Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1902-05-06

progressing?" OF course Captain Huh
Is compelled to explain and the queS-
TONER cannot avoid the impression
the excuse Is lame for a city which
has secured authority to establish a
million dollar army post Congress
man Hull has been advised by the rep.
resentativeS of number of Iowa cities
that If he can arrange to have the ap.
preparation read so as to give them the
post they will any one of them, meet
the obligations Immediately and with
out embarrassing injunctions and en-.
abling acts. The impression prevails
and is expressed by the Iowa delega.
tion that it is high time that Des
Moines shake itself; cast off the pro.
vincialism of village and give the
war department an evidence that it is
dealing with a metropolitan city.
lowan Injured.
Major J. l.. Young, of Leon, employ
ed in the Office of the auditor for the
war department, was run into and
knocked down by an irresponsible ne.
gro riding bicycle, Tuesday and bad.
ly damned up. His head was cut in
two places, his right wrist sprained,
his hip bruised and his system gener-
ally shaken UP. But for a bundle of
laundry which he had under his arm
and which in a measure relieved the
force of the impact, he would doubtless
have been killed The wounds receiv.
ed, while very painful, are not Of Sc.
rious nature.
Clayton Permanently Placed.
The legislative, executive and Judi.
cial appropriation bill, which has just
been signed by the President, carries
into the permanent classified service
about 1000 clerks appointed during
the war with Spain and the retention
OF whom has become necessary. This
bill gives permanent positions to r. w.
Clayton, committeeman from the sixth
district: Former Pardon Clerk Rich.
ards, Miss Wilson, former stenogra.
pher to the governor; Captain Belden,
OF Sioux City, and James Rowen, all
of whom were appointed on the tenn
porary roll in the treasury department
They now have the same status as
clerks who reached their positions
through the regular civil service chan.
nels. They may not be removed, now.
for any reason except inefficiency. AID.
mln1strations may come and go; dem.
ocrats may come into power, but no
authority, except that created by con-
gress, can remove a single efficient
clerk. AS both parties have declared
for civil service the clerks are safe.
Aimed at Beef Trust.
Congressman Lacey yesterday intro
duced a bill aimed indirectly at the
beef trust and directly at the owners
of large herds of live stock. 1t is for
the purpose of granting grazing privi-
leges to homestead settlers and holss
ers OF small farms in the arid and
semi-arid land region. 1t will give the
homestead settlers and the small farm
ers the opportunity to improve and pro
tect the grass upon the public domain
IN the vicinity of their holdings, and
Will prevent further deterioration and
the monopolization of the ranges by
owners OF large herds of live stock.
1t provides that SO much of the arid
and semi-arid public lands not capable
OF irrigation as may be necessary for
the purpose of the proposed law may
be leased for safeguarding purposes,
subject to the right of homestead,
mineral and other entries. under exist
ing laws. All leases will run for
period not exceeding five years, and
leases will be limited to an area not
exceeding 5000 acres to any one per-
son.
THESE leases cannot be transferred,
and can be made only to actual home
stead settlers or to freeholders whose
lands are in the vicinity of the lands
to be leased by them.
The holder of a homestead, prior to
patent, may obtain lease not exceed
ing ten times the area of the land in
Guided in his homestead. The owners
or lands in freeholds may acquire ten
times the amount owned by them, but
they cannot lease more than 5000
acres. During the continuance of any
lease the lessee may fence the leased
land or protect it from trespass in any
lawful manner.
No Corporations Allowed.
Under the bill introduced by Mr..
Lacey no corporation will be permit
ted to lease any lands under the pro-
posed law. Where two or more per-
sons are eligible to acquire leases and
desire leases upon the same land and
there is not land enough in the locality
to supply the applicants under rules
and regulations to be prescribed BIZ
the secretary of the interior.
All lands to be leased under this act
must be classified and graded by the
secretary of the interior into six
classes, and the annual rentals will be
one, two, three, four, five and six
cents an acre, according to class or
grade, payable at such times and in
the manner prescribed by the secre.
tary of the interior,
Nothing in the proposed law will
prevent the lessees or other persons
or corporations from the privilege of
grazing their stock upon the public
lands not included in the leases. When
any mineral or homestead or other
lawful entry is made upon leasehold
lands the lease will be Cancelled
In leasing lands the regulations will
provide for the reservation of water
ing places and streams where practi-
cable to render them accessible from
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