The herald., 1896-10-15
THE LAND STEAL OF THE
RAILROAD

The government land policy Is SIM
ply beyond ordinary comprehension. No
matter what political color the adminis-
icy Is always against the actual settler,
the miner and the interests of the peo-
ple.. 1t always stretches law, grant and
construction in favor of depreciation on
the public lands like the great Scotch
lumber syndicate in Mendocino, and in
favor Of the land grant railroads. These
people always seem to have one or more
departments of government to aid them
in defeating justice. If an honest land
commissioner like Sparks is in office. the
attorney general is found Indifferent;
when a government attorney like Judge
Call makes things hot the land commits
sioner becomes lax, documents are lost
or stolen, statements are forged and
hints drop fast and strong-not to be too
jealous. Hoke Smith was straight for
justice and the defense of the people, but
recent revelations show that the land
department even under him was honey
combed with dishonesty. Subordinates
in the pay of the people are in the pay
also of the land thieves right in the land
office. Nothing could be more startling
to sensible business view than the con-
stant patenting of valuable government
lands to the railroad companies in Cal
ifornia. These companies received this
year about two million acres Of the
peoples land. All this year and for year
after year while they have been rushing
ho; fc c,1h ~ xx,itn
frauding settlers, shooting home max
ers in their homes, stealing mining lands
and robbing the miners-all this time
these railroad companies have been in
defiant default ia the American people
The railroad people have divided their
stealings and their legitimate earnings
on the inside ring until they have about
sixty millions apiece or for each inter-
est. While the years of their division Of
surplus have passed these companies re-
fuse to pay the interest or the principal
they owe the people. This fraudulent di-
version of surplus funds from the just
payment of a just debt goes on without
any serious or effective action by the
peoples agents In the government, not
for one year but for decades and forever.
What private business man would fol-
low such folly? 1t Is simply due to
debauchery of government officers by
great syndicates of wealth. Every prop
erty owner as we'll as every patriot and
every father Of a family Is vitality in
terested in ending this prostitution of
political office to the interests of rob-
bers of the people. But this is not the
worst phase of the railroad misdoings.
All the time of these defaults and re-
fusals to pay the government agents in
the land office have gone on smilingly
giving to the defaulters the peoples
lands in thousands, tens of thousands
and millions of acres. What possible
excuse can there be for such an outrage
on every principle of equity? 1t is con-
tempt of common sense. Would any plain
citizen go on year after year turning
over great amounts of valuable property
to constant and defiant defaulter? Not
only is the land grant which ought never
to have been given constantly handed
over to these depredators and bribers
when it ought to be held against their
debts overdue, but besides vast areas are
claimed and have been partly seized by
the railroad that never were granted to
them at all. The whole land grant busi-
ness and the whole railroad debt eva
sion is a mess of corruption that must
make a friend of free government sick
at heart.