Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1884-08-01
THE LEASE SYSTEM.
stemming the Current Of County Instruc-
tons-He Reaches the Peo-
pie Direct.
The West Must be Left Open to the Home
Seekers Fore Ter.
Correspondents of the Gazette.

correspondence OF the Gazette.
PLANO, July 3O.-The Hon. II. C..
Mack spoke to the citizens of Plano on
Saturday, the 10th, ON the subject of
the lease law and free grass. His re-
marks are here given. Mr.. Mack
said:
Fellow. citizens of Plano and vicin-
ity: You have just held your primary
meeting and passed a resolution favor
ing the present lease system. l had
rather be sat down on before | make
my speech than afterwards. L sup
pose those of you who voted for that
resolution will feel 1t your duty TO OPP.
pose me and vote against me. You
are the men / want IN talk to; come,
let us reason together. There will be
no hard thoughts upon my part by
recson of your opposing me. Inc
man cannot be found who can truth
fully say that | have ever fit any Bit
terness toward him for voting against
me. 1t is your right to vote as you
please and you should ex-
ercise that right with the
utmost freedom, 1t is nee.
essary that every voter do his own
thinking, and act freely upon the sub
| iect referred TO i'm your resolution.
am opposed TO your lease resolution,
and expect TO use all my efforts to
break up the present lease system If i
am your representative in the next
legislature. If you are welded to this
great iniquity, don't cast your vote for
me, for enter the field to fight 1t TO
the bitter end.
Upon this issue stake my chances
for election IT, seat In the Nineteenth
legislature. | would mucn prefer de-
feat in opposition to the present wrong
aid ruinOus pol icy of leasing the Estate
school lands than achieve success by
favoring it. had rather be right than
b. elected.
The people OF Texas are face to face
with the most momentous issue that
they have yet been called upon
up by large leases of from
10, 900 TO $50, 900 acres In single bodies
10y afew score cattle kings, and all
the rest Of the world closed out from
Its occupancy and enjoyment? Shall
Chinese wall be erected across the
West and its broad expanse closed out
from immigration? Shall all Western
Texas be turn'd over in body to
mighty combinations of cattle kings?
And snail every other interest If the
-r',te be made 81 bservient to royal syn
dicates of capitalists from the North
and East and from Europe? These
are some of the forms In which this
great issue presents itself. 1t Is time
every patriot should stop and think
before acting.
But let me call your careful atten-
ton to an adroit argument relied upon
by the advocates of the lease system to
bring success to their standard.
They tell you it will
bring a revenue to our
public schools. The men who talk
the loudest now were public school
men before and were never heard to
speak word in their behalf. But
with great deal of cunning they now
talk this nonsense TO the people. 1t Is
very demagogue-llke for them to mix
up the "chiluren's grass" with wire
fences and lOng-horned cattle, and in
iluence the people TO gulp 1t all down.
These men are not and never were
the friends of public schools-they are
friends to themselves and the cattle
kings. Don't permit them to deceive
you. No man in Texas has ever gone
IN advance of me in trying to build up
an efficient public school system; but
| hope have better ideas of a sound
state policy than TO advocate any one
interest of the state 10 the ex-
clusion of all others. 1t is
not wise craftsmanship to advance any
single interest of our country until IL
overshadows all Others.
For the very inconsiderable sum.
comparatively, that will he derived To-
pubic schools we cannot afford TO fos.
Ter and build up by legislation dan
serous ana aggressive combination OF
corporations that are now striving to
get possession of all the cattle and
grass in the West. If ten times the
amount claimed as the revenue to pub
lie schools from these large leases was
actually realized, ii would be small
compensation for the evils these large
Enclosures will entail upon the state.
We have no right to close out the
West from actual settlers. The fathers
OF Texas did not treat us so, and IL
should never enter our minds
TO 80 act towards our childr,n
But we are told that the lease law con.
tains promise that authorizes the
actual settler to go In and take charge
of homestead in one of those arse
pastures and that 1t should be sold 10
MN by the state under such circum-
stances. This is like Tantalus in the
water ana not able 10 drink. 1t is a
very liberal provision in the law, but
one NOBODY dares to undertake to en-
Joy one no settler is fool enough To
try To avail himself of.
Imagine man with wife and six
or eight children attempting to estab-
lish homestead in the heart of one of
those large ranches, with cows for hi,
neighborss, tarbed wire for his hori-
loh ana a cattle king for his
luss.er; Where wonld be his
his church, his
n'll aud his doctor? His wife and
daughters would have To learn a new
etiquette Of society from drunken and
prolaIle cowboys. And by and by the
oewlldered and bedeviled actual settler
should one ever be found 80 insane as
% enter cow ranch In this way. will
conclude To- sell out, aud who will buv
out MS lord and master This saving
'isuse IN the lease Law won't bear |
'epeating, and no voter should listen
% II for moment.
But a most serious difficulty ia found |
sheh We look down the future for ten
ears, snd after We have found our
'hdless troubles flowing from this
lease system. We undertake. |
o throw of our shackles. You will |
ma We have wrought chain with
Ghlch 10 bind us and nn,.