Estancia news-herald. [volume] (Estancia, Torrance County, N.M.) 1912-19??, 1919-06-26
SQUEEZING OUT
THE LITTLE ONE

I'LL Lnlll UNI
That an Outrageous policy
of squeezing out small land
holders by aiding large ranch
ers in absorbing their holding.
is pursued by the state land of
flee in New Mexico is alleged
by U. S. Marshal A. H. Huds
peth in an open letter to the
state land commissioner, Nels
Field, copies being transmitted
to New Mexico's representa-.
tives in Congress and to sen.
ate and house public land com.
mittee chairmen. The letter
is as follows:
Open letter to Mr.. N. A.
Field, commissioner of public
lands of New Mexico:
"At the request of Lieuten.
ant Governor Pankey, who
owns some 100000 acres of
land in this section, and over
the protest of Gerhart Broth
ers, who own a small ranch in
township II north of range II
east, you have advertised for
sale lands embraced in lease
6056, issued by your pre-
decessor, Robert P. Ervien, to
Gerhart, and some 4,800 acres
of other state land, all to be
sold in one lot or parcel.
In the petition for separate
sale of the state land included
in lease 6056, filed with you
by Gerhart Brothers last Feb
ruary, they show that by rea-
son of their small capital they
will be unable to bid for the
4,800 acres and the lands en-
braced in lease 6056 if they
are sold all in one parcel,
hence they beg you to sell the
lands embraced in their lease
separately and apart from the
other lands which Mr.. Pankey
has applied to purchase. They
also call your attention to the
fact that their patented land
on which they have a valuable
we'll of water and other i'm
provements representing a
large part of their savings, is
so situated with reference to
the state land that it will be of
very little value except to the
purchaser of the state land to
whom the Gerharts will no
doubt have to sell at his own
price. The fact that Gerhart
Brothers have been forced out
of the stock business tenn
porarily and have sub-let their
lease does not justify a state
official to aid a capitalist to
absorb" their small holdings.
At the end of last years
drouth there were scores of
other lessees of state lands
practically out of business
with nothing but their lands,
lease holdings and credit with
which to begin business again.
Since the protest and petit
ton of Gerhart Brothers has
been in your hands since Feb
ruary, l am forced to the con-
clusion that you have deliber-
ately adopted the policy OF
shutting out the man of small
means from bidding at the
sale of state lands by selling
large bodies embracing small
tracts adjoining the lands of
small ranchers in one parcel,
practically saying to them,
"You have no business being
poor"
A similar policy in the re-
public of Mexico, that is, the
lending of countenance and aid
by officials to large ranchers
in absorbing the small hold
ings of the little fellows con-
tributed in no small measure
to the overthrow of the Diaz
regime, and such a bolshevik-
breeding policy should not
be pursued in this country.
| am sending copies of this
letter, together with copies OF
the petition of Gerhart Broth
ers to our senators and repre-
sentatives in congress and to
the chairmen of the public
lands committee of the senate
and house in the hope that fu-
ture grants of land to the state
may be safeguarded in such a
way that your outrageous pol
icy can not be perpetuated.
Respectfully,
A. H. HUDSPETH.
Santa Fe, N. M, June IL
1919."-Santa Fe New Mexi'
can, June 18, 1919.
Mr.. Pankey denies that he is
trying to shut out the small.
fellows, but says nothing
specifically about certain
land sale. 1t should be 3
very easy matter to establish
the truth of this matter. Eth
er the land in question is be
ing offered for sale in a single
+roc+ mr. If is not. Which i,