The Florence tribune., 1899-09-09
Labor and Land.
IFrom the Los Angelea TImes. l


 within the public domain, aud still belongs to the people, and tbas the reclamation and settlement of this vast territory would give employment and a chance to get a home on the land to multitude of American workers. the Chicago Federation of Labor adopted the following resolutions
 "First-That all the remaining pub- lie lands of the United States should be sacrediy held for the benefit of the whole people, and that no grants of the title to any of these lands should ever hereafter be made to any but actual settlers and home builders on the land.
 "second-That the public grazing lands should be leased in limited areas to settlers on adjacent lands, title to remain in the Federal gov ernment until actual settlement. and
 the revenues from rentals to go to the States to be used for the reclamation of the irrigable arid lands.
 "Third-That the Federal govern ment should build storage reservoirs to save the flood waters that are now wasted, and should wherever neees- sary build the irrigation works re- quired for the reclamation and settle ment of the arid public lands"
 It was further resolved that all labor organizations be urged to cooperate
 with the National Irrigation Associa- tion in order to accomplish this result.
 There is no question but that the general introduction of labor-saving machinery, together with the great immigration to this country, and the natural increa SC of population, have brought about state of congestion in most of tine large centers of population. It is true that we are just now passing. through period of prosperity, when there is work for all who want it, but hard times are sure to come again when men will be thrown out of em- ploymeut, and it is against this that we should seek to make provision.
 In the course of an address ldelig- cred 10 the Chicago Federation of Labor, before the aforementioned resolutions were adopted, it was shown that there is 10 problem now confronting the American people which has a closer or more funda- mental relation to the welfare of the great multitude of our citizens, whose industry is their capital, than the problem of the preservation and reclamation fo- the people and for the home builder of the arid public do- main. Every one will concede that the land question lies at the root of the labor problem, but there are very few who realize that one-third of the entire area of the United States, ex- elusive of Alaska, is public land, and still belongs to Che people; and that by the building of great storage reser- voirs and irrigation works to reclaim tue irrigable lands, the arid region could be made to sustain greater Chan inhabits the whole United States to-day.
 The arid region can be reclaimed and settled in only one way, and that is for the State and national govern ments to build the irrigation works and open the lands up for settlement at a price within the reach of any in- dustrious man. hlea who want work should be given first chance to labor in the construction of the irrigation works. and then a chance to get home on the land their labor has re- 
 Year after year, every year, we are wasting at least five million dollars which might he realized from leasing the public grazing lands. If this great sum were saved, by leasing these lands, under the plan advocated by 1 the National Irrigation Association, md expended in the construction of [ irrigation works, an enormous area 'f irrigable lands could be annually reclaimed. It would be reclaimed without the creation of q dollar of iebt, without the issue of a single pond, without the government parting with any interest in the land, and when reclaimed the land could be sold o actual settlers only, in small tracts, It price so low as to bring an irri- gated farm within easy reach of any industrious wage-earner. Then, the ownership of such farm would en- title him to go out on the range aud ease, for nominal rental, his pro- of the public grazing lands, nough for his needs, to which he would have the exclusive right of pos ession. With this, and few sheep IT cattle, he would be well started on he road to independence. The multitude who would want these Iomes, and who would avail them