The Glenwood post., 1907-07-13
CROWS IN Value.
ONLY FOUR PER CENT. OF COLO.
RADIOS DOMAIN SOLD.
GREAT POSSIBILITIES AHEAD

Fraudulent Land Sales Have Been But
Few and Care for Fu-
ture Taken.
DeHer.-No state in the Wes' has
retained its public lands intact SO well
as Colorado, according to the last re-
port of the State Land Office, issued
last year. Since the general govern
ment donated the lands to Colorado
less than forty years ago, less than
four per cent. of them have been sold.
Two and half million acres were
under lease the lattSr part of 1906,
bringing in some 1921 800. Less than
100000 acres are vacant. Since that
time the present land board has in
creased the number of leases, also the
prices to lessees, making an income OF
about $225,OO0 or more. Very little of
1t has been sold and that which has
been disposed of by the present ad-
ministration has brought increased fig
ureS.
In not few instances where fraud
has been found, leases and sales have
been Cancelled by the board, the lands
so lost having been recovered without
loss to the state. Some 5000 acres Of
coal lands held by the Egeria Fuel
Company in Routt county, which was
secured by fraud, will be recovered by
the board.
The total school and indemnity lands
granted the state by the national gov
eminent when Colorado was carved
out into a commonwealth aggregated
1861, ,572. UP to the latter part of 1906
only 133,560 acres of this had been
sold, leaving a balance of 3,428,012
acres. So this land is practically in
tact
However, the Agricultural college
land, given the institution by the gen.
eral government some 10000 acres,
has been reduced fifty per cent. There
remains only about $4,000 acres, some
10000 acre having been sold and the
proceeds invested in large measure by
the institution.
About fifty per cent. of the states
public improvement lands, also given
by the general government, have been
sold. Originally there were 5O2,19S
acres, of which 259,176 acres have
since been disposed of, leaving bal
ance of 243,022 acres.
OF the 45.SS4 acres Of State univer-
sity lands, 4,131 have been sold, leav-
ing only II, 1853.
The total grazing lands belonging to
the state January 1, 1907, aggregated
2,356,641 acres, which were under
lease at $12S,912 annually; agricul-
tural lands, 1,663 acres, rented at
$29, LOG year; coal lands, 20,954 acres,
annual rental $47,077; oil and gas
year; mineral lands, $3.50 acres, bring
Ing in annually to the state only $2.967,
and miscellaneous lands, 2,4O6 acres,
renting annually for $2,967.
Nevertheless, the investigation into
fraudulent leases will be continued.
Complete records of those leases and
sales made by the old regime in the
State Land Office and recovered, or to-
be recovered by the present admins
tration, are appended.
Following are the fraud leases and
sales made by the tSate Land Board,
but later Cancelled:
]. NJ. Blee, as agent for the Victor
Fuel Company, presented an applica-
tion to the State Land Board on June
G, 1905, for the purchase of 1880 acres
of rich school coal land, being section
16 township 81 south, range 65 west,
and lying in Las Animas county, near
Trinidad; also section sc, township 27
south, range 67 west, and lying in
Huerfano county, near Walsenburg, for
$40 an acre. The Victor Fuel Company
claimed that it had purchased the
lands
On November s, 1905, however, the
board refused to confirm this sale, hav.
ing investigated the two sections and
found that, instead of being worth SAC
an acre, they were worth 500 an acre,
In this one transaction alone the state
saved $79,OO0 which, had the sale been
m firm ri nj Inv hao \
out steal by the corporation seeking
the land.
Between the time of the filing of the
application and final action of the
board the graft was discovered. The
deal was to raw to put through al.
though one member of the board al
that time favored confirmation.
Whether he knew of the graft or not
may be doubtful. These lands are now
being worked on royalty basis with
an income to the state of many thou,
sands of dollars year.
One significant fact concerning this
matter is that there is no application
nor any appraisers report now on file
in the office of the State Land Board,
both of which were on file at one time,
1t is apparent that these records were
withdrawn shortly after the crooked
ness was exposed. No further at
tempts have since been made by the
company to purchase these lands.
George NJ. Davis of Center Colorado,
on November Is, 1904, made applica.
tion to the land board for the purchase
OF three quarter sections of grazing
land, lying southeast of Center, at $3.50
an acre. In the application, appar-
emily after the board had acted favor-
4 nth ,.tr,
tions, lying in the rich grain belt of
Rio Grande county, valued at $50 an
acre, were substituted for it in the land
office.
The minutes of the board on this
transaction shows that the original
three quarter sections were authorized
to be sold to Davis, but the minutes
still subsequently ordering this sale
described the substituted three quarter