The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1879-11-12
GOVERNMENT LANDS.
Annual Rep0rtofIhe General Land Office
Large Increase Of Homestead En-.
tries.


Annual Report OfIhe General Land Omc
Large Increase Of HOmeatead Er.
tries.
WASHINGTON, November 1.-THE an
nual report OF the General Land Office hal
been handed into the Secretary Of the In
terror. 1t shows that during the tlsca
year ended June 3Oth last, O,S3S, ,S53 acre.
otpublic lanlls were disposed Of, and o.,
4si, 1896 acres were surveyed in addition tc
7S,5ol,2 ,25G acres previously surveyed
The total number OF acres Of public do.
main still unsurYeyed Is about / $40, ,OOO,.
900 acres. The disposals were mainly az
follows: Homestead entries, 5,266ll1
acres, timber culture entries, 9,7GO,574
acres; cash entries, 2,574 acres; inClud-
ing 1857 ,00G acres entered under the desert
land law; grants to railroads, 27S, ,334
acres; swamp lands patented 10 States,
16,3SS acres; other grants to States, 1885,.
3O2 acres; the amount OF land surveyed
during thelast fiscal year exceeded by 4ll,.
7B0 acres the total area surveyed In the
preceding twelve months, while tho
report shows falling off OF 77300O acres
in cash sales OF State selections, scrip loca.
tions and lands patented for railroad
grants.
The increase in the area taken I'm BY
settlers under the homestead and timber
culture laws has been sufficient not only
to counterbalanCe this falling of, but to
make the aggregate disposals for the yoar
greater by Oh, ,2O4 acres than the total for
previous year. The increase in the home
stead entries is S4l .7GG acres, and In tim
Der culture entries s06,l30 acres. Owing
to the existing laws for the disposal Of
public lands for homestead and timber
culture, 1t is shown that during the last
fiscal year with'the large disposal OF land,
there were received from all sources ST.
SS3, Is less by Sl30, ,4lS than the amount
received during the fiscal year ending June
80, 1873.
Referring 10 the absolute Shawnee lands
and the Miami lands In Kansas, the Legis.
laure is recommended to provide for dis
posing OF such portions thereof US remain
vacant, for the reason that frequent appli-
cation Is made for permission to enter
these tracts by parties occupying them,
which In the absence Of the proper legis-
ton can not De given.
Owing to the general opinion that the
present appraisement OF the Detroit arse.
nal grounds, with the improvements made
under the act OF March Sd, 1875, is too
high, resulting in few sales being made.
The report recommends that new ap.
praisement be made, and after the lots are
offered at public sale any remaining un.
sold be disposed ut not less than their
appraised value.
The Acting Commissioner reports that
under the various acts OF the Forty.fifth
Congress, and with the aid Of the appro.
priation OF the $4,000 granted last March
for the protection Of timber on the public
lands, efforts have been continued 10 sup.
press depredations, but they are vet
extensive, and the interests of the
Government and those OF the people
now residing or who may desire to
settle in the region OF tho public
timber lands require that they should be
still pursued with unremitting earnest
ness and yigor. In Arkansas alone the
annual loss'to the government by the dc.
OF valuable timber is estimated
at not less than 100000. A large amount
OF lumber has been recovered and consid-
cradle money received as compromises on
suits brought by the government against
the timber deprcdators and many other
suits still pending in Michigan and else
where. Along the northern National
boundary line extensive depredations are
reported to have been committed upon
our public timber lands by tho Canadians.
These cases are now under investigation.
The powers of the Department arc SO en-
ieebled by limited appropriations for de-
tecting and Furnishing timber >trespassers
that but tithe OF the plumber and
destruction OF timber on the public
domain can now be prevented, and there
is great necessity for more prompt and
vigorous action on the part Of the Govern
ment than it has heretofore taken for the
protection OF its interests.
In conclusion, the Acting Commissioner
adverts to the necessity Of employing q
large number Of clerks, and embraced
among them men OF experience and abli-
ty, and in this connection he calls attcn-
tion to the insuiIiciency oil existing pro.
visions 10 meet the requirements OF this
branch Of the public service. He says it
is certainly time that adequate measures
were taken and adopted to bring this
Office into proper condition for disCharg-
ing promptly and efficiently the difficult
and important duties deyolving on 1t un-
der the laws OF Congress.