The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1884-08-30
IT MUST BE STOPPED.
MANY MILLIONS OF ACRES STOLEN
Foreign and American Cattle Companies
Illegally Fencing In and Entering
Huge Tracts of the Public Domain
-Prosecutions to he Instituted.
VAST THEFTS OF LAND.


WASHINGTON, Aug. o. - Some time
since the Commissioner of the General Land
Office ordered survey OF certain public
lands in Colorado and Nebraska with the
view of bringing suits against cattle COM
panies that have Illegally fenced in large
tracts of lands in those States, Eight cases
have been found against the Prairie Cattle
Company, composed of Scotchmen. An eX-
animation has been made OF tracts contain
ing respectively one hundred square miles,
twenty-five square miles, sixteen square
miles and seventy-iiye square miles, and an
agent is at present examining tract con.
tanning over one hundred square miles. An
of these are under control of the Prairie
Cattle Company and are illegally fenced in.
Officials in the Land Ohrce claim that be-
tween five and six millions of acres are now
illegally fenced in and that several MIL
ions OF acres are fraudulentS entered.
Settlers say the cattle men are driving
them away, and taking from
them the lands which they have set
tied upon. One Land office official
says that if the practice is continued the
cattle men will have entire control of the
best public lands in the United States
within twenty years. A land agent in New
Mexico informs the General Land Commits
sioner that Of the entries in that Territory,
ninety per cent. are fraudulent and another
agent in Dakota says that twenty-five per
cent of the entries are fraudulent in that
Territory. A table, completed recently
for the forthcoming annual report of the
Land Commissioner, shows the number Of
fraudulent entries that have been investi-
gated during the past year, and approx
m al hA N ilIlrallV tpnpAI
acres in the various States and Territories
to be as follows:
Arkansas, 70 fraudulent entries; Dakota
400; Colorado, $50 fraudulent entries and
2SO0,0D acres Illegally fenced; California, l59
fraudulent entries; New Mexico, $50 ;raud-
fenced; Minnesota, 81 fraudulent entries;
Washington Territory, l09; Idaho, W; Ne
braska. 10 fraudulent entries and 10000
entries and 10000 acres; Alabama, los fraud
uleat entries; Wisconsin, 10; Florida, II;
Oregon, 50; Kansas Isl fraudulent entries
and $4,000 acres illegally fenced; Nevada, 90
100 acres illegally fenced.
Besides the cases embraced in the fore
going statement there are about three thou
sand entries on which action has been sus.
pended until an examination can be made
by special agents. These entries will aver
age about one hundred and fifty acres OF
land each. Acting Commissioner Harrison
says 'iia' no uouot tnele are .ilousahus VI
other fraudulent entrees OUT lha' t'ie once
can only investigate lho'e winch are
brought 10 lis a'teh'loh by Se'le's ana olh-
ers
Among the cases OF UNAUTHORIZED iehclng
speeialiy reported 10 Tue Lana oNlce ny
agents are llie iolioWins: ,o....,,,
lnE rranio Iat''e n "n tbo
sas VALLEY Company, 1860 900; II. ii. Metealt.
100000: John ". Prowers, 100000; Mcdaniel
Davis, 900; Routchler a Lamb 4o'o9o; >:
" r"H Fam 40 20 otn. fcwsev RToS l5H0E0:
Vrooman l. McFife $1,000; Beatty Bros, 40.
COZ; Chick, Brown & Co, 10000, ana the Rey-
n9lds tattle company my %'Woua IN IN toiorado'
20 o66. h 4 " WiIco X 50oI: Kontb"ck Ranch
1000, and j. W. Bosler, 20, 900 in Nebraska
William Humphrey, $4,000 acres, and Nelson
SON. 2o'o'o' IN Ne'"ua'
Entire counties are reported as oeihs
fenced IN IN Kansas, In wyoming more
than one hundred large cattle companies
are reported as having FENCING on pubic
lands. some OF tiiese companies are re-
ported to be English, ana o'hers SCOTCH