The Billings gazette. [volume] (Billings, Mont.) 1896-1919, 1904-03-04
NEW REGULATIONS BY DEPART
MENT OF INTERIOR.
AS REGARDS DESERT LAND
Absolute Right to Sufficient Water for
Actual Irrigation a Prerequisite
Now Demanded.

Presumably because OF the many
complaints that have been made re-
garding fraud in the matter of Sc
curing patents from the government
for lands taken up under the differ
emit acts, several new orders of more
than ordinary severity have been is
sued recently by the department of the
interior. 1t is now expected that a
special agent of the department shall
be present in a majority of cases
where final proofs are made by entry
men, and where no agent is present
it will require only little protest from
a dissatisfied person to secure inves-
tigation of an entry by one of them.
Hereafter proofs must be heard on
the day advertised, it appearing that
it has been the custom of some of the
local land officers to hear such proofs
almost any time after publication of
the notice and the day set. This
was often done as a matter of convent
ence to entrymen.
One Of New Orders.
Following is one of the new orders
issued to registers and receivers:
"In all cases of final proof made
before other officers (other than the
register and receiver), you and the
special agent in your district, if there
be one, must agree as to the bona
fides of such proof. If you are agreed
that the claim is in good faith and
that the law has been complied with
you will allow the claim to pass to
entry. If you find TO the contrary you
will suspend the entry and proceed as
above indicated. In the case of dis
agreement between you, you will for
ward the entire record and await in
structions.
with respect to the officers other
than yourselves before whom nnal
proofs may be taken under the law,
you will report to this office any such
| OllC0lS WuOH yOu 41oS0 ASOooA w ~
lieve fail to comply with the law in
the matter of final proofs or are charg-
ed with any misconduct in connection
with such proofs or completely in an
effort to defraud the government. Up
on receipt Of such report such action
will be taken as will result in remov-
ing the cause of complaint.
"You will advise applicants desiring
to make final proofs before other Off
GERS that such a cours may u
delay in the completion of their
claims, inasmuch as they may require
examination by a special agent"
Desert Land Ruling.
Recent Washington dispatches con
tain the gist of a ruling lately made
by the secretary of the anterior in
regard to final proofs on desert land
/ entries. 1t was made in connection
with a final proof on land of that ma
, ture in Wyoming. In effect it holds
), that the reclamation of desert lands
[ muSL COuSlSL VI SOl1OI1A1AS CANA
increased growth of grass upon the
r tract to which title is sought. 1t viii
be seer that the secretary also ha'
something to say in reference to tn
irrigation of such lands, which mus
S be real, and not fictitious.
i Here is the way the correspondent
l. tells it:
O The secretary holds that entrymal
must have an absolute right to suit
Y cient water to successfully irrigate tn
land, that the system of bitches t
e conduct the water to and d~istribut
it over the land must be adequate TO
r. this purpose, and that the and mus
l. be actually irrigated for a suf1cien
period of time to demonstrate tn
s. suficiency of the water supply an
effectiveness of the system. These ar
essential facts which must in all case
n be clearly established by the proofs
ri Actual tillage must, as a rule, D
v shown. If, however, it be shown, an
it must be made to ~conclusively S
h appear, that because of climatic CO.
ditions crops other than grass canno
be successfully produced, or that az
tual tillage of the soil will destroy o
injure it's productive qualities, tn
actual production of a crop OF hay Q
/ merchantable value as the result G
actual irrigation may be accepted a
n sufficient compliance with the require
ments as to cultivation. Proofs whic
show that because of irrigation ther
is on the land "a marked increas
in the growth of grass" or that "gras