National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1874-04-21
PACIFIC SLOPE GRAZING.
Views OF 4 GRE4F CALIFORNIA
F1RMER ON HERDIH0.

AfPAONS-If1E CAUSE AND LIE fh1NAHDA
PEREIcIoUs FENCE BAws-oUR PUBLIC
LAEDS-RAILRoADs-L THE SRcES-
2 sITY OF TIE eoUETRY AND AGE.
The nembsts Of the Senate and House Commit.
tees on Public Lands were on Saturday gupplled
WITH copies Of an able letter written By Col W.
W. HollistsE, the famous fsrnsr primo Of South.
Srn oaAfOfnia, reviewing af length the causs that
4ed to the deplorSbIs and dsmaging confiets
which formerly prevailed between cattle and
sheep growers in CalitOrniA, And which tin pre-
vail between those CLASSES In other sections sf the
PASTORAL far West, notably IN Texas sud Southern
Colorado r...H-. s IL y - ssla..s .
I How thIa great noCR.uastsr got his ven.ssrned
wealth is told In AAlfa dOaen Inca Of Charles
wOrdhOfs asilgntfSl book On ). eCH1uosn:a. !.
sColonsl HOLSTER, one Of the largest sheep own.
ers in the Stats, came hers, n 1sSs with three
hundred American sheep, and be has said that
each one OF these sheep earned him one thousand
dollars befofe II died. 4e is nov mIllioaairs,
the owner OF over one hundred thousand acres OF
.lAndi and he was In debt when he cane to This
state from Ohio One cause OF Colonel Hollis
'ters success 4 that he stood BY bis sheep. He
kept sheep year after year, giving to THAI buSi-
mess all the ability he possessed"
/ 10 this description may be added . few fAets
Showing HE operations, In other than purely pas
storl pursuks. His home ranch contains 500
aeres ofWhtch 500 to LOCO are annually cultivated
ITO high desrse o. perfection-loo In wheat $50
In barley, 30 In oats 100 In corn 10 In beans 10 In
Potatoes, etc His culture Of the seGI-troplcal
raits Is extensive and successful. Es has between
$1,000 and 10000 almond trees IN his orchards and
nurseries,; Loo walnut trees 1000 olives, 1000
wines, and several hundred Japanese tea plants
He has q small band Of 3 500 OF the finest sheep on
his home plaee, his principal Hooks being kept
elsewhere in the State. His house stands up
near the mountain, and looks out on the blue Pa
oiho three miles away. Nh
In this lattar COlaoal ETeI Aavv
years ago, when California was little better than
q Wilderness the seattle lords" there monopoHled
and ruled the land, making laws oppressive 70
sheep husbandry and the tillage interest ard how
they are doing the Same thing to-day IN Texas
and some Of the Territories. The cause, he says
lies IN the pernicious fence laws prevailing there
and the remedy is simply correct and just IegsIs-
ytion.
He adds that, sin spite Of unfrisndly legis-
lAtion sheep husbandry, with all the disabilities
and difficulties thrown around It here, fin GALL
tornia,l has outltTed persecution and grown into
great and profitable industry. The wool growers
and farmers have become numerous enough, TO-
gsther with the aid Of the thinking minds Of our
towns and cities to stay this tide OF opprssston,
and, to some extent, break down this monopoly"
But the cattle lords Of Texas and Of the vast
grazing districts Of the West viii be 10th to sur
render their privileges. Under the statutes they
are holders Of letters Of n6rqSe and reprissI and
. they viii prey upon the commerce Of pesceful
neighbors until these letters are recalled By the
authority which issues them How Iorr WIN Il
a. take you to DO that3 You will have to rsYolu-
,tionise the State. These men are in power now;
and they viii tell you that they cannot change
their system without bankruptcy. They say they
cannot herd their CATTLE and Il is too expensive TO
fence. So they viii 60 on IN the old way, raising
Wild cattle and hghtiRg for their rights, g they
call them, fDdehAitsly. As much as they are
enamored Of their system, Il Is In noWlse good
one, nor bali a. productive IS Agriculture Under
It there Is no such thing possible as careful breed
ing of fine stock. All aze nos stimulated to i'm
prove; and unless the desire should be common
no ono is willing to 90 to the expense of iupoftag
fine animals to improve his neighbours stock"
- e.
