The daily sentinel., 1905-01-19
UINTAH LAND
Opening Said to Be a
Gigantic Steal.

ing mucn attention TO the llntal
land opening. The Post denounce
the opening as a farce and giganti,
land steal. The Denver Times yes
terday contained an extensive dis
patch from Washington in which tn,
Utah congressman and senators ar,
quoted as saying that the charges
made are false. The land commits
sioner also believes there is no truth
in the charges.
The dispatch from Washington
has the following to say:
ANY fears that may be enter
tanned in the west that any confus-
ion. strife or graft by favored per-
sons and companies win be connect
ed with the coming opening of the
Uintah reservation in Utah can be
safely set at rest. Congress and the
president are engaged in helping in
the plans of the coming opening with
every sort of a safeguard that can
be devised to prevent fraud, unfair
ness and contention,
Senator Smoot of Utah gave ut
terance to this assertion Monday
morning when asked by a Times
representative to give the status of
the Uintah opening and to explain
why so many petitions were being
entered that the opening would be
1 scramble in which the bona fide
homesteader would have little show.
1T cannot be asserted definitely. "
snid Senator Smoot. but you can
put 1t down as almost certain that
the president will proclaim the same
plan of opening as was used in the
recent opening OF the Rosebud lands
in South Dakota-that is, by draw
ngs. One thing is rs certain as day
light and that is there will be no
lisgraeeful scramble for the lands. ="
when questioned as to rumors
hat Utah congressman and senators
might be personally Interested in
he distribution of lands the senator
entered an emphatic denial.
- have no personal interest
whatever in the opening said he,
and neither am connected with any
IF the mining companies that are
said to be making plans for choice
locations. ! do not believe any other
Utah man in congress has anything
o do with these companies either.
THE senator then went ON to eX-
plain that the idea of mining com
panies entering the lands was alb
surd, for the reason that only ag-
.'icultural lands would be thrown
open.
when questioned today as to
when the Uintah reservation would
1e thrown open for settlement and
he methods which will prevail. Com
missioner w. a. Richards said:
" First. these lands cannot now
be opened before October / for two
reasons. The land office has not
lutte perfected it's survey. and sec
ondly, the Indian bureau has not
been able to complete its allotment
10 Indians. due chiefly 10 the severe
winter. therefore the date of open
ing has been changed from March 10
10 October /,
q" 1t is now understood that the
opening will be conducted through
the registration and drawing system,
Is worked so successfully and sat
lsfactorily to all concerned in the
opening of the great Rosebud reser-
vation last summer. The bill pro-
viding for negotiations looking to OPP
ening the Uintah reservation as or
iginally passed contemplated the
land rush system under conditions
similar to those which prevailed
when Oklahoma was opened. This
method proved most unsatisfactory,
while the registration and drawing
plan has. wherever tried. worked
satisfactorily 10 the settlers and to
the department, This latter plan
will be followed when the Uintah
is opened October 1 next"
"'Under this drawing system,
could it avail one anything to have
had previous knowledge of the char
acter of the lands to be opened p
Commissioner Richards was asked.
" 4 cannot see how previous know
ledge would do a person any good
unless by some lucky chance he
should draw the first chance at the
drawing said Mr.. Richards.
You say it is asserted that
certain mining company is supposed
10 have knowledge of choice miner
al selections. What of it?
Only agricultural lands' can be
taken under the homestead law. and
it is the agricultural lands only
which are to be thrown open. Any
lands that may be in tie
Uintah can be obtained only unde.
The course which governs patent min
eral lands, so previous knowledge OF
such lands would be of no especial
value