The St. Johns herald., 1898-04-23
ARID LAND BILI.
Full Text of Representative
 ShafrOth Measure

The full text of the bill of Congress-
 man Shafroth of Colorado to grant arid
 lands 10 the respective states and ter ritories in which they are situated upon
 their reclamation. is at hand. It has created a good deal of discussion
 throughout the West, and as it is of decided interest to Herald readers. it IS herewith reproduced:
 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Rep- resentalives of the United States of America in ! Congress assembled, that so much of the arid llnds of the United States not held for military l reservations, Indian reservations or other pub- lie purposes as any state or territory, through its governo: may apply for shall be pate nted to such state or territory, Or its asigus, when said lands shan by means of irrigation, be reclaimed for agricultural purposes.
 Sec. 2 That each state and territory shall be entitled to reclaim, under this act and all other acts, not more than one million acres of such arid land, all Of which must be situate within its own borders
 Sec. 3. That arid lands within the meaning of this act shall be deemed to be Ianus not mineral, which will generally produce agr cultural crops by artificial irrigation
 Sec. 1. That reclamation of any tract of land under this act shall be constru d to ave been made when an am ple supply of water is actu, liy furnshed in 6 Subs,ant al d tch or can l. or by artesian wells or reservoirs tu reclaim e same
 Sec 5 That lien or liens may be crtdit, d by the state or territory to which such lands are granted for the actual cost of reclamation and reasonable interest thereon: ,nd >u state or Ierr toy is hereby au ho iz.d t2 make a'l ec- essary contracts to e.uS the id ar lands to be reclaimed, D { in ua event shsn the , nit=d stat he in any mungr rect.y or indirectly liable su, liens. liabilities or contracts
 $ t. ha- ..uy c-e or rer.tore .-st-.ae ro tnr ugh us governor, from ume to tune il in t.e United stmes land office of the dist1ict in wh ch he lands are situate ali application for the temporary segregation of the tract or tracts of land which the state or territory proposes to
 eclaim pending the surveying and mapping of the same. whi, h application shall be under cath. and sh II state hat tere is sufficient amount of water availabl for the irrig tion of said lands Upon the tiliI of u an application the lands applied for sl all he withdrawn from entry for the period of months.
 Sec. :. That within the period of six months rom the nEng u1 sue an application the state or ter itory, thrcugh it's governor shall file in the office If the SC retary O. the inte for a map of the lands propo ed to be reclaimed, which shall exhibit plan showing he mode of the contem- plated irrigation and the source of the water to be used for irrigation If the state or territory shall fail to file said map and plan within said period of six months, then such lands at the dir econ of the secretary of the interior sh all revert to the public domain.
 Sec S That If the secretary of the interior shall approve said map and plan and the practicsbil. ity of such enterprise, the state territory shall have ten years from the date of such approval in which to cause to be reclaimed said tract Of land, and upon such approval it shall be con- clusively presumed that such tract is arid lands; but if the state terri ory shall fail, within said ten years, to cause said tract of land to be rec laimed, then said land, at the discretion of the secretary of the interior, shall revert to the pub- lie domain.
 Sec. g. That nothing in this act shah be con- strued as affecting any valid claim to land under any of the land laws of the United States exist ing at the time of the filing of the application for temporary segregation.
 Sec. 10. That the secretary of the interior is hereby authorized to maKe such rules and reg uations for the purpose of enforcing this act as may he just and proper 2