prescribed, and for which no satisfactory bid has
been received, shall be again offered for sale after due advertisement,
and if at the second sale no satisfactory bid is received, they may be
sold at private sale by the Chief of the Bureau of Public Lands for not
less than their value, as appraised by a committee to be appointed by
the Chief of the Bureau of Public Lands with the approval of the
Secretary of the Interior.
Sec. 52. In any case in which, in the opinion of
the Commission, it shall be necessary to condemn private lands within
the reserved or proposed limits of a townsite, either for streets,
alleys, parks, or as lots for public buildings or other public uses,
the Commission shall pass a resolution declaring the necessity for the
same which resolution shall be certified to the Attorney-General, who
shall at once begin proceedings for the condemnation of the lands
described in the resolution in accordance with the provisions of the
Code of Civil Procedure.
Sec. 53. Town sites constituted under the
provisions of this chapter on land forming a part of an exist
municipality shall remain within the jurisdiction of such municipality
until taken therefrom by legislative action of the Commission.
CHAPTER VI
UNPERFECTED TITLE AND SPANISH GRANTS AND CONCESSIONS
Sec. 54. The following described persons or their
legal successors in right, occupying public lands in the Philippine
Islands, or claiming to own any such lands or an interest therein, but
whose titles to such lands have not been perfected, may apply to the
Court of Land Registration of the Philippine Islands for confirmation
of their claims and the issuances of a certificate of title therefor,
to wit:
1. All persons who prior to the transfer of
sovereignty from Spain to the United States had fulfilled all the
conditions required by the Spanish laws and royal decrees of the
Kingdom of Spain for the purchase of public lands, including the
payment of the purchase price, but who failed to secure formal
conveyance of title;
2. All persons who prior to the transfer of
sovereignty from Spain to the United States, having applied for the
purchase of public lands and having secured a survey, auction, and an
award, or a right to an award, of such lands, did not receive title
therefor through no fault upon their part;
3. All persons who prior to the transfer of
sovereignty from Spain to the United States, having applied for the
purchase of public lands and having secured a survey and award of same,
did not through negligence upon their part, comply with the conditions
of full or any payment therefor, but who after such survey and award
shall have occupied the land adversely, except as prevented by war or
force majeure, until the taking effect of this Act;
4. All persons who were entitled to apply and did
apply for adjustment or composition of title to lands against the
Government under the Spanish laws and royal decrees in force prior to
the royal decree of February thirteen, eighteen hundred and
ninety-four, but who failed to receive title therefor through no
default upon their part;
5. All persons who were entitled to a gratuitous
title to public lands by "possessory proceedings" under the provisions
of articles nineteen and twenty of the royal decree of the king of
Spain issued February thirteen, eighteen hundred and ninety-four, and
who, having complied with all the conditions therein required failed to
receive title therefor through no default upon their part; and
6. All persons who by themselves or their
predecessors in interest has been in the open, continuous exclusive,
and notorious possession and occupation of agricultural public lands,
as defined by said Act of Congress of July first, nineteen hundred and
two, under a bona fide claim of ownership except as against the
Government, for a period of ten years next preceding the taking effect
of this Act except when prevented by war or force majeure, shall be
conclusively presumed to have performed all the conditions essential to
a government grant and to have received the same, and shall be entitled
to a certificate of title to such land under the provisions of this
chapter.
All applicants for lands under paragraphs one, two, three, four, and
five of this section must establish by proper official records or
documents that such proceedings as are therein required were taken and
the necessary conditions complied with; Provided, however, that such
requirements shall not apply to the fact of adverse possession.
Sec. 55. All persons claiming title to Government
lands not coming within the classes specified in the preceding section
are excluded from the benefits of this chapter.
Sec. 56. Any person or persons, or their legal
representatives or successors in right, claiming any land or interest
in lands in the Philippines under the provisions of this chapter, and
who now desire or claim the right to have such title perfected must in
every case present an application in writing to the Court of Land
Registration praying that the validity of the alleged title or claim be
inquired into and that a certificate of title issue to then under the
provisions of the Land Registration Act for the lands claimed.
Sec. 57. Such claims and applications shall
conform as nearly as may in their material allegations to the
requirements of an application for registration under the provisions of
section twenty-one and subsequent sections of the Land Registration
Act, and shall be accompanied by a plan of the land and all documents
evidencing a right on the part of the applicant to the land claimed.
