Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1884-04-18

They would neve, have expended tbeir
money on classification of the land IL
THESE minimum prices had preyiousIv
oeen liked. Have you provided my
way to reimburse them for the monny
expended on the classification? Jf 80
nave not heard OF II. Then here il
another Instance of the disregard
OF the rights of parties desjr.
ing TO lease lands from
YOUR honorable board. Instead of ,ry.
ing TO sell or lease these lands, as the
Jaw directs, anu render them available
TO the funds to which they belong, If
one should Judge by the acts of your
hohoranIe board he would he re-
mihIed oi the decentralization ollice,
III Whlch the science studied was ho,r
nor % 40 II. What is the effect of such
roiicy on the income of the funds
you represent and the business inter
eS's OF the state In general? You can
no. justify your action 10y saying that
some OF the lands have leased al n
much higher price than the minimum
| ilNeu ny YOU; for Ii they have, they
have been caused 10 40
1t by competition, md
would have done IL without the
advance of the minimum price
while ON the other hand Won have,
| prevented the lease Of millions Of acres
that would otherwise have been taken
anu VIII continue TO do this until the
nllhlmum price IL reduced. If the
minimum price had remained at four
cents per acre / could have, filed appli.
cations for at least 900 sections TINT
| did not; this Is only what | could
have done, and there are many other
paities. who could have done likewise.
Ihus The funds you represent are be.
ing and will continue to be kent ont
of very large income. Some of the
parties that were going to lease have
leased lands In the Indian territory
and are preparing to drive their stock
there; others are driving TO Now
Mexico, Arizona and other territories;
so that the funds are not only deprived
OF the income, but capital Is being
uriVen from The state. Not only this,
out let us see how IL all, cts the indi.
viduai lands alternating with these.
suppose, for example, that own one
hundred sections Of land, and alternn.
t'ng with this there are
one hundred sections of
school land. draw n map of
the two hundred sections, and send Al
to some party who wishes TO buy
large body Of grazing land, and repre-
sent to him that can sell him one half
OF the land Mt one dollar per acre
ana he can lease the school
land Mt not less than four cents per
acre per annum subject TO competition.
lie Is iavolably impressed, and comes
or sends some one TO examine the land,
1t Is satisfactory, and he Is about
ready To close, when out comes rule
No. s. advancing the minimum price
from four TO eight and twenty cents
per acre. Everything stops ut once,
perhaps not so much from the eight
and twenty cents per acre rs the fact
that we have n board that has usurped
the authority TO advance the prices to
eight and twenty cents. III they
can do this and our people sub
init TO 1t, the next time they
meet they can advance IL to sixteen
and forty cents per acre. There Is an
afbitrary element of uncertainty
coupled with the unrestraint that de.
feats 1t and am left with my hundred
sections on my hands unable TO use IL
or render II In any way productive of
an income, while II the matter had
been left open TO competition the party
would have had faith that he could
always afford TO pay as much for II ms
anyone else, and i would have received
my sixty-four thousand dollars with
which l could have stocked and i'm
proved another tract, and the purchase
would have put another hundred
thousand dollars or mere
into stock and thus would the funds
have received n large income and from
one hundred aud fifty to two hupd red
thousand dollars been added TO the
taxable values Of our state. | tell you,
gentlemen, this Is no imaginary case,
but they are numerous, and thus your
Ill advised action Is both driving capi-
tai from our state and keeping II out 10
the damage of every business interest.
There Is general depression In bust
ness being felt all over our state now
and tell you lf confidence IL not re-
stored on this land question
the basis OF prosperity of
all Others and a large crop
made 1t IL going TO become worse.
servers, said that good or bad crops
had more TO do with displaciDg or In
stalling political party than any
other influence. The philosophy of II |
Is that when crops are good provisions
are cheap, business good, the country
prosperous and every one happy, they |
desire no change; but let depression
come and people be turned out of en-
ployment, and provisions high and
difficult to get, and everyone Is dissat-
isfled with the situation snd desires
"a change. The grass question
Is everything TO the business
interests of the western portion of the
state; and If they desire q change when
the uncomfortable seasons bring bad |
crops upon them, how much greater
Will they desire change when they
can Enthusiastically see the evil results
being forced upon them by unwIse
Legislation. i was the first party in
the state 30 far as know 10 raise my
voice and demand that the funds 10
which these lands belong should re-
ceive an income from them, and /
have used all the influence I could
bring to bear TO aid In concentrating
this end, and 30 just was the demand
and 80 eflectually had 1t been con-
coded that the entire growing
Interest of the state stood ready |
TO comply with the laws and your rui-
ings until you attempted TO enact rule
No. 8, when there were many, among
whom are my clients, who said this IL
an unau thorized exercise of Iower
We will comply with the law rs
enacted by the legislature and the
rules prescribed by your honorable
board so long as you c0nfine yourselves
w ithil the authority given you by the
so made out their proposi-
lions 10 lease In compliance with the
law and your rule seven and previous
ruling. They had begun to do this be-
fore you enacted rule No 8; had spent