1905 FORESTRY AND IRRIGATION 129 



acres were pending. Many transfers the general interest of the public it be- 



of land patented under this law are comes obvious that this law should be 



made immediately upon completion of repealed. 



title, often on the same day, to indi- SALE OF TIMBER ON THE PUBLIC LANDS. 



viduals and companies. In this way Necessity for the enactment of a law 



a monopoly of the timber supplies of authorizing the sale of timber on non- 



the public-land States is being created reserve public land is becoming more 



by systematic collusion. Under the evident, and the recommendations 



existing rules and practices of the made in the preceding report of this 



courts it is difficult to prove this col- Commission are reiterated. For the 



lusion, except in cases of open fraud, best use of the public lands it is abso- 



and it is therefore practically impossi- lutely essential to hold public timber 



ble to secure conviction. Further- for sale when needed and in quantities 



more, under bona fide compliance with necessitated by the continuous growth 



the actual provisions of the law the of prevailing industries. Provision 



effect is almost equally bad. The law should also be made for a limited free- 



itself is seriously defective. use right by miners and actual settlers. 



It has been urged in behalf of this COMMUTATION CLAUSE of THE HOME- 

 act that it enables poor men to enjoy 

 the bounty of the Government by ob- 

 taining tracts of timber which they can In the preceding report a statement 

 afterwards sell with advantage. A was made that our investigations re- 

 careful study seems to show, on the specting the operations of the commu- 

 contrary, that the original entrymen tation clause of the homestead law 

 rarely realize more than ordinary were still, in progress. We were not 

 wages for the time spent in making the at that time prepared to recommend its 

 entry and completing the transfer. repeal. Investigations carried on dur- 

 The corporations which ultimately se- ing the past year have convinced us 

 cure title usually absorb by far the that prompt action should be taken in 

 greater part of the profit. this direction and that, in the interest 



In addition to the direct loss to the of settlement, the commutation clause 

 Government from the sale of the lands should be greatly modified, 

 far below their real value, timber lands A careful examination of the dis- 

 which should have been preserved for tricts where the commutation clause 

 the use of the people are withdrawn is put to the most use shows that there 

 from such use, and the development has been a rapid increase of the use of 

 of the country is retarded until the this expedient for passing public lands 

 corporations which own the timber see into the hands of corporations or large 

 fit to cut it. The bona fide settler who landowners. The object of the home- 

 comes into a country, the timber re- stead law was primarily to give to each 

 sources of which have thus been ab- citizen, the head of a family, an 

 sorbed, may be very seriously ham- amount of land up to 160 acres, agri- 

 pered by his inability to secure timber cultural in character, so that homes 

 except from a foreign corporation, would be created in the wilderness. 

 All of the timber land has often passed The commutation clause, added at a 

 beyond his reach, and the development later date, was undoubtedly intended 

 of his farm may be retarded and his to assist the honest settler, but like 

 expenses greatly increased because he many other well-intended acts its orig- 

 can no longer obtain the necessary inal intent has been gradually per- 

 supplied of fuel, rails, posts, and him- verted until now it is apparent that a 

 ber. great part of all commuted homesteads 



As in the case of other laws, in- remain uninhabited. In other words, 



stances of the beneficial operation of under the commutation clause the 



this act may be cited, but when it is number of patents furnishes no index 



considered from the point of view of to the number of new homes. 



