New-York tribune., 1910-09-06

much to answer for in not having give
| proper attention 10 the government
Alaska and the development OF Het ~
sources for the benefit OF all the Pt9Pi PlI
of the country. l would not force deveiop
ment at the expense of present or lutu!
waste of resources but the problem as :
the disposition of the coal lands foT pres
ent and future use can be wisely anu salei
settled in one session IL congress gives
careful attention.
Oil and Gas Lands.
In the last administration there Wer' eel
withdrawn from agricultural entry go,
COO acres Of supposed oil land In Can1or
MA: about a million and halr acres II
Louisiana, of which only $500 acres WeI'
known to be vacant, unapproprlated idiiol
Wyoming. making a total or nearly yocn LOU
millions of acres. In September iyO',
directed that all public oil lands, Wnethei
then withdrawn or not should be withheld
from disposition pending Congressional ac'
ton, for the reason that the existing PA
Ger mining law, although made apphcapie
to deposits of this character, is not SUIT
able to such lands, and for the furthel
reason that IL seemed desirable 10 reserve
certain fuel oil deposits for the use OIL tnt
American navy. Accordingly, the form ol
all existing Withdrawals was changed, ano
new Withdrawals aggregatlng I,ioo,eOV acres
were made in Arizona, Cdhtorna, toio-
rado. New Mexico, Utah az and ,o. MyGm1nsd shn1,ed
that Of the original Withdrawals 2liO,VU
acres were not valuable for oil, ana they
were restored for agricultural entry Mean
time, other Withdrawals OF public Oil lands
ir these states were made, so that on @ July
J. 1910, the outstanding Withdrawals then
amounted to 4.550,O00 acres.
The needed oil and gas law Is essentially
a leasing law In their natural occurrence
oil and gas cannot be measured in terms
of acres, like coal, and it follows that eX-
,-1ally be secured only after they reach the
surface. Oil should be disposed of as
commodity in terms of barrels OF trans.
porta BILE product rather than in acres OF
real estate This is, OF course. the reason
for the practically universal ADOPTION OF
the leasing system wherever oil land IS ~
private ownership The government mus
would not be entering on an experiment
but simply putting into effect a plan sue
cessfully operated in private cohtracIs;;
Why should not the government as a land
owner deal directly with the oil produceF
rather than through the Intervention OF q
middleman to whom the government gives
title to the land? -,
The principal underlying feature of such
legislation should be the exercise OF bene.
fetal control rather than the collection OF
revenue. AS not only the largest owner OF
sumner of oil by reason OF the Increasing
use of fuel oil by the navy, the federal gov
ernment is directly concerned both IN en-
couraging rational development and at the
same time fnsuring the longest possible
life tn the oil supply. The royalty rates
fixed by the government should neither ek.
coed nor fall below the current rates but
much more important than revenue Is the
enforcement of regulations to conserve the
public interest so that the covenants or the
fessees shall specifically safeguard oil fields
against the penalties from careless driiiingS
and of production IN excess OF transporta-
ton facilities or Of market requirements
Private Ownership in Way.
in the California fields is that the Southern
Pacific Railroad owns every other section or
land in the oil fields, and in those fields the
oil seems to be in q common reservoir. or
series of reservoirs, communicating through
the oil sands, so that the excessive draining
of oil at one well. or on the railroad terri
tory generally, would exhaust the OIL III the
government land. Hence it is important
that If the government is to have its share
OF the oil it should begin the opening and
development of wells on its own property
In view of the Joint ownership which the
government and the adjoining land owners
like the Southern Pacific Railroad have in
the oil reservoirs below the surface, II is a
most interesting and intricate question, diff
fcult of solution. but one which ought 10
address itself At once to the state law
makers how far the st9te Legislature might
impose appropriate restrictions to secure an
equitable enjoyment of the common reSer-
yoir. and to prevent waste and excessive
drainage by the various owners having &C
cess to this reservoir.
II has been suggested. and believe the
to be sound one. that permits
be issued TO a prospector for oil, giving him
the right TO prospect for two years over a
certain tract of government land for the
discovery of oil. the right to be evidenced
by a license, for which he pays a small
sUm. When the oil is discovered, then he
acquires title to a certain tract much in
the, same way as he would acquire title
under a mining law. OF course, II the sys-
TEN of leasing is adopted. then he would
be given the benefit of a lease upon terms
like that above suggested. What has been
said in respect to oil applies also to govern
ment gas lands.
recially where the goVernment Oil lands
embrace an entire oil field as in many
cases, prospectors, operators. consumers
and the public can be benefited by the
adoption Of the leasing system. The pros
peCtor can he protected in the very expen-
sive work that necessarily antedates dis
covery; the operator can be- protected
against impairment of the productiveness
OF the wells which he has leased by reason
of control of drilling and pumping of other
wells too closely adjacent. or by the. pre-
vention of improper methods as employed
by careless ignorant or irresponsible opera
tors in the same field, which result in the
admission of water to the oil sands; while,
Of course. the consumer will profit by what
ever benefits the prOSpeCtOr or operator re-
ceives in reducing the first cost of the oil.