The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1888-09-21

Our Public Lands.
Albang AFgua
1T has rovorood The improvidont end
'unwIse policy Of tho EepublIean party
touching The public domain, end be- ~
Iclafmed from corporations and syndl-
Gates. alien and dosDesslc. and restored
10 the people nearly lO0O0o00o Of ocrea
lof valuable land. % b saored b. held -
homesteads Tor our citisens'
These words ere from tho Democrats
National platform but untll brought
face 70 face with the actual nguroe ono
tails 10 realize The magnIlude Of Tie
|queslion Involved. In % (as q e affects
lthe future ofthe couutry for genoraelono
Ito come, The question Of The reeervatl0ns
|of our public Dands, vIghtiully termed
|''the heritage Of he people." b 0f greater
|m0ment than the evils Of tariff taxaeloa.
During the var ~ paid enormoos taxes.
|aud even u times Of peace 70 ere chow
ling thae We can pay euormOoe taxoo,
Though unneoeoeaey. But mistake now
|in our public land policy may bring
trouble 20 The generations yet unb0gn
|and nay help 60 establish that greatest
|of economic ovils IN The old world,
|ownership Of land By The few and ne-
tion Of tenan(o. Immigration into thia
|oountry. u nothing slse, should open our
eyes to the necessity Of preserving for
the future every acre Of ground for 90
|tual setilors.
vosers have realized or years that the
Republican party, when ID fall power,
Especially right afler the var, voted
away immeneo tracts Or the poblIc lands,
|but The magnitude of these gigts % rail-
|road corposatioue hao probably never
been fully realised. During lhe Ten
|yoars Of undlspused RRpoblIoan control
|Of all branches % government, from
|locl to 107l, total of lo90l3, - acres
|0f land Was voted outright BY Congress.
|Of this amoont over 68.O00C GOO eorea
were voted aWay in the one month 0l
July. 1854, when Schuyler Col(hx waa
|Sposker Of The H0use o. Representa-
Itives, end g 10000 oeroo more Were
Ivoted away II one day, March ID, 1871,
! when James 9. Blaine wss speaker.
The following table shows ths largest ol
|these grants and he corporations 70
|ceiviug them:
| Northern raci6c r. = l7.O0Qo0o
Atlantic = Pacj1c = r .43,o00.O00
Texae Racl0c b r NOoo0cC
Uuion Poci6c h. B. 13OWOoC
southern PsciGc B. r o.69oOO-
ICentral Pacific r. B. 9OOOOO(
Kanoas Pacific B. r. 6.O01OO(
I6oulhern Pacific (brauch) $4,000
IOregon Central B. r. 3.6OQOC>.
| ICsli1ornia and OregOn r. r. - 5OO,OO(
Buvlingeon and Missoori B. B. 2,lll, Cox
Deovsf Pacific r r l,ouou(
Isl, ,1sl, ,oo(
II 3 hard % realise what figures :,
large - tbeeo mean. They meen trac|
Iof land larger than I'll Germany. o.
France or Great Britain aad Ireland
some idea or the extent o. The torrleoey
thus voted away may b gathered 5toG
The fAce that The total acroago OF ~ u
Ilhrms Of the Uniled otaees Was $50, 3OO,'
I78 acres, worth elO, lo7, ,Oo6 IA 90 1850
| The Republican graots 20 raIlroads were
Iequal %. moro ihan : quarter and q
lalmost one-third Of The farms Of th(
| United States.
Its these grants Of over Io0 .O0o,0o(
Iacres, Of which the railroads hsye pslen.
tied lee than l3, 10000, scres, which III
Democrats party proposes 70 restore q
Itho people During President Cleve
Iland'S sdmiuistration. About one half ol
Ithis land be- been restored % Tie public
Idomoin, and = bin 10 restore over 90,
IO00, 0CO acres more % The people 70 pend.
ling. Shall this work 80 ouf Or shall
|the Republican party. which elects q