The Abilene reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1883-1888, 1886-08-26
LAND-aRAsBERs SCORED.


paign, on the Democratic side, was
fired by Judge Lewis Jordan. OF In
dianapolis, in an earnest and able
speech lately delivered at Lebanon.
After referring to the fact that the
navy contractors, steamship compan-
les, Pacific railroads, land and timber
thieves ct al. were all opposed to the
present Administration he proceeded
TO show the reasons for some of this
opposition:
The conquest of our vast public domain by
the laud-e-rabbers has no parallel i'll history,
and il was all accomplished under the rule OF
spariy which in its infancy said in its Chi
cagO platform that lands should not be grant
ed 10 corporations. but reserved for actual
settlers No wayward boy ever so soon de-
parted from the good resolves OF youth. Be-
fore the Republican party had reached maII-
mood, in fourteen years II had given away TO
corporations l'2 1Sl, los acres OF your land
Future generations Will be amazed when they
read Of these princely gifts. and will compare
them with no favorable opinion TO the gifts
SIade by cOnquerng Kings TO their Generals
and faVOrite followers The people OF this
country. be they Republicans, Democrats,
Grcenbackcrs or Nugwumps, have not yet
had their eyes fully opened a. TO how laVishiy
the Republican party has made gifts of the
public domain TO faVorite friends. This IT,,
1SI, 10 acres would make nine States the size
of Indiana II is twice the amount of land in
Great Britain and more than in France or Ger
many. 1t would make 4,oJJ,UOJ homesteads OF
forty acres each.
Prior to 1861 not foot of public land h ad
been given to corporations, and it was only
when the Democratic party in 1874 elected
majority of the lower house OF Congress
that a malt was called in these princely gifts.
SO scandalous did these gifts become that
even a leading Republican newspaper OF the
West, in luc,d moment OF honesty, de-
nounced Congress for making a Rift enter
prise of the public domain, and compi-
mentcd a distinguished Democratic member
of Congress from Indiana for never having
failed TO oppose vigorously every one of
these measures of public plumber" The rail-
roads have been selling these ands at AN av-
erage price OF Sf.;SJ per acre, and you can
make the calculation yourself and determine
the enormous pie they Will receive If allowed
But since the books have been opened il
has been discovered that the rGIIlrcad COM
panies were not satisfied with the strict terms
OF the act OF Congress and the amount al
lowed in them, but have had dectS OnS made
Ly the General Land Office that gave them
millions OF acres not contemplated by the
acts Every demand made upon that Office
was promptly hOnOred. ana because they can
not control the present CJmmiSSioner-Mr.
SDarkS-tne whole brood have been bounding
him down, and their allies, the Republican
press have joined in the cry.
The grant to the JD!on and Central Pacific
railroads, forty miles wide from the Missouri
river To the bay Of san Francisco, and that to
the AtchisOn, Topeka Santa Fc is also forty
miles wide. Tie Atlantic and Pac fic is Gig hty
miles wide. and that to the Northern Pacific
IS one hundred and twenty miles wide in the
Territories. But these swaJhs were not wide
enough for the graspiug sharks, so they go To
the General Land Office and are allowed to
select what they call Indemnity lands outside
OF these limits In many cases these lands
had been entered. patented and settled. and
a the command oil the sharks the OwneTs were
driven of and made bcggars.
IT, durtng the coming canvass. you hear
some wheeAv Republican, speaker ASK: WHEN
10, fla nj
the books have been opened and disclosed the
inhuman aud brutal treatment of the " est
ern pioneer by the ShmrNs VINO issued their
orders through the General Land Office
while 1t was administered By Republican
officials.
We need not ga to Ireland to witness the
dcSp9tic and cruel rule of land!ordisII. Right
here in our own land have been practiced
OutrageS the Western pioneer that have
no parallel in the Green Isle. They have been
robbed of their homes bY Il great Govern
lucnt which had received pay for II, aad all
this done in the interest of the great railroad
corporations. Thanks TO 4 Democratic Ad-
ADMINISTRATION, this has all been stopped.
