The Hardin tribune-herald. [volume] (Hardin, Mont.) 1925-1973, 1934-06-29
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Montana stockmen, who studied the
proposal, and professed to read into it
a menace, saw in the movement an
avowed purpose to combine for the con-
troll of government lands in the west
that might be used for grazing opera
tions. One editorial comment of that
day said:
"Just nov Colorado seems to be the
abiding place of a lot Of grasping spirits
that would take possession of the entire
country. The scheme proposed by the
Pueblo gentlemen is to allow their COM
bination to lease all the grazing lands
from the government where they may
choose to operate and then rent the
lands to actual settlers or those who
stock raising or other pursuits on such
terms as the lessees may dictate.
Outside the question of conflict"
continued the Miles City editor, "be-
tween the scheme and existing law, eX-
perience has demonstrated the impoS-
sibility of transferring large tracts OF
the public domain to the control of a
few persons. If such a plan were prac-
tical, one company, or a single indivi-
dual, might hold all of Montana or any
other grazing country, and instead of
the combined increase of beef produc-
ton that has been witnessed for years
past, only a nominal yield, sufficient to
satisfy the desires Of the holder, would
result. Justice to the present range
holders and the increasing demands OF
the times will effectually prevent any
such monopoly of the natural advan-
tages of nature as is proposed by the
Pueblo scheme or the contemplated
opening of the Crow reservation"
So widespread had become the con-
Germ exercised in Montana over the po-
tentialities of a proposed lease of the
Crow reservation that the Helena In
dependent said: 1.-The people of Mon
tana should send protests against the
proposed lease of the Grow reservation
to w delegates. They should go from
every postoffice in the territory"
The committee appointed at the a
meeting held in Billings completed the
circulation of a petition protesting the
lease. This was forwarded in Deem
Der, 1884 to United States Senator Hen
ry l.. Dawes, chairman of the commits
sion to treat with the Crows by the
Wells-Fargo and company's express.
The petition was 81 feet long, of closely
written signatures.
The Stcckgrowers' Journal of Miles
City had been outspoken in it's opposi-
ton to leasing vast bodies of public
land, whether Indian reservations or
otherwise, to syndicates or other corpo-
! rations or companies composed of a few
individuals. That newspaper gave its
reasons. First, that such transactions
! could benefit a few at the expense of
many. Second, that each and every
citizen of the United States should be
secured in rights to the public domain
when desired. which these leases effec-
tually annihilated. Third, that such
, contracts worked an injury to the vast
country in which they were consum-
mated, and finally, that they were in
direct opposition to the letter and the
spirit of the American form of govern
ment.
There should be no necessity for a
land league in the United States, but
the general drift has seemed to be in
the direction of a gigantic monopoly of
the soil. reaching even into the Indian
reservations CT the far northwest. In
opposing such schemes the s~tockgrowers
believe it has voiced the sentiment of
the people of the country, and is glad to
see that the protest is being recognized
in the councils of the nation. The In
dian reserves should be occupied by