TIIE SUNDAY OREGONIAN. PORTLAND, JULY 28. 1912.
f Making It Easf for The HOMESTEADER
1 Effect Of 'Radical Changes In Land Laws
,asy for
Changes In Land Laws
Time for Securing
Title Is Cut in
Half and Changes
Will Check Emi
gration of Ameri
can Citizens to
Canada Work
of Reclaiming
Arid Land De
scribed by Experts
Opening Orfie iyC- rjr n JVevacea. Once si &2zant.irts, ' W l VCj
: , ,.,. - - v " ' 1 5 ' a-V l.ji"' iWi: Jecte JVo Z27er ConZruciozi &y Government.
ft
.EARLY every one at aome period
of life- has given serious thought
to the possibility of securing a
home In the West. After years of un
profitable labor in the crowded life of
the cities, the Idea has appealed with
striking force to build a home way
out on the prairies where one might
breathe the air of freedom and get
away from the hurly-burly of life as
it Is today In most of the towns and
cities of our land. A home out' in the
open, miles and miles away from every
thing, with just enough to maintain
life and a few of the luxuries. Is the
Ideal home thousands have looked for
ward to for many years. But the great
drawback up to the present has been
the restrictions of the land laws and
the long time necessary to acquire a
title to the home.
Now, Uncle Sam has stepped In and
proposes to aid all his cltisens who
may want homes in the West. On the
7th of last month President Taft signed
the new homestead law, which became
operative at once. The new law nearly
cuts In half the time required to own a
homestead. Under the old law, a five
years' residence was required, with no
provision for a man to go away and
earn enough to tide him over hard
tiroes. Under the new law, however,
only a three years' residence Is re
quired, while the pioneer is permitted
to be away for Ave months during each
year, so that he may be able to .earn
sufficient to pull him through the criti
cal period of home-making In the West.
There are other radical changes pro
vided under the new law, which does
away with much red tape and tech
nlcallty, the plan of the Government
being to make It easy for the home
seeker to acquire title to his land as
quickly as possible.
Canada's Imdneeemnts.
For. many years thousands of our
best citizens have been emigrating to
Canada last year the figures were
something like 120,000. Canada, being
alive to the situation, has offered all
kinds of Inducements to get Americans
to emigrate to that country. The cam
paign was unusually attractive and
was put in operation slowly so as not
to attract attention too quickly. But
after a while the number of families
leaving the United States became so
great that Uncle Sam became wise to
the fact that he must do something
and do that something quickly, or
Canada would very shortly depopulate
a great portion of the United States.
Investigations were started with a
view to finding out Just what great
Inducement was offered by Canada. The
result of this activity revealed the fact
that the enterprising Dominion north
of us bad not only cut in half the time
required to secure title to a home, but
had raised the ante two or three better
by actually building homes for settlers
Immediately upon their arrival, helping
them to secure agricultural implements,
furnishing them with seed, and the
like, all of which was done on the
long-time payment or installment plan.
It was not long after these facts be
came apparent that steps were taken to
remedy conditions and do away with
many of the restrictions and red tape
that honeycombed our land laws. Sena
tor William E. Borah, of Idaho, Is the
author of the new law, and he is the
man who fought for It several years in
the United States Senate.
The old homestead law was enacted
in 1860." said he in speaking of the
new law, "and bore the signature of
Abraham Lincoln. At that time the
lands of the great Middle West were
subject to entry and it was easy to
get a homestead. The old law required
a continuous residence of five years.
The great change in the law is that
part of it which provides for only
three years and permits the absence
f the homesteader during five months
of each year.
"Another thing, under the old law a
man could not get his title until he
had lived there five years. He was
compelled not only to remain upon his
jlJs- V',-1
property for five years, but to be with
out title to it for the same length of
time. He could make no use whatever
of his title as a basis for credit, be
cause the title was In the Government
and remained there, not only for five
years, but in some cases as many as
ten years. Again the homeseeker was
forced to remain on the land the whole
time, and because of this he could not
give his children proper schooling, or
in fact any kind of schooling. He
could not leave, the homestead under
any circumstances. Under the new
law he may get his title In three years,
and during these three years he may
go away for five months in each year
to a place where he may avail him
self of schools and at the- same time
earn sufficient to pull blm through the
rest of the year."
