Semi-weekly herald., 1914-10-12

gait, register Of the state land Bard,
the perplexing problem Of the judici-,
GUS disposition Of the Carey lands in
the Ignacio section. It will be remem-
bered that the rights Of the promot-
ers Of the Carey land irrigation prc-
ject have been forfeited, and If some
provision is not made for the reclaim
ing of the lands will revert back to
the federal government n few
years, and will be lost to the state Of
Colorado forever. President Wingate
of the board of trade presided at the
formal session and Judge Hoggatt
made the first address.
Judge Hoggatt frankly acknowledg-
ed that the desert land act and SINH
lar acts were antiquated measures,
surrounded by red tape, that breeds
perjury on the part of the settler and
work no end of unnecessary hard
ships that are neither of benefit to
the homemaker or the government.
He laid bare the folly of laws that
made the same requirement Of home
makers in arid and humid regions, in
Florida and Alaska, and how the OBJ
servance of the letter, instead of the
spirit of these laws, had wrought
failure.
Relative to the Colorado land laws
he said: "They are the best in the
world, and were modelled after the
Iowa laws that have been SO success
ful the state now has school fund
of S60,00O,000, which is being loan
ed to the farmers of that great COM
monwealth at a low rate of interest
In our own state we have $4,000, 900,
which, according to the laws, should
be available for farm loans, but which
is not allowed to be used for this
purpose, because the state treasurer
has refused to permit it to be. Is
it not time the people of the state
demand their rights ?"
The speaker reviewed the difficult
ties that confronted the land board
when they tried to execute the laws
of the state governing the property
under their control, and how red tape
and lack of support had caused their
efforts to be crowned with failure.
He told of the million and a half
acres lying idle, because of lack of
water for irrigation, and then dwelt
upon the large amount of water in
Colorado's borders that is going to
waste which if not utilized will be the
property of some other state. He
compared water to a fugitive that
becomes domesticated by use and re-
turns to its fugitive state when not
used.
He brought the necessity of imme-
date action more closely home by
referring to the Carey lands adjoin-
ing Ignacio, the disposition of which
was the object of the meeting.
Here" he said, 1--WE have the spec
tacle of 10000 acres of land lying
idle, which could easily support 500
families if steps were taixen to pro.
vide water for it. You have abund-
ance of water. What are you going
tc do about the land? If you will
provide water, will assure you Of
500 settlers who are practical farm
ers, without one cent of expense for
publicity on your part. On our mail
ing list there are $500 farmers who
desire to acquire lands in Colorado
When 1 return to Denver l will fur
nish you copies of this mailing list
as well as fifty copies of an atlas
which contains the Colorado land laws
and the maps of all public lands that
are open for settlement. will wait
action on the part of you people who
are so vitality interested, but while
desire to avoid relinquishing this land
to the government, l will relinquish
tracts of 100 acres to actual settlers
1t is for you TO provide the means Of
irrigation, the land board will do the
rest"
Again and again he emphasized
the necessity of utilizing the waters
of Colorado before other states &C.
quire it, likewise the necessity Of
making it possible for settlers to ac.
quire advantageously the idle public
lands, to take such steps to deter.
mine what lands in the national for
est reserve that can be used for 8g-
ricultural and to exchange school
lands valuable fro grazing lands only
for these lands, and above all he i'm
plored the people to awaken to the
necessity of the efficient execution Of
the Colorado land laws.
Governor Ammons followed Judge
Hoggatt, and seconded his pleas for
the utilization of public lands. He
reviewed the history and conditions
that led up to the adoption of the
present policy and showed his appre-
citation of the discouragements that
fell to the lot of settlers, likewise
the unjust burden Of taxation that
fell to the lot of the owners of culti-
waited lands due to these hundreds OF
l ~ r