The Council Bluffs nonpareil. [volume] (Council Bluffs [Iowa]) 1857-1867, 1857-12-26

Secretary Thompson's report opens with
an exhibit Of the operations Of the Land
Bureau. A historical sketch is given Of the
methods by which the public domain was
originally acquired, and then follows sched-
ule Of the organization Of the surveying
system. The whole surface Of public domain
Is stated ct ], 45O, O0O, 600 acres Of which
s., Az, $40 acres were subject to entry at
private sale on the 3Oth September last. Tho
number Of acres thus far sold 10 81, 662, ! AGA
acres; leaving undisposed Of, 1885, IA, 1876
acres. Last year, q, 889, 46l acres of pub
lie lands were surveyed and reported; s, $780,
$50 acres were sold for cash; !, 1881 ,0lO were
located with military warrants, and the
Railroad grants under the act Of March, were
5, lie, 600 acres. The sum received on cash
sales was 81 ,225 ,908, a falling of Of $5, 322,
1874, with a corresponding falling OF in the
location of lands with warrants Of more than
20 per cent. There are SO organized Land
Districts-but none for New Mexico or Utah.
A commission for the settlement Of Spanish
and Mexican claims in New Mexico Is
recommended; geological survey of the
same is also urged. No change is suggested
in the laws applicable to the work Of the
Department. ze
In regard to Indian affairs, the Report is
explicit. The Indian tribes within our lin
its now number 1926 900 souls. The Indian
Bureau ID putting fourth efforts to induce
the savages to take UP with fixed habitations
without which little can be done towards
ameliorating their condition. A plan, re-
commended by the Secretary, suggests the
gathering of the Indians on smaller reserva-
tons and in denser settlement-the reserya-
10 he al s,,tH H.,
ted among tho individuals of the tribes,
without the power OF sale or transfer, with
central farms for the instruction Of the chill
dren, and a supply Of implements of agricul-
ture for all. The tribes which have advanc-
ed in civilization, and whose prospects are
gratifying. are those in the Southern Super
intendency Choctaws, Chickasaws,
Cherokees and Greeks, with tho Seminoles
in the territory west of Arkansas. The es-
tablishment Of District Court for this Su-
perintendency is recommended, to heal dis
putes among the people. In Washington
and Oregon the savages remain beligerent.
IL is recommended that tho expense of
delegation from these tribes to the Federal
capital be paid by the Government, in order
right. Indian trust funds have been invest
-
476. sa 81 ~'. a@~ a#
The Bureau of Pensions return satisfac-
tory report. Up to June, 1857, II total of
s6l ,5l4 $50 in money, and large donations
of land, had been paid to Revolutionary
soldiers or their widows. During the past
year Al, 483 warrants for bounty land have
been issued requiring to satisfy them $685.
10 acres Of public land. The number Of
L..
acts of Congress from the Revolutionary
War to the present timeis 657 ,250-rcquir-
ing 60, 704 ,942 acres of lind. Frauds upon
the Pension Office are numerous, and an ex-
tension Of the statutory limit Of two years
is recommended to remedy this evil. The
Report states, in detail, the condition Of the
public buildings at the Capital, and then
considers the subject of District Attorneys
fees concluding this branch with recon-
mendation Of m increase of the attorneys
salaries on an equitable basis. The wagon
road works have been commenced on the
routes from Fort Kearney to Honey Lake,
in California from Ell Paso to Fort Yuma,
at the mouth of the ella, and from the Plata
River to the Running Water. The Mexican
Boundary Commission having concluded its
labors, its maps and journals have been
turned over to the Department. @s
The Patent Office reports that from Jan.
|. to Sept. 80, lS47, 4,095 applications for
for patents we're issued, and 2,2S7 applica-
tions were rejected. The receipts Of this
bureau for three quarters Of the year have
been $l6l AIS; expenditures, 1858, 942
oxcess of expenditures, 81, 526. Of the ex-
penditures $27, 1889 were made up of fees
restored to applicants after the examinati on
of their cases. The Secretary censures this
practice, and urges tho necessity of making
the bureau self-sustaining. The right OF
appeal to District Judge is also censured,
and repeal of the Law which authorizes
the practice is earnestly urged.
Tho report concludes with strong in
dorsement Of the utility of the Agricultural
Division Of the Department. Ha