(Continued on page 9)
(Form 2520-1, page 8)
GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS
This form is to be used in applying for desert entry on
public lands under the Desert Land Act of March 3, 1877,
as amended.
1.
2.
3.
This application and all attachments must be led in the
proper Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Ofce for the State in
which the lands are located. The application must be led
and received in the proper BLM Ofce within ten (10) days
from the date it is executed, otherwise, it will not gain any
priority of ling, cannot be accepted, and will be rejected.
Applications for lands in North Dakota and South Dakota
should be led in the BLM Ofce in Billings, Montana.
This application for desert entry must be original and
prepared on a typewriter or printed plainly and signed in
ink or indelible pencil. If additional space is needed in
furnishing any of the required information, it should be
prepared on additional sheets, initialed, and attached and
made a part of this application.
Where questions indicate that an answer can be made by
check mark, the applicant should ll in these spaces
where applicable.
4.
The application and statements of witnesses must be
signed and led in the proper BLM State Ofce in which
the land is located.
5.
The statements on this form must be completed and
executed by each of two (2) competent witnesses. The
use of immediate members of the applicant’s family or
other relatives as witnesses is discouraged because of
the question of conict of interest that may arise.
6.
The mere ling of an application confers no right
upon the applicant to settle upon or occupy the land.
Any such unauthorized settlement or occupancy prior
to the allowance of the entry by the Government con-
stitutes a Trespass. The applicant may, however,
go upon and examine the land for the purpose of
determining the facts needed in connection with the
application.
NOTE:
SPECIFIC INSTRUCTIONS
(Items not listed are self-explanatory)
1
2
3b
Item
Show complete name and full post ofce address, in-
cluding zip code. Note: The applicant must inform the
proper BLM Ofce immediately of any change of address.
A ling fee of $15 is required with each application. In
addition, an advance payment of 25¢ per acre, or frac-
tion of an acre is required.
The applicant must be a bona de resident of the State
in which the land applied for is located, except as to the
lands in Nevada, where the qualication as to citizen-
ship is that of the United States without regard to State
of residence.
3c
Indicate proper citizenship status. Non-citizens are not
qualied to make application unless a formal declaration
of intention to become a citizen has been led.
8 If there is any spring or water hole on the lands applied
for, state the exact location and size thereof, and give
an estimate of the quantity of water in gallons per day
which it is capable of producing. State any other in-
formation about the spring or water hole which would be
helpful in determining whether its use is benecial or
necessary for the grazing of domestic livestock. State
also if the spring is a hot spring or if its waters contain
curative properties (Executive Orders April 17, 1926 and July 7,
1930).
9
Column 1 – Indicate section or sections of land applied
for opposite the appropriate legal subdivisions within
the section as listed in column 2.
Column 2 – Each legal subdivision must be listed sepa-
rately
. Each legal subdivision means each quarter-
quarter section of 40 acres, or each designated lot as
shown on the plat of survey of the section.
Column 3 – Indicate, by percentage, the general slope
of each legal subdivision. If portions of the subdivi-
sion are substantially different than the greater portion,
list and describe them separately. A topographic map
may be submitted as an attachment and made a part of
the application if desired by the applicant as a means
of showing more clearly the slopes of the lands applied
for. If a topographic map is submitted the contour
interval should be no greater than 10 feet.
Item
Column 4 – Indicate the general surface conditions such
as level, slightly rolling, rolling, rough, etc.
Column 5 – Indicate the general texture or physical
properties of the soil. General terms such as silt,
sandy, loam, clay, gravel, etc., or a combination of
these terms will adequately describe the texture of the
soil.
Column 6 – Indicate the average or a representative
depth of top soil in inches. Numerous soil samples may
be required to obtain a good representative sample.
Location of each soil sample, and depth of top soil
should be shown on an attached soils map.
Column 7 – Indicate, by general descriptive terms such
as negligible, slight, moderate, or critical, the salinity
or alkalinity of the area. If portions of each subdivision
are substantially different from the remaining portions
list separately. Indicate the smaller subdivisions under
column 2.
Column 8 – Indicate the character of the subsoil. A
description of subsoil character may require several
soil samples. This information can be obtained while
measuring the depth of the topsoil as required under
column 6. General descriptive terms, such as gravel,
hardpan, sand, clay hardpan, etc., may be used.
Column 9 – Indicate total irrigable acres for each legal
subdivision.
Line (c) – Indicate the water requirements for economic
agricultural crop production. Base this requirement on
item 9 and other factors, such as evaporation loss, soil
permeability, etc. A good source for this type of inform-
ation is the local County Extension Agent’s Ofce and
the Soil Conservation Service Ofce serving the area.
10
