Perfect In quality.
Moderate In price.
more than one-half million acre
of that now under homestead entry
i
try would ever pass to patent
The remaining one-half of cours
would finally revert back to th <
government as "unappropriated. '
That added to the 1,314,322 acres
no one wants suniciently to paj
§ 14.00 for opportunity of trying
to acquire title by five years' resi
dence , would make at least on <
and one-half million acres in Cher
ry county alone to be disposed of
and this is the land in question ,
How shall it be disposed of ?
It cannot be sold , since congress
rightly thinks that as conditions
change due to settlement , that
little by little these lands will be
come subjugated sufficiently for
settlement and that every acre of
the remaining public domain
should be withheld for the actual
settler. It therefore would ap
pear that lease say for 30 years ,
somewhat similar to the leases of
state school lands , subject to home
stead settlement or other neces-
siry appropriation , would be the
most practicable. It cannot be
leased to the highest bidder , per
acre , since the opportunities
would be too great for the owner
of large outfits to acquire all the
range to the destruction of the
"little man. " After having spent
six weeks at Washington last win
ter in the interest of a bill I had
drawn looking to leasing I have
concluded that the land might be
'apportioned , at say one cent per
acre per annum rental , after sub
stantially the following manner :
1st. Referendum : When the
voters , of any precinct ( or pre
cincts ) * desire that said lands come
within this proposed act , that up
on a petition signed by one-fifth
of the voters of said precinct , the
county commissioners be required
to submit the question of leasing
at any regular election , a majority
'vote being necessary to carry.
That upon the returns showing
the same to have carried , the
county canvassing board certify
.the.same to the local land office , in
which district the land is located ,
which in turn shall certify same
to the general land office.
2d. The general land office shall
require that the local office give
30 days notice to all who desire to
lease five sections (3,200 ( acres )
or less. Provided always , that
none but actual homestead entry-
men or owners of real estate or
Jessees of state school lands con
tiguous shall be eligible to apply.
That upon said day applications
shall be opened and the local land
office shall proceed to apportion said
lands between said applicants ,
giving each as nearly the amount
* applied for as conditions will per
mit , always keeping in mind con
tiguity , subject to appeal.
Note. The reason 3,200 acres
is named is because it is believed
that since the land cannot be farm
ed in cereal products and must
necessarily be devoted to cattle ,
that it will require at least six sec
tions ( one homestead and five
leased sections , 3,8 0 acres ) to
maintain a family. It requires
about 40 acres to graze an animal ,
and the six sections comprise 96
forties , therefore , would support
about that number of cattle in
summer , and a part at least of it
must in some manner be made to
grow forage of some kind , or the
problem of winter food is at once
a serious question to the future
settler. Those already in the
country have acquired the hay
valleys for winter forage and need
-.the leased lands only for summer
, -grazing.
3d. Those requiring 3,200 acres
< or less having been provided , 30
days notice should be given to
riliose who desire 6,400 acres or
less , qualifications t'eingsarae , an
land being apportioned in sum
manner as in former instance
This woiiLl < 'imi > h > those having
In tic lrji T iifMl- to provide fn
their requirements in grazin
lands.
s
4th. After the two former clas
ses had been provided for , the re
maining lands could be offered ani
apportioned in same manner t <
the owners of larger herds. I
should be understood that anyom
being apportioned lands under an :
one offering could not in any wa.
participate at any future offering
In this in-inner the small mar
would be given preference , botl
as to location and quality of the
lands. In this manner also ever. }
acre would come under lease
without the acrimony and fear foi
the small man , lease to highes1
bidder would certainly engender.
