Daily Republican., 1884-04-14
SMecA the Ian dx rabbers.

Down in Texas and out in some of
the Western States and Territories We
are having an exhibition OF land grab
bing or rather land stealing that puts to
the blush the tilchings of Star route
thieves. Millions Of acres have been
taken possession of and enclosed in wire
fences by cattle raisers merely of course
only until it is wanted by some one
else who has made legitimate pur-
chase from The government 1t has
been discovered, however, that it is no
very easy matter for a settler to get pos
session of his government homestead Of
one hundred and sixty acres Of land
even after he has his deed for it and
has paid for it. 1t is encroachment that
the COW boys look upon with jealons
eye and though they may not at the
time offer any objections to the settler
taking possession of his property it will
moi be long before he will find that his
new home upon which he had built nc
many bright anticipations of success
and comfort, is a very good place to get
away from. 1t is not congenial to have
a gang Of ruffianly looking fellows
hanging around armed with 'Sharp's
rifles and to hear of other settlers disap.
pearing in very mysterious kind of a
manner.
AS long as the public lands are moi
enclosed every man has right to past
ure his sheep and his cattle upon them,
but no man has a right in his own
name to inclose more than one hundred
and sixty acres, or to shut out settlers
from the exclusive use of more than
that quantity. These cattle kings do
not limit their ranges, and have enclos.
ed tens of thousands of acres within
wire fences and exercise their power as
a guild to bar out all settlers from these
vast enclosure. This should not be per.
mitted by the government. The land
does not belong to these cattle kings
1t is public property and any settler
desiring home has the legal right tc
enter and occupy by pre-emption ol
homestead regulation, quarter section
of such land at government prices.
But the fact of possession by the cat
tle-men is a standing menace to such
occupation and cultivation, for the un.
lawful holder has the power to be the
settler in many ways.
The man who occupies 10000 acres
with 1900 cattle OF 10000 sheep is, after
all, land monopolist and discountel
of progress and civilization. The cow
boy must 60 and make room for the far
mer, the permanent inhabitant, follow
ed by towns, school-houses, roads and
court-houses, which are the creation o.
the settlers, and not of the semi-barba-
rous herdsmen with their cabins scat
tered at intervals of ten and twenty
miles apart. What is needed by tn,
people is law of Congress prohibiting
under adequate penalties the fencing Of
more of the public lands by any Ont
settler than he is entitled to under the
homestead and preemption laws. Will
the vast domain of unoccupied land il
Texas Congress has nothing to do. Tha
State, by the terms of its admission intt
the Union, is the undisputed owner O
all the land within its borders, and its
own legislature must decide between
the rights of the common people anC
the insolence of the cattle kings and
sheep herders. When they make the
discovery, as they must soon, that ont
thousand acres, subdivided into ter
small farms, well cultivated and i'm
proved, and settled by ten families, with
power to keep acomInon school running
for six months in every year, is worth
more to a States financial and enlight
ened progress than twenty thousand
acres ranged over by the monopolis1
cowboys, the legislature Of Texas will
put an end TO the lnsolence of the LAND
grabbers and the murdcrous depreda-
tions of their cowboys Down witt
the land monopoies let the cowboys
go, and let the honest settlers in, that
will SooI make the wilderness blossom
as the rose.