Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1885-09-28

decided falling off, but there is small
increase over the enormous figures of
1888. The dispoSals Of public lands in
SS4 were affected by propositions to re-
peal the presumption, timber-cellturc and
dcSert-land acts, TO amend the home
stead act and TO forfeit some of the
railroad grants. The fear that changes
would be made in the land law chat Sonld
make It more difficult to get possession
of land for nothing impellcd everybody
who was thinking of claiming any part OF
the national estate to do so at once. Thus
some of the dlsposals which would ordi-
narily have been made this year were
made last, and the total amount of public
lands disposed OF in 1884 was run up to
twenty-four million, or about six or seven
million more than in the preceding or
succeeding year.
1t is only by
COMPARISON I
with some known areas of territory that
one can get any idea of the. way the ma
tiona! estate is passing into the hands of
private persons, mostly, OF course, set
tiers. Dakota contains 95,000,000 acres.
OF this, So, 000, 600 acres, equal to the
state of Illinois, have been disposed of in
the past nine years. Taking in two years
more, the investigation will find that the
amount OF public land disposed of by
the government in eleven years
is greater than the area of Spain, but Il
tri1e less than the area of France or Ger
many, and one-fourth as great u British
India with its 100000, 600 inhabitants.
The amount of land disposed of in the
last eleven years is zoe, 200 square miles,
an area eighteen times as great rs Bel
GUM. which SuStains over 5,000,0O0 in
habitants. The areas disposed OF in some
OF the states, gwen approximate
( ly, during the past nine years,
are as follows; Wisconsin, over
/ 3, coo 900 acres; Michigan. nearly =, 500
! goo; California, nearly 6,500,OOui halisaS,
/ l4.5O0, 600; Minnesota, over 9,VOo'uoV;
100000, and Washington g Terriit 0Svi
nearly 100000 acres; Alabama. ne.riy
3,OOO,0OO; Arkansas, nearly 3.00O Goo.
louisiana, over 1900, 900; Mississipni.
900, 600, and Florida, , 900. 900 acras
both last year and year before mora
lahd was disposed of in Dakota than in
uuy other state or territory, but in 1889
inc empire territory did not stand so far
d ,aed OF her sister states as she did in
IN the last year four and q half million
acres We're disposed of in Dakota, over
Inree millions and a half in Nebraska
ana over three millions in Kansas. In
Ialliornia more land was disposed of In
1909 IMAM IN 1854. In Dakota the ais.
poSaIs for 1854 were nearly three. foId
tnoSe OF 1855. In Kansas there was an !
enormous increase from Il million aud - /
thlrd OF acres in 1884 to over tbrcn mil,
lions in 1850. The
blsPosNs IN MINNESOT,
snow falling off of a million ocros
v, mlllic llere Is an increase of half II mil,
lion acres IN Nebraska. OF the 2O.iIg. GG9
acIeS OF government land disposed of lnst
- - 9,seo acres were disposed of
'hn lhe homestead act, 4,755, 0O5 under
anS tlniOer-cuiture act, 3,55S,9l4 acres
,,a taken as railroad selections, and r.
.I@,4oo acres were sold for cash. The
i .",iI'e entries show but very small
aillng on from 1851. The timber-cultnrc
~ also show but a small diminufion,
ld nc cash sales show n reduction of . soS. I
700 acres vi -''''
, for the government lands disposed of y
mere was received S7,GsG.lI and for
ne indian lands sold S98a,'oS. The land
old at cash sales brors.t an average of
'l.l9 per acre. an 'ne land disposed of =
t public sales Fought S4.4l3 per acre -
he home5,,,au entries in ss5 numbered Sc
0,s71 mlllng off of 4 ,l6s from 1874 " to
,nh IlNBER-CuLTuRE ENTRIrs ,
~" az Increase OF about 1000 in numhor a
inD ia lahds show decrease of Az on ra
.es ana an Increase of 5000 acres anI IN rn
~ ~. - Il decrease of lG entries s,,d IIr I'M
U acres in coal lands. ~ '''p ~ sti
pu