Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion

OFFICE OF THE Al-rORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS
AUSTIN
Eonomblo C. 9. HoClellan, ChUmen
Fbh md 0-0 CarPlittee
~0~0 or R0pre8tkmtw08
Auatln, 'Percar
Dear sic:
era illundats
ion or Texar above
oont letter read-
r that area 0r
of be aoqulred
GtL-t for th8 opera-
on the Red River beginning
mentioned dam la rapidly reaoh-
ing l 8tQ0 in it8 oonrtruotionvheroby Intpotind-
etdwater8 have begun to a00UDIul4te. A oonrlder-
able part oi the volume of voter8 to be aooumulat-
ed behind the dam will have boon impounded by
the area during the 8wmner monthl. Thir dam
~111 budate a oonsldweble portion ot land in
Honorable 0. S. MoClellan, page 2
the stste of Toxar a8 us11 a8 tho State 0r Okla-
how.
'It ha8 been peVl0~8lp held by a deoroo Of
the Supreme Court or the Pnlted State8 that the
boundary botuoon Oklahoma and %xar 18 the south
baXXkOr ROd RiVOr.
9x1 thlr,oonneotlonin our oonrideration
of the lbovo mnttoned bill, VI will thank you
lr JOU all UldYer the rou0mg qW8tiOILt
"Will the 8outh bank Oi the lake On tho
T@Xa8 8itb OOMtltUtO the boundary line betuoon
'faxor and OkhhW OF U&u the pXW8Mt 8OUth
bank Of Rod Ri?er ~8ViOU81y l8tabll8hed before
th0 rormti0n 0r thi8 lake 8till remain the
true boundary line oi Tourt’
s .
. . . .
The qUe8tiUU prerented, in OLW opinion, uaa an8Y0P-
04 by the United Stat@8 SIlprenrr COUFt &II the 088e Oi state Of
OkhhOM V. State or 2e34%8, 260 U. 8. 606, 67 fi.Ed. $28, 43
sup. ct. 221. Without revleuiag the 4istwy of the lltlga-
tion ia the oar0 of Oklahoma t* Toxaa, or the multitude or
qlWtiOlt8 r8i8od, it 18 lufSl0lent to ltnto that tho loaatlon
or the boundary betuoen the tU0 8tate8 along Rod River Ya8 a
paramount lorue. In diaoushtg the qU88tiOn the OoUrt raid:
'&IF OOXl~1U8ifUi 18 t&t th0 Out bMk 8longl
the 8OUthel'lJ8140 Of th0 84 bed OOn8titUtie8
tho 8OUth bank Or th0 rlVeP and thet the boundary
18 on and along that bank at the mean level Of
the water vhen it rcrrhor tha bank without over-
iloving it.
“The boundary118 it va8 in 1821, whea the
treaty becane OrrO0tiv0, ia the boundary 0r today,
8ubjeOt to the right appllortlon0r the dootriner
or lro8lon and aooretlon and or avul8fon to any
intervsning ohanger. or thoao dootrlnes this
Court reoently raid:
.
mabk C. 8. YoClellan, pago 3
ir rottlod boyond th8 poarlbility oi
“‘St
d.flpUt@that Vher8 ruMlfIg 8trME8 8Cb the bound-
arler batvoea Statei, thb aame rulo applioa a8
bbtroon private proprlotorr,namely, that when
the bed 8``4ahrnnrl are eMage by the aatural
and gradual prwea8b8 lawn U rro810n urd Moro-
tlOJL,tbr bOWIUy fouf?~8 #O W;line 00~80 Of
ltrormj rh.U* ZI‘the
th e 8treaa tram aq oauao,
rutural or a&floial, 8~ddonl.yleaver its old
h o d~4 to ma l MW cm, br th8 prowa kaown
u 8~ awlalaa, the reaalting 6h4ngb 0r skrnnrl
m!ka ab obange of boundary, vhiah rIlpIla8 l.m
thb 8dddb Or thb Old O~MJ&' &k#UI8a8 Vc,
wtbb88b~, 296 u. 8. 158, in.’
