The Wallace miner. [volume] (Wallace, Idaho) 1907-current, 1912-03-07
DISPOSAL OF PUBLIC LANDS

ed and dsnteresed who have been camorng for several
years for revision in the governments policy Of disposng
of the public mineral bearing lands In so the United
States has grown be the worlds premier mining nation IN
fact being in class far ahead by ITSELF far concerns its
mineral production This gratifying result has been made
possible only by the liberal policy OF encouraging mineral de-
veopmen adopted by the government policy based on the
following basic princple FrstThe right to prospect for
mineral the public domain shall be free to every citizen;
second proof Of the mineral nature OF speched tracts
and the completion Of certain amount OF expenditure or
abor in developing the ground the claimant may purchase
title in fee simple for nominal and fixed sum per acre. and
he may then do with the ground he Wishes he either
mine the property himself small scale he interest
capital in developing the property on larger SCALE
This system which has resulted so benehcially to the
nation is suggested to change in favor Of system
whereby the government will always retain title to grounds
will lease the property either under fixed rental
or royalty ton both; and will naturally maintain some
degree Of greater less control to the methods of mining
the output per year and the prices to be charged.
It is pointed out by the few pubcists favorng this eas
ing scheme that many if the majority Of mines operating
today conducted under easehod from private
The question is therefore, they claim, merely to whe
Their the mining company shall lease directly from the
|ment from the private owners of the ground.
These two arguments for leasing from the government
are good far they co. but they do not far enough and
only small part of the great problem of how to best
the development and occupation of the unoccuped
public lands especially mineral lands. The question is by
no What should the government get out OF public
lands? The people and not the acquired and
the public lands and the problem Of public lands disposal
porary position landlord and caretaker and place the
lands in the hands of the people, the rghtfu The
residual unoccuped public lands and appurtenances in this
country belong not to the to the government but to
the people themselves If the people derive pecunary gain
from any legitimate and lawful system of public lands dspos
a then that is argument for and not against such sys
tenn If any profits to be derived from mining on the
public domain the people should receive fair chance to
such profits and distribute them in the of and
industry, rather than that such profits should sink into the
public treasury at Washington. financial losses to be
encountered in developing the supposed mineral of
any region then would be criminal to impose such burdens
upon the taxpayers through governmental activity when pr
capital eager and willing undertake the task The
problem of public lands disposal therefore, not of pro
it to the government but of returning the public lands into
the hands of the people, the real owners; of giving them
and ALL rich and poor, corporate and individual equal
chance; and finally that system Of disposal is best which will
best promote the development and occupancy of undeve
oped lands and the building and thriving of industry and
commerce thereon.
If the giving away of the lands gratis would best promote
these ends then that would be the desired system these
could best be attained by having the effect
all the necessary development work and Improvements
tracts of public lands whether mineral agricultural and
then SELL lease rent these tracts then such system of gov
ornamental development work would be the ideal. Better
STILL private capital could be induced to invest the deyev
opmen of mines where development work whatever has
been done to demonstrate the mineral nature of the ground
and would be content to do it's development work and
accept easehod from the government then that might be
considered by ideal way Of dsposng Of the public
ands-that is it would be ideal were it possible.
But common sense will show the bluntes dscernment
that where the government is unwilling unable prepare
the farm all ready for the homeseader ultimate farmer
the mine all ready for the mining company the best sys
tenn to give the propector homeseader the free right to
do this work. fact encourage him him suitable or even
liberal reward And n the Of mineral lands particular
must remember that there probably $4,000 more
mineral claims locations being prospected developed
in the United States that only very small number Of these
prove successful mnes that the good mine the
worthless claim frequently look alike in the early develop
mont
possibly make these mineral discoveries or prosecute the
necessary development work When remember too that
the prospector other real necessity toward in
ducng private capital to invest in the actual exploitation of
the mines riches and that would be impossible for the gov
to thus urge the investment of capital any paricu
lar individual ventures then will it be recognized that the free
and unrammeed prospector is real necessity toward the
discovery Of mineral rches that the free and unranme