The Parker post., 1912-05-11
NEW KIND OF PUBLIC LAND
WITHDRAWAL.


Withdrawal of public lands for use
rather than from use is the latest
piece of practical conservation. The
president, by executive order, under
the withdrawal law has withdrawn
many tracts of unappropriated pub
lie lands from entry which contain
springs or small streams. Control of
watering places by strong private in
terests and the resultant momopoliZa-
ton of grazing on the public domain
are believed to be prejudicial to pub
lie interest.
The three Withdrawals already ap-
proved by the president represent an
aggregate area of $4,000 acres and
include tracts of land known from
the records of the United States Geo
logical Survey and the general land
office to contain 24S springs and
streams.
1t is we'll known that in the Rocky
Mountain and Pacific coast states
there are many large areas of excel
lent grazing land in which the number
Of places where plenty of water
can be obtained is relatively small
Sometimes the shortest distance be-
ween water holes is TO- 20, or even
so miles. Some of the watering place
are springs, some of them are ponds
of alkali water, some of them small
streams flowing from adjacent hills
or mountains and becoming lost on
the desert The lands in large
part support growth of grass or
small brush which is excellent fodder
for horses, cattle, Or sheep and as
practically all these areas are govern
ment land they are ''free range" for
whoever may care to Craze his stock
thereon. However, stock can not live
without water, and unless watering
places are available to a stock owner
it is impossible for him to utilize the
range.
AS result of these conditions DIT
has come to be common practice in
some parts of the west for a big cat
tie or sheep outfit to obtain posses
sion of the few scattered water holes
in a certain area and by this mean3
to monOpolize the grazing privileges
as effectively as if it actually own
ed every acre of the area. In con-
sequence the small stock owner has
been placed at a serious disadvantage
and in many places has been forced
out of business.
This practical development of the
conservation policy i'm order to pre-
vent monopolization of public graz
ing lands will not only insure equal
opportunity, under present conditions
but it prepares the way for future leg
islation Should congress at any fu-
ture time decide to pass grazing law
the retention of these watering places
in public ownership will make the en-
actment of satisfactory law possible
whereas if the water should pass into
private hands the framing of a law
providing for the control of grazing
on the public domain would be USE
less, because the law itself would be
imperative.
The present action will really be
beneficial to both large and small
stock growers, although it will doubt
less not be pleasing to those who d.
sire to exclude rivals from the range
by acquiring the water holes them
selves. The competition and struggle
for existence have in many places,
however grown so keen that even the
largest outfits are tired of the strife,
and to some of them at least, the re-
mOval of one of the causes of con-
tention by the reservation of the
springs and streams for the common
use of all will be decided relief To
the small StOckman who has been
fighting for existence and who has
seen his grazing area dimish year by
year as he has been barred from this
spring or that stream, it will be well
come news that the government has
taken steps that will at least make
the competition fairer