Santa Fe new Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1898-1951, 1903-09-04
THE PUBLIC
DOMAIN
During Past Fiscal Year 1882
I28 Acres of Land Entered
in Territory.
LARGE EASRHODE ISLAND
Fifty Million Acres Still Open to Entry
Under Federal Laws in New
Mexico.

During the fiscal year ended June
80. 1908, there were entered under the
federal land laws 1.0S2,12S acres of
the public domain in New Mexico, an
area exceeding that of the state OF
Rhode Island and almost equaling
that of the state of Delaware Of this
area 46S,196 acres were taken up I'M
der the homestead act, representing
over 5000 entries. Under the desert
land act 74,585 acres were taken up;
under lien selections, 377,596 acres;
under the mineral land act, 2.40S
acres; under communication, 1856 acres,
while the Territorial selections
amounted to~167,O0S acres. The Ros-
well land district leads with 635,319
acres taken up; the Clayton district
is second with 262,49S acres; the Sar-
ia Fe district third with 120.S22 acres,
while the Las Cruces district is last
with 63,4S9 acres.
Among the counties Chaves leads
with 354, ,131 acres segregated from
the public domain; while Union is sec
ond with LAT 449 acres and Eddy a
close third with 141,440 acres. Then
come the other counties in the follow
ing order: Roosevelt, 114,262 acres;
Colfax, 59.565 acres; Quay. +4,262:
Lincoln, 34,250; Taos, 305S9; San
Miguel, 34,O25; Otero, 23,359; Mora
1,665; Grant, 1S,031; Leonard Wood,
1856; Socorro, 13 537; Valencia, TO-
$50; Santa Fe, $3.50; Dona Ana, $3.50;
Sierra, $3.50; Rio Arriha, 4,499; Ber-
nalillo, 1851; Luna, 1894; SandoyaL
|2,477; San Juan, 2,040; Mckinley,
1926.
AS to homestead lands taken up
the order of the counties is not qulte
the same Roosevelt leads with &c.,
|642; Chaves coming second with g.,
749 acres, and Eddy third, with 49,511
acres Then come the other coun-
ties as follows: Union, 47,O3S; Quay.
AZ, 7O3; Colfax, 2S,S06 Otero, 1928;
Mora, 1905; Lincoln, 15,445; Grant,
Is, $50; San Miguel, 15,145; Leonard
Wood, $1,000; socorro, 10.S19; Valen-
cia, 9,171; Santa Fe, 5,59S; Sierra, a.,
y09; Dona Ana, 1880; Rio Arriba, A.
2S2; Bernalillo, 3,671; Luna, 2,40O;
San Juan. 1860; Mckinley, 1896;
Taos, 500; Sandoval, 30S.
Leonard Wood hes in three land dis
tricts, those of Clayton, Santa Fe and
Roswell. The following counties lie
in two land districts: Colfax, Mora and
San Miguel in the Clayton and Santa
Fe districts; Roosevelt in the Clayton
and Roswell districts; Socorro in the
Santa Fe and Las Cruces districts;
Valencia in the Santa Fe and Roswell
districts; Otero in the Las Cruces
and Roswell districts. OF the othe-
counties Union and Quay are in the
Clayton district; Bernalillo, Mckinley,
Rio Ar-iba. Sandovai, San Juan, San "A
Fe and Taos in the Santa Fe distrcE;
Dona Ana, Sierra, Luna and Grant in
the Las Cruces district. Chaves, Eddy
and Lincoln in the Roswell district.
Although the land entries during lie
last fiscal year amounted to ovcr a
million acres, yet almost fifty mil iol
acres of the public domain in New
Mexico still remain open to entry.
Nevertheless, the time is measurably
distant when the splendid public do
main will have passed into private
ownership or be included in forest Or
other reserves.
If the present rate of the segrega-
tion of the public domain is kept ur
it will be less than fifty years before
New Mexico must put UP the sign,
mo more free homesteads."