The Determination of Grazing Fees on Federally-Owned Range Lands

Abstract

President Hayes' suggestion was not acted upon by that, or ensuing, congresses until 1934 when a system for the supervision of Federal range lands was approved by Congress in the Taylor Grazing Act. In the intervening years much of this land was transferred to private ownership through homestead acts, grants to railroads and various other disposal methods. The government still retained however, a vast residue of leftover lands in the deserts and high plateaus of the arid West. This land was generally too dry, rough or rocky for crop production and had commercial value mainly as pasturage. Over much of the territory west of the one hundredth meridian land itself was worthless unless that land contained a creek, spring, or other source of water. Competition for water and the scant grass and browse of this land was chiefly responsible for the range wars and the romantic legend of the guntoting cowboy. Stockmen attempted to reserve grazing rights for themselves by homesteading waterholes, by acquiring land along creeks, by checkerboard patterns of ownership, and by various other devices. Public lands reserved by the acquisition of these key tracts had, of course, little value for other potential users. Conversely, the key tract ordinarily had limited value in itself unless it was supplemented by government In spite of the many ingenious methods used to reserve Federal land for private use, there was considerable land which never became stabilized into this reserved status. This land belonged to everyone and to no one. It was free land.