Elmore County Republican. [volume] (Mountain Home, Idaho) 1910-1915, 1911-07-08
PUBLIC LAND
CONVENTION.
Denver, Colorado, Auditorium, Sep
tember %, 20, 30, 1911.

wealth, announce to the people @
those Western States and Temitorle
| having one miclliOn or more acres Q
public lands-reseyed and unreserE
| ed-within their borders, "a PubIl
Lands Convention to be held in TIN
City of Denver, Colorado. Septenbe
28, 29 and 80 OF this year for bh
purpose of discussing all questions
| and taking such action as their wis
dom may direct, relative to the prof.
sr administration of the Public DO
main, the natural resources pertain
ing thereto, and the practical econ
servation thereof under State auth
GRITTY and of protesting against Con
gross enac ting laws providing for The
leasing of the natural resources OIL
the West.
In conjunction with the Legislative
Committee constituted for the pur
pose of formulating the necessary
regulations for the Convention, the
following features have been proVld
cd.
First. The following States and
Territories are embraced Within the
cali, viz: Arizona, Arkansas, Cali
fornta, Colorado, Idaho, Minnesota,
Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New
Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Or
egon, South Dakota, Utah, Washing
ton Wyoming and Alaska.
Second ALI votes by roll-call TO
be by States and Territories, and on
the basis of five votes at large and
one, vote for each 100000 acres, or
majority fraction thereaboVe, of Pub
Lie Lands Within the respective Stat
es, insofar as each unit lis represent
ed by an accredited delegate.
Third fnasmuch as the province
of the Convention lis for Western
people to determine upon questions
pertaining to the interests of West
eln States as affected by Federal
Systems, lit lis made requisite for qua
ification that delegates shall have
BEEN resident taxpayers and voters
Within their respective states for the
preceding three years,
Fourth. The selection of dele
gates lis provided as follows:
The Governor, Senators, and Cong
reesmen, and members of the State
Legislature OF each State and Terri
tory, and Delegate of each Territory
and of Alaska, are hereby commits
stoned as delegates.
Each Governor may appoint thirty
delegates.
The Mayor Of each city may
point one delegate for each 1000 of
population, but mot to exceed a total
of fifty.
Each Chamber of Commerce. Board
of Trade, Real Estate Exchange Or
other commercial bodies; each Board
of County commissioners; each Assoc
citation of Stock Growers, of Lllm-
bermen, of Forestry, of Irrigation;
each horticultural or Agricultural Or
ganizaton, may appoint 10 delegates
Each Governor is requested to ap-
point a State Executive Committee of
tive, to cooperate with the Colorado
Executive Committee,-J. Arthur
Eddy, Chairman, Denver, Colorado.
1t should be known that there is
now seriously proposed, and may be
erystalized into Law at the next regu-
lar session of Congress. a new and
revolutionary National policy pertain
ing to the public lands, and their at
tendant natural resources, that de-
mands the serious and earnest con
sfderation OF every citizen of the Re
public. Not only does this new sys-
tenn affect our economic and business
interests, burt it seriously threatens
the principle of home rule in tie
conduct of our local affairs.
The real issue lis, plainly and dis
tinctly, whether the Public Domain
other than the little remaining farm
ing lands-shall be held in perpetuity
by the National Government free from
taxation by the States, to be admin
istered through leasehold for revenue
for the Federal treasury, and under
Bureaus at the National Capitol
AS taxes upon property i'm the Wes-
tern States for thirty years equal it's
value, perpetual ownership by the
National Government free from tax
alton, would effect deprivation of
tax revenue to the States equal to
the value of those lands every
thirty years. In other words, lit would
coSN those states the value of the
Public Domain every thirty years and
yet the States never own the same.
A rental or lease based upon the
output OF natural resources lis a tax
upon production, and tax upon pro-