The application shall also set forth fully the nature of the claim to
the land, and when based upon proceedings initiated under Spanish laws
shall particularly state the date and form of the grant, concession,
warrant, or order of survey under which the claim is made; by whom such
grant, concession, warrant or order of survey was made; the extent of
the compliance with the conditions required by the Spanish laws and
royal decrees for the acquisition of legal title, and if not fully
complied with the reason for such noncompliance, together with a
statement of the length of time such land or any portion thereof has
been actually occupied by the claimant and his predecessors in
interest; the use made of the land, and the nature of the enclosure, if
any. The face provided to be paid for the registration of land under
the Land Registration Act shall be collected from applicants under this
chapter, except that upon the original registration of land claimed
hereunder no fee shall be required for the assurance fund.
Sec. 58. Any applicant for registration of lands
under the provisions of this chapter may, upon petition directed to the
Chief of the Bureau of Public Lands, and upon payment of the fees as
regulated by law, secure a survey and plan of the lands claimed to be
owned by him, which said plan shall be filed with his application in
the Court of Land Registration.
Sec. 59. Upon the filing of claims and
applications for registration in the Court of Land Registration, under
this chapter, the same procedure shall be adopted in the hearing of
such cases and in the matter of appeal as is by the Land Registration
Act provided for other claims, except that a notice of all such
applications, together with a plan of the lands claim, shall be
immediately forward to the Chief of the Bureau of Public Lands of the
Philippine Islands, who shall be represented in all question arising
upon the consideration of such applications by the Attorney-General of
the Philippine Islands or by any subordinate or assistant to the
Attorney-General appointed for that purpose.
Sec. 60. It shall be the duty of the examiner of
titles, upon reference to him of any such claim or application, to
investigate all the facts alleged therein or otherwise brought to his
attention, and to make careful inquiry as to the period of occupation
of the land by the claimant or his predecessors in interest; the nature
of such lands; the character of the enclosure, if any, and the extent
to which the land has been subjected to cultivation. He shall file a
full report of his investigation in the case, concluding with a
certificate of his opinion upon the merits of the claim.
Sec. 61. It shall be lawful for the Chief of the
Bureau of Public Lands, Whenever in the opinion of the Chief Executive
the Public interest shall require it, to cause to be filed in the Court
of Land Registration, through the Attorney-General, a petition against
the holder, claimant, possessor, or occupant of any land in the
Philippine Islands who shall not have voluntarily come in under the
provisions of this chapter of the Land Registration Act stating in
substance that the title of such holder, claimant, possessor, or
occupant is open to question, or stating in substance that the
boundaries of any such land which has not been brought into court as
aforesaid are open to question and praying that the title to any such
land of the boundaries thereof or the right to occupancy thereof be
settled and adjudicated. Such petition shall contain all the data
essential to furnish a full notice thereof to the occupants of such
land and to all persons who may claim an adverse interest therein, and
shall be accompanied by a plan of the land in question. The court shall
cause service of notice to be made as in other cases, and shall proceed
to hear, try, and determine the questions stated in such petition or
arising in the matter, and settle and determine the ownership of the
land and cause certificate of title to be issued therefor, as in other
cases filed under this chapter.
Sec. 62. Whenever any lands in the Philippine
Islands are set apart as town sites, under the provisions of chapter
five of this Act, it shall be lawful for the Chief of the Bureau of
Public Lands, with the approval of the Secretary of the Interior, to
notify the judge of the Court of Land Registration that such lands have
been reserved as a town site and that all private lands or interests
therein within the limits described forthwith to be brought within the
operation of the Land Registration Act, and to become registered land
within the meaning of said Registration Act. It shall be the duty of
the judge of said court to issue a notice thereof, stating that claims
for all private lands of interests therein within the limits described
must be presented for registration under the Land Registration Act in
the manner provided in Act Numbered six hundred and twenty seven
entitled "An Act to bring immediately under the operation of the land
Registration Act all lands lying within the boundaries lawfully set
apart for military reservations, and all land desired to be purchased
by the Government of the United states for military purposes." The
procedure for the purpose of this section and the legal effects thereof
shall thereupon be in all respect as provided in sections three, four,
five, and six of said Act numbered six hundred and twenty seven.
Sec. 63. All proceedings under this chapter
involving title to or interest in land shall be conducted and
considered as an application for registration of such land, and the
final decrees of the court shall in every case be the basis for the
original certificate of title in favor of the person entitled to the
property under the procedure prescribed in section forty one of the
Land Registration Act.
