Imperial Valley press., 1909-01-09
ACCEPTANCE OF RESURvEy A
 OPENS VALLEY LAND ID ENTRY
Flats of Fourteen Townships Sent From Washington and the Remainder Soon to FoIow---Forma Filing Set for Feb 23 by eand 0ffice.--- Excess Strips Withheld from Entry Pending Legislation to Protect Bona Eide Occupants.

entered lands. Although these strips may have been claimed by entrymen as parts of the regular subdivisions established by the erroneous and un- authorized survey, they will be pub lie lands of the United States subject to entry as soon as the plats of the survey have been filed
 These lands have doubtless, in many instances, been valuably improved and in some cases surveyed into town lots and sold by persons claiming them as parts of entered legal subdivisions, and the persons now in possession have such equities in the lands as calls for relief at the hands of the Government. These strips will, in all probability, be too narrow and too long to be inviting to bona fide home seekers, and will more than like ly in some cases be appropriated by persons whose principal object would be to speculate by selling them to the persons now claiming them.
 There is no law under which the persons now claiming these strips, in connection with abutting lands, can be given a preferred right to acquire title, but congress will be asked to enact a law which will give them such right, and in aid of this pro- posed law, and for the purpose of de- feating speculative entries, the lands embraced in the strips referred to will be withdrawn from all forms of appropriation or entry until con gress has had an opportunity to grant the relief mentioned, and this with drawal will be made as soon as these strips can be identified from the plats of the survey.
 You are directed to bring this an nouncement directly to the attention of all persons who, to your knowledge, contemplate settlement upon any of the lands mentioned, and advise them that any right gained by such settle ment is likely to be defeated by such action as congress may take in the premises.
 Very respectfully,
 FRED DENNETT,
 Commissioner. Approved May 2S, 1908.
 JAMES RUDOLPH GARFIELD,
 Secretary.
 FRANK c. PRESCOTT,
 Register
 o. R. w. ROBINSON,
 Receiver. Some newspapers in Los Angeles have published wild statements of the effect of this action, announcing that "270,000 acres of land are thrown op- en to entry and that a rush of land seekers to Imperial Valley is immi- nent. That is all wrong. There is little if any vacant land subject to en- try under the desert land law, the re- survey covering land already entered, settled and reclaimed or in process of reclamation. The act of July 1, 1902, providing for the resurvey, specifically declared that nothing therein would be "so construed as to impair the present bona fide claim of any actual occupant of any of said lands to the lands so occupied"
 The act of March 2S, 1908, treated the land being resurveyed as unsur- veyed land, but provided that "any individual qualified to make entry of desert lands who has, prior to survey, taken possession of tract of unsur- veyed desert land not exceeding in area 32O acres in compact form. and has reclaimed or has in good faith commenced the work of retaining the same, shall have the preference of right to make entry of such tract under said acts, in conformity witt. the public lands survey. within ninety days after the filing of the approved V,laf raf o1.WxsAxr tu kkn Sa..k.f-A