The National tribune., 1903-11-12
xoIsor.s, correspondents.

Editorial correspondence.
The sky-scraping Sierra Nevada range
of mountains, with their burden of eternal
snow, form great wall, separating the Pa
cifc coast from the interior of the United
States. The hight of the peaks runs
from 1000 to 5000 feet above the level
of the sea, with few passes through the
range, and give color to the arguments of
the non-expansioniSts Of the earlier part
of the last century that God Almighty had
set the boundary Of this Nation in the
Rocky Mountains and it would be mad
ness for us to attempt to pass them. Very
much smaller obstacles than these have
made scientific boundaries" in Europe,
behind which great and famous nations
have developed, with their peculiar man.
ners, laws and civilization. The Pyrenees,
which separate France from Spain; the
Alps, which lie between France and Italy;
the Carpathians, which divide Russia from
the Danubian countries and Turkey, are
far less formidable obstacles to communi-
cation than the Sierra Nevada alone, to
say nothing of the waves of smaller noun
tains which run parallel to it for a thou
sand miles, constituting what are known
indefinitely as the "Rocky Mountains"
1t is an imcomparably greater barrier than
what held back the Spaniards from over
running France and checked the French
domination of Italy. Yet it was no re-
tardation before the irresistible march of
of the American people to the Pacific
coast, to make California as much an in
tegral part Of the great Nation as the
plains Of Illinois.
= The State of Nevada, into which We
were passing shortly after crossing the
Sierra Nevada, has played phenomenal
part in our history in spite Of the absurd
ly-small proportion of its population to
that Of the rest of the country. Territor-
tally it is third in size among the States,
with an extreme length of 4S5 miles and
an extreme breadth of 315. 1t has total
area of 110,7OO square miles, to Califor-
MAS 15S,3SO square miles and Texas's
265, 7SO square miles.
A good comparison between Nevada and
Rhode Island. Nevada has 10000 square
miles to 1,250 square miles for Rhode
Island, or almost exactly 100 times as
great an area. Nevada has 0,SOO, 900
acres to 100000 acres in Rhode Island,
or Just 70,000,000 acres more. Yet Rhode
Island has a population of 42S.558 to Ne
vada's $4,000, or almost exactly 10 times
as many, on one-hundredth of the ground.
Inhabiting Nevada are only, according
to the census of 1900, 42,335 people, or
3,426 less than there were 10 years before.
There are several hundred Counties in the
United States, hardly known outside Of the
limits of their States, which have a
greater population than this, and get along
quietly and successfully under a Govern
ment Of three Commissioners at low sal
aries, with corps of the usual modestly
paid County officials. Yet the 42,OOO peo-
pie in Nevada have two Senators in the
United States Congress and Represen-
tative, each at salary of $1,000 year
and perquisites; Governor at $4,000 a
year: Lieutenant-GOyer Secretary Of
State, a State Treasurer, a Comptroller,
a Superintendent of Public Instruction, an
Attorney-General,a Supreme Court of one
Chief Justice and two Associate Justices,
q Legislature with Senate of 13 men,
bers and House with SO members, all
paid comfortable salaries. The members
of the Legislature get IS per diem, and
hold biennial sessions, which are limited
by the Constitution to 80 days. 1t looks
like an immense burden for one small
community, with no more to live on than
the grassless, rocky peaks and rugged
gulches through which We are now pass
ing, but the people do not complain any
ching like the greater and wealthier popu-
lations Of Eastern communities.
ut is not taxation of which we COM
plain" said a Nevada man who came on
the train at one Of the stations. and Joined
US in the smoker; ''it is the iron rule of
State as piece Of private property, and
preventing the entrance of immigrants.
The soil is, almost everywhere, very rich,
and with little water will literally bios
som like a rose. The water is scarce,
It is true, yet there is enough Of it to do
considerably more than has ever been done,
There are little valleys which could be
: irrigated without much expense and would
make host Of small farms. The owners
Of the great cattle and sheep ranches have
gobbled the water and the best land, and
they are so selfish that they would rather
give 40, so, 60, or 100 acres, as some of
them do, to support one steer, than to
have the tract made the home of q half
dozen farmers with their families. These
men control the State, and at present pay
large portion of the taxes and run things
to suit themselves.
'Tbe first great drawback came when
the State took up its grant of 1900, ,00O
acres from the Government for school pur-
poses. Instead of taking this, as every
other State did, in the 18th and Both sec
tons of every Township, it picked out all
of the springs and water courses and
located on them. The next step was to let
Ill of this to the large cattle companies