Iowa voter. [volume] (Knoxville, Iowa) 1867-1874, 1870-07-28

of Main people, and il enough of itself to
inatifv the system, az APPLIED to the three
Oenfinentol lines Of road. Five years
400 the United States Government
VAS proprietor Of eleven hundred million
acres of wild lands, lying between the
Mississippi and the Pacific coast, net In
Guiding the State public lands OF Texas.
Such a domain is too vast for compre-
hension, and only an approximate notion
of its magnitude can be obtained by con-
sidering that it is equal TO thirty four
States Me size If Neso York, or to two
hundred and four States as large as Mas.
sachusetts. OF these lands. the govern
ment, during the last five years, has been
able to sell, and give away under the
homestead act, less than four million acres
per year. At this rate the present gene
ration would reap next to no benefit from
the public lands, and 275 years would
elapse before they would all be taken up,
much less titled. The reason why these
lands cannot be given away to actual
settlers is that they are inaccessible and
hence worthless. No farmer will agree
to live on them for them, and for the ex-
cellent reason that no farmer can afford to.
A farm without market is without
value, and market without railroad is
usually impossible. Under these clrcum-
stances the government, through its sys-
TEN of grants, says to responsible corpo-
rations, Build railroad through these
waste lands of mine, rendering them &C.
cessible and valuable, and will give you
ten per cent. of the lands affected. re-
gard this offer not as a charity or gratuity,
Ior you have no claim to either, but con-
sider it business transaction, in which
shall receive back in the enhanced value
of my own lands and the increased area
and constituency for taxation, very much
more than this grant is worth to me or to
you" So farmer, owning submerged
march which is absolutely worthless ex.
cept Cor rearing frogs, and, not caring to
venture his own money in the doubtful
enterprise of retaining it, would gladly
give q portion of the wet land itself to
any one who would ditch, underdfain and
render productive the whole.
The fact that the Government retains
the alternate sections along these Pacific
roads, and offers them for sale at g. 80 per
acre, is sufficient guaranty that the rail.
road companies will not hold their lands
at an exorbitant figure; and the fact that
the business and success OF the roads will
depend very largely upon the rapidity
with which the adjacent lands are settled,
is ample warrant that the railroads will
not long hold their lands out of the mar
ket Selfinterest and the public good
will here harmoniZe.
The Northern Pacific Company, IN COM
ing before Congress and asking for the
recent legislation, which has occssioned
so much discussion and misunderatand-
ing, requested four things. a. That
the original land grant, voluntarily con-
ferred by Congress six years ago, be made
good by permitting the company to APP
propriate other public lands to compen-
safe for those belonging to the grant,
which had been taken up by settlers and
spectators (2) That the short branch
road to be constructed from Portland,
Oregon, to Puget Sound be entitled to the
same land subsidy as the main line; Is. }
that the company be permitted to make
the junction of its two western branches
at point further east than the original
charter specifed-this in order to avoid
engineering difficulties Ia the mountaiR
region; and H. that specific authority be
given the company to make single mort
gage covering ell its property and rights
Of property. This last request was made
in order to avoid the necessity Of making
q fresh mortgage every time new III.
stslment of land came into the hands OF
the company by the completion OF each
twenty five. mile section of road. Under
the legislation recently enacted, the lands
of the North Pacific grant will pass under
the general mortgage to the bondholders
Just as fast as by the completion OF sue
cessive portions Of the road. they pass
into the control and ownership OF the
company-and no faster. The current
assertion that the bill authorizes the com.
pany to mortgage its lands in advance OF
the construction of the road, is without
foundation and absurd. The charter pro-
lands Of the grant shall Become the prop
esty of the company, and the recent legis-
lation does not change the charter in this
REGARD, nor authorize the company to
mortgage that which is not its property.
The fact that the application OF the
Northern Pacific Company Cor the addi'
tiona. legislation named above was pre-
ceded and followed by the introduction in
Congress of swarm OF petty land grant
schemes for local and imaginary roads
schemes having no merits and NO claims
to consideration should not be allowed
to prejudice great aud genuine enter
prise, which the people are really DESTROYS
to aid, because it will aid them in return.
Undoubtedly the country wishes Congress
to limit the application Of the land sub
sidy policy to the three trunk lines of Pa
cifc railroad. Here the line of distinction
should be drawn, and here the nation
should put down its foot. Let the conti-
nent be traversed by Northern, a Cen
trail, and a Southern Pacific Railroad,
opening up the western wilderness, in
three broad belts, to settlement and cul-
ture, travel and trade; then let local rail.
roads be built by private enterprise as fast
as population and business demand them.
The land grant system, az applied TO these
three main routes, Is cOinmon sense and
sound economy. Carried TO the extreme,
and applied to the numbsrless local cor
porations that are clamoling for aid at
the doors of Congress, it il indefensible
waste.
Miscellaneous.