, 1875-10-09
NEWS
BY Telegraph and Mail.

In Gen. Howard's recent re-
port to the war department he
shows that the government now
pays $4,000 per annum for u
monthly trips of a mail steamer
between Portland, Ogn., and the
port of Sitka, in Alaska. 1t gives
the half dozen officials of that
place the sole benefit of this gov
ernment expenditure, and is an ex-
.ceeding injustice to the inhabit-
ants of Kodiak, Ounalaska, Unga
and St. Michaels, all of which have
a thousand times more trade than
Sitka, and most Of them twice the
population. This $4,000 now
literally wasted would run a small
revenue steamer, and instead of
being a drain on the treasury
would result in law, order and
protection. 1t is also an unwar-
ranted waste of public money, this
moving the troops up to and down
from Sitka every two or three
years, with the increased cost of
their supplies counted in.
Secretary Bristow in his annual
report will strongly recommend
the repeal Of the law placing the
main land of Alaska under the In.
dian intercourse act, which would
transfer its care from the war to
the treasury department, as it was
in 1878. In giving the territory
good government, valuable inter
ests would be developed, such as
trade in sea otter and salmon fish
cries, the tax on which, in addition
to 1916, 900 received from the seal
fisheries, would give the govern
ment more than 6 per cent. per
annum of the cost of the territory.
Senator Mitchell has been sue
cessful in securing increased mail
facilities for eastern Oregon. He
has secured an executive order
giving the right of way for a wagon
road from Walla Walla to the
Meacham road.
Vice-President Wilson has been
counseled by his medical advisers
to abandon lecturing this season.
The State of Ohio has com
menced the erection of its build
ing on the Centennial grounds.
Similar ones will be put up by
Massachusetts,, Connecticut, New
York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania,
Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Mich
igan, Wisconsin Kansas and Mis-
souri,.
The attempt by government to
obtain the Black Hills is a failure.
The Indians are holding out for
fabulous sums.
The jury in the case of George
Miller, John Glew and Smith, the
Jefferson Border mutineers, who
have been on trial for the past
week in Boston, returned . YER
dict of guilty Of murder for Miller
and Smith. Glew was discharged.
Several Of the Union Pacific
Rsilway directors have proceeded
West for the purpose Of thorough
ly examining the Union Pacific
railway, and making improve
ments wherever feasible.
The agency of the Bank of Cal
ifornia in New York resumed pay
ment on October 1st.
A Washington special says a
clause in the Indian appropriation
bill last session authorized the sec
retary of the interior to remove
all bands Of Indians located on the
Alsea and Siletz reservations in
Oregon, and send them to defined
part of the public lands bounded
on the north by Salmon river and
on the west by the Pacific ocean.
There was, however, proviso
that the Indians should not be
removed without their consent.
Ben. Simpson, special Indian
agent, was detailed to effect their
removal, and he has telegraphed
to Washington that he has made
satisfactory arrangements with all
the Indians, aud that they were
now moving to the new reserya-
ton. As soon as their removals.
officially announced the land will
be thrown open to settlement un-
der the homestead and pre-emp.
ton acts
New regulations are to be made
to prevent smuggling. The diff.
Guilty now is that inspections are
made on deck When the steamers
land. This delay is often very
annoying, particularly to ladies.
Bristow directs to erect waiting
house for this purpose, at which
be will compel steamers to land. !
There is a good deal of appre-