The daily Gate City and constitution-Democrat. (Keokuk, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1917-06-28
UNUSED AMERICAN LAND
Vast Acreage in West Held by Non
resident Aliens.

Lutheran Surveys: A brief despatch
the other day stated that Won Beth
mann-Hollweg, the imperial chancel-
lor Of Germany, had sold a consider
able tract Of agricultural land In
Texas. =,
In these days when the entire world
is confronted with food famine. and
when special efforts are being made
to increase the crop supply this year,
something should be done with the
vast areas of unused lands in the
United States.
Secretary Franklin X. Lane, head
of the department of the interior,
has called attention to this very I'M
portant question and suggested that
congress pass legislation that would
make it obligatory upon the owners
of the producing lands In the
west to open them up and plant them
with something that will sustain lire.
There is not so much land now suo-
iect to homestead entry as there was
some twenty years ago, but there Is
more than there was six or seven
years ago owing to the large with,
drawals which were made along about
1905 to 1910, by the government.
The government and the home
steader and the holder Of mineral and
timber claims engaged in all sorts OF
contests, and for a few years home
stealing was not popular. It dropped
behind, too, with the advent of the
automobile, and there are labor facts
and statistics to show that the young
men between nineteen and twenty
five, instead of taking up with
farming proposition. with the govern,
ment, either by taking a homestead
or a piece of irrigated land, engaged
to work in an automobile factory, or
on the seat Of an automobile as
chauffeur.
For many years large areas OF our
lands have been purchased by for
eign sydicates and in some instances
by wealthy men who saw a profitable
investment in American lands.
"Rueff's Century Book of Facts
as late as 1910, contained some inter
esting statistics on the subject OF
"Alien Holders Of Our Lands" and
now that we are at war with some OF
those land holders and have become
the allies Of others, it may as mat
ter Of national policy be pertinent &c
inquire, if these large uncultivatet
AREAS will be put to use.
The Holland Land company of New
| MEXICO nOlQS f,OoU,oOOO dSles, IH'
German American syndicate of Lon
don, 100000 Sir Edward Reid syn
dictate, London. 100000 in Florida
the English syndicate in Mississippi
100000 acres; the. Marquis o
Tweedale, England, 100000 acres
the Missouri Land company Of Edin
burgh, 265 900 acres; Phillips Mar
shall & Co., London, 100000; Brit
ish Land syndicate, Wisconsin, no
900 acres; Dundee Land company
Scotland, 247,0O0 acres; Lord Dun
more, England 100000; Benjamin
Neugas OF Liverpool. 100000, AM
many others, including Albert Pee
late NJ P. Of Worcestershire, Sir
L. Kay of Yorkshire, Alexader Gram
London; NJ. Ellerhauser, Halifax.
In some instances. as in the stat
of Colorado. an Englishman, Lor
Dunraven, improved a large trac
Some are used for shooting and hun
ing purposes, but the bulk of tn
land is unoccupied and unimprovet
There is probability that it wi
come under the attention of the ioir
| international conference which ha
charge of conducting the war.