Arizona weekly citizen., 1883-11-10
WEEKLY CITIZEN.
SATURDAY., NoIENBER i0, Is.3
RFroRr oF rEE raEn oFTIcE.


 The commissioner Of the land office has sent in his report for the year. H. shoEs 8 large increase in land sold over that of last year sggregating about 100000 acres. The receipts Of the land office from all sources was ST. ,7l3,- SS3 He renews his recommendation that the pre-emption law be repealed, being satisfied that presumption filings gre made or procured to be made to a great extent from speculative purposes. An amendment 10 the homestead law Is recommended, requiring period Of mol less than six months af the settle ment Of the claim bas been placed on record before final prooa shall be ad- mitted, irrespective of tle alleged time of residence prior 10 The entry. lie also fears that the homestead law is open to- tbe same abuses as the pre-emption law. The total repeal of the timber culture law on &C., count of its inherent defects is recon mended. He slso finds hat desert lano entries have been made largely for spec ulative purposes with 10 intention oi reclamation. Also that timber and stone land entries are frequently violated.
 The abuses referred to by the Commis- sioner no doubt exist. Similar abuses have been practiced for many years, and it IS next to impossible 10 prevent them. The land sales ID Kansas and Nebraska and other western stajes and tsrrtories for the past thirty years. have been open to abuses similar to those raised by the comm 'ssioner. Settlsrs who did uo' possess sufficient means with winch tO pay for their lands, made arrangement, in advance for the money by giving one half of their land Co -he ca 1ltalist- or "lsnd shark" Gs they were called, for entering their quartersecuui Of land, and before the record of entrl was dry, deeds for one half of tleland Sc entered were made out m the name oi the speoulator. Thousands upon thous- Rnd of acres ot land have been 50 entef ed, yet the settlements Ee-e bona hlr and no fraud was intended upon tht government. The settlers were Co. poor to pay for their land, SO tbe, thought half loaf was better than DC bread. We have DO doubt but the com missioner has stated acts, and tha' lands are frauiently CT tered Undcr al of the acts that authorlze entries to b, mad But all are of the impression that uore good than bad results iron the pera,ions of The acts named. ii seoms to ms that there j. too much stress
 Nid upon tue petty theft Of tls
 cor devll who steals I60 acres O. and, or secures 1t m way mol ID stric, compliance with the law, when corporation and railroad companies are permitted to carry of tile deeds to mil- Ions Of acres. without half as near. complying with the acts uncer whIcl their entries were made. There seen. to be stronger disposition to have th, poor pre-empt and houesteader comply with the law, than the railroad corpora tions. Let us not straln at a gnat ans swallow camel Give the poor home stesder and pre-emptar the preference, if there is any preference to be given. There can be no great wrong committed on the land department even if Dicl Jones pre-empts a quarter section Of land to-day and sells it to John Smith tomorrow. IL matters little whether Smith or Jones make it their futar home, SD long as home is made, and the land is entity ted.