Mohave County miner and our mineral wealth., 1920-07-17

| leSdl. IHe dCtOTHey ScneTdi ID uOV working on the law and will report tt the land board July 20. I hope fol an interpretation of the law whicl will mean that just the moment { lease is cancelled the land will rever J to the original status, and that if an other application is on file it must be considered together with the applica. tion for release if any. Pending ar opinion from the attorney general, the commissioner has been instructed not to issue any more renewals until the expiration of the original lease thus permitting all interested parties to have their day in court and prove their equities, and if not satisfied with the decision of the land con- missioner to take an appeal to the land board, thus laying the founda- tion of an appeal to their superior courts.
 Another section of the state land law provides for a reappraisal of all state lands. For the last year num- Der of appraisers of the land depart ment have been in the field, but un- fortunately no reports, as far as know, have been made to the land de partment, which would enable the commissioner to charge more than three cents an acre per year for state land, good bad or indifferent. I am informed by the state auditor that thousands and thousands of dollars have been paid out for this purpose, but no increases or decreases in ap. praisement have been made that know of.
 Should Pay What Land Is Worth
 "If land is worth one cent a year per acre that is all you men should pay for it. If it is worth 10 cents you should pay that amount. I will add, however, that statistics show that Arizona is leasing lands cheaper than any of the other public land states. "You must keep in mind the point that these lands were given us by the federal government for the mainten- ances of our schools and other state institutions. It is the duty of the state to see that they are used for the best interest of the state at large and not for any one group of people, mindful however that you represent the third largest industry in the state and are entitled to consideration for that reason.
 "State lands should be rented at just exactly what it is worth and no more, and I am hopeful that the ap- praisers will be able to report that we have some land at least worth more than three cents per acre per year.
 "A word as to the selection of lands. The major portion of them have been selected by the users there of with the concurrence of the land commissioner. All of you big COW men know this and fail to see any of the little COW men here.
 q. q would prefer to see some of this land sold for development. Take Co., conino county for instance, with its vast areas of forest reserves untax- ed. How can county grow under those conditions. Is Arizona to re- main as it is today or take it's proper place with other states as real com monwealth. The thing that interests me most in making a state is men and women and not cattle and sheep. No state can ever come into it's own when it's lands are locked up in per petuity for any one particular busi- ness.
 Remedy in Own Hands
 "The remedy is in your hands and in this connection I do not think it necessary to heed the advice of an other speaker suggesting political ac- tivity. The cattle growers associa- tion during the last two years, and particularly in legislative activity has brought down on it considerable con demnation because of the methods us- ed. Your committees and your agents have acted in a militant spirit; they have come to me with the proposition that if did so and so I would square myself with the cattlemen. This line of action does not sit we'll on the one directed nor on the people of the state.
 "You are certainly riding to fall if you insist upon tying up the herlt- age of the people of this state for your own purposes. I am no prophet, but I can sense the resentment of the people when it appears that you are interfering with the orderly process of evolution among other interests.
 "There has been much speculating in state lands. We have our land at torneys and land agents and road agents who living close to the capitol have superior knowledge regarding state lands and are able to lease them for three cents for purely speculative purposes.
 "The land board has placed itself on record as opposed to this practice and the commissioner has been direct cd to raisa the rent t0 .sl1ch fiplre