THE IKRIGATIO-N AGE. 



317 



Decisions of the Department of the In- 

 terior and of the Public Land Office 



Fiscal Year Beginning July 1, 1909, to Present Date 



HOMESTEAD ENTRY CULTIVATION RAISING OF 

 HOGS JUNE 8, 1909. 



The use of land for the raising of hogs is an agricultural 

 use and where the land is better adapted to that use than for 

 tillage of the soil, meets the requirements of the homestead 

 law with respect to cultivation. 



RECLAMATION IMPROVEMENTS CONDEMNATION 

 SEC. 7, ACT OP JUNE 17, 1908. June 30, 1909. 



Where the owners of the improvements mentioned in the 

 preceding section shall fail to agree with the representative 

 of the Government as to the amount to be paid therefor, the 

 same shall be acquired by condemnation proceedings under 

 judicial process as provided by Section 7 of the Reclamation 

 Act. 



ADDITIONAL HOMESTEAD ENTRIES WITHIN RECLAM- 

 ATION PROJECTS. 



In a letter of May 3, 1909, the Director of the Reclama- 

 tion Service put the following questions, all of which were 

 decided in the negative. 



1 Whether a person who has made entry upon the pub- 

 lic domain for less than 160 acres may make an additional 

 homestead entry within a reclamation project. 



2. Whether a person who has entered and proven up on 

 a farm unit within a project may make an additional entry 

 of public lands outside of the project, and 



3. Whether a person who makes entry for a unit of less 

 than 160 acres within a project may, after proving up upon 

 same, make an additional entry within the same project. 



4. Whether under the conditions of proposition 3 the 

 entryman could make an additional entry on another project. 



HOMESTEAD ENTRY QUALIFICATIONS OWNERSHIP 

 OF LAND. GALLANT V. COLS, AUGUST 17, 1909. 



One who holds land under an unperfected desert-land 

 entry is not the proprietor thereof within the meaning of the 

 statute holding disqualified to make homestead entry one who 

 is the proprietor of more than 160 acres of land. 



A transfer of land by one owning more than 160 acres, 

 for the purpose of qualifying himself to make a homestead 

 entry, is not a violation of law, provided the transfer is final 

 and made in good faith. 



DESERT LAND ENTRY EXPENDITURES STOCK IN MI- 

 GRATING- COMPANIES.. WASHINGTON, D. C., AUG. 21, 

 1909. 



That portion of Section 18 of the regulations governing 

 entries and proofs under the desert-land laws, approved 

 November 30, 1908 (37 L. D., 312), which relates to expendi- 

 tures for stock or interest in irrigating companies, is here- 

 by amended to read as follows: 



Expenditures for stock or interest in an irrigating com- 

 pany through which water is to be secured for irrigating the 

 land and which owns the right to the use of sufficient water 

 to satisfy all valid claims therefor acquired by ownership of 

 its stock or otherwise, will be accepted as satisfactory expen- 

 ditures when claimant shall file and make a part of the annual 

 proof. 



(a) A receipt or other writing, signed by the proper 

 officer or agent of the company, showing payment in cash 

 for stock of interest in the company, and the affidavit of the 

 claimant showing that the payment was made in cash and 

 when made. 



(b) An affidavit of the claimant showing the nature of 

 the contract or agreement he had with the company entitling 

 him to the use of water, and the quantity of water to which 

 he is entitled under such contract or agreement, or proper 

 showing that the ownership of the stock or interest entitles 

 him to the use of water and the quantity of water to which 

 he is entitled by virtue of such ownership. 



(c) A statement, under oath, of the proper officer of the 

 company, showing the right of the company to the use of 

 water; whether such right is based upon a decree, or decrees 

 of court, or upon appropriations or filings made in conformity 

 to state or territorial laws; the source or sources of its 

 water supply: the quantity of water owned or appropriated 

 by it; the total quantity of water which it is under contract 

 of agreement to deliver to its patrons and stock holders, and 

 the date when, no unforeseen obstacle preventing, it will be 

 able to deliver water on the land of the entry, which land 

 must be described in the sworn statement. 



RESERVOIR SITE EXTENSION OF TIME FOR COMPLE- 

 TION OF RESERVOIR. PULTON V. BUCHHOLZ, AUG- 

 UST 27, 1909. 



The act of January 13. 1897, requires that a reservoir 

 constructed under its provisions shall be completed within 



two years from the date of the filing of the declaratory state- 

 ment, and the land department is without authority to extend 

 that period so as to defeat an intervening adverse claim. 



COAL LANDS SURFACE RIGHTS OF ENTRYMEN. ACT 



OP MARCH 3, 1909. 