4"What have Ne been doing IN California and In
TexasF Enforcing principle fence Iau) not en-
forced in any OF the old Slater; by SO doing We
nave perpetuatsd the pAStorsl life In these two
States. We have been attempting To NJ upon
higher form one Of the customs OF . lower; to
amslgamate the semi-cTIlizsd with the civilized
life Remove that bad principle of
law and your farmer can both live and buy land.
By doing that, you have made 1t for the interest
OF the landowner to sell and you remove the dIf
oulties that bsFass him. Subdivision VIII then
be the order Of the day. Gradually the pastoral
life dies out, not through oppression and wrong,
but with safety and satisfaction to ALL and the
ssmi-civilissd into memories Of the past.
"Undsr present conditions, with the fence law In
force the tllage interest Of the States and Terri
tories will be very backward, because much EN-
barrassed. 1t will have to bear all Of the burdens
and share only part Of the proits Of agriculture
namely, the bread products alone, onProducts Of |
the pillow exclusively. As here, the meat products
viii be in the hands Of the graEiers and the pillow
must foregoe that part Of its pFohts-pronts CON
ceded to the pillow in every civilized country in |
the world. Your farmers viii manage to live for |
while, until Impoverished land forces them to |
abandon homes and seek virgin soil elsewhere.
, "The home Of the farmer ought to be fixed and |
permanent. The building Of q nome IL the work |
of q lifetime. The length Of time required IN |
making It, the planting Of trees, Embellishments
! of whatever kind, the elaboration Of facts which
are to become memories, the ten thousand thinrs
which go to make up the home feeling, all all |
proclaim this is to last forever. cannot move
Il cannot leave this for another. This Is another
homes.
'WhAt have stated in this discussion Will |
apply equally as well to other States and Terri
tories likely 70 become pastoral as to Texas and |
California, and the assertion that enmity and bad
blood would grow out Of this kind Of life Is equally
true of all, unless aTsrted by WiGe just and en-
Client laws.
) "As bad principle Of law brings disaster and
W Ano SOoiSAy governed Oy IL, so the u
application Of one just and true Will add more /
golden millions than lie buried in the mineral /
mountains" - /
The letter Is exhaustive of the important sub-
jeet discussed, and The ability, nigh character
and fair-mindedneSs OF the writer Justly entitIs /
his words TO grave confederation from our law.
makers. The fact that Colorado and New Mexico i
both pastoral Territorfes-ars now knocking at I
thu doors Of Congress for admission a. States Of
the Union makes this discussion pertinent ct this
time. Col. HollIEter though more particularly L
representative OF the sheep and tiilage INTEREST,"
appeals ouy for just laws protecting all interests
equally. -
The following is later letter, written by Dol
HOLSTER to friend in Washington, touching
upon other topics:
4 SANTA BARBARA CELrPoRy1I AnrIIa ,s-x
DEAR SIR: ! should be very glad to i
see ali Of that immense Geld Of Texas Colorado,
Arizona and New Mexico open equally 70 ali
Glasses who might choose 70 go there, each to
pursue without hindranes the kind Of business
preferred Under tins operation Of Just law there
would be no doubt ~ TO what most Of them would
do. While some, whose circumstancs compelled
them to do So would raise the crops necessary for
use 10 the country, and some act from choice a.
Gntsrmediates, the great majority would devote
their time TO sheep-husbandry. Suppose this the
case, then the wisdom Of your article would be
seen and felt and then we might realize the grand
BSS1 Va 6ASNA11 kuS WOOl Oou1uu1oQ IN our Own l.,
country. But, my dear SIR, where Will We see
that great Held open TO the energy Of our young
menR 1confess, after the fight We have had here
20 do away with that great end, the fencs stat
uts-and now only partly done, amer twenty
'yoars' agitstion-that the thing Goes nos rear
very inviting look. How many brave young fsl-
lows are now all over the country, East and West,
North and South, anxiously looking for some.
ching better TO do than ling precarIous positions
An ofEee, behind desks, or striving Is mIddle-nen
70 mske q living, who would hnd . feId open 10
their ambition free from petty cares, and full Of
promissI -F ~. -.-.
lean see how Il might be and can see what Is In
the way now II were not 90 old, think I :
should be tempted to spend time and money Just
to fight up big thing In the way Of settling and
developing come Of the teffItory spoken Of /,
cannot help seeing what might be done. \,
NY attention was called some months ago TO o =
tract Of land IN southeastern AriEona, Of eight
hundred thousand acres said TO be very ine, for
twenty-five eents per acre (ourTency) thought
OF the opportunity, but for reasons above stated
did not care 70 buy. More recenfly-about two '