44 CLASSIFICATION OP THE PUBLIC LANDS. 



the President and his cabinet is shown by the report of the Senate 

 Committee on Public Lands, from which the following is quoted : 



Tbe power conferred upon the President by the proposed substitute Is a 

 power that he has possessed and exercised almost from the inception of our 

 public-land system and is a power that he stUl possesses and exercises. 



The power of the President to reserve public lands from sale and entry 

 rests upon various statutes, upon numerous decisions of the courts, and upon 

 long-established and long-recognized usage. 



■* * :¥ >IC * * 4= 



It is only lately that this power has been doubted and questioned, and the 

 object of the proposed substitute is to make it definite and clear beyond all 

 dispute that the President possesses this power of withdrawal. 



Immediately after the passage of the act of June 25, 1910, Execu- 

 tive orders were issued by the President ratifying, confirming, and 

 continuing in full force and effect all outstanding orders of with- 

 drawal. Since that date all new withdrawals have been made in 

 accordance with the provisions of this act and have been approved 

 by the President. 



The act of June 25, 1910, contains several provisions modifying 

 preexisting practice. In the first place, it provides that lands which 

 are embraced in lavful homestead or desert-land entries made prior 

 to the date of withdrawal or on which valid settlement has been made 

 and maintained shall be excepted from the force and effect of the 

 Avithdrawal order so long as the entryman or settler continues to 

 comply with the law. Thus the effect of an order of withdrawal 

 on a preexisting homestead or desert-land entry depends on the 

 initial and continued good faith of the entryman, rather than on 

 the value of his land for purposes other than that under which 

 his entry was made. The second important provision is that the 

 rights of any person who at the date of a withdrawal order is a 

 bona fide occupant or claimant of oil or gas bearing lands and who 

 at that date is in diligent prosecution of work leading to the dis- 

 covery of oil or gas shall not be affected or impaired by the order 

 so long as diligent prosecution of the work is continued. It is to 

 be noted that this provision makes the critical date that of the with- 

 drawal order, even though that order was made before the passage 

 of the withdrawal act. The department has held that what con- 

 stitutes diligent prosecution of work leading to the discovery of oil 

 or gas must be decided upon the facts in each case. It is safe to 

 assume, however, that many of the subterfuges that have been com- 

 monly practiced for the purpose of holding claims will not be con- 

 sidered effective against the withdrawal orders. 



Section 2 of the act provided that withdrawn lands should " be open 

 to exploration, discovery, occupation, and purchase under the mining 

 laws of the United States so far as the same apply to minerals other 