A circular under date of September 7, 1909, explains the 

 purpose of the Act which is to protect persons who, in good 

 faith, entered under nonmineral laws, public lands which are 

 after such entry classified as being valuable for coal, by 

 providing a means whereby such persons may retain the lands 

 entered, subject to the right of the Government to the coal 

 therein. 



DESERT LAND ENTRY WITHIN RECLAMATION PROJECT 

 WATER RIGHT PATENT. SEPTEMBER 13, 1909. 



Final certificate and patent will not issue upon a desert 

 land entry within a reclamation project until all payments 

 for a water right under such project have been made and 

 the water right permanently attaches to the land. 



HOMESTEAD ENTRY QUALIFICATIONS OF ENTRYMAN 

 OWNERSHIP OP LAND. REISER V. STAUFPACHER, 

 SEPTEMBER 75, 1909. 



One holding the naked legal title to a tract of land to 

 which he has no beneficial interest but holds as mere dry 

 trustee for another who paid the consideration therefor is 

 not the proprietor thereof within the meaning of section 2289 

 of the Revised Statutes, declaring disqualified to make home- 

 stead entry one who is the proprietor of more than 160 acres 

 of land in any State or Territory. 



RIGHT OP WAY RESERVOIR SITE JURISDICTION OF 

 LAND DEPARTMENT. SEPTEMBER 20, 1909. ALLEN 

 ET AL vs. DENVER POWER AND IRRIGATION CO. 



Upon approval of an application for right of way for a 

 reservoir site under the act of March 3, 1891, the jurisdiction 

 of the Interior Department is lost, and any subsequent action 

 looking to cancellation or annulment of the right of way for 

 any reason whatever must be by direct action for that pur- 

 pose in the courts. 



The land department is without authority to approve an 

 application for right of way under said act which conflicts to 

 a material extent with a prior approved application under 

 which vested rights have been acquired. 



The five-year period fixed by the act of March 3, 1891, 

 within which a reservoir under its provisions is required to be 

 constructed to prevent forfeiture of the right of way can not 

 be extended by means of an amended application for the 

 reservoir site. 



Upon failure to construct within the five-year period, the 

 land department may not, in the face of evidence showing 

 that another is seeking to acquire the land for a legal purpose, 

 waive the requirement of the statute with respect to for- 

 feiture, but should recommend the institution of proceedings 

 to have the right declared forfeited. 



DESERT LAND ENTRY EXTENSION OF TIME FOR 

 PROOF ANNUAL EXPENDITURE SEC. 3, ACT OF 

 MARCH 28, 1908. 



Section 3 of the Act of March 28, 1908, authorizing an 

 extension of time for the submission of final proof upon 

 desert land entries, where by reason of unavoidable delay in 

 the construction of the irrigating works, the entryman is 

 unable to make proof of reclamation and cultivation within 

 the time fixed by statute, furnishes no authority for an exten- 

 sion of time to enable the entryman to submit proof of annual 

 expenditure. Sept. 23, 1909. 



HOMESTEADS WITHIN RECLAMATION PROJECTS RE- 

 CLAMATION PROOF CONSTRUCTION CHARGES. 

 SEPTEMBER 17, 1909. 



1. Notice of acceptance to issue on proof of residence, 

 cultivation, improvement, and reclamation. 



Homesteaders who have resided on, and improved their 

 lands for the time required by the homestead laws and have 

 reclaimed at least one-half of the irrigable area of their farm 

 units as required by the reclamation act, and have submitted 

 proof which has been found satisfactory thereunder by this 

 office, will be excused from further residence on their lands 

 and notice will be issued to them reciting that the conditions 

 of residence, cultivation, improvement, and reclamation have 

 been complied with, and that final certificate and patent will 

 issue upon payment of the charges imposed by the public 

 notice issued in pursuance of section 4 of the reclamation act. 

 In such cases, upon payment of the charges by the entryman, 

 or in his behalf, final certificate, and patent, will issue in due 

 course. 



2. Homesteads where residence and improvement have 

 been completed but reclamation not affected. 



Homesteaders who have resided on, cultivated, and im- 

 proved their lands for the time required by the homestead 

 laws and have submitted proof which has been found satis- 

 factory thereunder by this office, but who are unable to fur- 

 nish proof of reclamation because water has not been fur- 

 nished to the lands or farm units not established will be 

 excused from further residence on their lands and will be 

 given a notice reciting that further residence is not required, 

 but that final certificate and patent will not issue until proof 

 of reclamation of one-half of the irrigable area of the entry 

 and payment of all charges imposed by the public notice 

 issued in pursuance to section 4 of the reclamation act. 



3 Pull payment at option of entryman when residence. 



