The National tribune., 1901-04-18

amend the bill in such way that the
President, in his proclamation, could pre-
scribe the manner of the opening, thus
giving ample time for the Interior Depart
ment to perfect some appropriate plan.
The debates upon the bill clearly show
that Congress desired to do away with
the old plan and substitute some sort of
drawing which would place but one claim
ant upon each tract and thus avoid the
contests of the past.
The Interior Department is now strug-
Cling with the question. Many plans have
oeen proposed by people over the country
cognizant of the faults of the old system
and interested in public-land questions. 1t
is significant that nearly all of these pro-
pose drawing or casting of lots. y min
lister of the gospel is among those VINO
advocate a drawing. He prefers it to a
horse race, especially where the race has
no better umpire than the discarded idea
that might makes right" 1t has inter-
eSted the officials to note how this MINIS
ter anticipates and avoids criticism
which might be made in some quarters to
the effect that drawing would be sort
of lottery and Objectionable to those who
do not believe in anything which savors
of chance. After pointing out that by this
plan the unsuccessful applicant pays moth
ing and the successful applicant only gets
an opportunity to earn the land by fully
complying with the law in the matter Of
payment, residence, cultivation and i'm
proyement, the minister summons the BIZ
BILE TO his support and shows that the
casting or drawing of lots was resorted
to in distributing the land of Canaan and
in determining whether Matthias or Joseph,
called Barsabas, should become an
Apostle. In other instances the drawing
of lots as means of decision or selection
is given high recognition. Two candi-
dates receiving an equal number of votes
at an election, are often required to cast
lots for the Office. A tie vote was recent
ly decided in this manner in Massachu-
sets. BY the Constitutions of Arkansas,
Colorado, Missouri and Ohio the Judges
IF the Supreme Court first elected were
required to cast lots to determine which
should be Chief-Iustice and to determine
each Judges term of office. Upon the ad-
mission of new State, a drawing is had
in the United States Senate 10 determine
to which class each of the new Senators
shall be assigned.
mo plan has been definitely determined
uuon by the Interior Department, but of
the plans considered, that which stands
the best chance of adoption runs along the
following lines:
There will be a period of registration,
lasting 80 or 40 days, prior to the open
ng, during which each applicant for these
lands will be required TO show by written
proofs that he is qualified to make home
stead entry and actually desires TO do so
as n means of procuring home. III his
proof is satisfactory he will be registered
as qualified applicant and gwen GER
tificate to that effect and will draw num-
Der which will determine the order in
which he will be permitted, at the open
ing, to make selection OF land. The
work of registration will continue until
the qualifications of all applicants, and
the order in which they will he permitted
to select land, have been determined. The
will ln G.
ferable. and to make the Identification of
applicants complete, so that there may be
no transfers, the applicants VIII be pho
tographed by a rapid process which can
now be utilized at slight cost to the Gov
eTament. The registration will be under
the supervision of the Register and Re
ceiver, and a corps Of experienced clerks |
familiar with public land transactions and
fully qualified to conduct the registration |
in an orderly manner. Every applicant |
will be required to register in person, eX-
cepting that hOnOrably discharged soldiers |
may be permitted to register by an agent, |
subject to the restriction that no person |
shall act as agent for more than one SOL |
dier. and no SOLDIER will be permitted to
register through an agent except upon
clear proof that he actually desires to OBJ |
tain a home from these lands by cOmpli- |
ance with the homestead law. There VIII |
be ample provision TO prevent old soldiers
IIOu DtlLS liIDOstU uJuu hAiOuSu 1Ait
or neglect of an agent. |
THE drawing will be under the super |
vision of a non-partisan commission, com |
posed Of two or three men whose high |
character is so widely known throughout |
the country as TO make their control of |
the drawing a guaranty Of its absolute |
fairness. The numbers placed in the box |
before the drawing commences will more
than cover the number of people who will |
apply to register. No advantage will be |
obtained by being the first to register, and |
all will have an equal chance of drawing |
the first number. When completed, the |
will show the numbers which |
are not drawn, and at the opening they |
will be disregarded. If numbers /, 3, and |
are drawn and numbers 2 and 4 remain |
in the box, the order of selection at the |
openings will be l, and ). as if there
were no numbers and 4. The period of
will be long enough to admit |
of the easy registration Of all applicants.
The man who registers on the last day |
will have the same opportunity of draw
ing one Of the earliest numbers as does
The man registering On the first day. Those |
who draw the first 10000 numbers at the
INiowa registration will know that there
will be lands ON which their right of Sc
ection can be exercised, and those who |
iraw the first 5000 numbers at the Wich-
ia registration will have the same assur-
lnce. Those who draw numbers much in
.xcess of these figures will know that at |
he openings all the lands will be exhaust
ID before their numbers are reached, and |
hat il is useless for them to remain. In
stead of being defeated after yexatious
contest Of several years, their fate will be
determined before the opening.
Th applicants will be permitted TO free
y travel over and become familiar with
he lands to be opened so as to qualify
them to intelligently and adyisedly make
I selection of land at the opening. The |
will prescribe what persons
may make selection at each day after the
opening; as, for instance: On the first
lay, those who hold numbers from ] TO
300, inclusive; on the second day. those |
who hold numbers from 3Ol to 600, in
elusive, and so on until all the lands have
been selected. The one who draws num-
Der 5000 will know that his right Of Sc
ectiOn must be exercised on the 10th day
Ind that it is not necessary for him TO be
present at the opening until then. This
1lan will remove every incentive for
or bartering for places in line
1t both the registration and opening.
When the opening begins, the person
holding the smallest number drawn will
nave all the lands included in the opening
from which to make his selection and the
person holding number 5000 will have all
The lands to select from which have not
been selected by those holding prior num-
Ders. Each day of the opening those hold
ng the numbers assigned to that day will
make selections in the order of their num-
Ders, and If, when any number is reached,
.he claimant does not appear, that num-
Der will be passed and the next number
Will be called, and SO on until the end of