The Tucumcari news and Tucumcari times. [volume] (Tucumcari, N.M.) 1907-1921, 1915-02-11
640,ACRE BILL REPORT.
Ed FAVORABLE BY
SENATE
Letters From Fall and Fer.
susson Express Fear of
Passage Being De.
layed

~ 'NSeei tiohh congressman FeT-
gusson to Judge Cutlip this week
states that the Senate committee
reported the $40 acre bill favorable
and asked that rules he suspended
and bill passed at once. This failed
to secure the unanimous vote and
was therefore tabled and must wait
FOR its turn on the regular calendar
Unless the national measures now
taking up all the time and energies
OF congress are disposed of this bill
is destined to be delayed until next
session.
The bill, as passed by tn e House
is the identical bill introduced by
Hon. II. b. Furgusson in the spring
of 1914, remodeled in the committee
room and re-submitted by Mr.. Fer
gusson, tH. X. 1899, having the
unanimous endorsement Of the Pub
lie Lands Committee.
The bill contains II sections, and
is a matter of detail, and in view of
its length, we will not publish in full
at this time, as in all probability the
Senate will make some few changes.
However, we give below a synopsis
or conspectus of the bill which will
give you a clear conception of its
contents.
The bill authorizes any person
qualified to make entry under the
homestead laws of the United States
to make a stockraising homestead
entry for not exceeding $40 acres of
land that shall heretofore have
been designated by the Secretary of
the Interior as Stock raising lands"
Section 2 of the bill authorizes the
Secretary to designate or classify
lands subject to entry under the bill,
which limits the entry to the surface
and provides that the land must be
chiefly valuable for grazing and
raising forage crops, not containing
merchantaSle timber and not sus-
ceptible Of irrigation, and that $40
acres are reasonably required for
the support of a family.
Section 3 prescribes that the lands
entered must be in reasonably com
pact form and that title can be Sc
cured by compliance with the terms
of the homestead laws, except that
instead Of cultivation the entryman
shall be required to make permanent
improvements upon the land before
final proof is submitted, tending to
increase the value of the same for
stock raising purposes, of the value
of not less than Sl.25 per acre, and
that at least one-half of such i'm
provements shall be placed upon the
land within three years after the
date of entry.
Section 4 provides that an entry.
man who has an existing entry of
800 acres or less shall have the right
to file upon continuous lands desig-
mated for entry under the provisions
of this act TO the extent of an area
equaling GAO acres, including his
original entry.
Section 5 provides that one who
has submitted final proof or received
patent for lands of the character
subject to entry under the terms of
this bill, who owns and resides upon
the land so acquired, may make ad-
ditional entry for contiguous lands
which, together with the area there
tofore acquired, shall not exceed
$40 acres. on proof of the expendi-
ture required by this act on account
of permanent improvements upon
the additional entry.
Section 6 provides that where
there are not contiguous lands in
area sufficient to complete an entry !
of $40 acres the entryman or paten-
tee shall have the right to enter,
within a radius of 10 miles from his
entry, lands in reasonably compact |
form designated for entry under the
provisions of this bill that shall, to-
gether with the first entry. not ex-
ceed $40 acres. All contiguous lands
must be entered first.
Section 7 authorizes person who !
has made an entry or submitted !
proof to relinquish or reconvey to