The daily silver state. [volume] (Winnemucca, Nev.) 1903-1907, 1904-04-18
Timber Steals to Continue

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Washington, April 16.-(Special cor
respondence The Silver State.) mo
land reform law at this session of
congress- is the mandate which has
gone forth from the interests desirous
of keeping the pirate land laws upon
the statute books to enable a grab in
the west during the coming year of a
few million more acres Of the peoples
lands. The mandate is apparently be-
ing needed carefully by congress.
In spite of two annual recommenda-
tions from the president; in spite of
a special message to congress urging
the repeal of the timber and stone
act and in spite of the evident ma
tional public sentiment favor'ng the
stoppage of land and timber stealing,
congress is prepared to admit its DOM
ination by a crew of land grabbers
and timber and land spectators which
will, before the next session, steal tens
of millions of dollars worth of govern
ment property which can never be re-
placed
The repeal of the desert land act. a
tool of the cattle corporations, has
been voted down in the house irriga-
ton committee, and the repeal of the
timber and stone act, under which at
least fifty million dollars was lost to
the government last year and which
has been specifically recommended by
the president and his special land COM
mission, bids fair to be quickly killed
on the house floor, If it ever gets past
the public lands committee of the
house. This committee has been hold
ing hearings on this act, and timber
lords, owning hundreds of thousands
of acres of the finest standing timber
in the world, which by every law Of
right and justice should still be the
property of the people of the United
States, have appeared before that
committee and eagerly accepted
testimony, showing what a hard
ship it would be on the poor settler
who wants small piece of timber
adjacent to his homestead, if the TIM
ber and stone act were repealed. Mr..
T. B. Walker of Minneapolis, said to
be the largest owner of timber lands in
the United States, owning and specu-
lating in timber lands in Minnesota
and the Pacific coast states - lands
whose titles should today be in the
government and which are valued at
millions of dollars, appeared before
the committee and gravely stated that
he must protest against Sthe repeal of
the timber and stone act.
1t is true that the bill to repeal the
timber act was allowed to pass the
senate without opposition from the
timber senator's even after they had
announced that they were opposed to
any repeal of the law. and the infer
ence is therefore that they assured
themselves that the bill would be well
taken care of in the house and prob
ably never even get out of the public
lands committee. One member of that
committee even made such a boast.
Congress is hurrying through with
its necessary work; it is proposed to
force an early adjournment-within the
month. With the ponderous machin-
cry of the legislative branch of the
government this will effect a saving
of several thousand dollars for every
day that the session is shortened; but
for every day that congress delays the
repeal of the timber and stone act,
the Communication clause of the home
stead act and the desert land act, 1t
means loss to the people of the Unit
ed States of hundreds of thousands OF
dollars and an absolute loss of great
heritage of future seekers of homes
upon the public lands.
Could the people of the country real
ize the enormity of the crime which
Is being silently perpetrated upon
them and upon their children. they
would arise in their might and grind
to atoms the horde of schemers and
plunderers who are despoiling the ma
tion of it's greatest wealth. 1t is
silent, insidious force which is with
cons dsrable rapidity absorbing that
which in few years will be recog-
nized as the very vitals of the nation.
Because of the sinister influence Of
great land interests, the greatest for
ests in the world. and the sources of
magnificent water supplies. as also
the choicest agricultural lands. capa-
BILE under irrigation of producing fabu-
lous crops and supporting numberless
men and families. will continue to be
banded back and forth by timber
thieves. by spectators. by live stock
corporations and by land monopolists-
all while congress- rushes through its
work to make an early adjournment
and refuses to face the question.