The Abilene reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1883-1888, 1886-11-11
GETTING BACK The HOMES.

rhe Republican Party Believed In Giving
Away the Land to Great Corporations.
and the Democratic Party Is Reclaim
lag 1t for the People.
1t was the Republican party which
mau gurated the wholesale giving away
of the homes of the people, in the vast
areas Of good land added to our do
main by the Democratic party. 1t is
often said that the Democrats began the
policy aad the land given by the State
of IDiaois to the illinois Central has
been held up as frightful example.
But that was not gift. The consid-
Grafton was a heavy annual tax which
has been and still is faithfully paid,
and the taxes thus saved to the people
nave reimbursed them over and over
again for the original investment.
1t was the Republicans who inaug-
urated giving the lands directly to the
corporations in large slices and letting
them keep them whether they ever
built the roads or not. The extent to
which this has been done has often
been made public, but it will be a long
time before the theme will grow old.
Here is brief list of few of the worst
cases:
Kansas Pacific 6,G00,00O acres
Central Pacific ..-........-.... 1.g1T.600 acres
Western Paciic----- 1,lGO,4JJ acres
Central branch Union Pacific. ", 400 acres
Sioux City Pacific Senator
Jim Wilson's slice. ......-.. 4l,OU acres
On on Pacific. 120)0.0D acres
Northern Pacitic---...-........ &, UB.2lj acres
Texas Pacific -.----....-....... 14.CpBl.UD acres
Atlantic Pac -iic--- 100000 acres
Total I39 4G3. O26 acres
This is almost exactly four times as
much land as the State of Iowa con-
tains. Think of the happy homes it
would make for the miserable toilerS
crowded in our large cities Think of
how much anarchy and rioting and I'M
rest it would save by relieving the
crowded centers of population of their
pressure.
But this is not all. In his recent
speech at Koesauqua, Mr.. L. A.
Palmer, of Mt Pleasant, said:
The vast areas taken by railroads are only
part of the maladmnistration of the million
aire leaders of the Republican party. When
the Adm inisratiOn of President Cleveland
began ii was reported that immense tracts of
land had been allowed by past Secretaries of
the Interior to slip INTO the hands OF wealthy
kings whose barOnes OF land covered by
multitude OF cattle controlled by cattle bar
OILS who we're as insolent as they were
wealthy.
In the report of Comm ssioner Sparks the
following startling facts come to light: Dur
ing the last nineteen months 3I5 actions or
suits have been brought to the attention of
the land department. of these, thirty-five
cases have been decided. These decisions
turn back into the public domain l,3400J)
acres. Fences are being removed which en-
closed ,. IA 9 g acres.
But the report says further that the syndi-
Gates and corporations trespassing and hold
ing these lands are so powerful that it will
take some years to remove them all There
is probably twice as much land inclosed by
them as is shown by the foregoing report.
Already the Democrats have reversed
this wicked policy and restored mill
ions of acres, and millions of homes,
to the people to whom they belong,
and for whom they were acquired by
the Democrats of past generations.
Who can refuse to thank them for it?
Let not those who have homes forget
TO be thankful for good to those who
have none. 1.-The poor We have al
ways with you" and the best way to
help them is to give them homes and
fertile fields in which to dig and delve
and find their own living. The follow
ing telegram shows that the Demo-
cratic policy is to be still pursued as
long as the Democrats are given the
power to do it:
The Interior Department has in contempla-
ton a plan by which the efforts 10 forfeit the
unearned land grants. which were unsucceSs-
full III Congress, may he successful tn rough !
departmental action. The law officers of the |
land Office have the subject now under con- |
sideratiOn, and if the plan shall meet the APP |
prOval of the secretary OF the interior il Will |
be put into operation. Some time ago the In |
terror Department decided that no land grant |
road should be cons dcred to have earned its |
grants until it had filed corrected plat of |
the entire road and of the granted land |
claimed Proceeding from this decision as Il
basis it is suggested that a suit may lie |
against the Northern Pacific road. in which |
the Government will maintain that ii is not
entitled to any OF the land which il claims
for instance in the grant from Duluth to
Puget's Sound, because these lands were not
earned, and the perfected plat for that part of
the route was not filed within the time pre-
Scribed. This theory proceeds, of course. from
the assumption that the road could not earn
any of the lands if il did not return the whole
grant and on this theory the Secretary of the
Interior will doubtless be asked to clear the
lands forfeited and open to settle ment.-Dcs