Democratic Sentinel, Volume 16, Number 4, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 12 February 1892 — Our Public Lands. [ARTICLE]

Our Public Lands.

According to the report of the Land Office, there remained 579,664,683 acres of public lands undisposed of at the end of the last fiscal year, of which 294,027,773 acres, or more than one-half, had not been surveyed. This is land enough to make seventeen States as large as Illinois. This statement is exclusive of the Cherokee strip, lands in the Indian Territory west of the ninety-sixth meridian, and the whole of Alaska, which contains 369,000,000 acres. It is also exclusive of public lands in Texas, which belong to the State, and not to the United States. During the last

fiscal year 2,142,539 acres were disposed of by sale for cash, 5,040,391 acres by homestead entries, and 969,000 acres by timber culture entries, making a total of 8,151,939 acres. This is the smallest total for six years. In 1886, 18,309,942 acres were disposed of, and every year since then has shown a decrease. Still, last year’s total was very respectable, being about equal to the area of the two States of New Jersey and Connecticut, or a little less than onefourth the area of Illinois. In the following table we bring together the areas unsold and the disposals in 1891 (fiscal year) in the States and Territories in which the largest areas yet remain: Disposed Undisposed of in 1801, of, acres. acres. Montana. 71,372,769 201,651 Arizona 56,061,0(5 89,127 New Mexico 64,803,079 167,693 Nevada 53,689,524 3,919 California 52,299,491 797,568 Wyoming 50,842,434 162,327 Colorado 42,167.030 635,904 Oregon 39,220,151 728,343 Utah 35,428,987 126,917 Idaho 33,781,857 339,261 Washington 20,401,691 909,056 North Dakota 16,135,440 330,071 South Dakota 14,085,394 470.758 Nebraska 11,*60,430 575,5'3 Minnesota 6,819,975 288,848 Arkansas 4.9518,398 300,717 Florida 3,468,381 126,711