Sec. 64. If in the hearing of any application
arising under this chapter the court shall find that more than one
person or claimant has an interest on the land, such conflicting
interests shall be adjudicated by the court and decrees awarded in
favor of the persons or persons entitled to the land according to the
laws of the Philippine Islands, except that where the action is
voluntarily dismissed by the parties interested the order of the court
shall be merely one of dismissal without affecting title.
Sec. 65. Whenever, in any proceedings under this
chapter to secure registration of an incomplete or imperfect claim of
title initiated prior to the transfer of sovereignty from Spain to the
United States, it shall appear that had such claim been prosecuted to
completion under the laws prevailing when instituted, and under the
conditions of the grant then contemplated, the conveyance of such land
to the applicant would not have been gratuitous but would have involved
payment therefor to the Government, then and in that event, the court
shall, after decreasing in when title should vest, further determine
the amount to be paid as a condition for the registration of the land.
Such judgment shall be certified to the Bureau of Public Lands by the
clerk of the court for collection of the amount due from the person
entitled to conveyance. Upon payment to the Chief of the Bureau of
Public Lands, of the price specified in the judgment, the case shall be
returned by him to the Court of Land Registration with a notation of
such payment, whereupon the registration of the land in favor of the
party entitled thereto shall be ordered by the court. If the applicant
shall fail to pay the amount of money required by the decree within a
reasonable time after he received notice thereof the court may order
the proceeding to stand dismissed and the title to the land shall then
be in the Government free from any claim of the applicant.
Sec. 66. Whenever any judgment of confirmation or
other decree of the court involving public lands shall become final,
the clerk of the court shall certify that fact to the Bureau of Public
Lands with a copy of the decree of confirmation or judgment of the
court, which shall plainly state the location, boundaries and are as
nearly as may be, of the tract involved in the decree or judgment, and
shall be accompanied by a plan of the land as confirmed or acted upon
by the court. In the event the original survey was made by the Bureau
of Public Lands, and the decree of the court conforms thereto, no
further proceedings shall be required. When the original survey was
made by the applicant or where the tract confirmed by the court varied
from the original survey as made by the Bureau of Public Lands, the
Chief of the Bureau of Public Lands shall immediately cause the tract,
so confirmed by the court, to be surveyed at the cost of the Insular
Government, and shall, when such survey has been approved by him,
furnish a copy of same to the Court of Land Registration and to the
applicant, which survey when approved by the court, and unless objected
to by the applicant with thirty days, shall be conclusively presumed to
be correct. If objection is made to the survey by the applicant, the
court, upon notice to the Bureau of Public Lands, shall hear such
objections, and its action in the matter shall be final.
Sec. 67. No title to, or right or equity in, any
public lands in the Philippine Islands may hereafter be acquired by
prescription or by adverse possession or occupancy, or under or by
virtue of any laws in effect prior to American occupation, except as
expressly provided by laws enacted or provided since the acquisition of
the Islands by the United States.
CHAPTER VII
GENERAL PROVISIONS
Sec. 68. The short title of this Act shall be "The
Public Land Act."
Sec. 69. The Chief of the Bureau of Public Lands,
under the supervision of the Secretary of the Interior, shall prepare
and issue such forms and instructions, consistent with this Act, or may
be necessary and proper to carry into effect all the provisions thereof
that are to be administered by or under the direction of the Bureau of
Public Lands, and for the conduct of all proceedings arising under such
provision.
Sec. 70. While title to public lands in the
Philippine Islands remains in the Government, the Chief of the Bureau
of Public Lands under the supervision of the Secretary of the Interior
shall be charged with the immediate executive control of the survey,
classification lease sale, and other disposition and management thereof
and the decisions of the Bureau as to questions of facts relating to
such lands shall be conclusive when approved by the Secretary of the
Interior.
Sec. 71. The Civil Governor, for reasons of public
policy, may, from time to time by proclamation, designate any tract or
tracts of public lands in the Philippines as nonalienable, and
thereafter the same shall be withdrawn from settlement, entry, sale or
other disposition under any of the public land laws of the islands
until again made subject thereto by law of the islands.
Sec. 72. Provincial-secretaries and all other
persons that may be designated as mining recorders shall, in their
capacities as such recorders, be subject to the supervision of the
Chief of the Bureau of Public Lands.
