Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1910-12-06

far the state legislature might impose
! appropriate restrictions to secure an
equitable enjoyment of the common
! reservoir and to prevent waste and
excessive drainage by the various own.
erS having access to this reservoir.
1t has been suggested, and ! believe
/ the suggestion to be a sound one, that
permits be issued to n prospector for
oil giving him the right to prospect for
two years over a certain tract of gov
eminent 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 Il mining law. OF course if the
system 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 government gas lands.
Under the proposed oil legislation,
especially where the government oil
! lands embrace an entire oil field, as in
many cases. proSpectnrs, operators, con
sumers and the public can be bene-
flied by the adoption of the leasing
| system. The proSpector can be pro
/ tected in the very expensive work that
! necessarily antedateS discovery, the OPP
/ orator can be protected against impair
| ment of the prOductivenesS of the wells
! which he has leased by reason of CON
troll of drilling and pumping of other
wells too closely adjacent or by the
prevention Of improper methods as en-
| pIoyed by careless, ignorant or ire
sponsible operators in the same field
! which result in the admission of water
to the oil sands, while, of course, the
consumer will profit by whatever ben
efits the prospector or operator receives
in reducing the first cost of the oil.
Phosphate Lands.
Phosphorus is one of the three essen
/ tails to plant growth. the other ele-
ments being nitrogen and potash. OF
/ these three, phosphorus is by all odds
; the scarcest element in nature. 1t is
easily extracted in useful form from
the phosphate rock, and the United
+ States contains the greatest known de-
posits of this rock in the world. They
are found in Wyoming, Utah, Idaho
and Florida, as well as in South Caro-
/ lima. Georgia and Tennessee. The gov
/ eminent phosphate lands are confined
to Wyoming, Utah, Idaho and Florida.
Prior to March /, 1909, there were
.44G. 29S acres withdrawn from aSricul-
tural entry on the ground that the
land covered phosphate rock. Since
that time 2.3G0.T76 Gcres of the land
thus withdrawn were found not to con
tain phosphate in profitable quantities.
while 1.G1S,OO0 acres were classified
properly as phosphate lands.
During this administration there have
been withdrawn and classified 437.GT3
acres, so that today there are cIassi-
fed as phosphate rock land 2.51419J
acres. This rock is most important in
the composition of fertilizers TO i'm
prove the soil and as the future is
certain TO create an enormous demand
throughout this country for fertiliza-
ticn the value 10 the public of suci:
deposits. as these can hardly be eXag-
gerated.
Certainly with respect TO these de
posits n careful policy Of conservation
should be followed. Half of the ph0s-
phate of the rock that is mined in pri-
vate fields in the United States is now
exported. As our farming methods
grow better the demand for the phos-
phate will become greater, and it must
be arranged so that the supply shall
equal the needs of the country. 1t IS
uncertain whether the placer or lode
law applies to The government phos-
phate rock. There is. therefore, neces-
sity foT some definite and well consid-
cred legislation on this subject. and in
aid of such legislation all of the gov
eminent lands known to contain val
liable phosphate rock are now with
drawn from entry.
A law that would provide a leasing
system for the phosphate deposits, to-
gether with a provision for the sep
aratiOn OF the surface and mineral
rights as is already provided for in the
case of coal. would seem to meet the
need of promoting the development of
these deposits and their utilization in
the agricultural lands of the west. z
it is thought desirable to discourage
the expectation of phosphate rock and /
the saving of it for our own lands this !
purpose could be accomplished by con /
ditions in the lease granted by the gov
eminent to its Iessees.
OF course under the constitution the /.
government could not tax and could /
not prohibit the expectation of phos- /
plate, but as proprietor and owner of /
the lands in which the phosphate is
deposited it could impose conditions /
upon the kind of sales, whether for |
eign or domestic. which the lessees /
might make of the phosphate mined.
The tonnage represented by the /
phosphate lands in government owner |
shin IL varv oyroat hI1t tho lesson has
been learned in the case of such lands /
that have passed into private owner
ship in South Carolina, Florida and /
Tennessee that the phosphate deposits /
there are in no sense inexhaustible.
Moreover, it is also well understood |
that in the process of mining phos-
phate as it has been pursued much of
the lower grade of phosphate rock,