But the railroad companies to-daJ are hold
ing Oh to !E.GJlUOO acres more than they are
entitled to. being territory large enough to
make three states the size OF Ohio, Ind ANA
ana Illinois. They have rot earned these
lands. bur are holding on to them with
tleath-like grin. The struggle Is now going
Oh IN Congress and the eyes Of the Western
people are turned to Washington. The Dig
light il over the Northern PHciHc grant. Toe
ton has J1O9,OJJ acres more thal theT haze
any right to. while The Senate. 'OoKing
through Republican glasses, say the amount
IL only G.ut ,uIJ irrcS. II - some cOuSOl3t on
&c have the SeHase acknowledge even this
last number. justice travels with lca;icn
heel bug strikes with an iron hand, and
hope the day j. not far uiSt lut when all these
lands Viii lie reclaimed and opened To private
en,ry.
Bat tbs railroads are not alone in their
raids upon tae pubic lands. The, have Tor
M lth rEN- 40 l..
panieS which are organized &ll over tHe Terri
tories. These companies have CARRIED on
their stealing of the public lands with perfect
system. Their mode OF operation has been 10
cmploy Will Irresponsible scOuudTc.S To
mount their horses and gaiop over the prai-
res, and then return and hie Ci>imS for all the
land they have E,assed over These Claims are
then transferred TO the land companies,
which are composed largely of tu"eIgncss.
By such outrageous frauds Scotch and
English landlords have obtained estates
liz our country winch SurpaSs in extent and
fertility taose held by them at home. An En-
EtlSh synd. cate holds 3,UN,pB acres in Texas,
aud the Holland Land Company 45J0, OJJ acres
Ia New MeNaco Among the English Lords ]
find the Marquis OF Tweedaic OWES l,i5O.t1J
acres, the Duke OF Sutherland AZ, J9j acres.
LORI Houghton 6l,0Iu acres, and Lord Dun
raven. in Coluraao, 60010 acres special agents
have found that an Eagiisn Iirm has onta ned
lv0,tJ0 acres OF the choicest redwood
Snds in California. The books have not
been fully opened ard read. bat far il has
been found that foreigners own 2J..4,.pU0
acres of our public domains. The fOunda-
tons have been lad for carving out several
Ireands IN our own country. These startling
figures confirm the pea that il was time - -
open the books, discharge the bOOk-keeper
ana place aa honest man i'll charge of the Gen
erAI Land Office should your local Republican
newspaper ask: Nv hen urus-uu going To open
ths books" give him some of the facts EaVe
furnished you, and, my word for ii, h. organ
wall cease to grind out the question 1t is the
examination of these fraudulent entries that
has raised such howl all along the Repub-
lcan line. In one year, ending March 81 lSS6.
- of these entries were cauceeI or held up
for further hearing and more than $1,000
acres recla med for bona file settlers. This
does not include the large number or entries
which have been canceici for fraud which
has been developed toy individual contests
aud the books are beng opened every day.
The great reform goes on. and Mr.. Sparks is
making the sparks fly wherever his hands
reach.
The cattle kings have had a regular picnic
aud have taken posses<.O on of the remainder
OF the public lands not gobbled up by the
railroad corporations the laud com panieS and
the English lords. Grim mai and civil suits in
ffty-SiN cases were brought the first year of
the AdmiHistrat on against these robbers, and
Possession or 1.6j5,3i0 acres recovered. In
iorty 9th. cases fences were reno Ted from
around Sol, lSj acres The cattle kings are
about as lawleSs as their bulls ard the strong
arm of the Government hal to be evoked to
drive them out of tine Ind au reservations
The railroad companies, she hand com anieS, |
the English lords and the cattle kings oper
ated in the open country. and lett the forests |
for the timber thieves During the first wear |
a. the Administration SIS criminal cases and |
80 CIVIL cases were commen need against these !
civil suits WAS <5,5Ol, h1JCs. and thus you see |
how extensive the depredStions were OF |
course they were all opposed to opening the |
books, nd are also opposed to opening the |
Doors of the p"aitentiary- |
Iwould like to refer inf detail to the frauds 1
sanctioned by the Republican Admin stra- t!
lions in surveying private land grants in New |
Mexico, Colorado and Arizona The history |
reads Ike a romance, but unfortunately the I