Elmore County Republican. [volume] (Mountain Home, Idaho) 1910-1915, 1913-08-09
GOVERNMENT TO
SURVEY LANDS
SENATOR BRADY WORKING FOR
SETTLEMENT OF LAND
MATTERS


Washington, c. Aug. 5,-Senatol
James H. Brady is undertaking tt
bring about the adjustment of all
Idaho land matters now pending
before the Interior Department. in
cluding the completion OF public lant
surveys, the final settlement of state
selections and exchanges Of state
lands, the disposition Of individual
entries that long have been held uI
for one cause or another; in fact
everything that has come over the
past administration, and can be ad
justed on the basis Of the records.
Almost daily, Senator Brady has a
conference with officials Of the Inter.
Tor Department, and already he has
many cases up for final decision. He
started in with a request, made Of
Secretary Lane, that the Department
hasten the survey Of unsurveyed lands
In Idaho. which are now withheld
from entry because Of the lack Of
government surveys. He has been en-
cOuraged to believe that his work will
proceed as rapidly as funds will allow
but he realizes that progress will be
slow unless continuing appropriations
can be secured for this work in Idaho
and in the next appropriation bill, he
will ask for such an appropriation for
use exclusively in Idaho.
That there is justice in his demand
for Fastening surveys in Idaho is
shown by. the fact that there are to-
day over 21,OOO,OOO acres Of unsurvey
lands in the state, larger area than
is found in most Of the other west
ern states, because Idaho has been
peculiarly Disseminated against in
the past. When Senator Brady called
this fact to the attention of Secretary
Lane, the Secretary quickly realized
and admitted the equity Of the Idaho
claim for recognition, and will CO.
operate with the Senator in an effort
to secure from Congress continuing
appropriation sufficient to keep this
work going at a rapid pace.
While much progress has been made
with the exchange of Idaho school
lands in forest reserves for compact
bodies of forest reserve lands, as
first proposed by Governor Hawley,
this work has not been completed,
and congressional action will be nec-
essary before the government can
exchange surveyed school sections,
belonging to the state, for other lands
owned by the government.
Senator Brady will propose a bill
authorizing such exchanges, and will
have the hearty cooperation Of other
Western senators in pressing it, for
other states are now anxious to fol-
low Idaho's example. and wish to ex-
change with the government their
scattered school lands in reserves,
both surveyed and unsurveyed. II
this legislation can be passed at the
next session, Idaho Will be able to|
adjust fully it's school land transac-
tions with the government, SO far as
forest reserves are concerned.
Idaho, like every other western
state, has many hundreds of acres
embraced in selections which have
not been finally approved by the
Interior Department; some of these
old selections date back ten years
or more, and all past efforts to inducel
the Interior Department to take upI
and settle these questions have proved
unavailing. Senator Brady, however,
finds the present department. off
cials disposed to pass upon all pend
ing state selections, approving those
that are found to come within thel
law, and rejecting those that do not,
SO that the states may know where
they stand, and may file new lists
in lieu of those that may be rejected.
In most instances there Is sufficient
information on file in the Department.
at Washington to enable the adjust
ment OF state selections, and SO far
as that is true of Idaho selections,
Senator Brady is insisting upon
early settlement. :, He believes ltl
will be had.
There are pending today before
the Interior Department 259 individ-
ual cases, distributed among the var
ious land districts as follows: Black
foot, 39, Occur d'Alene, 1O9, Boise,
SO; Lewiston, So; HALEY, 21; and on
petition, /. Where entrymen have
requested his corporations Senator
Brady has made special appeals for
early decisions, and he also has ask
ed the Department to take UP, as
espeditiously as possible, all the pend.
Continued on Page Two.