Custer County Republican. (Broken Bow, Neb.) 1882-1921, 1907-12-12
The Kinkaid Homestead Law.


Washington sends out a report
relative to the Kinkaid home
stead law-which will be inter-
esting to large number of RE-
PUBLICAN readers-as follows:
The so-called kinkaid home
stead bill, which brought comfort
to hundreds of intending settlers
in the western Nebraska district
and which has largely been
taken advantage of by farmers in
that section, has had series of
ups and downs in the land Office,
which it author, Moses p. Kin
kaid, proposes to rectify if it is
in his power. Since the passage
of the Kinkaid act he has
watched its effects and noted its
drawbacks. 1t was undoubtedly
the best bill that could be passed
at the time, according to MEM
bers of the public land committee,
and it is doubted if such
measure could have been passed
in any congress since the Fifty
ninth, and the possibility of its
passage in the congress now in
session is extremely questioned.
However, it is a law and the
measure of good il has accom-
plished is testified to by the
large number of entries that have
been made under its provisions.
Notwithstanding it is law,
the land Office has been extremely
pertinacious in is Interpretation
of features of the Kinkaid act to
the extent that many entries
that have been made on lands in
the territory affected by the act
have been held up until intend
ing settlers have grown tired of
waiting upon action by the
department and have abandoned
their entries completely. In
fact, by its mastery inactivity,
the land office, having presum-
ably more vital things at hand,
has made it necessary that the
representatives from the Sixth
= district bring it before the at
tention of the land officials.
Today Judge Kinkaid had a
long conference with Commits.
sioner Ballinger of the general
land Office in relation to the
operation of certain features OF
the bill which gives intending
settlers the right to enter upor
lands over and above the 16(
acres prescribed under the
general homestead law. He
brought to the attention of Mr.
Ballinger that the act, which
was intended to be in the natur,
of large relief for the homes
settler, was being choked to deatl
in the general land Office becaus,
of the failure to administer tn,
law properly, and especially S,
in relation to the purchase o
isolated tracts surrounding land
entered upon by the homesteader
1t was Mr.. Kinkaid,s contentio
that the application for thes
purchases should be passed upo
in due season by the departure nj
but instead applications hav
been allowed to grow musty i
the department and so far as an
action of officials show have bee
entirely forgotten.
Judge Kindaid, who know
every foot of the Sixth distriC
and who is in complete harmon
with his constituents, sees I'll
necessity of increasing the sii
of isolated tracts which may
purchased by homesteaders fro
quarter section, which is no
the law, to three-quarters, ar
he purpose to make fight alon
these lines in order to NAL
his bill still more effective.
He also urged upon Commi
sioner Ballinger that the rulir
of the general land Office relati'
to entry of old soldiers upt
lands in the Sixth district i
cluded under the provisions
the Kinkaid act should be give
the old soldier the second tin
if in the first instance, by reaso
OF a misunderstanding, his fir
entry was not satisfactory to IL
department. He urged the I
sumption of the former ruling
Judge Kinkaid pointed out
interview with the commission
today that other states in Il
arid or semi-ard belt were mo
ing for laws like that of t
Kinkaid act, only that they i
sisted upon larger acreage up
which entry could be made
the intending homeseeker tn