The Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1837-1845, 1841-02-23
FoR THE MAIDS OMAN
THE LAND sYsrEM--No. O.

THE ANNUAL REPORT ron THE YEAR lo4u.
Having lately obtained copy of the last annual
Report of the Commissioner of the General Land
Office in which general summary has been made
Of the various duties performed in the Office since he
assumed their superinlendence under apparent APP
Prehension that by this Time and al fs particular
junefure, the numerous and arduous labors when he
has performed might be forgotten or unnoticed sna'
now proceed TO make few remarks upon 'nai SUM
mary, promising that the quotations shall make are
parts OF that report.
This portion Of the report commences WIN 'n'
statement that since the 9th day Of December 1900
when the present Commissioner took charge OF the
Office its correspondence Notwithstanding the gradual
decline of the land sales has for obvious reasons been
progressively increasing. During this period more
than IS 900 letters have been written and recorded IN
the Office covering than "a 600 large folio pages"
What are the curious reasons which have made
the correspondence Of the Office progressively in
creasing," while the business out of which such
respondence originates has been declining for years
past, not apparent TO every one, not to
regret that the Commissioner had not stated of
them and by few strokes of his pen made darkness
light. After, however, deduetng from the number
thus stated the thousands of printed circular letters
and mere Acknowledgements, which have been sent out
since 1886, sufficient amount of this kind of bus
appears to have been performed TO ene the office
to much credit upon this ground, and the Commission
err also, for the performance of the labor involved In
signing and ranking although it is thought that il
would be nearly difficult to select out of this aggre
gate, thirty communications upon important matters
of official business bearing the undeniabe impress Of
the workings of his mind il would be, at this
day to collect and identify the thirty particular pieces
of coin, which applied to the purchase of
the Pottersfied, in consequence Of their being too
polluted to admit of their being returned the safes
and vaults of the sub Treasury in tie Temple
Many special unconirmed cases have also been
examined and reported upon for the action of Con-
gress and considerable number of private land
claims in the Greensburg Ouchita, New Orleans, and
Opelousas Districts in Louisiana, have been brought
before this Office for the opinion of the Commissioner
the respective claims under the act of 9th February
1885, for the final adjustment Of claims to land in the
State Of Louisiana. All Of these have been
duly reported for submission TO Congress In the
animation of them great labor required" Now,
although from this statement would seem that much
labor and trouble had been undergone by the
Commissioners in making the examinations stated yet
this labor devoved upon Others and hathis share
sisted in signing his name approving of their state
ments and opinions. If, however, he should feel in
the least inclined to the credit which the OPT
mons expressed by his late Solicitor Judge Burchard
in relation to the claims reported upon by the Green's
burg, New Orleans and Ouachta officers, and approx
| ed by him are Justly entitled TO, and have received
FROM those acquainted with even the first principles of
the laws regulating such claims, ! would not wish to
cast the shadow of doubt upon his title thereto
In the time, besides the large number of pre-
emption cases settled at the District Land Offices
more than III 900 of such cases, which had be-
fore the Office by appeal, account Of intrinsic
difficulty or which otherwise within its super
yisory powers have been acted upon and finally deter
mined" Now it is suspected that the word other T
rise" must have been intended in case of necessity
to enable the Commissioner to bring within the re-
ported number the achoie of the acted upon by
the district officers, il is known that the proof in
erery is sent to the General Land Office and there
examined by the three or four persons connected with
that branch Of dutybut will be admitted that after
deducting the thousands Of cases which otherwise
than in consequence Of appeal intrinsic difficulty
brought before the office, and therefore only re-
quired TO be glanced at the labor involved supcn
tending the correspondence connected with the few
hundreds in which there were doubts conflicts must
have been arduous in the extreme
Within the same period also, more than Alb 900 I
patents have been actually transmitted, including
above 10000 patents for private land claims, Indian
Creek Orphan lands, and sales in the
Chickasaw cession In addition to these, there are
now lying in the Office written and recorded about
60 900 awaiting official signature. In part Of this
number the dates are left blank, and are filled up as
A Il
however, that these will be ready for transmission du
ring the present session OF Congress"
In former number took the liberty of stating the
reasons why il matter Of doubt whether it would
not kavc been better for the public at large that
of these patents had been issued, rather than they
should have gone out in the imperfect manner they
have. The Commissioner expresses the hope that the
10000 patents now awaiting signature may be issued
before the close OF the present session As they are
doubtless prepared in the their prede-
cessors it viii be fortunate if the Commissioners
hopes in this respect, shall be disappointed For the
number Of imperfect patents already issued which as
evidences of title worthless and as official docu
mcnts, dsrcputabe to the office, is already too
great would also like TO know whether, in this
number, he does not include thousands prepared in
previous years, and which have been heretofore sus
pended account Of causes which have the same inn
portance now that they had
In remarking IN previous number upon the mper
fections of many of the patents, omitted one
of the causes which contributed to produce them. and
that is the manner in which they were examined To
ensure accuracy, the patent the record and the ce
icate of purchase, should correspond, and three per-
required to examine and compare them And
!. more unnteresting and tiresome occupation, or
oneby which the mind and attention would sooner be-
come wearied, hardly be imagined, former Com
missioner directed that not more than OF 400 cases