The gazette-times. [volume] (Heppner, Or.) 1912-1925, 1915-05-06
NEW HOMESTEAD LAW
Department of the Interior, United
States Land Office, La Grande, Ore
-, NIo,- Too 1o1E

Department of the Interior, United
States Land Office, La Grande, Ore
gon, May 1st, 1915.
Dear Sir
For the purpose of explaining the
provisions of the recent homestead
acts of March 3rd. 1915, and March
4th, 1915, you are advised as fol-
lows:
The Act of Congress approved
March 3rd, 1915, commonly known
throughout Eastern Oregon as the
Sinnott Bill, authorizes additional
homestead entries under the enlarg-
ed homestead act, where final proof
has been made Or patent has been
issued on the original entry.
This act confers the right of entry
| only upon one who still owns and
occupies the land" first entered; it is
not required that the claimant be
residing on the original entry. The
occupancy thereof may be by an agent
or tenant. When application is made
for an additional entry, it may be
presented on the regular forms nov
used under the enlarged homestead
act, for additional entries, but a state
ment showing continued ownership
and occupancy must be inserted.
The land in the original entry, as well
as the land applied fer in the addi-
tional entry, must be designated I'M
der the enlarged homestead act, and
the land in the additional must be
contiguous to the original entry.
Persons making an additional en-
try will be allowed credit for resi-
dence on the original entry. Where
the final proof has been accepted as
sufficient on the original entry, under
the five year law or the three year
law. no further residence will be re-
CURED; but if communication proof
was made on the original entry,
claimant must show such further res
idence, either before or after the date
of the additional entry, as will make
up the aggregate amount of residence
required under the act of June 9Th,
1912, commonly known as the three
year law.
The land in the additional entry
must be cultivated as required by
the three-year law. One-sixteenth of
the area during the second year and
one-eighth during the third year and
until the submission of final proof,
which must be made within five
years from the date of the additiinal
entry.
The act of March 4th, 1915, con-
fers a preference right of entry I'M
der the enlarged homestead laws.
where the applicant files a petition
for Designation" giving his name,
and post office address. To obtain
this preference right, an application
to make entry must be filed in this
office, under the enlarged homestead
act, with the required fees and com
missions, accompanied by the "Peti-
ton for Designation" executed in du-
plicate and corroborated by at least
two witnesses setting forth the char
acter of the land and describing same
by legal subdivisions. If the appli-
cation is for an additional entry, the
land in both the original and addi-
tional must be properly described in
the petition for Designation" and
the semi-arid character of the land
must be shown. If there are any pos
sibilities of irrigation, or if there are
any streams of any kind upon the
land, a particular description thereof
must be given.
When the homestead application
has been received at this Office, &C
companied by a proper Petition for
Designation" the application will be
suspended. pending action by the
United States Geological Survey on
applicants petition. If the land
should be designated, the homestead
application, If otherwise regular, will
be allowed, but if the government de-
MES the petition for Designation