, 1908-02-13

N
a public official takes a stand upon any
question OF vital Importance to the
people, it is fair criticism To cite his
personal attitude toward such public
question. If he is a beneficiary under
Il certain policy that he Is decrying
with all the vehemence- at. his COM
mand, then the people have n right to
conclude that there is good reason for
bis opposition INT any fair inquiry
tending to disclose reasons for such
altitude Is certainly warranted.
All reference 10 federal Jobs" Sub
sidizcd press" "senseless arguments
etc, will receive no attention. This
line of defense or attack means moth
ing in argument, should be beneath the
dignity of a man OF the governors
power and will not be resorted to by
this paper.
In making reference to settlement
in the pastures of the state The Re,
publican used the following language:
Briefly, The Republican would take
great pleasure in having the governor
show to the people of this state just
how the labor of making homes has
progressed in the pastures under the
let-us4alone policy he advocates SO
lkyrotechpically." 1t was not appre
hended that Governor Brooks would
construe this paragraph into a personal
reference, but he makes this retort:
Mr.. Chaplin says he would like to
have me show 10 the people Of this
state just how the labor of making
bones a progressed in the pastures
our company has leased from the state.
Why, sir, it hasn't progressed at all.
Anyone in Natrona county will tell
YOU that u company has kept ous
many settlers by leasing state lands.
That is why we leased them, and that
is why We pay the state from 8 TO 20
cents per acre for them, simply for
our own exclusive use and to prevent
others from getting them"
The Republicans reference was gen.
eral in its terms and referred not to
leased lands but to the great pastures
that have been controlled without any
form of ownership. The governors
retort is personal and draws the mat.
ter right down to his own company,
which he declares has kept out many
settlers by leasing state lands. And
that Is the main fault to be found with
the present state leasing system. 1t
iz not used to aid the settlement and
growth of the state, as it should be,
hut as a club with which to prevent
settlement. There are very few re,
naming tracts of public land a man
can afford to pay rs cents per acre per
snnum for unless they control othel
tracts which the lessee desires to use
personally. The Republican submits
that as a governmental policy it is just
as wrong for the state to play upon
IN raising revenue as it is for the fed
eral government. The great underly-
ing policy should be development, pro-
gress and the greatest good to the
greatest number. 1t would be infinite.
ly more profitable to the people as a
whole, and particularly those Of the
cities n towns, if it were the policy
Of the state in administering its lands
to use them to encourage settlement
and not in preventing it. For illustra-
ton, if the state were in a position
to say to a homesteader, Come and
establish your home among our people
and we will supplement- Uncle Sans
100 acres with a small area of pasture
land at such a nominal rental that you
"a make it profitable to raise stock
thereon" would it not be more to the
interest of all than a system that
makes it possible for a man already
dominating a large area of land to
lease a string of forties running down
a stream and thus prevent the very
thing we are working and striving to
luild up-the settlement of the public
domain. We van more homes. If the
state lands were used to aid settlement
instead of to prevent it, the additional
people who would build their homes
among us would pay more taxes into
the state treasury than the lands now
bring in rental, n the rental would
come too.
AS to the matter of state or federal
leasing as applied to the individual,
The Republican insists that Governor
Brooks has not met the question. In
his address at Laramie he insisted with
vehemence that a whitening blight
would come upon the land under FEEDER,
al control. The question was put to
him direct, what difference it made to
the individual lessee whether the land
was leased to him by the federal gov
eminent or the state government, so
long as the money went into the treas
ury of his state and he had u~ndisput.
ed possession of the land. This aues,
ton is met by the governor by saying
that under state control the treasury