The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1905-01-18
RAILROAD news.
Santa Fe Railroad Exchanges
Land With Government.
Gives Up ValueIess Tract:in San
Francisco Mountains.
FOR FOREST RESERVE.
Getting Good Property in VAL
Ieys in Exchange.
Gossip and Matters OF Interest
in Railroad Circles.
FOR FOREST RESERVE.

The Santa Fe railroad is exchanging
thousands Of acres of land with the
United States government in New
Mexico and Arizona.
In exchange for vast quantities of
land which lie in the San Francisco
mountains, and which is of no practical
value for agricultural purposes, the
railroad is getting an equal amount of
land in the valleys and on the plains
which may be used to good advantage
at some future time if the country ever
comes under irrigation.
The exchange of the land is being
made under the direction of Howell
Jones, of Topeka, land commissioner of
the Santa Fe, and the greatest secrecy
possible has been maintained.
When the Atlantic and Pacific rail-
road, or the Santa Fe Pacific railway
was built through New Mexico and
Arizona to the Pacific coast, it was the
recipient of extraordinarily large land
grants from congress. It was a Gus
tomary proceeding. but evidently in
view OF the fact that the land in that
section was not considered to be OF
much value the grant made up in
quantity what it lacked in quality. 1t
is said. that the grant included every
alternate section for miles and miles
on either side of the right of way.
Much Of this land lies in the noun
tains and on the mountain sides. en-
that account 1t never will prove to be
of any value for agricultural purposes.
In June, 1897, congress enacted a bill
which necessitated all land owners in
that district to surrender their holdings
to the government for the purpose Of
placing the land in what was known
by the act of congress as the "San
Francisco Mountains Forest Reserve"
When the Santa F'e railroad acquired
the pioneer railway which was built
through that section, it naturally fol-
lowed that the Santa Fe became the
possessor of all the land embraced in
the aforementioned land grant
Whether the Santa Fe railroad or
interests friendly to the Santa Fe, Sc
cured the passage of the bill in con-
gress creating the San Francisco Noun
ta1nS Forest Reserve, may not be stated
here at this time. but in view of the
fact that the Santa Fe railroad seems
to be the greatest and only large BEN
ehciary of the act it looks as though
the Santa Fe may have been instru-
mental in inducing congress to create
the Forest Reserve.
Provision was made in the bill Gre
ating the Forest Reserve, that all hold
erS Of land could make selection of any
other unoccupied public lands in lieu
of that surrendered ii the mountains.
1t seemed no more than fair to give
the holders of land, whose land was
being taken away from them without
their having any voice in the matter at
all, all the reparation within the power
of congress. Consequently holders of
land in the mountains were given the
privilege of selecting any unoccupied
public land to be taken in exchange for
that to be surrendered.
BY the terms of this provision the
Santa Fe is rapidly becoming the pos
SCISSOR of thousands of acres Of land in
that locality which is situated in the
valleys and plains instead of on the
mountain sides. The exchange is being
made acre for acre and will no doubt
result in profit to the Santa Fe of an
enormous sum. The government is
spending big sums for the development
of plans for irrigation in that section,
and while the land is of no practical
value now, the time will no doubt soon
come when it will be supplying the
needs of a large number of people. The
Santa F'e railroad has already begun
in conjunction with interests said to