Albuquerque citizen. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1907-1909, 1909-08-11
A BONO ISSUE
TO COVER Cost
Gigantic Plan is Outlined for Re
claiming Arid and Swamp
Lands. Saving Forests
and Opening Inland
Waterways.

Spokane, Aug. 11.-Delcgates to the
irrigation congress set ABOUT relier-
ing the arid land situation today,
when a resolution was introduced by
Secretary Arthur Hooker of the board
of control, asking for a national PEI
cent bond issue of billion dollars.
He proposed to use this fund in five
Portions:
A billion for drainage
A billion for irrigation.
A billion for deep waterways.
A billion for good roads.
A billion for forest preservation.
Among the resolutions introduced
was one providing that where settlers
have been deprived of the right to re-
claim arid land by the cutting off of
water rights by the reclamation SER
vice, the settlers may gain the right
to the lands by reclaiming one acre
by means of a well.
George Otis Smith this morning
spoke on the classification of public
lands, saying in part:
Classification of Lands.
1.-THE necessity for classifying the
public lands is not a recent discovery.
The earliest land legislation in this
country both contemplated differences
i'll the quality and character OF the
public lands and planned for descrip-
tions based on field examination. Yet
even the honest administrations OF
the land laws has ever been subject
to criticism arising from the fact that
no adequate provision was made for
land classification.
utilization is the keynote of the
present public land policy and by uti-
lization | mean not that kind of local
development that is promoted by the
land skinner but rather a develop
ment whose plan weighs national
needs and calculates future demands
and whose accomplishments will serve
our country's development in the next
century as well as in the present de-
cade. Utilization is opposed to both
non-use and waste.
I'm the two and a half months fol
lowing the adoption of the revised
scheme of valuation the reports to tn
general land office released to agri-
cultural entry approximately two and
a half million acres in Colorado, WV
oming and Montana, and placed sell
ing prices on nearly 100000 acres oi
coal land with an aggregate valuation
OF over Sl0sUUU,UUO. ne pllNt "
government coal land is now deter
mined on the basis of estimated tor
age the unite rate varying with the
quality of the coal from y cent tC
cents a ton for coal deposits within
Is miles of a railroad. These prices
average less than one-tcnth the usua
royalty paid in the west. Yet thi
conservative valuation will more thai
nriCp pf plhl u
coal lands. In exceptional cases al
price based on tonnage represents
fifteen-fold increase over the old min
imum price 1t is conceded that thi
policy of basing the price on the guam
tity and quality of the article So''
will not encourage purchase by spec
ulatOrs, but / maintain that the gov
ernment valuation will not impei
the disposition Of the coal deposit
development of the west will be prn
moted, not retarded. The increase,
valuation of the millions of acres =
public coal land must result in in
creased contributions to the reclama
ton fund and greater possibilities 70
local utilization of the agricultural
lands through irrigation
Irrigation in South Dakota was dis
oCssed by 5. IL. Lea and Howard EI
lott. president of the Northern Pa
cifc. spoke on Opportunities OF IN
West"