What Uncle Sam Has Constructed.
Representative Edward T. Taylor, of
Colorado, is the man who was respon
sible for the passage of the law in the
House of Representatives. Both of
these men struggled against great odds
for years.
As showing the gigantic nature of
the work undertaken by Uncle Sam to
help the homemaker, there are now SO
projects under construction in various
sections of the country west of the
Mississippi, on which has been spent
more than 178,000,000. All this work
has been done under the direction of
the Reclamation Service. During the
last eight years the Government has
built more than 8000 miles of canals,
some of which transport whole rivers
from one section of the country to an
other. It has excavated 20 miles of
tunnels through high mountains. It
has built something like 28.000 canal
structures and more than 2000 bridges.
And last but not least, three of the
"RUBE"
(Continued from Page .)
that falls to the lot of all pitchers when
tney iirst get into fast company.
"CToolo is not the only pitcher that
causes me to extend myself. Lew
Ritchie, of Chicago, always gives me a
good run for my money. Benton, of
Cincinnati, also keeps me going at top
speed, but O'Toole Is the 'king bee'
when it comes to making me hustle
all the way.
"The uncertainty of baseball Is per
haps its best feature. What team, for
instance, do you suppose makes me
work the hardest. You'd never guess.
It's the much-joshed tallenders Bos
ton. There is no other club in the Na
tional League that can give me the
run that those self-same tailenders do.
It's been that way ever since I got
going good. Clubs that figure much
higher up don t bother me halt as
much.
"No matter what pitcher Boston uses.
the game is sure to be exciting. It's
a mystery that I can't explain. Every
plsr'er on the team seems to come to
bat for the sole purpose of fattening
his batting average at my expense.
Whether men are on bases or not, they
seem to do just as they please, regard-
ess of all rules of inside baseball.
"That is one of the reasons they are
such a hard lot to judge. They lack
Inside playing, and where the proper
play would be to try for a bunt, they
are just as apt to slam out a long drive
as not. 'Slug the ball' is their motto.
and for my part I've got a wholesome
respect for their hitting ability.
' Philadelphia Is my lucky number.
I have better success against them, it
aeenu, than any of the others. As yet
they have been unable to beat me. 1
also have had good luck against St
Louis. Pittsburg, Cincinnati and Chi
cago are the teams that keep me on the
anxious seat. Especially is this true
of the Windy City bunch. They fight
every inch of the way, and seldom
overlook an opportunity to put one
over.
"I don't mean to Imply that the teams
I have not mentioned are 'marks' for
me or any one else, and I never go into
any game unless I'm prepared for a
hard fight. It just seems that my de
livery puzzles some of the boys more
than others. . Look at Boston. Don't
they make me travel at a mile-a-min-ute
gait? Why. I don't know, unless
it is for the reasons I have given.
"Another thing you will notice. If you
highest dams in the world have been
completed. In addition there has been
built a total length of 581 miles of
roads, more than 1800 miles of tele
phone wires, .and 75 miles of levees.
As a result of all this work, 1,114,000
acres of land have been transformed
from a desert into the richest land in
the world.
In 1011 the value of the crops pro
duced on this reclaimed land was more
than $20,000,000, and as a direct re
sult the land values have Increased
more than $105,000,000. Seventy thous
and people are now living on the farms
reclaimed from the desert, and 25,000
more have been added to the popula
tion of the cities, towns and villages
in the immediate neighborhood.
Nearly all Government land not yet
taken up by settlers is confined al
most wholly to the arid sections of the
West. While these lands are very rich
and fertile when reclaimed in fact, it
is said to be the richest land in the
world for agricultural purposes it is
more difficult to reclaim than the old
lands of the Middle Western States.
But there is more than 400,000.000 acres
left, and under the new law, which en
ables a man to get his title within a
reasonable time and to make his liv
ing as he goes along, the authorities
confidently predict that thousands of
homeseekers will occupy these lands
within the next few years.
