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Show Preface On four occasions criticisms of policies affecting the public lands and the urge for change have led to the creation of commissions to make detailed studies of the operation of the public land system and to report to Congress recommendations for improvements. The first of these was authorized by an Act of March 3, 1879, when there was much dissatisfaction at the ease with which the settlement laws-Homestead, Preemption, Timber Culture, and Desert Land Acts-were being abused to accumulate land that was theoretically open only to farm makers. An able Commission took an abundance of testimony in the West which to the historian is one of its most valuable contributions and brought forth the expected recommendations for repeal of those measures most subject to abuse and the placing of additional safeguards in others. It also codified in three volumes the nearly 3,000 general and special laws Congress had enacted since 1789 and Thomas Donaldson, a member of the Commission, prepared his enormously valuable The Public Domain: Its History with Statistics. In 1,343 pages and 14 large maps and plats it provided an almost overwhelming array of statistics and background information concerning the acquisition of the public lands, congressional discussions leading to the enactment of important measures, and the operation of the land laws. Congress was not altogether convinced of the need for change and it was not until 1888-91 that a number of the recommendations of the Commission were to be adopted. The second occasion was in 1903 when Theodore Roosevelt, responsive to the widespread complaints about abuses of settlement laws, appointed a commission "to report upon the condition, operation, and effect of the present land laws, and to recommend such changes as are needed to effect the largest practicable disposition of the public lands to actual settlers who will build permanent homes upon them, and to secure in permanence the fullest and most effective use of the resources of the public lands." A Commission of three distinguished leaders in public land, forest, and reclamation activities again brought in a valuable report showing weaknesses and strengths in government policies. In 1929 President Herbert Hoover asked Congress for authorization to appoint a commission to make recommendations concerning the use and management of the remaining public lands, which were mostly valuable for grazing. He indicated that he favored giving these lands to the states which he felt could best administer them. Congress having responded favorably, a third distinguished Commission was appointed and shortly brought in its recommendation in line with the President's position. Its report was more modest than those of its predecessors but it stands as an illuminating document on the problems of public land management. The fourth commission was authorized by Congress in 1964 at a time when many land issues were in need of attention and numerous measures relating to these issues were under consideration by Congress. It was thought advisable to have an intensive examination of every part of the public land laws, their administration, weaknesses, and inadequacies made by experts before further reforms were enacted in a piecemeal fashion. The Commission decided to have prepared a history of the development of the land laws and the functioning of the land system and after some preliminary planning the present study was authorized in late May 1966. Time was of the essence for the |