One and one-half million acres
at one per cent per annum pei
acre , would .yield an annual reve
nue of § 15,000. Of this § 15,000 ,
it occurs to me that an equitable
distribution would be about as fol
lows :
One half for General Gov
ernment for reclama
tion fund § T,500.0C
Of the remains on one
half of § 7500 one-fourth
to State Fund 1,875.00
One fourth to the County
General Fund 1,875.00
And one half ( or one
fourth of the entire
revenue ) to the support
of schools within the
said leased territory ,
or where no schools are
maintained , to the coun
try school fund 3,750.00
$7,500.00
If the vacant lands in a single
county can at this very low rental
be made to yield $15,000 per year ,
why is it not logical they should
do so ? If that small area can be
made to turn that amount into the
treasuries annually , what possi
bilities cannot be looked forward
to in revenues , when the entire'
public domain shall have been
leased at the same figure.
Possibly Cherry county contains
one-fourth of the remaining va
cant lands of Nebraska. If so , the
sntire leased would aggregate
$60,000 annually , of which one-
half should remain in state , to help
maintain state , county and school
governments.
Perhaps it will be said that
Cherry county is an exceptionally
large county. True it is , as com
pared with other counties in strict
ly agricultural states ; but there is
scarcely a county as small in Wyo-
iiing. In Montana a majority of
ihc counties contain larger areas ,
ind just so to the Pacific.
A liberal allowance is provided
for schools within the leased areas ,
; or the reason that more home
steads have been deserted by reas-
) n of no schools within their reach
ihan for all other reasons com
bined. Intimidation so much ex-
Dloited , will not compare with it.
Should this condition be brought
ibout the ranchman will no long-
jr fear to employ a married man
vith children of school age , for
! ear least the employee vote a
school tax on him.
The government , having in rec-
mt years begun the enforcement
) f the Van Wych anti-fencing law ,
jattlemen of all degrees of import-
ince have been moving fences un-
, il the cost and annoyance has
1 riven many out of business.
kYhere they have not quit , many
lave been forced to adopt new
nethods , for instance : A man
nvning about 150 head of Aber-
leen-Angus cattle has. sold them
it auction and replaced them with
jrade short horns and herefords ,
> f course at a sacrifice , for no oth-
> r reason than that with his fences
lown there is no possible way for
lim to continue that strain , a mix-
ip due to open range being in
evitable. He would prefer a given
.mount of land under purchase or
ease which he could fence without
> eing an outlaw , protect against
> rairie fires and feel assured that he
iould maintain a given number of
sattle upon. Although "a little
aan" in the cattle sense , he de-
) lores present chaotic conditions
, nd longs for some practical so-
lution. . }
According to the report ofth
gpno.ral land o'tfic * * for the yea
ending June 30. 191)0 ) , there st.i
n-jmiinn 817,527,157 acres of go\
ernment domain , or public lane
of which it is "safe to say at leas
500,000,000 acres lies within th
so called arid or serai-arid districl
That land at the small price c
one cent per acre per year woul
yield an annual earning of § 5,000.
000. Divided by two the ganera
government would receive § 2,500 ,
000 , the estimated cost of thegrea
Belle Fourche , South Dakota , ir
rigation undertaking. If one year'
rental of these jands will pay thi
entire cost of that irrigation pro
ject , in the interval before thes
lands could be taken t by home
steaders ( if ever ) the entire gov
ernment outlay for irrigatioi
could be paid for by these rentals
and should be. Add to this thi
§ 2,500,000 which would be addec
annually for state , county an (
schools throughout that vast am
and it seems to me indefensable tc
longer continue as at present.
