Walker Lake bulletin. (Hawthorne, Nev.) 1883-1926, 1916-03-04
Senator Key Pittman
Explains His Position
EDITOR BULLETIN.

| EDITOR BULLETIN.
Permit me through the columns Of
your paper to call the attention Of
the people of Nevada TO u few facts
that are contained IN the Congress
ional Record embracing the debate
upon my seven million acre land
grant bill to the State of Nevada,
which will completely answer the
attack made upon the bill by one of
the newspapers of the State, which
is evidently endeavoring to defeat
the bill in the House of Representa-
tives.
Senator Poindexter, who offered
an amendment reducing the grant
t. three million acres and thereafter
a second amendment reducing the
grant to four million acres, found no
fault with the bill otherwise. and did
not suggest any amendments that
would further safeguard the land
grant from acquisition by few peo-
pie.
Senator La Toilette voted against
Senator Poindexter amendments,
and then voted for the bill.
Senator Robinson, who is quoted
in the paper referred to as question
ing me with regard to the bill. voted
against the Poindexter amendments
and the LaE'ollette amendments, and
voted for the bill.
Senator LaFollette's amendment
to place minimum price of three
dollars an acre upon the land, which
was voted on Immediately before the
final passage of the bill, was defeated
by ID vote of AZ to 3d. After the de-
feat of this amendment the bill was
carried on IL vivi voce vote with only
one voting in the negative.
No corporation, association or in
dividua could acquire two million
acres or any amount greater than
GAO acres except through fraud. The
bill limits the acquisition Of the land
United States. Ii an attempt is
made TO acquire more than one tract
through agents or dummies, such ac-
QUESTIONS are void and will be set
aside. The same provision applies
to coal interests, stone ard timber
interests. to homestead and desert
land entries. The same character of
fraud might BE- perpetrated with re-
gard to these entires, and no doubt
in Il few cases have been, but the
punishment of such frauds have been
SO great in recent years that il is
Improbable to attempt such frauds.
The last great fraud of this kind at
tempted was in the coal fields of
Alaska, and all of such entries were
set aside aud many of the perpetra-
tors of the fraud were criminally
prosecuted
My bill has other additional safe
guards. 1t provides that each tract
must be appraised before it can be
sold, and that then it shall not be
sold for less than the appraised
value, 1t also provides that after
the appraisal the particular tract
shall be put up to public auction aud
notice given of the sale. Under the
terms of the bill only citizens of the
United States could purchase, aud
only Il citizen who has not at Il prior
time awaited himself of the benefits
of the Act, This procedure gives
ample opportunity to investigate the
good faith of every application to
purchase aud to protect against any
fraud, These are restrictions and pre-
cautions placed in the bill by Con
gress. The legislature of the State
of Nevada may throw any additional
precautions upon the transaction
that it sees fit.
| ! would not consider the newspa-
per article referred to worthy of
answer If it were not for fear that
members of the House of Represent
atires receiving such article might
be Influenced by it, believing that it
expressed the sentiment of the peo-
Pile of our State 1t is sufficiently
difficult to obtain legislation for