The Grangeville globe. [volume] (Grangeville, Idaho) 1907-1922, 1911-08-17

up at auction sale, they will be
obligated to turn back to the
state approximately 10000 acres
Of cut-over lands now sold under
20-year contract. These cut
over lands can be placed upon
the market at once and sold to
home builders 1 1 years in advance
of the time that they could be dis
posed of if this contract was not
made with the company. feel
that this is an important consider
alton in this deal. The company
also agrees to turn back any
other state lands as fast as cut
over.
Sale Makes No Difference.
lit is true that we have a mum.
Der of protests against this sale
largely coming from settlers in
the immediate vicinity of the
lands. Their theory is based up
on the fear that their holdings
win be bottled up in case this
sale is contaminated. In my
Judgment the settlers up there
are bottled up whether the sale
is made or not. The Potlatch
Lumber company will be under
no more obligations to buy their
holdings if the sale is not made
than if it is, for, with the timber
to be removed from 1900 acres
within the next II years, it is
probable that if the Potlatch
Lumber company is forced to cut
all of this timber within the con-
tract period, they will simply go
into these remote sections and
skin out their own logs, tear up
their spurs, and leave the settlers
at the mercy of forest fires.
"The Potlatch Lumber COM
pany is now operating great
plants, with large payrolls, in
order to get the logs off of the
state lands before the 20 year pc
Rod expires, and it is not likely
that they would care to take on
additional burdens. 1t seems to
me that, with the well-known pol.
icy of lumber companies, which
has in view the blocking up of
their holdings, that the Potlatch
Lumber company is more likely
to buy out the settlers at fair
price with this sale eonsummated
than if they were forced to oper-
ate.
Somewhat Inconsistent.
"The most potent objection
that has been urged against this
sale is directly against the policy
of permitting corporation to
become possessed of large hold
ings, and for this reason it is
urged that the state should not
sell to the Potlatch Lumber com
pany; yet through all the protest
; that have been filed with the
board runs the suggestion thai
the state should so manipulate its
holdings that the settler woulC
be permitted to sell to the Pot
/ latch Lumber company. In Other
words, that it is all right for the
settlers to sell to the company
, Dnt not right for the state. Tha'
) is rot good logic | feel that the
J state land board should look upo
mis- matter as business propo
sit.on, and / believe the member
If the board have been governed
by what they considered to b,
{ e best interests of the publ,
institutions of the state. Thes'
} land ere what we call gran
lands; that is, granted by con
grcss to the state of Idaho fol
4 the benefit of certain public in
: stitutions, including the agricul
! tural college, the school of scienc
: the normal schools and the chart
: table institutions. 1t was the spir
: il of the congressional grant tina
these lands should be sold for tn
3 benefit of these public institu
5 tions. 1t was not intended tina
: the land should be held up TO
forestry purposes, but that i
should be sold to create an EN-
: dowment fund, the earnings o
1 which might be used for the sup
t port of these institutions. | fee
} that in selling these lands, w
2 are carrying out the spirit of tn
act of congress and of the consti
: tuition of the state. We are re
t lieving the taxpayers of a con
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