The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1897-05-26


IF this new policy would make land
cost the people more than it does now
It would not, even though it should
give considerable source of revenue
to the state.
The transferrence of the public lands
to the state would necessitate the en-
actment of a complete code of laws
providing for the requirement of title
to them OF course the legislature
could be convened in extra session for
that purpose, but if it were there is
no guarantee that its legislation on
the subject would be along estab-
lished lines: and a radical departure
would certainly be a thing to be depre-
Gated. Existing rights in lands, whether
agricultural or mining, but to which
title had not been perfected would
have to be conserved. There would
probably be less likelihood of innova-
ton in dealing with agricultural lands
than with mining lands. The discus
sion in the house over the disposition
Of the gilsonite lands has given the
idea of exacting royalties from the
products of mineral lands quite hold
upon many, and it is not without some
elements of popularity because the
people outside of the mining states
are very largely imbued with the no
ton that every miner is a millionaire
and that every mine is q, bonanza, and
think the government should derive a
direct revenue from the working of
mineral properties Of all kinds. If the
title to the mineral lands in Utah were
to be vested in the state, are not the
probabilities all that this same notion
of deriving a revenue for the state by
means of royalties upon the products
of the mines would take hold of the
people Of the state? Should the policy
of exacting royalties from the products
of mines, the title to which was in the
state, be adopted it would simply kill
the mining industry so far as it de-
pended upon the development Of mines
the title to which had been secured
from the general government. In any
bill contemplating the passing Of the
title to unpatented mineral lands from
the general government to the state,
all existing location rights should be
confirmed as they exist today; any,
thing short of this would be a gross in
Justice. Nor would it do in this matter
to rely upon the equity and justice of
the state. These rights should be
definitely declared and not made con-
tingent upon the bounty or generosity
of a legislative body.
There is another phase of the ques
ton that must be considered. If our
own state asks the cession of all public
lands within it to it, will it not be an
invitation to all other states to ask
the same thing? Certainly the rights
of one state in this matter are no
greater than those of any other. Will
not eastern members of congress be
very apt to say that it is simply an
other scheme to furthern western in
terests? Eastern prejudice at the pres
ent time is very strong against the
west, and the people and papers of
the east are won't to see a niger in
the woodpile in everything western
even when no woodpile exists. If the
mineral lands of Utah pass under the
absolute control of the state of Utah
would not the interests of silver be
injured by the simple fact that it
would give its enemies an opportunity
of saying that the silver question was
a local one entirely and that the
whole care of those interested in it
was to push a state industry at the
expense of the general welfare? If
the silver mines are to be exploited by
the state or general government, it is
much better that it be done by the
general government for the reason that
then the people of each and every
state would have special interest in
the silver question, and feeling this
interest they would soon come to
recognize the true Importance of it.
To give the control Of the industry to
state would be to raise up prejudice
in the minds of the people outside of
it that no reasoning could overcome.
A much better plan than that of
vesting the title to the public lands in
Utah in the state would be an act
transferring to the state the proceeds
arising from the sale of public lands
but letting the title to them come
through the same channels as now.
EFFECT OF MoRGAN'S RESoLU-
TrTnE