The biggest engineering work now
nearlng completion Is that of the great
dam in Southern Idaho, known as the
Arrow Rock Dam. This will be the
tallest dam in the world when complet
ed, reaching a height of 851 feet. It
will contain 550,000 cubic yards of ma
terial. Just to state this bald fact as
so many cubic yards of material hardly
gives an idea of the quantity of ma
terial that will go into the building of
this dam. A better idea might be given
by saying that a cubic yard is a block
three feet high, three feet wide and
three feet deep. If it were possible to
place In a straight line all the material
MARQUARD'S BASEBALL
I take the trouble to look over the base.
ball scores, is that invariably the man-
ager of the team I'm working against
will put In the man ha considers the
best In his string. While this makes
It harder for me to win I don't mind
it. because if I'm lucky enough to win
it's more credit than It would be to
beat an easy pitcher.
"Fans all have their own ideas as to
who is the best pitcher. One man savs
Matty has it on all the rest; another
will tell you that Bender is the real
thing, and so on. Every pitcher in
the league has his own friends and ad
mirers, and woe to the man who roasts
a fan's pet In his hearing.
"I remember overhearing a conversa
tion on the car one afternoon -on the
way to the Polo Grounds. Philadelphia
was booked to play against us, and this
fan would hae it that if Alexander
pitched against Marquard my string of
victories would be broken. It was not
my turn to work, and it Is seldom that
McGraw will let you go on the mound
Bimply because you feel like pitching,
but I told him I felt confident that I
could win. and asked him to let me
work. He did, and I won, but Alexan
der came very near turning the trick.
"A pitcher would have a pretty easy
time if he were allowed to pitch when
he wanted to. With the Giants you
pitch when your turn comes, and it's
only on rare occasions that a request
to pitch is granted. You do your warm
ing up under the eyes of McGraw and
Robinson, and even though it may be
your turn to work, if in the opinion of
the manager you are not working up to
snuff someone else gets your chance.
"McGraw seems to know better than
the pitcher himself just what condition
he is in. He makes very few mistakes
in that respect. You are never sure you
are going to work until you are out
on the field. I don't think I am over
estimating McGraw when I say that he
is the greatest baseball general in the
game today. At any rate, that is what
I consider him, and I can never give
him enough credit for what he has done
for me.
"During the first three years I was
with the Giants I never went in to
pitch but I got roasted by the fans,
and I can tell you that it didn't make
me work any better to have some fel
low give me the laugh when the um
pire would mention my name as one
of the batteries for the game.
" 'Don't pay any attention to them, j
1 Mri : I
to be used In blocks of this size the
line would be 313 miles long.
There is another great dam being
constructed on the Rio Grande, in New
Mexico. It will be known as the Engle
Dam. The work has Just started, but
when completed it will be one of the
biggest structures of its kind in the
world. Still another is that of the
Truckee Carson Dam. This work will
add another 50,000 acres of land, and it
is expected to be completed early in the
year 1914.
Charles J. Blanchard Is the statis
tician of the Reclamation Service, and
he has been intimately associated with
all the work done by Uncle Sam toward
home-making In the West. Mr. Blanch,
ard is &n enthusiastic believer in the
slogan "America for Americans," and he
believes the Government should -do
everything possible to keep Americans
from emigrating to foreign soil. He has
traveled over every foot of ground now
being reclaimed, and is probably the
best-posted man on the subject in the
country.
Love of Home-Making Inherent.
"The home-making instinct is a well
developed trait in American character,"
said Mr. Blanchard, in speaking of
home-making by the Government. "Our
forefathers, who landed on the bleak
shores of New England, their descend
ants, the pioneers of the Middle West,
the Argonauts of this generation who
crossed the trackless plains, were im
pelled by this instinct more than by
the love of adventure or the lure of
gold to wander forth into strange lands.
Rube, because that same fan will have
your picture on his mantelpiece before
you re through playing the game, is
the way McGraw would talk as I'd
start for the center of the diamond.
