EXECUTIVE MANSION, May 10, 1877. It is hereby ordered that all that tract of country in the State of Nevada (known as the Carlin Farms), lying within the following boundaries, viz: Beginning at the quarter-section comer post on the west boundary of section 6, township 35 north, range 52 east, Mount Diablo meridian; thence south 62 degrees 56 minutes east 4,229| feet, to a post marked UU. S. I. R. station B;” thence north 2 degrees 4 minutes east 1,928 feet to a post marked “U. S. I. R. station C;” thence north 3 degrees 9 minutes west 2,122 feet to a post marked “U. S. 1. R. station D;” thence south 85 degrees 8 minutes west 3,000 feet to a post marked “ U. S. 1. R. station E;” thence north 52 degrees 32 minutes west 4,046 feet to a post marked “ U. I. R. station F;” thence north 39 degrees 25 minutes west 1,200 feet to a post marked “ U. S. I. R. station G;” thence south 44 degrees 10 minutes west 2,200 feet to a post marked “U. S. I. R. station H;” thence south 44 degrees 29 minutes east 2,663 feet to a post marked “ U. S. I. R. station I:” thence south 58 degrees 57 minutes east 2,535 feet to a post marked “ (U. S. I. R. station K;” thence south 59 degrees 29 minutes east 878 feet to a post marked “ U. S. I. R. station A,” the place of beginning, containing 521.61 acres, be, and the same hereby is, withdrawn from sale or settlement, and set apart as a reservation for the Northwestern Shoshone Indians. R.B. HAYES.
Executive Order—Defining Carlin Farms Boundaries
Executive Brief • At a Glance
R. station E;” thence north 52 degrees 32 minutes west 4,046 feet to a post marked “ U. I. R. station F;” thence north 39 degrees 25 minutes west 1,200 feet to a post marked “ U. S. I. R. station G;” thence south 44 degrees 10 minutes west 2,200 feet to a post marked “U. S. I. R. station H;” thence south 44 degrees 29 minutes east 2,663 feet to a post marked “ U. S. I. R. station I:” thence south 58 degrees 57 minutes east 2,535 feet to a post marked “ (U. S. I. R. station K;” thence south 59 degrees 29 minutes east 878 feet to a post marked “ U. S. I. R. station A,” the place of beginning, containing 521.61 acres, be, and the same hereby is, withdrawn from sale or settlement, and set apart as a reservation for the Northwestern Shoshone…
Plain-English Translation & Framers' Constitutional Analysis
Early Statesman synthesis distilling legal jargon into practical meaning, statutory anchors, and structural constitutional impacts.
Signed by President Rutherford B. Hayes on May 10, 1877, this order concerns Defining Carlin Farms Boundaries. All that tract of country in the State of Nevada (known as the Carlin Farms), lying within the following boundaries, viz: Beginning at the quarter-section comer post on the west boundary of section 6, township 35 north, range 52 east, Mount Diablo meridian; thence south 62 degrees 56 minutes east 4,229| feet, to a post marked UU.
Key Directives & Operative Actions
R. station E;” thence north 52 degrees 32 minutes west 4,046 feet to a post marked “ U. I. R. station F;” thence north 39 degrees 25 minutes west 1,200 feet to a post marked “ U. S. I. R. station G;” thence south 44 degrees 10 minutes west 2,200 feet to a post marked “U. S. I. R. station H;” thence south 44 degrees 29 minutes east 2,663 feet to a post marked “ U. S. I. R. station I:” thence south 58 degrees 57 minutes east 2,535 feet to a post marked “ (U. S. I. R. station K;” thence south 59 degrees 29 minutes east 878 feet to a post marked “ U. S. I. R. station A,” the place of beginning, containing 521.61 acres, be, and the same hereby is, withdrawn from sale or settlement, and set apart as a reservation for the Northwestern Shoshone…
Constitutional & Societal Entities Impacted
Policy Areas & Topics
The Framers' Constitutional Council
1787 PrismEvaluating this order against the constitutional debates of 1787 and the limits of Article II executive power.
"When the President acts pursuant to an express or implied authorization of Congress, his authority is at its maximum, for it includes all that he possesses in his own right plus all that Congress can delegate."
James Madison
Separation of Powers & Legislative Primacy
"The constitutional magistracy was designed not to invent policy, but to be the faithful instrument of the laws passed by the people's representatives." — Speech in the First Congress (1789)
Madison would approve the structural posture of this order. The President acts strictly in subordination to statutory authority granted under Article II, Section 3 ("take Care that the Laws be faithfully executed"). The checks and balances hold firm because the policy origin remains with the legislature.
Alexander Hamilton
The Energetic Executive & Unified Command
"A feeble Executive implies a feeble execution of the government; and a government ill executed, whatever it may be in theory, must be, in practice, a bad government." — Federalist No. 70 (1788)
Hamilton would view this directive as the natural and indispensable functioning of administrative leadership. Without the power to coordinate agencies, manage personnel, and resolve operational ambiguities, the modern presidency would be reduced to an impotent figurehead.
George Mason
Bill of Rights, Due Process & 10th Amendment
"The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people." — 10th Amendment to the US Constitution (1791)
Mason would scrutinize whether this federal directive intrudes into police powers, land stewardship, or municipal domains historically reserved to local citizens. The Anti-Federalist demand is that federal administration must never supplant state self-governance.
Five Measurable "Constitutional Friction" Dimensions
An objective audit measuring potential separation-of-powers tension against the United States Constitution and established Supreme Court doctrine.
Legislative Encroachment & Purse
Operates within delegated statutory execution without modifying legislative appropriations or taxing powers.
Executive Scope & Faithfulness
Exercises standard supervisory executive authority to faithfully execute existing statutes.
Federalism & State Sovereignty
Engages state and local partners in cooperative federalism programs.
Due Process & Individual Rights
Focuses on internal governmental operations with no direct impairment of private rights or property.
Youngstown Jacksonian Tier
The President operates strictly as the constitutional Chief Executive, carrying out policy established by Congress with strong statutory backing.
This order operates in close harmony with statutory authority and standard Article II supervisory execution.
Scholarly & Legal Citations
Exec. Order, Defining Carlin Farms Boundaries (May 10, 1877), https://executiveordersarchive.org/orders/app-executive-order-defining-carlin-farms-boundaries.