132 THE COMMISSION OP INQUIRY, 



deemed conclusive thereof except as to such land as shall be shown to 

 have been in the actual possession of some person claiming adversely 

 at the time of the decree under which the title of the State is acquired. 

 No person shall be held to have possession constructively, or by implica- 

 tion, of any land within the operation of this act beyond the limits of 

 the parcel which (described as the smallest sub-division according to 

 government survey) includes the land shown to have been in his actual 

 possession as aforesaid. 



Section 3. No suit, action or proceeding shall be instituted or main- 

 tained, nor shall any defense be entertained or given effect, in any court, 

 to invalidate, annul, or otherwise impair, the title of the State to any 

 land, within the operation of this act, or to any land which has hereto- 

 fore been constituted forest reserves, or to establish or enforce title 

 thereto adverse to the State, by reason of any defect, jurisdictional or 

 otherwise, in any of the proceedings on which the title of the State in 

 any manner depends, unless such suit, action or proceeding shall (if 

 it relates to land to which the State now has title as against the original 

 owner), be commenced, or such defense shall be pleaded in an action 

 commenced, within six months after this act takes effect; or (if such 

 suit, action, proceeding or defense relates to land to which the State 

 shall hereafter acquire title), unless the suit, action or proceeding shall 

 have been commenced within six months after the State acquired title 

 against the original owner : provided, however, that this section shall not 

 bar any person having actual possession as aforesaid claiming adversely ; 

 and provided further, that this section shall in effect be cumulative, and 

 shall not exclude or impair the effect and operation of any existing 

 statute for the perfecting or protection of the title of the State, or its 

 grantees. 



Section i. The commission having charge of forest reserves may in- 

 stitute and maintain suits in the circuit court in chancery of the county 

 (such court being hereby given jurisdiction thereof) to quiet title and 

 to establish and declare the validity and priority of the title of the State 

 to any forest reserve land as hereafter defined which is, or is claimed to 

 be, in the actual possession of any person claiming title adversely to 

 the State as aforesaid; and the Commissioner of the State Land OflQce 

 may bring like suits (said courts being hereby vested with jurisdiction 

 thereof) affecting any land within the operation and effect of section 

 one of this act other than forest reserve land; to which suits all per- 

 sons may be made defendants who have, or claim, any interest or title 

 in or to any parcel of land adversely occupied as aforesaid; and all pro- 

 ceedings in such suit shall be according to the usual course and prac- 

 tice in cases in chancery, except that, at the time of entering appearance, 

 any defendant may in writing demand a severance of the cause so far 

 as it affects land in which he claims an interest; and the case shall 

 thereupon be severed by the court in such manner as will keep before 

 it the parties necessary to enable it to render a final decree adjusting^ 

 the- rights of all parties interested in the land in question; and except 

 also that any party entitled under the laws of the State to a trial by 

 jury, may (and, if he wishes to secure a trial by jury, shall) demand 

 in writing, at the time of demand for severance of the case, that the 

 same be tried as a case at law with a jury : and thereupon the same shall 



