Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1884-01-08
CAUSE AND CURE.
Evils that Have Arisen from Land No.
nopoly Fostcrcd by the state.
Fencc-Cutting a Rebellion Against the
Entertainments OF Wealth.
The Duty Of the Legislature TO Right
the Wrongs of The People.
Review of the Herd Law-Its Benefits
10 all Classes.

tor the Gazette.
Fort Worth, January THE fence
cutting that has been going on in
Texas FOL apnle time is, and ought TO
br, oi no little concern to every true
citizen, as It's Effect is of such nature
as to make Itself felt 10y each and every
one.
Many ideas have been advanced as
to the cause OF the evil. Some ap-
preach very near To the cause, while
Others fall tar short of the marx. IL is
well 10 probe f. r the calis Z, and deep
enough 10 reach the tru. cause; for
there can be but little expectation OF
atlording adequate relief 10y treating
only the effect, no matter how strin-
gent may he the legislative enact
ments. IL should not be despaired of
fiuding the cause because of its obscur-
ity. This makes it the more danger
Gus, and, hence, should be more dill
gently sought after, else the time and
labor expended ia legislation against
the evil will be uselessly employed in
not having removed that first cause.
| may be Il herculean task. and it the
true cause is found, choice
of remedies for the evil
is hardly permissible, only in 80 far as
it will more rAeclualIy suppress it.
IL can easily be seen that there Is u
principle of righ, underlying all this
evil--a principle, too, winch the state
has only granted to exist, but has
lett il To the force of Things and the
necessities of times to give and enforce.
These evils are but the outgruwth of
imperfect laws htht rto passed The
Fundamental law of this great state has
guaranteed certain rights 10 its citi
ZenS, III accordance with and cor
responding To tie idea already existing
in the nIlId of man, aud which was
there implanted ny the Divine Being,
Tue different legislatures, however,
have passed laws. when, IL they do
not take away !atogetder these rights,
at least ignore them and pat them in
allegiance. 1t il thought to lie the OBJ
iect of all good government to accord
to every individual, each aud every
right he III y have 10y virtue of his
beng; the ouly restriction u The uec
of them being IN SO far az they may
conflict with aud clash against the
rights of others which the individual
has agreed 10 observe in consideration
of the rights of citizenship. Man
! gives up SOME of his natural and indi-
! vidual rights in oder to
receive rights equally as beneficial to
him arising from the social compact.
And he does IL upon his faith in, anu
the implied promise of, the govern
ment not only 10 concedn these rights,
but to enforce the observance of them
10y others The government should
not be lavish of her GIFTS upon any cit.
i2en or class of ciliZ MS in preference
to another, but should rather settle
upon AN equitable distribution of her
enioyments, and likewise If her bur
| dens. 1t is generally supposed that
/ free governments do not lavJr monop-
Olies and uristocrach 8 OF any charac-
! ter; ana moreover, the "bill Of rights
! prohibits them, believing that they
have tendency TO Cypress rather than
builn up a peuplr; and AS an evidence
OF the esp, cal dlsapprohatiou of
this government TO these things
she has disclaIed that, in 50 far ~ her
public domain was concerned, il
should not be 70 dealt out rs To bring
about monopoly in this respect.
Hhis has ever been the spirit and pol
icy of the state. THIS declaration of
intention has been ignored by subse-
quent legislation, and such Things
have been permitted and quietly ac-
qHiesed in, until to-day the dreiul
result of such Il COURSE is felt on every
hand. How much of the present mis-
cry and suffering is attributed to the
passage of the "filty-cent act?' How
much valuable land has been sacrificed
and sold To capitalist, and in large
bodies, contrary 20 the public policy OF
the government, and perhaps for no
other reason than to satisfy that desire
for accumulation peculiar to most be-
lngs, ana which we npprehend Is not
lesscned 10y the fact hal they are COM
ponent parts of legislative bodies, or it
may be the chief executive OF
The nation. This conclu.ion is
the more spparent and ire
Histible when we remember
that 80 great part OF the public do
main has been thrust upon the market
at nominal price, and perhaps for no
greater reason than To accumulate
large "cash balance in The treasury.
And this land has been sold in large
bodies, and To capitalists, corporations
and syndicates, in direct c0ntrayentiOn
of the fundamental law. The legisla-
ture has become pdrficcps criDiinis to
the wrong and viii not the judiciary
be IN "pari delcton witlsthe Iegisa-
ture If they do not declare the act un-
constitutional aud contrary TO public
policy?
These lands were 40 situated that In
many instances they surrounded on
every side the smaller tracts OF Jono
fie purchasers and settlers, who had
complied with the requirements of the
law aud the policy Of the state in 70
doing.
The state having granted away these
lands in large bodies, the purchasers
Of them acquired the right TO fence
and occupy them and consequently
did-and in way. too. SO as 10 em-
brace and inclose the land OF others.
This enlailed a hardship upon the
owners Of these smaller tracts. IN that
they had no means Of iDgress and
egress 10 aud out of their land. These
bodies OF land. too, were Of such extent
as to cut of passage and comnlnnica-
ton from one settlement To another
from The benefit Of water and other
Inasnlucli as the state had declared