The Portland daily press., 1867-12-09

ios. ta 1,e mails, 2nd replaced; and the profit
oi' tne - business amounts to $4,000

vi JUG BUSINESS amounts to S26.26O
sEChErARY OF THE INTERIOR
Inc fepOfG OF Lhe Secretary of the Inferior
states that durilg the last iscai wear 7 CliI
III acres OF public land We've disposed of 3
42l 800 more acres than Were disposed of in
the previous year. The cash receipts for sales
and fees amounted to 81 ,357, ,S62.
Mr.. Browning expresses his opinion that
the pension act of July IL, 1862, Is the most
comprehensive and munifieent ever made by
any Government for similar purposes. Its
administration, however, has shown the ne
cessity OF amending it in several particulars,
and recommendations for such amendments
are accordingly made.
In regard to Indian affairs, the Commi; SION
IN lavor CITING the different tribes locs-
- tpoh reservations which may be contiguous,
ges y.s 'ne Whd tribes must be located at some
u'st;'hce irom each other, and they must be
Srpuudily won nom their present barbarous
customs to the habits of ciyilization. To
complete the removal OF the various Indian
tribes TO properly located reservations, the
Commissioner recommends the appointment
OF two Commissions, each consisting of not
less than three persons. He says that II
tithe Of the money expended during the last
year in military operations against the In
dians had been honestly and judiciously ap-
pied to purposes of peace, the necessity OF a
resort to war would have been avoided. An
increase Of the salaries ofIndian superintend-
ents and agents Is recommended, rs the best
means OF securing honest and faithful men
for the occupancy of these important places.
During the year ending September 80, 1866
there were 16,54I applications tor patents, and
1855 were issued. The receipts Of the pen
sion bureau were S6l1,9l0, and the expendl-
lures S513,399. The entire balance in the
Treasury to the credit OF the patent fund is
now $2S6,607.
The whole expenses connected with the
holding of United States Courts during the
year, and the payment of the various officers
connected to them amounted TO S1,695, ,626.
COMMISSIONER OF AGRICULTURE.
The acting of Commissioner of Agriculture
John W. Stokes, makes several suggestions in
his report. He urgently advises the rescind-
ing of the cotton tax, inasmuch as 1t is
disastrous and dishearttning in the ex-
treme." The cattle plague or rindpest htV-
ing disappeared In Europe, he advocates the
repeal or modification of the law prohibiting
the Importation of cattle.
He deprecates the introduction OF Coolies
for cotton production. "Such labor" he as
serts, .sis unskilled and far inferior 10 negro
labor, and will add TO the complications pro-
| duced by the jealouses and predjudices OF
faces differing i'm character, taste and tradi-
| titional customs"
The wool-growng interest, he tells us, in
| volving a capital OF hundreds OF millions and
underlying the prosperity OF American agri-
culture in degree scarcely appreciated by
| farmers themselves, has been saved from
| threatened annihiation,by the action of Con-
! gress in placing duty upon the foreign arti-
| Gle equivalent to the internal taxation endur-
ed by the wool-growers.