Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1884-06-27
Senator Gibbs Wisdom,

Senator Gibbs, as candidate for
acknowledgements, processes to be-
lieve that it is to the best interests of
the state to lease out its public school I
lands in immense pastures to stock /
companies, thus tying up millions of
acres, excluding settlers and paralyz- |
ing the states agricultural develop
ment. He holds that the revenue to !
the school fund TO be derived from the
leases is an advantage that more than
balances any loss to the state by IL e
operation of the le>se system. Thele
is no controversy over the point tina
the leasing aud inc'osing of whole
counties does exclude settlement; that
is an admitted fact, for there is net a
single instanc, so far brought to light
where an act Ial settler has had the
courage to assert the RICH. of entering
any leased pasture and beginning
simply that the income from the leases
is of greater value to the state than the
| settlement of the leased districts.
Had the wisdom of the people of
Texas discerned the profitable nature
of the lease system some twenty years
ago, and turned over the county of
Dallas. which counts Senator Gibbs as
II citizen, to lease syndicates, who
would have fenced up the entire
county, would it and the state be bet
ter of to-day? Let us make a COM
putation and see what would have
been the income to the school revenue
if Dallas county were now vast pas
ture, without population or improve
ments, and compare that with what
the income now is from taxation.
There are So, 900 acres Of land in
Dallas county. Suppose half of it tc
have been tented to pasturemen ut s
cents an acre. This is very liberia
: estimate, for not half of it would ever
e be rented, as the possession of les
= than that would give the lessee contro
e Of all the county, The school funt
8 would be enriched from this source by
the sum Of $23,0i0.
Under the encouragement to settler
! by free grass, Dallas county was iille'
. with farmers, who have given it tax
!. able wealth of $l5,000,0O0. At Il
s. cents on the 500 this yields the stat
= school fund $3.50 The school pol
a tax Is 50, 600. One-fourth of the occu
re patton tax is 5000. From these tire
Sc -ources of the school revenue there
IN an income of sS2, $50 against a possibl
1913 900 from the leases. Clearly an,
,e irrefutably, IL the good of the schoC
10 fund alone is to he consulted, settle
as ment of the country is better than lea.
as ing 1t.
ii Nor is this all. Under the leasin
be system, had it prevailed, the tax o.
be the cattle grazing on the pastures {
1t Dallas county is all the state woul
ms get for its support. This migf
90 amount TO 81 $50 If the cattle were al
We praised at million dollars. The STAT
M will get this year, In ad valorem, pol
,c- occupation and other taxes, not lei
zee than $780, 900, in addition to the $50, 10
tn school taxes. Then there are the count
,rs and city taxes, which exceed the sta
ire taxes, and will swell the aggregate
not less than $l35,0OO. The total u
last year was sl27 200, and an increa.
Of only IS, 900 is putting it below VIII
pa the figure might safely be put at. 81
tic this will do. 1T will do TO show an II
ase come of Sl35,0O0 from Dallas count
m. farmers as against possible income
ed $4,000 from Dallas county pastures.
nd Possibly Senator Gibbs will e
d. deavor to evade the logic of these ii
tic ures by saying that Dallas count
sm would have been settled In spite
as, leases and pastures. Such an asse
to Iion will only have the weight of h
on opinion, with the evidence OF exper
pa ence opposing such opinion. Settle
Ice keep away from leased lands, and the