Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1885-01-24

ership. then, of these margins, coupled
with the ownership and control OF the wa
TER itself prevents the development OF lrrl-
carton schemes. and the establishment OF
IRRIGATION works. The policy is therefore
driving the agriculturist out of the State,
and displacing a thrifty and numerically
large AGRICULTURAL class by few herdsmen
who are rapidly coming 10 Weld all the
political power of the State, and to dlsplace
It's civilization as absolutely as II settlement
had never been attempted. A single ilrm
of herdsmen in eastern Nevada has estao-
lished a range right to an area covering ten
thousand square mlles-a region exceedlng
the area embraced within the boundaries of
the state of Massachusetts, The industry
pursued by them employs from twenty-five
10 forty men during the different seasons
of the wear The possessions OF great
herdsmen, when traced upon the map OF
the State, presents the appearance OF narrow
threads. or slightly exaggerated proportions
of the riveS themselves. Itappears almost
incredible that commonwealth would
have disposed of the water so indispensable
to artificial irrigation and consequent at
traction of an agricultural population, but
il is unfortunately true, and hence Ii Is not
to be wondered at that the State itself, winch
has thus been industriOusly attempting TO
commit suicide, should find itself to-day on
the verge of establishment. From this
point the objects of the memorial, as set
forth in the fifth whereas, come plainly
and naturally into view In this subdlvl-
sion of the memorial it is declared that in
view of the fact that Nevada has great need
of q large actual homestead population, for
whom, under wise legislation, there are
ample resources, fertile soil, and living
water. it is highly desirable that the entire
lands within the State of Nevada be placed
under the ownership and control of this
State, subject to the management and dis
posal by its Legislature" The memorial
concludes with the resolution instructing
| the Senators and requesting the Repre-
! sentatives to use all honorable means
to secure the passage of an Act
granting all the public lands within the
| boundaries of the State of Nevada to that
State If at first the proposition should
appear to be in any respect preposterous,
more careful consideration of the subject
will certainly dispel that view. 1t has long
been painfully apparent that the Congress
of the United States does not possess a suf-
ficient aggregate intelligence of the needs
of agriculture relating to lands lying west
of the Tooth meridian, to deal wisely with
the subject. Already, in a grant to the
railroads and to the State-the latter being
! in such form as to facilitate that end-the
General Government has practically parted
with its lands in the State of Nevada. The
people of that State are now thoroughly
awakened to the vices of the policy which
has hitherto been pursued, and can dea
| with what lands remain unappropriated fal
more advantageously to the growth and de
velopment of the State than may reason
ably be expected at the hands of The
General Government. The reclamation o
lands from an arid and deser
condition involves problem, fol
the solution of which the Genera
Government has manifested no aptitude
Intelligence concerning these problems re
quires direct contact with the factors con
trolling their solution. This contact the
people of the State of Nevada have had
and therefore possess the resultant inteli
gence upon the subject. With all Of the
public domain in the State of Nevada un
der the control of the State, with the re
formation of the land policy now certain t
ensue with the necessity of disestablish
ment of the State and returning it into ;
Territorial condition staring the people IL
the face, there is every reason TO believe
that the grant of all the Government land:
TO the State would be the beginning o
growth in the direction of permanent pOpu
Iation and prosperity in that common
J wealth X