From the standpoint of acitizei
with no ranch interest whatever ,
but with an intimate knowledge oJ
conditions , believe the public lands
should be leased , first in the inter
est of good order and stable con
ditions ; and second , as a source ol
revenue in which every citizen of
this great country has the right to
share. I believe the time has ar
rived when a man should have no
more right to take grass from the
surface of the lands belonging tc
all the people , than he has to take
hay from his neighbor's stack ,
without pay. Aside from the
revenue feature , the land should
be under private control , in order
that necessary fiVe guards be
ploughed and prepared annually ,
bhus preventing their improvish-
cnent by fire. Also , as at present ,
those public lands are nothing less
ihan a menace to the ranch prop-
jrty which they surround by reas
on of the danger of communicating
ire. Also , some form of private
jontrol is imperative , since so
soon as a man is allowed to fence
ind occupy to the exclusion of
) thers , just so soon will he begin
; o preserve , perpetuate and in-
; rease the grasses , in quantities
md varieties and not permit the
ands to be grazed to the very
jrass roots and the grasses then
iramped out in endeavor to get
mre off the land than the other
ellow , and as David Harum says ,
'get it first. ' " ' Therefore , in the
nterest of the lands themselves ,
rith a view to occupancy at some
uture time by the homesteader ,
hey should be disposed of in the
neantime as not to invite a free
ace between cattle , horses , sheep
nd conflagration. At present a
> remium is placed upon devtsat-
og , and the time has arrived when
he intelligence of congress should
ie invoked in an enactment look-
ag to cash returns and the en-
lancement in value at the same
irae.
In an article of this character
aany matters of detail must nec-
ssarily be omitted , but I believe
measure should be enacted em-
odying the principal features
ereiri , always keeping in mind
bat the lease should be subject to
omestead entry and appropria-
lon. by the government for irriga-
ion or other useful purpose.
Did you know that our
Coffees and Teas
are the FINEST in town ?
'Nuff Said.
T. C. Hornby.
H. S. Lo'ckwood and wife spent
'hanksgiving ' with Mr. and Mrs.
covel on the reservation.
i.
.
- "r * <
If you will eat more
you can do more work , enabling you to earn
more money , so that you can buy more
do more work and earn still more money.
NATIONAL BISCUIT COMPANY
X rf * n +
REPUBLICAN REFORMERS.
Defeated by Political Machine ant :
Money of Trusts.
There : ire some lively Republics
tariff reformers iu Massachusetts
among whom Henry A. Blackwell , win
is known thereabouts as the "old mai
eloquent , " in his speeches advocating
the nomination of Eugene X. Foss t <
defeat his stand pat opponent tok
some truths that sound as if blown b ;
c. Democratic bugle. lie explained t :
the U'.i > -jVVican voters Hint
"Our coal tax is felt in every house
hold. Our lumber tax means highei
rents and poorer accommodations , li
is harder to live than ever before , al
though our imports and exports arc
greater , and we arc told that the coun
try is prosperous and that we shoulfi
let well enough alone. But this pros
perity is more apparent than real , because * -
cause the proceeds of our industries arc
not fairly distributed. A few thousand
stockholders in overprotected corpora
tions get the lion's share. Let me as ! <
you gentlemen who are present a sim
ple question. How many of you . " -1
richer than you were last year ? How
many of you have been able to lay by
anything for your old age ? HOT- many
of you see before you any prospect of
improved condition ? Not one hi fifty.
Why ? Because we are all subject to
great monopolies which by trade agree
ments have eliminated domestic com
petition , and by a 45 per cent tariff
these monopolies are enable ; ! to charge
consumers an advance of 50 per cent
upon almost everything that we con
sume.
"Our coal duty adds a dollar a ton to
our fuel bill. Our lumber tax raises
our rents. Our tariff on textile fabrics
increases the cost of our clothing. Our
tax on sugar doubles its cost of impor
tation.
' In order to keep up these excessive
rates of duty our government spends
lavishly , so that its outlay r now
amount to ? ! ,000,000,000 annualj- ! . The
Drapers r.nd Whitman have patents
and proto.-tion on their products ap
proximating and exceeding ICO per
cent. The iron and steel trust gets a
profit of from 100 to l. 0 per cent.
Steel rails , which ! Mr. Hcliwab says he
can make without loss at $1U a ton.
were sold recently to the Panama com
mission for $29.30 f. o. b. at Baltimore
( equivalent to $40.50 at the isthmus ) ,
while a recent sale was made to a
foreign customer for $24 a ton deliver
ed at Tampico. No wonder the cost of
living has advanced 421 , ! per cent ! It
will go higher. All depends on the
tariff. Raise it 20 per cent and prices
will go up 20 per cent. Lower it 20
per cent and prices will fall 20 per cent.
