The Bad Lands cow boy. [volume] (Little Missouri, Dakota [i.e. N.D.]) 1884-1886, 1885-05-28
|rHn HONEST snrr11nns sArn,

oomnnissionsr Sparks Explains the. Scope
K ofths Eats Order suspendinG Tinnl Aos
( tipns ON Land Entries. ;ss si5Siils
{ Washington Special: The order issued Nv
the ommissioner OF the general land office,
dated April 9, declaring that final action npoonn
all entries Of the public land, except private
cash entries and such scrip locations as are not
dependent upon settlement and cultivation,
should hereafter be anspende In Colorado pass
kota, Idaho, Utah, Washington Territory, New
small part Of Kansas, Nebraska and Minnesota,
and also declaring that final 40 ton should be
suspended upon all timber entries throughout
the country, has caused great controversy in
tho territories named and decided opposition
from the agents and attorneys at Washington
ness Of securing patents for claimants.
1t is claimed that the order in ques-
ton is paralyzing land business inp ell
parts Of the country and doing great injury to
settlers who wish to prove up on their claims
so that they can borrow money to go on with
the improvement Of their lands Commissioner
Sparks said recently, when asked for his
opinion upon this point: u, G,
That order was intended to cover what term
infested distriots.' have written number Of
letters to people who are Complaining about it,
sna sns t. there
-. Pch w A0 AAoAops n0t-s
tiers an injury It is only the knaves and
thieves that / am after. I have dozens Of let
ters from persons living in these districts who
approve Of tho order They say thatin many!
regions not one entry in fifty is bona fide; that
get title to lan1l Timber entries are almost
uniformly fraudulent Now It is to catch Theses
people that / have said that we should sus-
pend final action on claims. This whole Office.
Including the assistant commissioned, the law
clerk and the various chiefs, are in harmony as
to the necessity aud wisdom Of that order I'VE
talked ftall over and thought various means
to- be employed for tho end desired One was
to close tho local land Offices; but In that event
settlers arriving 10 the district would find
themselves unable to locates That plan would
no. not work yS Then it Was suggested that We
obviously ,unadvisable 30 there was nothing
for me to do except to say that ! would not ask;
the secretary of, the interior nor the president
to;approye and sign patents when u Believed
that fully one-haf Of them were fraudulent. In
this way believe ! have saved the public
domain, 81? 6 80 i, rs $E = =
5FS FULLY niIIIoN; ACRES
Of land ssince April 8 ,rheI charge has been
made that the orderwas poll teal and geograph-
zeal in its chsra cters that the south was ex-.
copied There are but four states nthe south
where the United States has land offices Flor
ida, Alabama, Louisiana and Arkansas. Texas
fraud in Florida. In due time will reach that
ItIcann0t be said that the south is excepted be-
cause Secretary Ilamaris a southern man. The
south was excepted because the bulk Of fraud ia
not in the South y There is five times asimuch
territory in the North that is not included in
the order. Michigan, Wisconsin, Iowa, nearly
all OF Minnesota, Nebraska and Kansas arc not
included, and in two of these states Michigan
1 and Wisconsin, know there Ii fraud Tint we
ought 70 look after, twas not the intention to
PROSTATE the land business all over the country.
Nothing OF the kind has been done What we
are really after is to prevent the public domain
from going into the hands Of ranchmen and
spectators. The bona fde settler; can borrow
just as much money on his certificate Of entry
or his duplicate papers as he can upon the pat.
panies Of the East desire to know is that the
borrower should be q bona tideisettlera and that
he will be entitled to a.pstent L 1t is the knave
who wants his patent rushed through In twenty.
four hours You will find that to-day In Lii
po,s forty ent Of every one HUNDRED sntrymen
in this Office, and the settlers were satisfied to
have simply the duplicatea But You will find
that the Louisina backbone patents were taken
ont Of this office promptly, Just as you will find
patents have been taken in AL cases. where
there is fraud ~ " IS ;s:S. I
ENCOURAGING THE sETTLERs s &
WhenI am satisfied that there iss good faith
on the part Of the settler. there will be no diff
,6cnlty in bis getting q patent shall satisfy
myself BY means Of special agents and detec-
tves whom I can thoroughly trust and upon
them I shall pnt such checks and counter de-
lection as win make it absolutely certain that
no; false swearing or fraud can secure 70 pat,
tent. see that the fight Is. begun npon me
from the land: office lawyers here and ali
over the west, and that the newspapers large-
~ interested in the whole subject Of land
office business have opened fire upon me;
but have determined to stand by the order
Meanwhile, bona ile settlers all over the west
pick out their land, file their entries upon 1T,
and go on with their improvements. The land
is theirs just as much during the five years
which the law requires them to stay upon it as
i ever can BIO, and ii they are worthy people
they need to doso. cam OF see TINT, in order
to relieve these people OF some anxiety,
should allow thieves and rascals to take mil
lions Of the public domain BY false swearing.