The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1879-03-31
WASHINGTON.
GOVERNMENT SURVEYS.
Py@ visions Of the Act I'm Relation Thereto
which was Tackled On to the
suudry stvil Bill.
Especial TO the Democrat


WASHINGTON, March 2O.--The provisions
Regarding surveys, passed by sharp practice
Iduring the last hoHrs of the FortyAfth Cen
|gress, having been transferred bodily by q
conference committee from tho Legislative
bill, where they were defeated, tn the sundry
icivil bill, and forced through the Senate by
the certainty of otherwise losing the whoie
bill, upon close scrutiny appear simply as az
AUTHORITY 10, the Interior DepartEnent 70
|nroseoFte 81 geological survey, with mineral
I,oicas examinations and land classihcations
fadded. TO Che extent Of the approximations
|masso. Where or how the SURVEYS TO pro-
oeed. or V hat its real functions are, does not
aunear or is any limit fired in the law.
The Typographical surveys of the Interior,
with which the corps Ct Typographical en-
cipeers or the corps of engineers, as now Of
ths War Department have elways been
charged, are not trenched upon by the act
referred to, and properly 50, as experience
has thown In the extended surveys OF Eu-
.ropean countries, that geological and allied
tBve legations naturally follow the geodetic
and Typographical surveys using the maps
81 the latter as q base upon which 70 delin-
eete.their results. Hence the need here, more
than ever, for the typographical survey.
When the corps of Typographical engn-
ecrs' was merged with the engineers In
1868, the duties of the former were trans
ferred among them being that of exploration
and survey in the interior. Works of topo-
! graphical survey have proceeded at Intervals
during the last three quarters OF q century
under officers Of the engineers and other of1i-
GERS of the army, always assisted by civilians
TO the extent authorized by specific appropria-
tions; and the country is to be congratulated
that, out of the grand consolidation scheme
proposed by the National Academy, that had
for its object a concentration Of the entire
survey endeavor Of the government, to be
more or less elaborate, at the will
of the directors proposed in two
drectorships In the Interior Depart
ment-a department already overloaded
with organizations and duties 50 small a
part of the scheme proposed as that
Of geological Jurisdiction alone should
have finally assumed the form Of law. The
Geological Bureau, az it will doubtless be
called, takes UP n part OF the duties hitherto
absorbed by the Hayden and Powell surveys,
that lived by appropriations alone. With the
geographical features omitted, the Secretary
Of War Is not deferred from prosecuting such
military and geographical surveys, in pursu-
ance OF adequate appropriations, as are re-
Quired In connection with the movements and
operations OF the army looking to the ulti-
mate defense OF the soil. The topograph-
ical surveys that are necessary to carry out
the approved and extended current plans Of
this department can, as is believed, be con
tinued without interruption until there shall
result detailed Typographical map of the en-
tire public domain west of the Mississippi.