The times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1882-1897, 1886-03-26

presumption, homestead, or timber-culture
laws II the laws have been complied with
| according to the established constructs ms
OF the laws at the time the original entries
were made. For years past the laws have
been very literally construed I'm the general
land Office. Commissioner Sparks Is pro-
t,cting the public interest by constituting
the laws strictly The result Is that some
claimants to public lands have been re-
fused patents on the ground that they had
not complied wi h the law, when they had
complied with the law as 1t was construed
| when they made tn 'ir entries. For example,
| the law provides for the location of tree
| claims on lands devoid OF timber. The land
| officials have been constituting the phrase
| 'uevOid of timber" TO mean mot heavily
| timbered." If the land only had scattered
trees, or trees along the .water-courses, or
not sufficient timber for a the uses of the
settler, the land office has been constituting
| 1t MS land devoid of timber. The resu 10
! that III many cases man has taken up
under tree Claim pretty well timDered
| piece or land, and then perfected his title
| To II without adding any more trees to II.
Commissioning Sparks ruling Is needed to
prevent frauds OF This kind. But on the
other hand, there are cases where men have
located timber claims Oh lands where few
trees were growing along the water-cOurseS
or scattered over the surface, and have hon
estly SIT out and cared for trees, and are
now Informed that they cannot have pa
tents because they located their claims on
lands that were not devoid of timber. Com
missioner Sparks has explained That he did
not intend To have his decision retroactive,
but IL is nevertheless eau ing some incOn-
venience to settlers who filed their claims
under more lax administration of the
laws. As they have in good faith complied
with the laws as construed when they flied,
II is proposed now that they shall not be
impeded in getting their patents.
Upon motion of Mr.. Van Wyck the senate
to-day took up the bill. Mr.. Plumb sug-
gested that an amendment be made de-
clal ing that the measRr,, snail not apply to
scrip entries. Mr.. Van Wyck accepted the
amendment, and the bill then passed.
House.
MARCH lT.-This was not busy day in
the HOuS'. A number of bills were reported
from committees but as a rule were OF
minor import. Mr.. Bur les, of Missouri,
from the Committee on Appropriations re-
pOr,ed back the urgent deficiency apprO-
priation bill with Senate amendments.
Concurrence was recommended in several
amendments, and in several others nOncOn-
cuirencr, among them one approprlating
So, 600 to pay expenses attending the fun
eral of General Grant. The committee
found neither law nor C institutional author
ity for this appropriation, but 1t had found
presidents, and felt constrained to recon-
mend an appropriation for all legitimate
expenses approved by General Hancock.
Some items of expense amounting to
$1,000 or 80, CO. bill of the New York mill
tia, the committee think Congress could not
allow wit hout allowing the bills OF the mill
tia which had come from Massachusetts,,
New Jersey, and Chicago. The military
pended over S1O,CO II. sending militia to
New York, and yet Massachusetts had
asked no return, and the graf city of Chi
cagO had declined to present any bill on
this occasion. The report of the Committee
on Appropriations was then agreed to.
the house committee on coinage, weights,
and measures to-day considered PROPOSE
tons looking to the redemption of the trade
dollar A tie vote resulted OH q motion to
redeem the trade dollar in subsidiary coin
instead of standard dollars. The anti-sil-
yer men carried q proposition TO have The
amount of trade dollars redeemed come out
of the monthly silver bullion purchases.
Several members of the committee were abb
sent, however, and the whole subject was
finally deferred until future meeting.
MARCH 1S.-The house went into COM
mittee of the whole (Mr. TOwnshend, of
Illinois in the chair on the Indian appro.
priation bill. The consideration of the bill
dragged drearily along, no amendments Of
any Importance being offered, and such as
were offered being usually ruled out on
points of order after long and embarrassing
discussion. After finishing fOrty-two OF
the fOrty-eight pages OF the bill the COM
mittee rose and the house adjourned.
Mr.. Maybury of the house committee
u
bill changing the phraseology of the pro-
vision in the bill subjecting.the wooden ar
ticles placed on the tree list to an import
duty when the country from which they
are imported levles an export duty, and his
substitute was accepted. 1t was stated
that the provision was intended to cause q
relaxation of the export duty now levied
upon Canadian logs sent into the United
States. The free list was then adopted as
it stands in the bill, with the exception of
Indian corn, hay, and oats, which were
stricken from the free list.
MARCH ia determined effort was
made to-day by the friends of the Blair ed
ucati0nal bill, under the lead of Represen-
tative " ills, to secure some action Oh that
or a kindred measure at the hands of the
house committee on education. Last Mon
day Mr.. Wise introduced an educational
bill, which was referred to the committee.
AT the meeting to-day, by unanimous con-
sent, the proceedings of the last meeting
ject was postponed until the latter part of
ApriD were reconsdered, and the subject
was reOpened. Mr.. Burnes, of Missouri,
moved that the consideration of all educa-
tiOnal bills be postponed until the. third
substitute that the Blair bill be considered
next Friday. That motion was lost by a
vote of 4 TOT.
Mr.. Willis then moved that the Blair bill
be considered on the third Monday in April,
Will tIlc tlldJ ~ NOlc SIOuU
be taken after q daily discussion of not
more than six days. This motion was also
lost, and as final effort to secure the sense
of the committee OH the subject, Mr.. Willis
moved TN It the committee agree to report
an educational bill. That proposition was
also voted down. 1t is now the intention
of the friends of the Blair bill to go to the
house armed with resolutions voted down
to-day, and ask to have the committee dis
charged from further consideration of the
bill.
MARCH, 20-In the House Mai. Strait in
tr0duced bill to forfeit lands granted to aid
in the construction of railroads. 1t provides
that all rights to any of the public lands
heretofore granted to any State or Terrific
ry, or to any corporation to aid in the con-
struction of the railroads that have not
been earned by the construction of the
same, are hereby declared forfeited to the
United States; and said lands are hereby
restored to the public domain, and shall be
subjected TO disposition and settlement UNI
der existing laws for the disposal of public
lands.
The House Committee on Public Lands
to-day recOnSdered the bill previously
agreed upon to repeal the timber culture
Y,rn nd 10 A