"Few people know that when I first
came with the Giants I had an entirely
different delivery than I have now. I
used a side-arm swing, which McGraw
said was wrong, and he made me prac
tice pitohing overhand. Naturally I
lost control, and it was months before
I could handle myself with any de
gree of confidence. That the change
was for the best I think has been
fully demonstrated.
"The old side-arm style hurt me a
little and McGraw told me at the time
he made me change it that I wouldn't
last a season unless I switched to the
overhand. The cross-fire used by most
left-handers is eliminated by the over
hand throw, and the wear and tear on
my arm is reduced to a minimum.
When things began to come my wav
make a new strikeout record, but after
that game with Boston when I struck
out 14 men In eight Innings and weak
ened myself so badly that they beat me
in the extra Innings, I decided that I'd
better quit that kind of a stunt. Now
I allow the team behind me to take
care of the batter. I put them over
and don't try for a strikeout unless
there is a man on third or I get in some
other bad hole. I learned that trick
from Matty, who, when it comes to
using good baseball Judgment, Is in a
class by himself.
'Baseball has always been my hobby.
I can't remember anything else I've
ever done for a living, except the one
Winter I spent in vaudeville. When I
was a kid I made up my mind that I'd
try and be a pitcher. I started when
I was fifteen, and I'll he twenty-three
in October.
'I learned my first lesson in pitch
ing all by myself when I was carrying
bats for the Cleveland club of the Am
erican League. I used to watch the big
fellows warming up, and one day I dis
covered how to hold a ball for an out
curve. For a long time that and a
straight ball were the only things I
could throw. Lajoie, Bradley, Turner
and all the other members of the old
Blues were my heroes.
'Mr. first real pitching was with a
school team In Cleveland. Off and on I i
"The great question of providing
homes for our people is a big one. The
rapid narrowing of the boundary of
our unoccupied public lands and the
tremendous increase in land values in
all the settled sections of the United
States render it increasingly difficult
for a man of small means to get a
foothold on the land. There is con
gestion in many of our cities, and the
menace of a great population of under
fed and poorly housed people increases
each year.
"A nation's greatness has its founda
tion in the home of the man whose feet
are firmly planted upon his Own land.
There is no National stability in a citi
zenship born and reared in tenements.
Patriotism, loyalty and civic pride are
not bred and fostered in the great cen
ters of population. The destiny of the
Nation Is foreshadowed in the provi
sions made for the prosperity and con
tentment of its citizens.
"And so our legislators have finally
recognized that it is a National duty to
render the ' acquirement of homes as
easy as possible. Areas greater in ex
tent than many of the lrlglnal states
have been donated for the purpose of
making habitable unused lands. At one
time the property of the United States
embraced 1.800,000,000 acres. Today it
has been reduced to less than 400,000,
000 acres. Out of that public land
20 vigorous commonwealths have
arisen, and an agricultural empire has
come into being that is today the
marvel of the world.
"But the difficult part Is now to
pitched for a semi-professional team
known as the Tellings, and it was
while Z was playing with this team
that a Cleveland American League
scout got after me. I received a let
ter asking me to call at the office of
the Cleveland club, which I did, and I
was then told that they would give me
$100 a month for the first season, and
that if I made good they would double
it the next. I was getting more than
that with the semi-professional out
fit, so I thought I'd better wait and
see If something else wouldn t turn
up.
"But it wasn't long before Charley
Carr, of the Indianapolis club, hove in
sight with an offer which looked good
to me, and I joined blm. One of the
first games I pitched In was an exhibi
tion affair early In 1908 against the
Cleveland Blues. You can Imagine how
I felt standing there trying to strike
out the heroes of my boyhood days.
"There they were, Lajoie and the
rest, standing before me swinging the
same bats that I had considered it an
honor to carry for them. I beat them,
and I guess I felt worse about it than
if I had lost.
"That's one thing about ball play
ers. They are honest In their Inten
tions to win.
"Charley Somers, owner of the
Cleveland team, offered Carr $6000 for
me right after the game, but the price
didn't meet the fancy of the Indian
apolis manager. Carr signed me in
1907, but he bought me for what he
thought I would be, not what I was,
and for that reason he sent me to Can
ton, O., in the Central League, where
I won 23 out of 29 games.
