Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1885-04-21
SALE AND LEASE.
An Irrepressible Conflict Demanding
Early Settlement.
What Shall be Done With the Public
Lands.
Galveston News.

With the exception of one senator
and ii, or six members OF the house
of representatives, the Nineteenth leg
islature was Democratic. The Demo.
cratic party Of Texas had, lust prior to
the election of this legislature, pro-
nounced in favor of the lease system
for utilizing the school lands not In
demand by the actual settler. A the
DRY was projected by the party that n
system of leases and sales could be
adopted which would result In the oc-
cupation of the great body of state
lands by actual settlers holding small
tracts on the one hand, and by
wealthy stockmen holding by lease
extensive acres on the other hand, and
that these two classes of occupants
could be made to live together in
peace and harmony, under the laws of
the state. The legislature charged
with the duty of formulating measures
to attain this object, 1t is evident from
the reports of the deliberations over
land bills and land questions, gave the
| subject the most exhaustive considera-
tion which that body was capable OF
giving it. Every feature Of the land
bill WAS considered by each house with
as much attention as possible. III the
bill, as finally agreed upon, was radi-
cally defective, il was because the leg
islature, fresh from the people, and on
the whole honest in representing pub
| lie sentiment, WAS yet thoroughly in
competent to devise practical legisla-
ton to harmonize the sale and lease
systems, or because ii was fatal
error to assume that the systems
could be harmonized, and therefore,
the fort to harmonic them was nee
essarily futile. The state land board
with ample powers and disposition
TO exhaust expedients and expert
ments, with authority to construct its
plans to test them and to abandon
them at will, and always having in
view the same object as that set before
the Nineteenth legislature, had inglo-
riously failed and asked that its pow
ers and its experiments be RENTED
and closed by repeal. If, as seems
most certain, the board for nearly two
years had been trying to adopt land
system which would reconcile inter
ests that are irreconcilable, it was nat.
ural that the statesmen of the
board should seek TO unload its respon-
sibility upon the legislature, nor was
1t to be reasonably expected that the
legislature would be more successful.
Thus far reason, legislation and ex-
pertinent have demonstrated that q
lease system that will result in leasing
all or greater portion of the lands
will prevent the settlement and devel.
opment of the country by agricul,
turalists and small stock-raisers, and
that sale system that will throw open
the lands to settlement without hin
drance is incompatible with an eff
~. H.
tenth legislature adopted q mixed
system of sales and leases, under the
circumstances 1t was evident tina
with the actual-settler claus,
az o meaningless and purely or
namental attachment, to propitist,
the sentiment tor a dual lease and sale
system created by the delusive prom
ises of the party convention; or tina
: 1t was liberal and unrestricted sal
system, with the lease promise to OBJ
tain pay for the children's grass, whicl
no one expected to be fulfilled. Tn
veto OF the land bill RENTS the LANE
question to the next campaign and tn
next legislature. By that time publ,
sentiment will have been conclusivel,
made up for or against the lease sys
tenn as the preponderating gov
erning policy, with incidents
sales. The two systems-th
lease system and the sale system-csi
not be successfully mixed. The at
tempt TO mix and reconcile them in
wolves endless vexation, turmoil ant
confusion. For peace and harmon.
one or the other must finally prevail
And it is for the final good Of tn
schools and the school fund, and 70
the final good of the public interes
in relation to the settlement and dc
i. velopment of the state, that Their
( should be as soon as possible an eS
haustive sale of the school lands 70
what they will bring in the market
so they may as soon as possible pas
into the possession of thrifty popu
latinn of fae-si mnla nrnnriatnra