The Blackfoot optimist. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1907-1918, 1916-09-07
WILL MEAN CHEAPER FUEL

From Washington comes the word
that more than 15,000,000 acres of coal
lands in the States of Colorado, Mon
tana, Wyoming, Idaho and Washington,
have been made available to public
entry and development by citizens of
the United States since the advent of
the Wilson administration and Franklin
X. Lane came into the Office of secre-
tary Of the interior department. Dur
ing this period exactly 15,377,S73 acres
OF coal lands in these five states, that
had been withdrawn from entry under
preceding administrations, have been
restored to the public domain and open
ed for settlement, while only 26S,O0O
acres have been withdrawn for coal
land classification. The result has been
a reduction of coal land Withdrawals
from about 65,500,000 acres at the be-
ginning of the Wilson regime to less
than 46,000,000 acres on June 80, 1916.
Another result of the coal land elias
sifications in the past three years, is
the increase IN valuation that has fol-
lowed. The appraised value of the coal
lands restored is about ga 500, 900,
while their value at the minimum price
allowed by law at which they would
have been sold without classification
was less than $23,5OO,O0O. The largest
restoration was in Montana where more
than 6.500,OOO acres were restored: in
Colorado nearly 100000 acres; in Wy
oming nearly 100000 acres; in Wash
ington 100000; and in Idaho 100000
acres.
Seventy eight million acres of dry
farming lands have been classified and
opened to entry under the provisions
of the amended Enlarged Homestead
Act" since Secretary Lane took up the
reins of the interior department and
32,OOO,O00 acres of these lands are in
Idaho, Washington, Colorado, Wyoming
and Montana. These are non -irrigable
lands and their official classification and
designation as such made it possible for
enterprising, hustling settlers to acquire
a double homestead of 500 acres each
The determination of what lands are
irrigable and what are not, is a highly
technical problem in the solution of
which the experience and training of
engineers and biologists of the geo
graphical survey are utilized.
The following table shows the extent
OF Enlarged Homestead designa-
tons in the states indicated since
March 1913.
Montana .......-........16,6 SOS, 6S4 acres
Wyoming ..---.--.-..----.-..... 3,061,3SS acres
Idaho NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.. 4,4S6,591 acres
Colorado ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS. 5,S25,436 acres
Washington ~--.....--.-.----. 2,044,SSS acres
Every encouragement is being given
to the development Of phosphate lands
as indicated by the restoration to en-
try Of 1,27S,000 acres of alnd that have
been so classified since March, 1913.
while but $4,000 acres have been with
drawn, a net restoration in three states
of more than a MILAN acres, divided
as follows: Wyoming, 100000 acres
restored and $4,000 acres Withdrawals;
Montana, 100000 acres restored and "a,
600 acres withdrawn; Idaho 1872 900
acres restored and 10000 withdrawn.
The acreage affected in classification
as to water-power value is relatively
small: The total area withdrawn in the
five states mentioned in the past three
years, to insure government control ov-
er valuable waterpower lands, was IT,
800 acres, and restoration to entry was
made of 10000 acres which had pre-
viously been withdrawn but subsequent
ly determined to have no WATERFOWL
err value.
Water for the vast deserts is always
an important question, and one that
especially concerns all public land
states. The reservation of small tracts
III the deserts on which there are water
supplies that absolutely control the use
of the range, is a necessity of pressing
Importance. The interior department
has given unhagging attention to this
work. Withdrawals amounting to about
10000 acres have been made in Colo
RADIO, Wyoming, Montana, Idaho and
Washington. These tracts have been
placed in public water reserves in order
that they may become available to all
users of the range, and incidentally
their acquisition by individuals with
the accompanying exclusion of the pub
lie, prevented. About 1900 acres of
a hof lal