Los Angeles daily herald. [volume] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1873-1876, 1874-01-06
Homes for Settlers.

Homes for Settlers
One of the chief obstacles to the rap
i'd settlement of this country, and the
development of its agricultural resour-
ces, lies in the fact that greater por-
ton of the lands fit for agricultural
purposes, are held in large bodies. The
prices asked for these lands are not in
many cases at all unreasonable, but,
the bulk of our settlers do not want
more than twenty, forty, or at most
one hundred and sixty acres, while the
owners of our extensive ranches on the
other hand are averse to cutting up
their estates, and selling them out by
piecemeal.
1t would1e very good idea for our
business men to form a corporation for
the purpose of bringing this land into
market. We believe that they could
DO a very good thing for the country,
and at the same time put money in
their pockets by buying one of these
large ranches, constructing the neces-
sary irrigating bitches, and after cut
ting it up into small tracts, sell it out
to actual settlers. We have in our
mind at this moment a ranch in Los
Angeles county, containing over
fifty thousand acres which can be
bought for a low figure. By the ex-
penditure of moderate sum, water
can be introduced upon large portion
of it, and if this were done, the land
would be equal to any in the county
for the culture of any product of the
State. But the very magnitude of the
tract places it out of the reach of the
ordinary purchaser. What would be
easier than for the business men of this
city to form an organization with suf-
flcient capital to buy this or a similar
tract, improve it with the necessary
irrigating bitches, and sell it to set
tiers. II a liberal policy were pursued
such venture could not help being
immensely advantageous to the gen.
eral business interests of the commu-
nifty, and at the same time profitable to
those coficerned In it. The success Of
the various colonization schemes,
managed in this way ought to have
afforded before this hint to those
who are anxious that the country
should be settled up. The latest
project of this kind, the San Gabriel
Orange Grove Association, secured
tract Of land containing four thousand
acres for $4,000. By expe nding an
additional $4,000 in irrigating bitches
they will have property which when
cut up into forty az. tracts, will sell
for from forty tc fifty dollars an acre.
Various plans have been proposed,
TO compel the cutting up and sale of
thes vast tracts now held from settle
ment by individuals, the one receiving
most favor, being the passage of law
by the Legislature, taxing lands alone
and exempting personal property and
improvements, the idea being that by
throwing the burdens of sustaining
the State and county governments
upon unimproved land, the holding of
1t In large tracts would be discouraged.
That this policy might have good
effect, Is at least probable, but We cam
not see that there is hope for the
adoption Of such a policy very soon,
and In the meantime, there are thou
sands Of people who would enter upon
and occupy our vacant lands if they
could get them in small tracts
for reasonable price. We do
not Of course pretend that the
plan We have recommended would
have the effect of bringing into the
market lands that are held at unreas-
enable prices for speculation, but for
present purposes, there is sufficient
land that can be bought at a reasona-
BILE figure, the only difficulty being that
individual settlers are not possessed of
the means to take them in the large
quantities in which they are held, and
to bear the additional expense, usually
required for bringing them under irrl-
cation. We have only hurriedly
sketched out our views on this import
ant subject, but hope some of our en-
terprising and far-seeing business
men will see enough in it, to induce
them to thoroughly investigate the
matter, when we are confident that
they will recognize the feasibility of
the plan.