The herald-advance. (Milbank, S.D.) 1890-1922, 1905-01-13
THE 64O-ACRE HOMESTEAD
The Bill Introduced by Con
gresham Martin for the
settlement Of the Trans
Missouri Country

| MIssOulrl country
! Following is the bill of Rep.
resentative Martin, and which
will receive the support of South
Dakota delegation, and if enacted
into law it is believed will tend
to the settlement and develop.
ment of the semi-arid portion of
the state west of the Missouri
river. 1t would have been rank
treason to have spoken of this
matter before the recent capital
election, but now that that mat
ter is settled it is pretty well
conceded that some extra induce
ment must be offered to secure
even limited population in the
country west of the Missouri.
The bill is as follows:
A bill to amend the homestead laws
as to certain unappropriated and un-
reserved lands in South Dakota.
Be it enacted by the senate and
house of representatives of the United
States of America in congress assem-
bled
That from and after sixty days
after the approval of this act entries
made under the homestead laws in the
state of South Dakota, west of the
Missouri river and not within the forest
reserves or other reservations, NAV
equal but not exceed in area six hum
dred and forty acres, and shall be as
nearly compact in form as possible
and in no event over two miles in
extreme length: provided that there
shall be excluded from the provisions
of this act such lands within the
territory herein described as in the
opinion of the secretary of the interior
it may be reasonably practicable to
irrigate under the national irrigation
law or by private enterprise and that
the said secretary shall, prior to the
date above mentioned, designate and
exclude from entry under this act the
lands which in his opinion it may be
practicable to irrigate as aforesaid,
and shall thereafter from time to time
open to entry under this act any of
the land so excluded which upon
further investigation he may conclude
can be practically irrigated in the
manner aforesaid; and provided that
the lands in Gregory county South
Dakota, opened to settlement under
and by virtue of the act of congress
approved April %, 1904, shall not be
subject to the provision of this act.
'"rhat a former homestead entry
shall not be a bar to the entry under
the provisions of this act of tract
which together with the former entry
shall not exceed six hundred forty
acres.o
That the entrymen under the home
stead laws of the United States, with
in the territory above described, who
own and occupy the land heretofore
entered by them, may under the pro-
visions of this act and subject to its
conditions, enter other lands contig-
uous to their homestead entry which
shall not, with the land already en-
tered, owned and occupied, exceed in
the aggregate six hundred and forty
acres; and residence upon the original
homestead shall be accepted as equiv
alent to residence upon the additional
land SO entered, but final entry shall
not be allowed of such additional
lands until five years after first enter
ing the same. Any former homestead
entryman who shall be entitled to an
additional entry under this section
shall have, for ninety days after the
passage of this act, the preferential
right to make additional entry as here
in provided.
"That the fees and commissions on
all entries under this act shall be
uniformly the same as those charged
under the present law for maximum
entry at the minimum price. That the
onrp,nuf foti nrnyiS ions ~ff tho hnuoa
stead law shall not apply to entries
under this act, and at the time of max
ing final proof the entryman must
prove affirmatively that he has placed
upon the land entered permanent i'm
provements of the value of not less
than one dollar and twenty-five cents
per acre for each acre included in his
entry: Provided, that when home
steader under the provisions of this
act shall have served as private
soldier or officer in the army, navy,
or marine corps of the United States
during the war of the rebellion, and
shall have been honorably discharged,
the time which such settler has so
served shall be deducted from the
time hereinbefore required to perfect
title or if discharged on account of
wounds received or disability incurred
in the line of duty, then the term of
enlistment shall be deducted from the
time herein required to perfect title
without reference to the length of time
he may have served: but no patent
shall issue to any homestead settler
who has not resided upon, improved,
and cultivated his homestead for q
period of at least one year after he
shall have commenced his improve
ments.
G. Dickerson, the writer, who is q
practical engineer and electrician and
q graduate of q technical school, was
recently granted chief engineers
certificate for the operation of any
stationary engine, electric light plant
or any other plant using steam power.
Under the license laws of this state
four grades of license are granted to
engineers, the special, second class,
first class and chief, with the chief ,ln-
limited in the size of the plant he may
operate, the others being limited to