The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1905-08-04
LAND SALES
State to Sell 500. 900 Acres to Ac.
tual Settlers.

Three hundred thousand acres Of
state lands are to be sold this fall anG
200, 900 more next spring, says tht
News Tribune, By constitutions
the minimum price must be five dol
lars an acre. The terms are liberal
however, the proportion to be paiG
down in cash being Is per cent ant
the remainder payable in forty years
subject to per cent interest. There
must be an apprisal before the
sale can be made and the price
may be more than five dollars pei
acre. The purchaser must fence al
least IS per cent of his tract for pas
ture and convert that portion into
pasture land or cultivate at least
per cent Of his tract, or build house
and live upon the tract for period OF
a year. An important provision oil
the law is that not more than 32C
acres may be sold to any one purchaser.
The worthy object of these provis-
sions Is that the land shall be sold to
persons who will live upon it and cul.
tivate it. The last provision should
be especially effective in keeping 1t
out of the hands of spectators.
Unfortunately. the state has been
pursuing the methods of the specu-
lators to certain extent in its dis
position, or slowness of disposition, of
the state lands. The constitution
set price upon them well in excess
Of their average value in the first
place and no doubt appraisal has in
creased the price in some cases beyond
figure attractive to settlers.
The pity is that the state cannot
sell its land at low price and get
them into the hands of bona fide sett-
lers at an early day. With so much
land In the hands of the railroads and
spectators waiting for high prices,
the state has delayed settlement by
adopting similar policy. One rea-
son settlers are passing Minnesota by
and going to Canada is because they
can secure cheaper lands there.
Land buying is a good deal like any
other trading. Purchasers can seek
to get the best value they can for
their money. The men who actually
settle new country are invariably
poor. A dollar represents a great
deal to them. 1t means help at the
beginning of their struggle for home
and before the returns of their home
stead begin come to malt means help
in establishing the home, putting up
the buildings and getting things in
order for business. Therefore, the
dollars must be looked after most
jealouslY.
There is no sentiment in land buy
ing, the principal object being to Sc
cure home with land enough to sup
port a family. Even though the land
is beyond the borders of the United
States, we nave seen that good AM
orleans will expetiate themselves
because of real or supposed advant-
ages in its price or productiyeness.
AS men must compete in otheri bus
mess, so Minnesota, must compete in
the land business. She needs the
people and must convince them that
they can do better by coming here.
The return from settlers will be
greater than the difference between
an attractive price for land and a
high one. The state needs whole
communities of settlers who can have
their roads and schools. The opening
of every Indian reservation gives evil
dence of the land .hunger.of the people,
but it is hunger regulated.by price and
the reason there are ten, twenty or
thirty times as many applicants as
there are quarter sections at the dis
posal of the land office is because the
cost is low.
With the land companies, and the
railroads Withholding lands and In
dian reservations covering large
tracts, the farmer looking for home
in Minnesota sees no very promising
prospect at the best. but with the
state pursuing like policy his
chances have been slender indeed.
Let US trust there will be more
liberal policy from now on.