TAX. LANDS AND FORESTRY. 51 



a very considerable body of speculators who habitually deal in these 

 state lands. This body of speculators includes many county and state 

 officers, as well as those who deal in this class of land regularly as a 

 business. It is also shown in the report, that the law operates rather 

 to the hindrance of legitimate settlement than to its encouragement 

 because it increases the cost of the land to the actual settler. The lat- 

 ter pays more and the state gets less. As a partial corrective the five 

 dollar minimum price is recommended. 



The Commissioner of the State Land Office in his examination states 

 that in his judgment it is a large estimate to place the amount of tax 

 homestead land purchased for settlement at ten per cent. Mr. Fre- 

 mont Skeels coincides in saying that ten per cent is a high estimate. 

 Mr. Burgess and Mr. Wilson, the examiners sent out by the Commission, 

 estimate the amount at five per cent. 



With a view of throwing light on the matters referred to above, the 

 Commission directed its Executive Agent to carefully examine the 

 schedules of the land sales furnished by the State Land Office in as 

 many counties as possible. In compliance with this direction, examina- 

 tion has been made of the schedules of land sales in 19 counties, to- 

 wit: Ogemaw, Crawford, Aplena; Roscommon, Presque Isle, Montmo- 

 rency, Otsego, Missaukee, Cheboygan, Manistee, Iosco, Oscoda, Alcona, 

 Lake, Oceana, Mason, Kalamazoo, Benzie and Muskegon. In these 

 counties sales appear upon the schedules in the aggregate amount of 

 715,115.80 acres. The purpose kept in view was to eliminate such of 

 the sales as were presumably not made to persons buying for the pur- 

 pose of settling. It was assumed that those who purchased more than 

 a half section, 320 acres, were not settlers and did not make the pur- 

 chase for the purpose of establishing homes. Accordingly all indivi- 

 duals who purchased more than 320 acres were eliminated. The total 

 acreage purchased by these individuals in the counties named was found 

 to be 540,981.82, being about 76 per cent of the total amount sold. 

 A list of the names of these purchasers, alphabetically arranged, with 

 their residence, counties in which their purchases were made, and the 

 number of acres bought by each, is printed below. There are other 

 large purchasers not named in this list, or named for small amounts, 

 who purchased in other counties not examined. 



Deducting the last mentioned amount there remains 174,134.31 

 acres. This land was sold to those who purchased each 320 acres or 

 less. It is probable that many of these purchasers bought as agents 

 for, or in connection with, others whose names appear on the list 

 above mentioned, but information on this head could not be obtained 

 completely enough to be of any value, and no attempt therefore was 

 made to follow up this suggestion. In many instances, particularly those 

 purchasing 200 or more acres, it appears that parcels are so scattered 

 that they could not have been bought with the design of making a 

 farm. A few instances that happened to be noticed were taken note 

 of, but the labor involved in examining all the sales of this class 

 was so great that the time would not admit of its being done. But 

 by examining the lists of purchasers after the same were alphabetically 

 arranged in each county, it was found possible to determine that about 

 one-quarter of the land purchased in quantities of 320 acres or less, 

 was purchased by individuals who were, by the aid of the Michigan 