The exactions made by the trusts are
all paid by ti.o labor of the country.
In the interest ; of the consumer we
call for tariff revision. In the inter
ests of manufacturer and operator aud
consumer alike we need free Importa
tions of raw materials. Many of our
raw materials come free already. Let
us add to them coal , iron ore , lumber ,
hides and wood pulp. Let us reduce
our tariff oa Canadian products 20 per
cent and thereby enable our neighbors
to buy more of our manufactured
goods. "
But the Republican machine in Mas
sachusetts managed by Senator Lodge ,
the .personal and political friend of
President Roosevelt , defeated Mr. Foss.
the tariff reformer , and nominated a
partner of the trust aud corporation
combine. The money of the trusts and
corporations' was more powerful with
the mn.1or.ity of the Republican voters
than reform , and those that were not
influenced by money were swayed by
their partisan training to vote the trust
fostering tariff shackles more firmly on
their limbs. All of which shows there
is no vestige of hope for tariff revision
within the Republican party , and those
who earnestly desire reform must join
with the Democrats to obtain it.
As long as the Republican machine
managers can obtain campaign funds
from the protected trusts- and monopo
lists they can control the caucuses and
conventions of their party and very
naturally will not smite the hand that
feeds them and keeps them in power.
W. H. Eichie of Kilgore came
lown yesterday and mingled with
riencls while attending to busi-
less.
Monthly Meteorological Summary ,
NOTE : "T" indicates trace of preclpitition ; ' " helow zero ; "PC" partly cloudy.
Joiix J. McLEAX , Observer Weather Bureau.
Cherry C . Teachers' Ass'si.
The program was carried out as
published. About GO teachers were
present and muca educational en
thusiasm evidenced. Ifc is not pos
sible to give a review of the excel
lent papers presented , but the loy
alty of Cherry county teachers ic
high educational standards marked
the whole tone of the meeting.
Much pleasure was given by the ex
ercises from the Valentine school
children and the songs and recita
tions presented by the high school
students of Cody. Mr. Oliver , a
graduate of Sidney University , Aus
tralia , told many of the every day
experiences of the bushman of that
interesting country. The teachers
gleaned many facts that would lend
zest to their geography recitations-
J. J. McLean told us of his ob
servations during a six years' resi
dence in Alaska and added to the
interest by showing a book made by
his wife illustrating in oil tlie flow
ers rnd fruits of Alaska.
Nearly all the principals in the
county were present.
The roll call Saturday morning
brought out a quotation from each
teacher present and proved inter
esting . A lively discussion was de
veloped by the topic , "A School Ex
hibit for the County Fair. " An at
tempt will be made to have every
school girl aud boy in the county
represented at that fair by some of
bis own work. Then the best ex
hibits will be collected and sent to
the state fair. Won't you see that
your child prepares something ?
All teachers in the city Saturday
evening had supper together and
then separated until another meet
ing , expressing their satisfaction in
the educational value of the county
association. Cordially yours ,
LULU KORTZ , Co. Supt.
Frank Kothleutner ancr J. A. W.
Johnson were in town today from
Kilgoro.
Presentation
Military , plain boxwood - : . *
wood , ebony or stag.-
Plarn 01 mounted backs.
First ( [ iiality selected-
I bristles.
Artistic and attracti ve
4
shapes.
Prices § 1.50 to § 5.00 !
per pair.
Presentation -
Odd cups and saucers , g
Fancy plates.
Cream and sugar sets.
Syrup pitchers.
Salad bowls , etc.
You will find some
exceptionally desirable
selections at quick go
ng prces.
VALENTINE. NEB
IOO aj
LET US FiGURE ON YOUR
L Uii \ / B E R
MLS
