Santa Fe new Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1898-1951, 1905-05-19
RIO JEMEZ
RESERVE
The Secretary Of Agriculture Re.
plies to Memorial of Legis.
Iative Assembly.
OUTLINE OF POLICY
Beneficial to Settlers Within Proposed
Reservation as Well as to
Territory at Large.

The Thirty-sixth Legislative-Assem
bly, passed joint memorial addressed
to the President of the United States
and protesting against the creation o.
the proposed Rio de Jemez Forest Re
serve. The Memorial reads as fol
lows:
To the President of the United States
Your memorialists, of the Thurty
sixth Legislative Assembly of the Ter
ritOry of New Mexico, submit for your
consideration this, it's protest, on be
half OF the people of the Territory OF
New Mexico against the establish
ment OF the Rio de Jemez Forest Re
serve, which if established, would take
in large portion of the County of Rio
Arriba and part of the County of Taos
in said Territory, and in that behalf
respectfully represent:
That the said reserve has been es
tablished and set apart without the
several thousands of people who live
within the boundaries thereof and are
mostly affected thereby, ever having
any notice of the intent to establish it,
and without being given any opportun.
ity to protest against the same.
That the said reserve embraces a
section of the country almost as large
or larger in area than the state of
New Jersey, being ninety miles long
and thirty miles wide, and including
within itC nyfnr do, ,.;A Jor
tracts of land that are absolutely non
forest in character, and valuable only
for mining, agricultural and grazing
purposes, besides fifteen or more
towns and villages and large num-
ber of farms and stock ranches, as
we'll as one of the most prominent
mineral sections in the southwest,
that Is to say: The Bromide Mining
district, and also the Good Hope Min
ing district That 1t embraces within dts
boundaries nearly two million acres
of private land confirmed by the Con-
gress of the United States and the
court of private land claims
Your memorialists further represent
that they fully appreciate the national
economic value of proper forest re-
serves, but insists that in this partic-
ular case, because of the character of
large portion of the land embraced
within 1t, the same does more injury
than it can do good to the nation or
to the Territory of New Mexico.
Your memorialists further represent
that because of the rules and regula.
tions governing forest reserves and
the procurement of timber therefrom
for mining purposes, that practically all
of the mines in question will become
greatly deprecated in value or worth
less, because of the inability of their
owners to work them under the re.
strictions governing the procurement
of timber from this forest reserve.
Your memorialists further represent
that New Mexico's chief industry is
that of sheep raising and that the Ter.
ritory has within the last four years,
advanced from the fourth to the first
place in the nation as wool producer,
and that large portion of the coun.
try so included in this forest reserve
has been for nearly half century last
past the principal grazing ground for
a large number of f1ocks of the Terri
tory and from which grazing ground
all sheep will be thereby excluded,
thus irreparably injuring the owners
thereof as well as the Territory at
large
That the establishing of this reserve
practically amounts to the conf1scation
of all the ranches and homes of the
people living within the boundaries
thereof, and although they established
themselves there more than fifty years
ago and endured the great hardships
and risks in the accumulation of the
property they possess, they are to be
driven out to begin life anew. More
over, the practical wiping out of the
taxable value of this large amount of
property will work irreparable injury
to the counties of Taos and Rio Arriba
and the Territory of New Mexico.
Wherefore, your memorialists re-
spectfully and earnestly pray that all
that portion of the Rio de Jemez Re.
serve that lies within Taos and Rio
Arriba Counties may be restored to
the public domain and consequent To-
cation and entry, relieving the people |
who will suffer thereby so much in |
consequence Of the establishment of |
said reserve over such large area of |
land of non-forest country: And
Be 1t Further Resolved, That the
honorable Secretary of the Territory |
of New Mexico transmit a certified |
copy of this joint memorial to the |
President of the United States
Reply Of the Secretary Of Agriculture.
To this Secretary of Agriculture.
James G. Wilson, has answered as
follows:
'T am in receipt by reference from