The evening times., 1900-03-27

ed AOn-EGEflSsths hAha
F c. Forney Of Ponca City. Okla, MAS
At the Capitol yesterday En- the Interest OF
The massage Of House bill $50 providing Tor
free homes on the public lands for actual
and bona fde settlers, and reserving pub
lie lands for that purpose. This bill was
introduced on December and reported
with amendments February 3. Ii provides
THAT all settlers under the homestead
laws of the United States upon the public
lands, acquired prior to the passage OF this
act by treaty or agreement from the Farl-
Gus Indian tribes who have or shall here
after reside upon the tract entered in good
faith for the period required by existing
law. shall be entitled TO a patent for The
land so entered upon the payment TO ihe
local land officers of the usual and custo-
mary fees. and no other or further charge
of any kind whatsoever shall be required
from such settler to entitle him TO pat
ent for the land covered by has entry
The Committees Views
The report on this proposed legislation
=, MART saws. No legislative enactment
ever placed upon the statute book "l lhe
nation has been more lauded than The iree
homestead law of the United States. fass-
ed by the untiring efforts oil Galusha a
Grow and his compeers. signed DE 'He .iA
mortal Lincoln. il became a law on MdH
- 1880 and il was one Of the greatest rae
49, in tbe marvellous progress that me
ReDublic has made since Jhal uils
prOgress that has astonlShtu Ihe WI
...srfT TaFsT =
av sons Of New England, the thrifty youHb
,,,sr of The Middle and Western states,
sra the sturdy immigrants OF the Ola
world poured into the fertile. uncccuiieu
regions of the West and by the laDoI oI
tbeir hands they transformed lhe loIts'9
into fruitful farms and changed lhe dllno,
InftIess plains Of prairie grass lH'o Dil
lov-y fields OF waving gram Ol'IeS anu
towns sprang UP in this territory as IL pS
magic churches and school-o"7e9 a
round AZ every cross reads and no mos {
valuable and loyal citizens can pe louNN
in an the commonwealth IMAM ihe VI -
nal .horuesteaders' and their uesceha4ls' -,
II was a poor mans law; poor men aFall, q
themselves of its advantage, but me l"o-
ulous wealth they have created ioi ''''--
selves and the natiCn is beyond 'olHi'"'"
ron. and its repeal or modification was
thing undreamed Of by The American l'Sv-
pie. .--,,-
lands were taken up and occupied except
those set auart for Indian reservations
ar5 81 soop became manifest That these
were many times larger than the lnalaha
or their descendants could ever utlIitt'
and as the wild game had been hliied oi
departed the Indians were anxious 10 US
nose of their lands TO The United Slale7
as th.y had previously disposed ol INC
lands settled and occupied by ne whites
Vaccinations were entered into by the Gov
ernment and reservations were ce1t" ~
the Indians to the Government
7r,e ronort gives a long list OF lands
oa5ad by the Indians, and. continuing re
cites r-.....-
..AH the public domain. except mat poF
,;cn included in the thirteen orlglna
states by purchase from foreign govern
mpnts-and aflerward the Indian rlght o
occupancy was purchased or wresieo IRON
them by force Of arms-and these So-'0'l
ed reservation lands came INTO 'he POS
session in precisely the same manner
This Government had disposed OF ~
public lands in three ways.
FIRST. To corporations on CONDITION
the corporation would build a railroad o.
make other public Improvements.
Second For a cash consideration.
Third In IGO-acre tracts. on condition
that the party entering the same Shoul'
make il his home improve II. and reside
on il for five years; but in the case O
these reservation lands We find a double
price-the full term of settlement, I'M
Iroyement and residence, and IN addition
= cash consideration from Sl.25 to $2.5l
per acre.
The COuntry's Donations.
In other words, when the nation was II
The tbroes of civil war, struggling for ma
tional existence, with expenses exceeding
i,s income a million dollars day. it gladly
donated its best, richest, and most valu'
able lands TO any citizen who would buil(
,n an American home-transform an un'
nroductiye property into a source OF ma
tional revenue-and become that nation
defender in time of danger: and now tina
ii has become great, rich, and powerful l
demands a double price for its poores
lands from its poorest citizens. furthe
comment is unnecessary.
III should be remembered that IN mosi
10 mot all of these reservations the lhulah
were permitted TO make selection OF thel
alIotments prior TO opening to settlemen
20 the whites Very naturally they select
ed the very choicest tracts Ihese allou
meuts were made non-taNable and non
transferable for from twenty-five 10 NIT
wears. The white settlers must pay al
local taxation. must maintain local gov
ernment for the Indians protection, bull'
roads and bridges in order that he ma!