"I played with Indianapolis all dur
ing the season of 1908 and won 8
games out of 40. It was the Fall of
that year that I was sold to the New
Yorks, and what Cincinnati did to me
on my first appearance is still fresh
in my memory.
Chief Meyers has been hehlnd the
bat in nearly every game I have
pitched since Tve been looked upon as
regular, and naturally I feel more
at home with him. Grover Hartley
caught me for eight Innings in a game
with St. Louis. Matty started the game,
and as New York gathered in 13 runs
in the first inning he was given a
rest. I struck out 11 men In that
a I
come. In many parts of the public
lands still left nature hag placed in
position all the natural elements re
quired for a prosperous country, ex
cept rainfall. How to overcome the ah
sence of water and thus bring this
great region to its proper state of de
velopment is today the problem that
Uncle Sam is solving. There Is no
question but what Its successful solu
tion win provide a safety valve against
the dangers of congestion in the great
cities of the East.
Effect on Character Building.
"Then there is the other side of the
question. The economic value of Na-
tlonal irrigation cannot be measured In
dollars and cents. The desert made
habitable offers the boon of health to
him who builds a house upon It. You
cannot fix the possibilities of this great
land of silence and sunshine. Its influ
ence is tremendous in character-holding.
Instead of the dead level of me
diocrity which prevails in modern city
life, the desert offers the uplift of vest
distances, perpetual sunshine, and the
Individual home, with the broader free
dom of action that comes with life In
the open. There is a constant inspira
tion to industry. It is a real stimula
tion which comes from the great life
that springs from the bosom of the
desert when water is applied.
"Many projects of the Government
which are ready for irrigation contain
large areas of land for sale by private
owners who are under agreement to
dispose of their holdings. Under the
STORY
game. While I am more used to Myers,
I would Just as soon have either Wil
son or Hartley as a mate.
"The name I bear in the baseball
world Is not my own. It's a nickname
handed me by a sporting writer on
one of the Indianapolis papers. My
right name is Richard de Marquis, but
I guess I'l be known for the rest of
my days as 'Rube' Marquard."
As a great many ambitious young
players will no doubt value the advice
of a man like Marquard, I asked him
to give me an Idea of the methods he
used in perfecting his pitching quali
ties and in attaining his splendid
physical form, for aside from being a
wonderful pitcher the Rube is built
like a young Ajax.
"I' hardly know what to tell you
that will benefit the youngsters who
wish to become pitchers. One thing
they have got to do is to take great
care of themselves. A big advantage I
have had is that I have never had a
hankering to bend my arm over a bar.
I never dissipate.
"I smoke cigars, and, like many oth
er pitchers, I always chew tobaoco
during the game. But I never do so
at any other time. These two habits
may not meet with the approbation of
some, but they have never done me
any harm as far as I can see.
"Good hours and plenty of sleep are
also an important item, and one that
any one, no matter what his profes
sion is, can follow to good advantage.
At the present time I weigh 185
pounds, and while I go olose to the 200
mark In the Winter time, I lose it eas
ily when the Spring practice starts."
Two or three times during our con
versation the Rube had glanced in
quiringly toward the diamond, where
the remainder of McGraw's team was
engaged in a warming-up practice. He
looked in that direction again as le
finished and apparently got a signal
of some kind from the bench, where
Wilbert Robinson lounged, talking to
Chief Meyers and Christy Mathewson.
"Now it's my turn to get busy," he
said smiling. "I'm due for a session
this afternoon, and I've got to limber
up a bit. The Chiefs just Itching for
me to get on the mound, and I guess
I'd better not keep him waiting any
longer."
And with a parting salute to me the
Rube took It on a dog-trot across left
field.
reclamation law no farm will contain
more than 160 acres, the only require
ment being that every settler must re
side upon the land end cultivate it for
three years before he secure a title.
The homestead rights of soldiers and
sailors are the same as they always
were.
"As a final word of advice. I should
say that homeseekers should have some
money. How much depends, of course,
upon the settler and the kind of farm
ing he expects to do. While there are
numerous opportunities to secure work,
the settler with a little money and
equipment will be able to get his land
In condition earlier and will thus se
cure an early Income from his farm.