IA l 8Ub8eQUmllttiOl'O0in th. 8ame oa8e randwbd
Haroh 12 1923. round la 261 u. ar 340, 43 Sup. Ct. 376, 67
L. Rd. 6&7, It was aaid:
'¶'hl8eaU8ohwl``&b~nhe~d
tti UPOJI OWt%h QUbItiOA8, Md the COWt hViill$
OOMldbMd thb I)- Ud maowed it8 OOJ&````OM
p gn o&loa dolivorbd January 15, 1923 (260
. . .
‘It 18 ordered, adjudged,%JJddeoPeedJ
‘1. Tho boundary betama thb State8 of
OkhhOU urd Text, uhePe it fO11W8 %hb OOUr8b
of the Red River from the 100 th nsrlditm of
VO8t mgitUd0 Of
the 088tbrJJAbOundrrJOr th0
State 0r oklahmaa, 18 port or the iatbraat~oaal
boundary o8tablldMd by the treaty of l819 bo-
twoen the Unltbd State8 and Spala, and 18 on and
%bJJ& thb 8Outh bMk Of thrt FiVbF 88 the 8Ud8
uiat.84 ia l&l, vhon the troaty beoame ofioo-
tha, UYO a8 &rOlMftOr 8t%tbd.
‘2. Hhbco latervenlng 8 IathatbMk
ham oaourred
throughtha natura
-T and gradual
OWla. koWn 88 erosion and lc o r etla th
n b
roundar~ ha8 rollwed tho 0-j but vh8re the
8tre8m ha8 left it8 rooarr ohanael and made r0r
it8bU 8a w OM through ldjawat up la bnd yth e
Ea$orabk 0. 8. loClollaa, Moe 4
prooora
-_- knwn F8 avul+4n~th* boundary
-._ - - ti8 not
roxtwea the mango, Dut na8 remunoa on uIQ along
;g;ez88 the 8OUthbUIkkfOFo the change w-
.
"3. t&W., 8iZW@ 1811, tb Ph.? hr8 OUt 8
8UlOlUhPjCPrdQitioA41ohuuu1t&OU& went
u~onthe 8OUth 8idela8oRh~V8y~ 7 18x&d
tm~tmir0 on that al-dahas beocu an irlad,
the boundary la al04 that part of the wuth
b8e 88 tw0t0r0r~
lx.w v$ “;a b y & $ -& -m
Y!
7100``the northarrlytmk
vhare by aoarotlm Q uorlon there have boea
dmqwnt ohanger Lo that bmk the boundmf
&a ahanged 81th them,
*I). m Wll.8 8tti8d in the ti8t tW0
&mph villti equally rpplioabloto rush
l* ry OOOUT lo.th0 rutumm
Applying
the ruler a8lriddo1mbytheUnitedStato8
aup`` court irr the oaao or OkUhoma to Texaa, aupro, it 1s
olear that unlerr the ohaw in the river bank ooo~r8 thmugh
the natural and gradual prooe88ea knovn a8 oro81on md aooro-
tion t&t th. boundart b&iVMJl ths tV0 8tJJte8rtull WMiJi
88 it vu in 1821. lb oom8trwtlon 0r Cu~.Iron Km end tha
rubrequentlarpoundiag of the v8tecr abate the 488 vould not
oause a “n&tural and ~PUIUU’ ohaa&e 19 the bti, but oa the
oontpary the transition vould ooour bJ roa8on of an ga;t,“al
nndlrtiriohl burlor plaood in the rtroam tbro
genulty of manUn& llndelrtho IrUle a8 thur s8tabl8bed,atty
T
ohan~o la the bank ot Rad River vhloh 18 not gmdual and
natural vlll not VOP&a ohngo in tha bounctuy betveon the
two at&em along uld rive?.
You ue thororwe advlaedt&t the bouadawy betveea
Tour Oklahoma along Rod River vi11 remain the 8uw aft-or
~4
the lreotion 0r the Denlroa lbm a8 it va8 before, 8UbjOCt
only to th 0 lpplioatlonor the dootriacrr0r ero8ion And ah-
oration as lbova o%plaimd.
‘loIW8 VOPy tWly