The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1902-12-03

by one or two bottles At all druggists,
" the prosperity of our people and the
increasing activity of the business of
/ the country.
The receipts of the PostofIice Depart
ment for the fiscal year ending June 5oth
last amounted to S121SiS, 04I.26 an IN
| crease of Sl02ie SJ3.SI over the preceding
year. the largest increase known IN the
history of the postal service The mag
nitucle of this increase will best appear
| from the fact that the entire postal re-
! ceipts for the year 1860 amounted to but
| SS.51S,06I.
| Rural free-delivery service is no longer
in the governmental stage: it has become
! a fixed policy The results following its
introduction have fully justified the Con-
gress in the large appropriations MADE
for its establishment and extension The
average yearly increase in postoFhce re-
| cepts in the rural districts OF the coufl-
| try is about two per cent. We are now
able. by actual results, to show that
| where rural free-delivery service mas
| been established TO such an extent as
! to enable us to make comparisons the
| yearly increase has been upward OF ten
| per cent
| delivery routes had been established and
were in operation covering about one
! third of the territory Of the United
| States available for rural free delivery
| service There are now awaiting the
action Of the department petitions ard
| apDlications for the establishment OF
! 10,74S additional routes. This shows con-
| clusively the want which the establish
| ment of the service has met and the
| need of further extending it as rapidly
| 900, hot %
| financial results and by the practical
benefits to our rural population; it brings
] the men who live on the soil into CT Sc
! relations with the active business world:
! it keeps the farmer in daily touch with
| the markets; it is potential educatlonat
! force il enhances the value of farm
! property, makes farm life far pleasanter
! and less isolated. and will do much to
| check the undesirable current from coun-
try to city
It is to be hoped that the Congress will
! make liberal appropriations for the con-
tinuance of the service already estab-
lished and for its further extension.
She System Of Irrigation.
Few subjects Of more Importance have
been taken up by the Congress in recent
years than the Inauguration OF the sys-
| TEN OF nationally aided irrigation for
| the arid regions OF the far West. \
| good beginning therein has been made
Now that this policy of national trriga-
| ton has been adopted. the need OF
thorough and scientific forest protection
| will grow more rapidly than ever
throughout the public land States
Legislation should be provided for the
| protection Of the game. and the W Id
| creatures generally. the forest re-
serves. The senseIess slaughter of
| game, which can by judicious protection
| be permanently preserved on our
national reserves for the people
! as whole. should be stopped
| at once. It is for instance serious
| count against our national goo sense
| to permit the present practice of but h
| erirg off such a stately and beautiful
| creature as the elk for it's antlers or
| tusks.
| So far as they are available for agri-
| culture. and to whatever extent they
may be reclaimed under the national IL
| riSatio law, the remaining public lands
should be held rigiory for the home
builder. the settler who lives on his
| land and for no one. else. In their
actual use the desert land law the tim
Der and stone law. and the commutl-
| ton clause of the homestead law have
| been SO perverted from the intention
| with which they were enacted as to per
| nit the acquisition of large areas of the
| public domain for other than actual set
| tiers and the consequent prevention of
settlement Moreover the approaching
| exhaustion of the public ranges has OF
late led to much discussion to the
best manner of using these public lards
in the West, which are suitable chiafy
or only for grazing. The sound and
steady development of the West depends
h1flS pf
Much Of our prosperity as a nation has
been due to the operation of the hem7-
stead law On the other hand, we should
recognize the fact that in the grazing
region the man who corresponds to the
homesteader may be unaoIe TO settle
permanently if only allowed to use the
same amount OF pasture land that his
brother the homesteader. is allowed to
use of arabic land. One hundred and
sixty acres of fairly rich and well waite
ed soil or a much smaller amount of
irrigated land. may keep a family in
nlentv. whereas no one could get lv-
ing from one hundred and sixty acres
of dry pasture land capable of support
ing at the outside only one head of cat
tie to every ten acres. In the past great
tracts of the public domain have been
| fenced in by persons having no title
thereto. in direct defiance of the law
forbiddinS the maintenance or coHStruc-
ton of any such unlawful Enclosure OF
pub,ic land For various reasons there
has been little interference with such
Enclosures in the past but ample notice
has now been given the trespassers and
all the resources al the command of the
government will hereafter be used to put
| a stop to such trespassing.
In view of the capital Importance OF
these matters. I commend them to the
earnest consideration of the Congress and
if the Congress finds difficulty In dealing
W. them from lack of thorough knowl-
edge of the subject. recommend that
provision be made for commission OF
rnarts -sneHiallv TO Investigates and