Sec. 73. All patents or certificates for lands
disposed of under this law shall be prepared in the Bureau of Public
Lands and shall issue in the name of the United States and the
Philippine Government under the signature of the Civil Governor; but
such patents or certificates shall be effective only for the purposes
defined in section one hundred and twenty two of the Land Registration
Act, and the actual conveyance of the land shall be effected only as
provided in said section.
Sec. 74. All persons receiving title to Government
lands under the provisions of this Act, shall hold such lands subject
to the same public servitudes as existed upon lands owned by private
persons under the sovereignty of Spain, including those with reference
to the literal of the sea and the banks of navigable rivers or rivers
upon which rafting may be done.
Sec. 75. The beneficial use of water shall be the
basis, the measure, and the limit of all rights thereto in said
islands, and the patents herein granted shall be subject to the right
of the Government of these islands to make sure rules and regulations
for the use of water and the protection of the water supply, and for
other public purposes, as it may deem best for the public good.
Whenever, by priority of possession, rights to the use of water for
mining, agricultural, manufacturing, or other purposes have vested and
accrued, and the same are recognized and acknowledged by the local
customs, laws and decisions of the courts, the possessors and owners of
such vested rights shall be maintained and protected in the same, and
all patents granted under this Act shall be subject to any vested and
accrued rights to ditches and reservoirs used in connection with such
water rights as may have been acquired in the manner above described
prior to April eleventh eighteen hundred and ninety-nine.
Sec. 76. There is hereby reserved from the
operation of all patents, certificates, entries, and grants by the
Insular Government authorized under this Act the right to use for the
purposes of power any flow of water in any stream running through or by
the land granted to convertible power from which at ordinary low water
exceeds fifty horsepower. Where the convertible power in any running
through or running by land granted under the authority of this Act thus
exceeds fifty horsepower, and there is no means of using such power
except by the occupation of a part of the land granted under authority
of this Act, then no such land as is reasonably necessary for the mill
site or site for the power house, and for a suitable dam and site for
messing the water, is hereby excepted from such grant, not exceeding
four hectares, and a right of way to the nearest public highway from
the land thus excepted, and also a right of way for the construction
and maintenance of such flumes, aqueducts, wires, poles, or other
conduits as may be needed in conveying the water to the point where its
fall will yield the greatest power, or the power from the point of
conversion or easement upon the land granted by authority of this Act;
Provided, however, That when the government or any concessionaire of
the Government shall take possession of land under this section which a
grantee under this Act shall have paid for, supposing it to be subject
to grant under this Act, said grantee shall be entitled to indemnity
from the Government or the concessionaire for the amount if any, paid
by him to the Government for the land taken from him by virtue of this
section; And provided further, That with respect to the flow of water,
except for converting the same into power exceeding fifty horsepower,
said grantee shall be entitled to the same use of the water flowing
through or along his land that other private owners enjoy by the laws
of the Philippine Islands, subject to the governmental regulation
provided in the previous section. Water power privileges in which the
convertible power are, ordinary low water shall exceed fifty horsepower
shall be disposed of only upon terms to be embodied in a special Act of
the Commission until a general law shall be passed concerning the use,
lease, or acquisition of such water privilege.
Sec. 77. Any person who shall wilfully and
knowingly submit or cause to be submitted any false proof, or who shall
make, or cause to be made any false affidavit in support of any
application or claim in any manner respecting the public lands of the
Philippine Islands, shall be deemed guilty of perjury and punished
accordingly.
Sec. 78. The provisions of this Act shall extend
and apply to all provinces and places of the Philippine archipelago
except the Moro provinces of Lepanto-Bontoc, Benguet, Paragua, and
Nueva Vizcaya; but the provisions of this Act or of any chapter hereof
may at any time by resolution of the Philippine Commission, be extended
over and put in force in any of the provinces or any part thereof
hereby excepted from its operation.
Sec. 79. When this Act shall have been approved by
the President of the United States and shall have received the express
or implied sanction of Congress, as provided by section thirteen of the
Act of Congress approved July first, nineteen hundred and two, entitled
"An Act temporarily to provide for the administration of the affairs of
civil government on the Philippine Island, and for other purposes such
facts shall be made known by the proclamation of the civil Governor of
the Island, and this Act shall take effect on the date of such
proclamation.
Enacted, October 7, 1903
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