"A knowledge of Irrigation Is not ao-
solutely essential, as the Government
keeps a practical larmer on eacn
project to advise newcomers. A recent
innovation on several projects are tne
demonstration farms, where the Gov
ernment grows crops best suited to that
section. These are a great help to
newcomers. During portions, of the
year Uncle Sam gives employment to
settlers In building canals, laterals, arid
roads, which is another great help, es
pecially during the first, two or three
years, the most trying period of home
making in the West
"The most difficult problem the Gov
ernment had to solve in reclaiming the
great Southwest was the labor ques
tion. The ordinary laborer did not llks
the job, because he could not spend his
money fast enough. It was a Govern
ment reservation where no saloons and
no gambling were permitted, and no
towns nearer than 60 miles, so the la
borer did not look with favor on the
work. The real worth of the engineer
came out when he turned missionary,
and held a pow-pow with the Apache
Indians, who have lived In the basin
for generations. It seems Incredible,
yet it is nevertheless true, that that
engineer succeeded in Inducing several
hundred Apache Indians to go on the
payroll, and largely through their
labors the wonderful highway near
Yuma, Ariz., was built
"A peculiar Interest attaches to our
far Southwest and the story of the
vanished race who peopled that section
of our country thousands of years ago
will naturally appeal to any homeseeker
who may seek the land of eternal sun
shine. "Long before the first word of our
Nation's history was written a semi
civilized people dwelt ther and culti
vated its fertile soil. Impenetrable
mystery, however, envelops the age In
which they lived, and even with four
centuries of our own records, supple
mented by seven centuries of Mokt tra
ditions, the veil of the past thus part
ed throws no light on this ancient race.
Their wonderful dwellings, perched
eyrie-like in the deep canyons, and the
long lines of their canals, choked with
the wind-swept drift of centuries, glv
mute evidence of their architectural and
engineering skill.
"Frowning battlements overlooking
the desert, crumbling slowly Into dust
with th weight of ages, breathe of
war and romance in an age forgotten.
These monster structures, containing
millions of pieces of stone and miles of
canals, which embrace whole valleys,
tell of a thrifty, home-loving husban
dry. In these voiceless and vacant
ruins may almost be read the story of
Egypt, of the scriptures, of another
people tolling under the desert's brazen
skies, wearily and painfully executing
the commands of another Pharaoh.
"The vast structures reveal order and
intelligence, craftmanshlp and patience,
and they rival In soma degree the work
of modern engineers. The Cheltro pal
ace Is 449 feet long. 250 feet wide and
four stories high. Along three sides of
it extends a wall 60 feet long and 40
feet in height The masonry work la
this building and wall 960 feet long
and 40 feet In height of stone. All of
this had to be quarried, then carried
up steep ladders In baskets on the
backs of men before being placed in
position. Considering the primitive
stone Implements used and the magni
tude of this structure, the time and
labor required to construct this build
ing made It the most famous and stu
pendous work of our country.
Italy in North Africa.
Two centuries before Christ the Ro
man people had become powerful on
the northern and eastern coasts of the
Mediterranean Sea as the Carthagin
ians had on the southern shores. Their
Interests clashed and they were unable
to agree on any plan for permanent
peace. Cato, who had been ambassador
to Carthage, declared again and again
In the Roman Senate: "Carthage must
be destroyed."
So persistently and convincingly did
Cato talk that at last Rome believed
her only safety lay in the course he
advised and sent Sclpio to do the deed.
It took time, skill and hard fighting,
but he did It and did it so effectually
that the whole Punio civilization was
entirely swept from the earth. All Its
literature was destroyed except one
treatise on agriculture and a book by
Hanno the Carthaginian describing
voyages. Its buildings were demol
ished, its laws, which had for 800 years
governed all North Africa and brought
peace and great material prosperity,
were done away. Its army and people
who were not killed were thoroughly
conquered and the land was made a
Roman province. So fertile was the
soil that it became "the granary of
Rome." Christian Herald,
l I