The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1910-03-29
ENCROACH|NG ON
GRAZING LANDS
This the Charge Against For
estry Department by Southern
Sheep and Cattlemen.
GRAFT ON MAMMOTH
SCALE Is HINTED AT
Stockmen to Seek Relief in
Petition to Bureau OF
Forestry.

Tha; 90 per cent of the forest re-
serves in southern Utah do not contain
any timber growth more extensive than
sapebrush and an occasional cotton
wood tree was the declaration made
Monday afternoon by c. 3. Stewart, see.
retary OF the Utah State WoolgroWers
association, and emphasized by a. a;
Callister, secretary of the State Board
of Sheep Commissioners, both OF whom
returned from an extended trip through
southern Utah Monday morning. Messrs.
Stewart and Callister were absent from
Salt Lake for a week AMI visited Gar
field, kaEc ana Washington counties.
Cas.le and sheepmen who talked with
Messrs. Stewart and Callister stated
withou5 Hesitation that unless steps are
taken TO perml. a more equitable system
of grazing in southern Utah on the
government forest reserves the men who
have hvcd IN the southern counties OF
this stlce for years Will be :orccd 10
leave the county because The cattle
and sheep industries viii he ruined.
Graft Hinted At.
Graft on mammoth scale was also
limited at by many of the cattle and
sheepmen and 1t was claimed by many
residents OF the Buckskin mountain
country that one company had been Civ
en- practical control Of the government
The name of the company alleged to
have been favored was not given out,
but it probably will be made public IN
IN investigation that is 10 be asked for
by cattle and sheepmcn of Utah
Plans have been completed for the
forwarding of petition TO congress
and also the registration Of complaint
with the bureau of forestry of the de
partment Of the interior. Action Will
bp taken aS sOOu DoeSIblp
According to Messrs. Stewart and Cal
lister, residents of Kane, Garfield and
Washington counties are alarmed and
aroused by the conditions prevailing at
present. 1t is alleged that while the
average cattleman in the southern coun-
ties mentioned above Is only permitted
to have grazing land on the reserves for
from 100 TO 800 cattle. one firm com
posed of men who are not residents oil
Utah. has domain for 5000 head of
cattle. This tract rs now being fenced,
IT is said, and the government is stand.
ing part of the expense. 1t is further
alleged that instead of running 5000
cattle on this particular range, the COM
pany IN question IS feeding almost 15,-
600 head.
Sagebrush Land Usurped
One of the principal complaints reg
istered by the cattle and sheepmen in
L,
stead Of confining its reserves TO tim
bered land, has included thousands OF
acres Of sagebrush territory. Messrs.
Stewart and Callistcr stated that they
Travelled for miles over government re.
serves without seeing n tree save an
occasional cottonwood or scrub cedar
This is said to be valuable range ground
and the stock raisers feel that IL is an
imposition for the government to tie il
up unde- the guise of n forest reserve
1t was also asserted that there is an
Indian reservation at Moccasin, twelve
by eighteen miles In extent, that is ex-
cellent range ground and is now in the
hands OF sixty Indians.
The reserves complained about chiefly
are the Dixie, Mt. Trumbull and Kiabab
tracts The latter takes in the Buck.
skin mountain district and is said TO
be one of the best ranges in the south
ern part of the state, 1t is alleged that
the only timber of any value is on ion
Of the mountain and this growth is con.
fined to q comparatively small area.
Two United States senators are said
TO haze visited the different reserves
and shJull be acquainted with the CON
ditlons.
Sheep Reduced
AS result of the inroad upon the
ranges made by the forestry bureau
the number OF sheep grazing in the Kia.
bab disnict has been reduced, it is said.
from 10000 to about 5000 head.
The cattle and sheepmen have ar
ranged 10 petition the forestry bureau
and intend to take the matter up with a
view of having Utah S representatives
IN congress take some action. 1t is
proposed either tP cut down the size
of the reserves in the southern counties
or else arrange in some other way to
obtain better grazing grounds
Messrs. Stewart and Callister stated
upon thclf return that the situation in
southern Utah is approaching a crisis
and sh1r many OF the older residents
of that section are threatened with ruin
as dry spell would cost them their
focks and herds. The watering places
are far apart and the cattle are suf
fering as result of the long journeys.
Formal action probably viii be taken
this week
MEMS FINE CTfpNTSpTnrog