The Daily Missoulian. [volume] (Missoula, Mont.) 1904-1961, 1910-02-07
BOTH SIDES Await
TRIBUNALS
ACTION
DECISIONS INVOLVING DESERT
LANDS AND RIGHT or GRAZ.
ING SHEEP COMING.

Washington, Feb. 6.--Attorncys on
both sides of the controversy are pre-
pairing for the final determination by
the supreme court of the United States
FOR the long mooted question whether
rights 10 desert land entries may be
transferred before reclamation has been
made. A case involving that point has
been set for argument before the court
on February u. At the same time the
court Is To hear arguments as 10
whether IL is a crime against the
United States to Craze sheep In for
est reservation without permission OF
the government.
The question of the right to transfer
Il desert land entry arises In GRIM
inal prosecution. William II. Ham
mors Of southern California was in
dicted In the federal court for the
southern district of California on n
charge Of committing perjury in an
affidavit made in the interest of
Buelah Rose Becker. to the effect
that improvements of a certain value
had been made on desert land In I'm
perlal county California.
In defense. 1t was set up that the
land in question had been entered bs
Granville NJ. Boyer on August II. 1907.
Al tile land office In Los Angeles and
that the attempted transfer of his
rights In the land Ia Bontlh Rose
l,eekler WAS void because the right
10 make such transfer WAS not pos
sessed by Boyer. II WIS argued that
as Bower did not possess such right.
the affidavit of Hammers was imnla-
terinl
The district court Sustained the de-
fense and the government appealed 10
rho supreme court. The question of
the ability Of an entrymnn tn trans
fer q desert land entry has been con-
sidered by the court before ON the
previous occasion. the conrt held that,
under the desert land act of 1877 II
entryman had no right which he could
sell or transfer
Governments Side.
The governments contention ID the
present ease is that under the desert
land net Of 1891. such n right is given
the entryman. II Is said that thous-
ands of persons who have obtained
their land by transfer under the dos
ert land act of 1891, will be affected
by the decision This Is regarded as
true particularly of the Imperial val
ley In California Whether Il ls a
crime to Craze sheep without p9mis-
sion in forest reserve has arisen in
the indictments Of Pierre Grimade.
j. p. carajous and Antonio linda.
sheepmen of California. who were
charged with having grazed their
sheep without the permission of the
government in the Sierra forest re-
serve In California.
These indictments We're all brought
in the federal court for the southern
district Of California, By act Of con
eress approved June 1, 1897, the Sec
lretary Of the interior and, later the
secretary of agriculture, was directed
To make provision for the protection
of the forest reserves, II was provided
that any violation Of the provisions SO
made should be punishable according
To the revised statutes, In 1906, Sec
retary Wilson promulgated regnla-
ton. requiring all persons to obtain
permit before grazing animals in a
forest reserve. II was by reason OF
alleged violations Of this regulation
the indictments were brought,
Attorneys for the sheenmen con-
tended, however, that the act Of 1897
was void SO far as il attached pen
alties TO any violation Of regulations
thereafter to be made because ii
sought tn provide penalty for
crime not completely defined II was
also argued that the act was an at
tempt to confer legislative authority
on an executive officer. The court sls-
tained the defense and the government
appealed to the supreme court.