Daily Yellowstone journal. [volume] (Miles City, Mont.) 1882-1893, 1891-12-02
SEC. NOBLE SAYS
That the Reclamation Of the Ario
Lands b. irrigation Should
BE Entrusted 10 the
States Interested.
The SAVINGS and Doing Of Jhe
elebrated dCucvenne tOmml,-
sion Detailed, but Not
Endlr~cd.

WASHINGToN. Nov. -9.-I he annual
report of Secretary Noble Of the inte-
rior department shows that the vacant
lands Of the United States on Juue
Both Ia-r. not including Alaska or the
Che.okse outlet or other Indian lands,
Amounted TO SO 664, Gs3 scre-, Of which
2g4, ,027, ,773 aie yet husurveNed. II i
estimated that al least 800 900, 900 acres
of these vacant lands are Useless for
agriculture, but that ~ 900, 900 that
are now desert may be redeemed by
irrigation.
The secretary quotes from The report
Of the commissioner Of the general
land Office to snow The falling of 10
homestead entries, and says that officer
is Of opinion that the " sest plan
would be to transfer the land aud
water to the direct control of the states,
/ subject to such limitations and restric |
tions a. would insure the reclamation i
/ of the land and the transfer OF titles
/ to actual settlers in quantities not ex-
ceeding 100 acres to each. Under ex-
isting asts providing for rights Of way |
for canals and bitches and the location |
Of reservoirs, the -ecI etsry concludes
that "private corporations and a-socis~
uors are now Substantially given the
field Of the water supply for that vast
domain that may be redeem d by
irrigation. and that thi- II II Is being
rapidly sliced upon. The control OF
.th- water l. banded over 10 corpora
uou- OF a-sucIatious. Thee individual
As ciatiou- will b. driven to incorpr-
ration by the necessity there ill be .
avoid the frequent rhauges of owner
shin aud other diff u.ties Arising from
de-. IA or assignment of interests aud
the owner of the water and the own
tfs of the farms may he ext ected 10
! soon become distinct bodies, with al
most opposite interests. The states OF
erritorie- may expect 10 exercise some
control Of these companies, aud pro-
= tert their cIiizaps from oppression, but
the United State- government, from
whom thee vastly important and far
reaching privileges emauste, must not
reiea=r altogether its hold upon the
wat,r upply ond It, ullimlre di-tr.-
butiuu.
IL msy be- that the United Sta'es
NAV not endeavor to build the reser-
voi,. or retain the d-sert land- for lm-
prnvpment by itself. Yet he thinT-
the United states sh ould reserve the
right of foTfeIture in case If great
abuse. or conflict of interests be
1 tween states. or allowing the irrigation
OF vast districts To fall into the hands
. Of munOpolies without sufficient pro-
/ lection for the people.
Referring TO the adjustment of rail-
/ road land grants. the report says th'
j chies causes of delay are lack of sur
Il vpys and the mineral complications
4 The position of the interior depart
i ment on the question of mineral land
is that the discovery of the mInera
character Of the land prior to tn
issuance of a patent sffectually ex
, eIud,s it from q railroad grant. Tn
supreme court of the United State
must eventually pass upon the ques
ZION. In the meantime patents WI
be refused for all lands deemed to b
mineral within the provisions of tn
statutes.
The report gives in detail the wor
ofthe Indian commission which cot
y Quoted the negotiations for the remoN
al of the Tongue river aud Pine Ridg
bands of Northern Cheyennes TO
permanent settlement on one of Il
existing reservations. The Sioux
the z ne Ridge agency were willing
have all the Northern Cheyenne vii
them. The commission, however, e
pressed fears that this willingness W
prompted by desired { the. Sioux
increase their strength and imPo
- tance, and reported that in their OPT
ion the sooner the Northern Che
ennes were separated from the Sio
the better. The commission a
found that bad feeling. want Of con
- denee, animosity and fears existed
- tween the Tongue river CheyenE
aad the neighboIing whites; that
Indians there were attached to th
rrtsent home and OppOsed TO rem'
ing TO Pine Ridge, while wanting
Northern Cheyennes at that pli
united 20 them. They also want
piece Of the Crow reservation adjo
ing theirs 80 as 10 give them sufiici'