Devils Lake inter-ocean. (Devils Lake, Ramsey Co., Dakota [N.D.]) 1884-1905, 1885-10-10
TIE LAND laws.

zlN&tE.SF ~
Theresiidencs cladssofthe us. land
laws y : Arst-cclass fraud. It requires :
claimant to live upon his land six
months. No matter how useless,
9 member of society he may be.
come during that period; he may
burrow into the hillside and live like .
hermit; he may subsist upon mushrat
and drink slough water; permit his
beard to grow to his waist, and his
finger nails to rival the claws Of a bad
ger;-yet he must I've upon the land OF
get no title. True, the land laws re-
quire certain other acts, such as cultiva.
ton, ETC., and he must have at least q
seven.by-nine window pane somewhere
about the premises; but the chief pre-re-
quisite to final proof is residence. He
must live there six 1.-The could
secure employment elsewhere and buy
palatable food; if he could sleep in a
good bed and have the comforts that
make men social and humane; if ne
could earn q little money and thereby
be enabled to make double the amount
of improvements upon his claim, bring
ing it under more rapid cultivation and
making it more profitable, would not
the objects Of the land laws be more
definitely subserved? Which is the
most profitable to the government-ten
acres cultivated and a six months resi-.
dence, or fifty acres cultivated and no
specific period of residence? What does
the government gain by this compulsory
residence? Residence will not subdue
the wild growth Of the western prairie'a
sod; cultivation will. But the govern.
ment says to the settlers, If you are toe
pookto build a house and live upon q
piece of wild land, you shall not have
my free acres. I will not permit you to
go into an adjoining township and earn
the money to buy bread the first year
you must live on the land. You cannot
go away from it long enough to earn
money to buy a team if you can't afford
a team to break the land; if you are not
able to purchase a years supplies and
buy the lumber to build q house, 70,
cannot share in the benefits Of my lane
laws, although I admit that the purpss,
Of these laws was to give every poor mar
q home.
Congress cannot engage in Q better
business at its next session than that o
amending the land laws. The timbel
culture act should be repealed and tn.
homestead and presumption laws ought
to be consolidated so os to permit a bon,
fide citizen to hold 800 acres under on,
right, provided he cultiyates, say fit,
acres and builds q habitable house there
on within two years. Let the primar,
act of settlement be a declaration of in
tention, made before q proper officer, t.
cultivate the required number of acre
and put up and complete necessar,
buildings within a specified time; bu
permit the settler, if he desires, to 2,
wherever his thrift may take him and t,
remain away from the land not to ex
coed siz months that he may acquire tn
financial assistance necessary to enabl
him. to carry out his contract with tn,
government. Then put your specia
agent in the field and let the settler, a
the expiration of two years from date G
settlement, make his final proof upol
the official report Of the agent that tn
legal improvements had been made.
This plan of ~disposing of government
lands and settling up the country ma
be crude and no doubt has its technica
objections; but we submit it to the yer
dict Of M sense as an improve
ment upon the law which says the mer
act of residence for six months-where
by neither the government MOI settle
acquires any benefits an indespensi
bic part in the grand scheme of givin
free homes to the poor. The residenc
clause in the land laws may be state,
manship, but we are willing that tn
plan above submitted shall be filed i
the archives of congress under the heat
ing Of "horse sense"
ELSEWHERE in this issue will be foun
. statement of the expenditures Of Ran
sey county for the nine months endin