The Tucumcari news and Tucumcari times. [volume] (Tucumcari, N.M.) 1907-1921, 1917-02-01
COMMISSIONER ERvIEN'S RE-
PORT FULLY EXPLAINS ITSELF

Santa Fe, n. NJ, Jan. 29-New Mex
ico's income from her state lands dur
ing the past fiscal year was approx
mately three quarters Of a million dol
lars, or within u few thousand dollars
of the total amount realized for state
purposes from taxation. For the past
two fiscal years the state land revenue
was 81 ,504, 4,l09.57, or almost one-half
Of the total income that has been re-
ceived from the lands since 1900 when
the state land office was established.
The total for the seventeen years is
$751; 9,503.0l, Of which 81 l,453, ,407.65
has gone to the credit Of the common
schools of the state.
The state land income figures are
becoming big ones by any standard
of comparison, but these figures are
but preliminary to the larger ones TO
he expected in the years Immediately
ahead of us. according to the publish
ed report of the state land commits
sioner Robert p. Ervien for the two
year period ended November 80. 1916.
The commissioner estimates that the
land income during the present fiscal
year will reach one million dollars and
intimates that it may exceed that
mark. He predicts the time, not far
distant when the income from state
lands and from invested funds derived
from sales of lands will provide the
major part of the money necessary for
the states schools and other institu-
tions and will serve to reduce steadily
from year to year the burden of taxa
tion for state purposes.
OF the IL, $4,000 acres granted to
New Mexico by congress total of
S00,500 acres, or only about 6k per
cent, has been sold or contracted for
sale. OF this l95,743.54 acres is COM
mon school land. or less than 2la per
cent of the total 8,400,0O0 acres spe-
officially granted for the common
schools. This feature of the report
corrects an impression which has gain
ed some currency, due to agitation ia
voring suspension Of any further sales
of state land, that very large areas Of
the common school lands has been or
are being disposed of. The land de.
partment's report shows tina tnot only
is this not the case, but that such COM
mon school lands as have been sold,
for the most part have been forced
sales, because they were included with
or surrounded by lands selected for
the account of the 100000 acre spe-
cirl grant made for payment of the
railroad bonded debt of Santa Fe and
Grant counties, and which was assum-
ed by the state under the enabling act
Congress granted this 100000 acres
to pay off this old bond debt. with
the mandate that the land be select
ed and sold and that the proceeds, il
any, after the debt had been paid, he
credited to the permanent fund of the
common schools. To secure ready sale
for the railroad lands. il was neces-
sary to sell them in large, unbroken
tracts. To do this the state land de-
partment was forced to let the four
school sections in each township, 2. 16,
32 and 36, 90 with the rest, or to leave
these lands surrounded and of no fu-
ture value to the state. The report
shows. also that not only is the great
err part of the sales of common school
the railroad bond fund, but that ma
jor part of all land sales are on that
account.
| The land commissioner. while he ex-
presses opposition to reckless or even
rapid disposition of the state lands by
sale, yet takes direct issue with those
who would absolutely forbid any fu-
ture sales. Pointing out that the state
owns one-sixth of New Mexico's total
area. and that this one-siXth includes
much Of the agricultural and grazing
land most readily susceptible of de.
velopment. he asserts that TO abso-
lutely prohibit sales under any condi-
tiors would he to check development
upon one-sixth Of our area. to stop
further increases Of income for the
schools and institutions and discour-
age development throughout the state.
He holds that a continuation of the
policy laid down by the state land
code of 1912 will insure to the schools
and institutions, not only rapid in
creases Of income, but will create and
safeguard that income for future time.
through proper investment of their
permanent funds in interest bearing
securities He contends that the state
as whole must be benefited by per-
mitting the development of the 1900
900 acre empire to proceed along con-
servative business lines, since mil
lions in taxable property not other
wise available, will thus be added to
the tax rolls and development Of ad-
jacent lands will be promoted.
The policy of 80 sales, Commission
er Ervien believes, is the policy Of
Non-development (which would tend
to shift the burden of development
from the state, which is able TO bear
it, to the shoulders of our citizens,
who may or may not he able TO bear
1t. but to whom such burden would
be heavy. He repeats, in stronger
language, a recommendation made in
his earlier reports that legislation be
enacted which will effectively now and