Santa Fe new Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1898-1951, 1900-01-06
Objections to Senator Fosters Lease Bill.

Senator Foster of Washington has in
troduced a bill for leasing the grazing
lands of the United States, which GER
tainly should be reported adversely by
the committee to which it was referred.
The bill is as remarkable as to the
things for which 1t fails to provide as
for those which it provides. In the first
place 1T contemplates leasing land at a
minimum rate Of l cent per acre. The
lands to be considered as grazing shall
be reported upon by the secretary of
agriculture, who presumably will send
agents of his department to make Sc
l%ections, and Upon approval of the Sec
rotary of the interior the department
will lease to applicants for a period of
not more than ten years, the lands be-
ing withdrawn from filing and entry,
except as to mineral lands. One-half
of the gross revenue would go to the
state Or territory where the lands are
situated, to be used for irrigation or
agricultural interests. Not less than
1000 acres could be leased If the mini
mum rate be fixed at / cent per acre,
for no lease will be made for less an
nual rental than $40. But there Is nc
limit upon the acres amy citizen or
corporation of the state where the land
Is located may have for a period Of
ten years, with renewals for ten years
if the department be willing to renew
There is absolutely no requirement thai
the lessee shall fence land of which he
may be given a monopoly. While it
might be taken for granted that this
| would be done, 1T would not be SO in
| all cases, for the act provides that If
! any one t~respass upon the leased land
he shall be deemed guilty Of misde-
meanor, and might be fined $500 and sent
to Jail for six months, the penalty to
go into the county public school fund.
The department might make a condi-
| ton that the lands should be fenced,
but would then have to constantly in
| spect fences, and the courts and depu-
ty marshals would have to be constant
ly in service because of complaints for
| real or pretended trespassing. The
| owners of cattle and sheep which might
get upon the fenced or unfenced lands
would be harrassed until they would
| have to go out Of business and leave
the lessee monarch Of all he surveyed
In many cases one might lease a few
thousand acres and thus gain practical
| control OF a hundred thousand, which
would be useless to others II his land
Moulded the watered or choice portion
of the range. He could call upon the
United States officials to prevent tres
passing, if he We're not required tc
| fence, and also to attend to fence cut
ters and owners of cattle whose stock
lessees or others desiring to compel
them to leave the region, or for other
reasons, letting stock have access tc
leased ground and then accusing the
| owners of the cattle Of violations of the
law. 1t is needless to say there would
be many accusations, and citizens
| would be called off to court for trivial
| offenses Or upon false charges. 1t
| would be very easy for a corporation
| Of another state or even for an alien
to lease land through others, or for
| such corporation to reincorporate in or
| der to become qualified to lease. This
bill Is drawn in such a as to in
| dictate that the Intention Of the law
| shall be to have the leases limited il
possible to moderate quantities of land,
but there liz nothing In it's language
to prevent leases OF large tracts, and
undoubtedly the bill was left open a.
to this purposely. Carrying out any
lease law that would not put 1t In the
power of lessees to take advantage OF
settlers, either in the case Of fenced
or unfenced land, would call for the
exercise Of much vigilance Upon the
part Of officers and courts.