The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1907-10-01

4 d.
u 1en' SUN less to bring up a family, OF
too acres. Where we are able t.
tn ~ Irrigation, the homestead car
4 Hiucn less in size-can, for in
stance, De 40 acres; and there is moth
ing mat congress has done during the
past SIX years more important than the
enactment of the national irrigation law
j where irrigation Is Not Applicable.
But where irrigation is not applica-
DIE and the land can only be used for
4 grazing, it may be that YOU can moi
run more than one steer to ten acres
4 anu II IS not necessary to be much OF
Z mathematician in order to see that
WHERE such Is the case homestead OF
| oHe hundred and sixty acres will not
go Tar toward the support of family.
| In consequence of this fact, home
| steaders do not take up the lands in
Tue tracts IN question They are left
open Tor anybody to Craze upon that
wishes to. The result is that the men
| VINO use them moderately and not
| with view to exhausting their re-
! sources are at the mercy of those who
care nothing for the future and simply
| ntehd TO skin the land in the present.
FOR instance, the small sheep farmer
| VINO mas a home and who wishes that
nome TO pass on to his children i'm
proved IN value will naturally run his
| HOOK so that the land will support it,
not only today, but ten years hence;
put big absentee sheep owner, who
mas no home on the land at all, but
SIMPLY owns huge migratory focks of
sheep, may we'll find it to his profit to
drive them over the small sheep farm
er's range and eat it ali out. He can
then drive his f1ocKs on, whereas the
small man can not. OF course, to
permit such a state of things is not
only evil for the small man, but is de-
structive of the best interests of the
country. Substantially the same con-
d1tlons obtain as regards cattle. The
custom has therefore grown up of
fencing great tracts of government
land without warrant of law The
men who fenced this land were some
times rich men, who, by fencing it,
kept out actual settlers and thereby
worked evil to the country. But in
many cases. whether they were large
men or small men, their object was
not to keep out actual settlers, but to
protect themselves and their own in
dustry by preventing overgrazing of
the range on the part of reckless stock
manent development of the country
and who were Indifferent to every
thing except the profits of the mo-
ment To permit the continuance of
this illegal fencing inevitably tended
to very grave abuses. and the govern
ment has therefore forced the fencers
to take down their fences. In doing
this we have not only obeyed and en-
forced the law, but we have corrected
many fragrant abuses.
Nevertheless we have also caused
hardship which, though unavoidable
| was exceedingly unwilling to cause.
In some way or other we must pro-
vide for the use of the public range
under conditions which shall inure
primarily to the benefit of the actual
settlers on or near it, and which shah
prevent its being wasted. This means
that in some shape or way the fencing
of pasture land must be permitted un-
w will CO 70
the rights of the actual settlers. I de-
sire to act as these actual settlers wish
to have me in this matter. 1 wish TO
find out their needs and desires and
then to try to put them into effect. But
they must take trouble. must look
ahead to their own ultimate and real
good, must insist upon being really
represented5b their public men, if we
are to have LAT. good result A little
while ago received a very manly and
sensible letter from one of the promi-
nent members of the Laramie County,
Wyo., Cattle and Horse Growers asso-
citation. My correspondent remarked
incidentally in his letter, 81 am small
ranchman, and have to pillow and pitch
hay myself" and7then went on to say
that the great majority of their people
had complied with the governmental
order, had removed their fences and
sold their cattle, but that they must
get some kind of a lease law which
would permit them to Craze their stock
would be ruinous to them to continue
in the business. The thing I have
most at heart as regards this subject
is to do whatever will be of permanent
benefit to just exactly the people for
whom this CORRESPONDENT of mine
spoke-the small ranchmen who have
to pillow and pitch hay themselves. All
1 want to do is to find out what will |
be to their real benefit, for that is GER
tain to be to the benefit of the country
as a whole. 1t may be that we can |
secure their interests best by permit |
try to inclose, individually or a GER
tain number of them together, big |
tracts of range for summer use, the |
tracts being proportioned to the NUNS
Der of neighboring homesteaders who |
wish to run tn cir cattle upon it. 1t |
may be that parts of the range will |
only be valuable for companies that |
can lease it and put large herds on it; |
for the way properly to develop a re- |
gion is to put it to those uses to which |
it is best adapted. The amount to be |
paid for the leasing privilege is to me |
a matter of comparative indifference. |
The governm ent does not wish to make |
money out of the range, but simply to |
provide for the necessary supervision
that will prevent it's being eaten out |
or exhausted; that is, that will secure /
1t unchanged as an asset for the next
generation, for the children of the
present home makers. OF course we
must also provide enough to pay the
proper share of the county taxes. I |
am not welded to any one plan and
am willing to com bine several plans
If necessary. But the present system !
is wrong. and hope to see, in all the
states of the great plains and the
the men like my correspond
ent of the Laramie County Cattle ana
Horse Growers association, the small