Harrison

This is an action to cancel a second certificate of puchase of school lands, the state having made a prior sale on which the patent has issued. The township survey, embracing the land in controversy, was approved by the United States surveyor general for California September 18, 1868, and the map was duly filed in the United States land-office July 7,1869. John Mullan made application to the surveyor general to purchase the land January 15, 1869, and upon August 18th of the same year the surveyor general of the state applied to the United States land-office for said land. About August 21, 1869, the.surveyor general approved Mullan’s application, and issued to him the customary certificate, which, in due time, Mullan presented to the county treasurer of San Bernardino county (in which county the land was situated), and paid the treasurer the full amount due thereon, to wit, twenty-five per cent of the principal and one year’s interest; and thereupon the register of the land-office issued to Mullan a certificate of purchase for the land. Mullan’s application to purchase was defective in this, that the affidavit accompanying the same failed to contain a description of the land sought…