Show THE FENCE LAW r laws in relation to fencing land must materially affect the interests of any people whose chief pursuit is that of agriculture in our territory they have given rise to considerable discus sion bion at various times since its settlement some strongly advocating the necessity of a fence law while others take the opposite view of the case on the territorial statute book there is at present a law which we believe gives the power to the settlers in any settlement or precinct to make the owners of stock responsible for any damage that may be done by them whether the land where the damage is done be fenced or not as the majority of the people shall determine this subject is just now being discussed edpao pro and corwith con cou with considerable interest in california and definite action in relation to it is being urged upon the attention of the state Legi legislature lature some time ago a committee was appointed polli ted by the san kan francisco chamber of commerce to consider a proposition to repeat the fence law A few e evenings since they made their report which is strongly in favor of repealing all or nearly all the fence laws on the statute book believing that it would greatly promote promote the agricultural commercial an and general beneral prosperity of the state tl this Is report ia Is said to be grounded on the fact that there are hundreds and thousands of acres of the best grain raising land in the state or in i n the united states which cannot be be cultivated for the reason that the cost of fencing amounts to far more than the cash price of the land itself and thus farmers of limited means are driven into other lines of business or into other states and territories where their interests are more protected the inn Imn ching system of it is said by the advocates of the no fence law system has proved a signal failure the ranchmen ranchman ranch men with his five or ten thousand head of cattle roaming over a hundred thousand acres of good land is worth less as a producer of wealth a supporter of schools or a patron of manufactures and commerce than a few small farmers cultivating yearly their hundred or two hundred acres of or land and the former like the indians on the plains having barred the progress of civilization must be pushed aside to make room for and to secure protection to small farmers the sole wealth of the ranchman consists in the increase of his stock and if this as is not uncommonly the case fails or is swept away through flood or drouth the inconvenience caused by the scarcity and biall price of meat is feltey felt feit by all classes but the ile abolition of the ranching system would increase the num number berof of small farmers farm ersi merove the quality of stock and lead to their more general distribution trib ution greatly add to the wealth of the state generally by the increase of its exports and would be quickly followed by great improvements in rural life the advocates of the fence law on the other hand contend that the repeal of that law would be inimical to the best beat interests of the people of the state it would enable land speculators and capitalists ta lists who now possess immense tracts of land valueless for grain raising to enich themselves at the expense of unsophisticated w would ouid be farmers by selling I 1 land to t them h em at high figures figure 3 for grain growing experiments to the small farmer it would also work very disadvantageously now in case of the failure or partial failure of his crops he has his hogs and cattle raised at comparatively mall small cost through roami roaming rig tig at large on the range to fall bick b a ck upon but in case of the abolition of the fence law he would have to herd them or keep them up at great expense ense during the grain growing seasons the re advocates of the fence law in california maintain that its repeal would materially decrease the value of the pasture land lande of the state without increasing the value of grain lands that it would double the price of meat by curtailing the facilities for raising stock and would produce no general good whatever may be the result of the present discussion in california this is a matter touching the interests of the people of our territory as well as the people of california and to effect the greatest rea test good to the greatest number demands ands careful and wise legislation |