St. Paul daily globe., 1886-10-10
THE LAND OFFICE.
Interesting Extracts From the Re-
nnrI OF Com : = iOner Sparks.

Interesting Extracts From the Re-
port OF COmmi ssiOner Sparks.
WASHINGTON, Oct 9.--Commissioner
Sparks, of the general land Office, has sub
mitted to the secretary of the interior his
report of the operations of his office for
the last fiscal year. AT the outset the COM
missioner says:
In nv previous report 7 referred to the
imperative need of reform in the adminiSrra-
ton of the public land laws, to the end of
protecting the public interest rather than
ministering to the advantage OF speculation
and monopoly, private or corporate. Inc
steady purpose in which nave
endeayored to reflect the aims of all good
men has been the protection of the public
domain and its preservation for inhao1tancy
hy actual culUivatOrs to whom 1t rlShttully
belongs The evidences of widespread per-
sistenl land robbery laid before YOU in my
last report were furnished By officers aud
agents appointed by the last administration.
The developments OF the past year under the
agencies of the new administration have
JUSTIFIED EVERY WORD SAID
in my last report. The sales, entries and
selections of public land under the various
acts of congress embraces 20,991 ,9G7 acres,
and of Indian lands 1.132,566, making
total of -, 124, ,56S acres, being an increase
over last year year of 1,l29,050 acres. The
bYaced 2.3o2, ,3T6 acres. In Dakota the east
ern half of the territory has been surveyed
except in portions along the International
boundary line of the Turtle Mountain region.
The surveyed area of this territory Is about
Il O00000 acres. IN Florida the surveyed
area is So 67S, SOS acres: IN Idaho, 1926, 4O9;
in Minnesota, AZ, S3l, ,SS7; in Nevada about
II, 800 900; in Montana, about lS,00OOOO; III
New Mexico, about 81, 100000. The area OF
surveyed land in Wyoming is estimated at
47.000,0O0 acres The country is occupied
chiefly by cattle companies, who control the
lands along the streams under desert ana
other entries.
TIE WORK OF THE OFFICE
is reviewed at length. showing that 9.O7S
cases of entries were investigated, OF whlcn
l. l6S. embracing IT'S, 900 acres, were can
ceIled as fraudulent and 1,4S5 cases. con-
tanning 225, 900 acres, have been held 1or
cancellation. The commissioner says his
attention has been called to 375, 600 unlaw-
full enclosures, containing 6,410, 600 acres,
and that proceedings to compel removal OF
fences have been recommended IN SS cases,
involving 2. $50, 900 acres, and hnal DEGREES
ordering removal obtained in 13 cases. III
volving 1, 900, 600 acres. Agents report o5
enclosures removed from 1874, S62 acres.
and A enclosures, covering $50. 600 acres,
removed without resort to the courts. In
several cases
NO AREA IS GIVEN,
and in one case the amount of fencing Is
stated at 130 miles. Two hundred and for
ty-seven cases, embracing $3.50, 600 acres,
are pending examination. The total area
over which fences have been or are being
removed is AHA, 926 acres, mostly IN Colo
RADIO. The report continues: "One thou
sand two hundred and nineteen cases OF
timber depredations have been reported, in
voiving value in timber and timber pro-
ducts amounting to SO, 339, 679, recoverable
to the United States" About 500. 600 OF
this has been recovered. ''Depredations
upon the public timber BY pow
erful corporations, wealthy mill own
erS, lumber companies and unScrupu-
lous monopollsts though to
certain degree checked, are still being COM
mitted to an alarming extent and great pub
lie detriment. The question of forest res
ervations, he says, is one of unqueS-
tonable Importance, he renews
the recommendations heretofore made.
The commissioner recommends that an act
be passed making false and fraudulent re-
turns of public surveys and of surveys OF
private land claims offenses, and punishable
by fines and Imprisonment. The recon-
mendation is also made that the law au-
thorizing surveys to be made under the
special deposits system be repealed.