The Dallas weekly herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1885, 1884-05-22
AN OPEN LETTER.
senator albbs Views m Inc Land and
0fsss QassiIoe.
Opposing The sale of Land By The state
10 Corporations.
Protecting ihs School Children.

FfOiteiihf iha sehoet thlldrfu.
Dallas nay o,-roL- Gibbs. Editor Mssne'lo
Dslh sIni 10 the Quill Of the i7.h insi.,
| read With M little interest your sditoTisl
on tie land and grass qussiloD, and 40 you
state that u IL foT orr especial e'ntidtra-
dor, am tenn 'od 10 SI's briefly eKplani'
tory o. my views as compstd with your
own, Since my candidacy for lieutenant
governor have written bus few private
letters, and nene for bubble zion. What
ever = oId madf ~ q senator was not
made VII a yisg {, fniuIe n0li'i''l prefer.
mint; AID nfi'htr would sblndon any Of
my COZ gis'lo5s ~, i.T that PURGE but my
that TssliEs the iFn'A ina. ! have much 20
learn, sn : as the We, y ooneernC
would not aaH r"y do Il en- iuiu'y, for
the commercial lnIeFasij OF my people
sts too intimately 10 ientitsd win
tho interests OF your people for mo 20 h'
otherwise than extremely favorable 20 y'us
prosH',ity. Moreover, when | saiiitd IA
pslla, 1, IVES considered e oniisr town,
aud white u IL now no tsrter Of a great
agricultural d. lel, yet | ear, ts'sly say
that o. IenAtoT l repre- 'ri eiess 6f
farmers by far too ic'el'gfnt 10 expect o.
tolerate rom = Q Enyth'1s hnt a fair and
lust couFEe IN desling siih the people OF
usAVE ~. ssuuo VI 'Nc etFtM thlhA N's
have, 10 come ex.eat, m!so>, oelyed my
views these questions, though, 10 = great
extent, matters OF record.
First-As a senator, by bill aud othe
wiIe elways commended that there ehor'd
be no ssle OF land 10 others than sctual set
tiers, and In bodies not exceeding 0io rcres.
Ny reasons were that chesp homes tor our
children ana the future ctzfnship OF
Texas was OF paramount political I'm:
postAnce TO increr- ID taxable wines and
that tho logger sush ,nditlon OF thiues
! existed, 30 much longer would the ni'rs
ton for immigration continue.
Sfcond-For this same reason, and DINERS,
l opposed the fs'e OF land by the state 70
corporations, and eysn oppo-ed the grept
ing OF franchises TO purely land corporations.
Money Is now cheap In foreign and domestic
tineuclal centers, aud cheap money Invested
In cheap laud means an elrly enhancement
In market value al land, and the result
would be no more cheap moneys for the
people. This Is true- OF inyestment by cor
porate than individual capital, because cor.
porate bodies have facilities for holding
land, which ore not Common 10 individuals
who are susceptible 10 repeated change IN
circumstances, dispositions and life tteelf.
Moreover, while It Is true that certain great
enterprises can ony be accomplished by
corporate capital, 1t Is equally true That
the ordinary avenues OF trade and
ltFNAiuipu buN nut ue Wv
rations 10 the detilment oiin9ivldual energy
and enterprise. CommeTos aud even agri-
cultCre Is dependent for activity upon Dor
rowed money, bu. great deal OF corporate
capital, unsccompaniod by fair proper
ton of flesh and blood, contributes very
little socially or politically 10 the prosperity
OF country.
Thirdly-My views on the lease question
are and have as Representative been briefly
as follows:
am opposed 10 leasing any school land
iu Counties where tntrs are only 10 COO acres
or less. l am In favor OF keeping open 10
actual settlement, not subject to lease, this
much OF the best school land in each county
where the school fund owns any land, and
in favor of voluntary lease system ss 10
the balance Of the school land in such
counties.
opposed the Terrell bill, aud all other
legislation with hsrd.law features, because
| did not believe l. practicable or applice-
BILE TO all sections, and did not wish to see
tbe state use !'s 20 yer to coerce citizsns to
pay the school iu I'D @ very small amount,
and The landowners corporate end ind-
vldual, large amounts Of money. The
policy of a voluntary leage system, t aHed on
the law Of supply and demand, and the
aggregation in e,ch county Of sufficient
land for actual settlement, Is policy based
on aouud business prime Piles, eud cannot
pus1iuly iit JISEC WIN icihCLp
Of the country. The state cannot be ex.
pectad 10 deal go unfairly by the great mass
Of It's people, and espec'a'ly by lie school.
children, as to ell en- rctual s7ttler a
home at So Ger acre, on twenty
years. time, with per c,n.. interest
md at the same time give him the free
range of al the surrounding country, when
handsome raye1u to the school fund. The
school children Of Texas eye entitled. under
the constitution, not to the land itself, bat
to the revenue to be derived from the 49,.
900, 600 acres of land belonging TO that
fund. We must either lease or sell this
queathed to us. II we sell in unlim ted
quantities, at low prices, We have parted
with the land and are forced to eearch for
doubtful investments at low rates of inter.
est. Selling in large quantities would
erect barriers to settlement much greater
than are erected by short leases. IT we
lease the land all except Certain well de-
derive revenue for the schools and don't
inltrf re with the settlement Of
the country and get the bsnefit OF the en-
HANGED value of the land; and surely ii
there Is any speculation in the matter, the
school fund should be the beneficiary rath.
er than syudicates or individuals. This
was the evident intention of our fathers
who founded rpd required Of US the per-
petuation Of this fund. Ii l understand
your petition c)rrectly. the only difference
between 1s is this: You agree that there
should be no sale TO any but actual settlers
and insist that the 5000, GOO acres of echool
land should lie idle except 40 much as is
necessary to satisfy this actual settler de-
mand and to this point will address my
self
Taking the last few years of active immi.
grafton as basis, there have been 80
shown by the land office records, IN sver.
age of only 10000 acres of school
land per annum sold to settlers.
If you will admit, what seems to me very
evident that there must he either lease or
reasonably speedy sale of these lands, then |
is rot the lease preferable, both as it effects
the settlement Of the country, and the in
crease Of the school fund. A lease IL tenn.
porary, q sale permanent diveetment OF
title, and II the owner so determines, means
permanent barrier to settlements. l say
1t must be either lease or sale, because
the American people are too nervous and
fast and too anxious to realize on ah invest
me2ts to wait century, and Texas has un-
der mistaken policy already sold large
bodies of this school land at sacrifice.
Give them Q revenue from its lease and yon
will check this desire to sell, otherwise it
will sweep >every thing before it IN the
near futuS as in the recent past.
On this fair basis and with this average you
will perceive by dividing 600
acres by the annual sales, 10, 900 acres, that
H. uouId t,ka 36(l vaara IN raaliza IN the