Remonstrance against relocating the county seat of Sauk County

Memorial of Noah Hubbard To The Special Committee to which to refer the petition for the removal of the county seat of Sauk County Commissioners Sinnus Clapp L. Phelpps

To the Special Committee of the Legislative Assembly to which is referred the petition of Augustine Harrothy & others praying for the removal of the seat of justice of Sauk County & that it may be relocated by the voice of the people of said county

Gentlemen

The undersigned would respectfully represent to your honours, that himself in annexation with others VZ Messors, Crocker, Simons, Fairchild, Cropmon, Lemonweir, Abbot, Seymour, Leland &c built & gave to the county of Sauk a court house 20 by 30 feet, two stories high of the value of six hundred dollars, & further that the undersigned executed to the said county of Sauk a good & indefeasible title to some 40 or 50 lots including the public square in the present county not of said county & further that [somly?] Linnus? & Burke Fairchild employed to the said county some 25 or 30 town lots all upon the condition that the seat of justice of said county should be located in the Town of Prairie du Sac. The value thereof being estimated at the time of $2500. The undersigned would further represent to your honours that owing to the unsettled state of the county & the opposition to its present county seat made by certain individuals he has been unable to derive any benefit from its present location consequently if the seat of justice of said county is removed to some other place the above property will be a total loss to the donors residing to their respective in-limits.

The undersigned would further represent that at the time that application was made (VZ 2 years since) for the organization of the said county of Sauk the passage of the petition was that its seal of justice should be located by a a vote of the people & further that a remonstrance was at the same time circulated through the county by the persons now dissatisfied with the location of its county seat & further that said remonstrance contained a prayer that if the county was organized at that time that its seat of justice should be located by commissioners. The undersigned has not a doubt but that both the petition & remonstrance are on file in the proper office. The delegation from Sauk whose names were upon the petition for organization consisting of some 20 members when they opposed before the special committee appointed by the [equinail?] for the purpose consented to the proper contained in the remonstrance after the bill as first presented have passed the House & commissioners were unequivocally appointed by the Council & concurred in by the House. The undersigned would further represent that in due course of time the county seat of said county was located by the said Commissioners at the town of Prairie du Sac, the deeds &c for all the aforesaid property occupied by the county commissioners & placed on record in the register office as the Undersigned verrily believed in good faith.

The undersigned would further represent that he firmly & believes the petition for the removal of said county seat contains names of persons under [ayc?]. some that but not residents of the county & a large number of foreigners who cannot speak

the English language, consequently can have little knowledge of the merits or demerits of the object petitioned for but who are almost to a man under the contract of interested individuals. The undersigned would therefore humbly pray your honours to consider well the subject as he believed that upon your action in a great measure represents the question whether individuals are to be [defrauded?] of their property for the use of the public or whether that public shall be compelled to pay a fair value for property received or in other words to render unto [illegible] the things that are [bourne?] & unto God the things that we gives. The undersigned would therefore pray your honour to report such a bill as will [name?] can [leveled?] justice to all for a word to referred (provided the seat of justice should be removed) that which they have [illegible] on its equivalent to the rightful owners Madison Jan 15 1846 Very Respectfully Yours, Hon H. Hubbard

P.S. The undersigned would further state that he has once considered the reception of the title deeds & recording of them by the 6th commissioners as a bonu-fide contract of the people through the & commissioners & as such should be invaluable by either party.

Yours &c Hon H.H.