Polk County news-gazette. (Benton, Tenn.) 190?-191?, 1910-12-08

lands are permitted to Be sold Is SO
an acre; but the secretary Of the IN
terror has the power 70 TX maximum
price and TO sell at that price
-As one-third OF al the coal supply
Is held BY the government, It seems
wise that it should retain such con
troll over the mining and the sale as
the relation OF lessor 10 lessee fur
nishes.
The secretary Of the interior thinks
there are difficulties in the way OF
leasing public coal lands, which OBJ
jections he has set forth In his re-
port, the force Of which freely con-
cede entirely approve his stating
at length in his report OF the Objec.
lions in order that the whole subject
may be presented to congress, but
after a full consideration. for the rea,
sons | have given above. | favor a
leasing system and recommend it"
Water Power Sites.
prior to March 4, 1909, there had
been, on the recommendation Of the
reclamation service, withdrawn from
agricultural entry, because they were
regarded as useful for power sites
which ought not to be disposed of as
agricultural lands, tracts amounting
to about 100000 acres. The with
drawals were hastily made and in
cluded a great deal of land that was
not useful for power sites. They were
intended to include the power sites
on % rivers In states. Since that
time 3,475,442 acres have been re-
stored for settlement Of the original
1900, 900 because they do not con-
tain power sites; and meantime, new
Withdrawals have been made which,
with other reservations based upon
field examination, result in withdraw
ais at present effective of 1,2lS,356
acres on vacant public land and 2O2,-
1877 acres on entered public land, or a
total of 1,420,553 acres. These with
drawals made from time to time cover
all the power sites included in the
first Withdrawals and many more, on
ISL rivers and in II states. The dis
position of these power sites involves
one of the most difficult questions pre-
scented in carrying out practical con-
servation.
THE subject is one that calls for
new legislation. 1t has been thought
that there was danger of combination
to obtain possession Of all the power
sites and to unite them under one
control. Whatever the evidence OF
this, or lack of it, at present we nave
had enough experience to know that
combination would be profitable, and
the control of great number OF pow
er at will within certain sections.
However this may be, it is the
plain duty of the government to see
to it that in the utilization and devel-
opment of all this immense amount
of water power, conditions shall be
imposed that will prevent extortion-
ate charges, which are the usual &C
compartment of monopoly.
1.-THE question of conservation is
not a partisan one, and | sincerely
hope that even in the short time OF
the present session consideration may
be given to those questions which
have now been much discussed, and
that action may be taken upon them.
Alaska.
with reference to the government
of Alaska, / have nothing to add to
the recommendations l made in my
last message on the subject. am
convinced that the migratory charac-
ter of the population. its unequal dis
tribution, and its smallness Of num-
Der, which the new census shows to
be about $4,000, in relation to the
enormous expanse of the territory,
make it altogether impracticable to
give to those people who are In
Alaska today and may not be there
year hence, the power to elect a leg
islature to govern an immense ter
ritory to which they have relation so
little permanent"
Pensions.
THE uniform policy of the govern
ment in the matter of granting pen
sions to those gallant and devoted
men who fought to save the life OF
the nation in the perilous days of the
great civil war, has always been OF
the most liberal character. Those
men are now rapidly passing away.
The best obtainable official statistics
show that they are dying at the rate
of something over three thousand a
and, in view of their adyanc-
Ing years this rate must inevitably in
proportion, rapidly increase. To the
man who risked everything on the
field of battle to save the nation in
the hour of it's direst need we owe
debt which has not been and should
not be computed in a begrudging or
parsimonious spirit"
Bureau of Corporations.
Referring to the report of the COM
missioner of corporations, the presi-
lent says:
'7Tne commissioner finds a condi-
ion in the ownership of the standing
timber of the United States other
han the government timber that calls
or serious attention. The direct in
.azA;o-o +I-,, bu tho nnn1 q