Las Vegas daily optic. [volume] (Las Vegas, N.M.) 1880-1908, 1903-12-22
SMYTHEA AGAIN
ATTACKS LAWS
Reiterates His Charges Against
Stsckncn, Who are Fight.
Ing for Their Lives
TIMBER MONOPOLY
Cattle Interests or Western
States Specionsly Compared
with Those OF Iowa
Special 10 The Optic.

81
The land.grabbers seem to hay,
fallen upon evil times. Sccretar.
Hitchcock has put his agents on theil
trail throughout the west, and tn,
newspaper dispatches are burdenet
with stories OF fraudulent entries ant
rumors Of indictments. But this II
not the worst OF it--from the stand
point Of the land-grabbers. The Am
crican people ARE waking up and de-
manding the repeal Of laws which
make The la~nd-grabber possible.
Disclosures thus far made indicate
that the stealing ii going on with twt
main objects In view. One Ii to en-
able stockmen 10 get Arm possession
Of land which they have formerly
used al q free range; the other, e
extend and perfect d hard and fast
monopoly Ok the timber 81
the west. Both objects strike straight
at the property or the common mill,
Ions Of homeseekers to whom this pub.
lie property now beolngs by every
moral and legal right.
The prosperity OF the future homo.
seeker In the Rocky Mountain region
demands that he shall have an oppor,
tupity To enjoy the use OF the public
range. While he will undertake to
handle but few head Of stock. In com
parison with the great cattle syndi,
Gates and corporations, Ii Ii neyerthe.
less essential that he shall enjoy hts
rights In the public pasture. Every
time q quarter section Ii transferred
from the public domain 10 one OF the
big cattle companies the opportunity
for profitable settlement by genuine
homesteaders Ii curtaiied. Carried 70
rs logical conclusion, the present pol.
Icy o. land absorption by livestock
m~onopolies would shut out poor men
from the use Of the public pasture al.
most entirely. And this would have
4 most unfortunate influence upon the
settlement Of the arid region.
The instruments used In the arlui.
sition Of the public domain for live
stock purposes are the Desert Land
law and the communication clause OF
tie Homestead law, The former /.
GriIes no residence whatever on tne
lard; the latter q rsslisnre Of OILY
fourteen months, which ii frequently
merely nominal.
The claim that the present laws are
necessary TO preserve the livestock IN.
dustry from gradual extinction
through the ~cncroachmont 81 cultlyat.
ors OF the soil IL wholly grounhlcss,
The figures OF the last national cen.
sus show that Montana. Wyoming,
Washington. Idaho, Utah, Nevada. All.
zona and New Mexico. covering SEQ.
900 square miles. had only 4.sGo, 500
head ~ cattle. on the other hand.
the farming state Of Iowa. with only
b5.0o0 square miles, had 5.3G7 $50 cat.
tie, Or half a million more than the
six states and the two territories
which follow the range method. There
Is but one element benefited ~ the
abuse Of the laws which is now going
on. That IL the element which Is nc.
quiring the ownership Of vast estates
70 be held for speculation and monop.
oily.
The absorption Of The timber lands
strikes another and an even harder
blow AT the settler, The wanton de
struciion OF the forests which follows
impairs the watershed ON which the
settler depends for the supply Of his
irrigation bitches. Monopoly imposes
q high price for the lumber which the
settler must use in making his i'm.
proyements. Finally. ne - deprived ~
the opportunity 70 get a little timber
on his own account. which he might
use In good faith and IN compliance
with the spirit Of The law.
These land frauds throughout the
west are open and notorious They are
not always frowned upon by public
sentiment in the localities where they
are committed. In every western. com.
munity there is a strong desire 70 see
the country developed while We are
Capital is required ~ the
work. and II capital must be tempted
into the field by the opportunity to
make q profitable monopoly Of the
why. then. nothing could be
than the present laws
The administration Is doing its duty
Ia hunting down the land thieves as
ss II can. A healthy public
sentiment is beginning to come to the