Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1914-06-14

Millions Of acres Of public land in the
west, containing untold fortunes in coal,
oil, natural gas and
Western Lands phosphates. which have
n1 been locked up for
fear that they might fall into the hands
of monopoly, may soon be open for de-
velopment. Plans have been formulated
by the administration for the passage of
a series Of laws which. 1t is claimed, will
protect the people in their rights and at
the same time permit the wise use OF
these natural resources.
When 1t was decided to include
conservation in the administrations leg
islative program, President Wilson wrote
of Indiana, democratic leader OF the Sem
ate, and to Representative Scott Ferris
of Oklahoma, chairman Of the public
lands committee of the House of Repre-
sentatives. urging speedy action upon the
important measures which nave peen
selected by President Wilson and secre-
tary Lane Of the Interior Department as
the Development legislation program OF
the administration.
These measures will be considered in
the course of the next few weeks. The
most strenuous battles in the history OF
the present democratic Congress are ex-
pected when these bills come up for pas
sage, as they embody radical departure
from the former policy of the government
in the disposition of the public domain.
and one which is disliked by many men,
bers from the west.
mineral lands instead of their purchase
outright, and although the leasing plan
Is being successfully carried out In some
countries, there is violent opposition to 1t
in the west, which section Of the coun.-
try has many people who are sat'sheo
with a continuation of the old methods.
Those who believe In the conservation
of the natural resources of the country
declare that the public domain under the
sale method has been looted. Its re-
sources wasted and that vast quantities
of valuable minerals have fallen into the
hands of large, INSCRIPTIONS corpora
tons, with the result that extortionate
prices have been charged the consumer.
They further say that the leasing sys-
tenn will protect the people Of the west.
something which the west does not at
the present time generally believe.
When Woodrow Wilson was elected
President he was importuned by the west
to select a western man as Secretary OF
the Interior on the ground that the east
did not understand the problems Of the
west. Franklin X. Lane OF California
was chosen as meeting with this demand.
Secretary Lane was not more tnan year
in office before he announced that ne
was in favor of a leasing system Of de-
velopment for the mineral lands OF the
west. Representative Scott Ferris, the
author of the bill for the leasing OF the
coal, oil, gas and phosphate lands does
not believe that the United States Will
"The existing laws" says MI. Ferris,
have permitted the coal fields near
markets and railroad facilities to pass
into private ownership and into the
hands of trusts. which are practlclng ex-
tortion in several western states to a de- de-
gree almost inconceivable. Much or the
land that was acquired by grant or by
ACQUISITION under laws other than coal
land laws, under conditions where little
or nothing was paid for 1t. is either being
held for speculation or is now being OPP
Grated under methods Of extortion, ana
unreasonable prices are being pressed
down upon the consumers
"Other vast areas OF valuable coal
lands, exclusive of railroad grants and
the like, crept away under pre-empton,
homestead, desert land, timber and stone
laws, and even scrip locations. Ihese
areas in turn speedily passed into the
hands of the few as result an% frs or dummy
None but the selfish was favored IN
this policy-all suffered but the favored
few. The policy Of the past will do
naught but serve the selnsh enOS OF
present large corporate holders of coal
lands. encourage and benefit the selfish
holders, while 1t will hamper and impede
progress and development along all lines.
1.-The leasing system and the Intelligent
utilization Of the coal yet remaining
under government ownership seems now
imperative to every thoughtful person.
It is believed that such policy Will
afford competition to the coal monopoly
and better prices to consumers, divorce
Transportation from production. serve as
a club to insure better prices in areas
where the mines are not opened or leased
at all, prevent waste and insure better
treatment of labor, enable coal COM
panies to lease an area large enough
to Justify competition with present monop-
oily, and prevent favoritism, inasmuch
as the leases viii be awarded through
advertisement and competitive bonus
bids The leasing bill, in short, will do
with government property what has been
done by all the foremost countries of the
world; will do what we have done sue
cessfully with the Indian lands. what
individuals would do and are doing
through the length and breadth Of our
country.
Our present laws ARE in many re-
spects crude, irreconcilable, inefficient.
without uniformity. confusing to the
brain of the miner. impossible of inter-
probation by the layman, a jargon of in
consistencies. retarding progress and de-
velopmenti Most Of our so-called mineral