Warren sheaf. [volume] (Warren, Marshall County, Minn.) 1880-current, 1894-12-06
ton Of party benefits as will remove
all temptation to relax or abandon 1t.
The Public Domain.

ton Of party benefits as will remove
all temptation to relax or abandon 1t.
The Public Domain.
. The report Of the. secretary OF the interior
exhibits.Ihe situation of the numerous ana IN
teresting branches OF the public service con
report and the valuable recommendations OF
the secretary to the careful attention OF the
congress. The public land disposed Of during
including inc sss7s.o5 Of indian lands. It is
estimated that the public domain stlll
remaining amounts to little more Juan
900, 600 acres, including however, about
800 OOOOO0 acres in Alaska as we'll as military
and railroad and other selections
OF lands yet unadjudicated. 9The'total cash re-
ceipts from sale Of la Lar, Is to $40,
lands. Thirty-five Thousand patents were is
sued for agricultural lands and 3,lOO patents
were issued to Indians on allotments OF their
bss nsg9sbs b 9e s ae ho
lottees for period OF twenty-five years
after patent. They were certified and
road grants during the year. During the year
S05 S IS 45 acres of land and at the close OF the
year 900 acres were embraced In the lists
Of selections made by railroad and wagon-road
lections of swamp lands and that taken as in
demnity therefor since the passage OF the act
providing for the same in 1849 amount to
nearly or quite 85 BOY OoO acres, OF which bsG9o
900 have been pStented to states. About 49,
coo acres were patented during the last year.
Nearly $40, 900 acres OF school and education
grants were approved during the year. and at
It's close 1880 1868 81 acres remained unad]uSted.
Protec t:on OF the Lands.
It appears that the appropriation for the
current year on account OF special service for
the protection OF the public lands and the tim
Der thereon is much less than those for pre-
viouS years and inadequate for an efficient per-
Torrance of the work. A larger sum Of money
than has been appropriated during number
OF years past on this account has been re-
turned to the government as a result OF the
abors of thOsee employed in the. particular
service mentioned. and hope it will not be
crippled by insufficient appropriation. [ fully
that adequate protection be provided for our
forest reserves, and that u comprehensive for
estry system be inaugurated. Such keepers
and superintendent as are necessary to pro-
tect the forests already reserved should be
provided. L am Of the opinion that there
should be an aban9 comment OF the policy sane
toned by present laws under which the gov
eminent for very small consideration is rap
idly losing title 10 immense tracts of land COW
cred with timber which should be properly re-
served as permanent sources Of timber supply.
A Land Court Needed.
An exceedingly important recommendation
OF the secretary relates to the manner in
which contests and litigated cases growing out
of efforts to obtain government land are deter
mined. The entire testimony upon which these
controversies depend in an their stages is
and yet these officers have no power to subpoena
witnesses or to- enforce their attendance to
testify. These eases, numbering 5000 or 1000
annually, are sent by the local officers to the
commissioner OF the general land Office for his
action. The exigencies of his other duties
oblige him to act upon the decisions Of the reg
thorough personal examination. Nearly 3,00)
of these cases are appealed annually
from the commissioner to the secretary OF the
interior BurIeGed with other important adj
,ictv dot M nf
appeals must be almost perfun tory and
based upon the examination OF OF ers. though
this determination of the secretary operates
as final adjudication upon rights OF ve:y
great Importance. concur in the opinion
that the commissioner Of the general land
office should be relieved from the duty OF de-
Gliding Irrigated land cases; that nonpartlsan
court should be created to pass on such cases.
and that the decisions of this court should be
final, at least so far as the decisions Of
the department are now final.
Al.otmcnts In Severalty.
I have always believed that allotments of
reservation lands to Indians in severalty should
be made sparingly or at least slowly and with
the utmost caution In these days when white
agric uiturlsts ana stock ralsers OF experience
ought not to expect Indians. unless far ad-
Vanced in civilization and b bits Of industry,
to support themselves on t,e small tracts OF
land usually allotted to them. IF the Self-sup-
porting scheme by allotment fats the wretched
pauperism of the aHottees which results Is
worse than their original condition Of regu-
lated dependence; 1t is evident that the evil
Consequences of i'll advised allotments are in
tenSified in cases where the false step cannot
be retreated on account OF the purchase by the
government OF re servation lands remaining
after allotmentS are made and the disposition
OF such remaining lands to settlers or pur-
chaserS from the government.
Honesty in Dealing with the Indians.
Whenever allotments are made and any In
dian on the reservation has previously settled
ttvata1 shown n
position to improve it in any way, such lot
should certainly be allotted to him and this
should be made plainiy oblig !tory by statute.
In the light Of experience, and considering the
uncertainty of the Indian situation and its ext
gencies in the future. !! am not only dis
posed to be very cautious in making al
the secretary OF the interior in the
opinion that when allotmentS are made the
balance of reservation land remaining after
allotment. instead OF being bought by the
settlement with such scandals and unfair
practices as seem unavoidable, should remain
for time at least as common land or be sold
by the government on behalf OF the Indians in
an orderly way and at fixed prices, to be deter
mined by it's location and desirability. and
that the proceeds. less expenses. should be
held in trust for the benefit Of the Indian pro-
prietor.
: Indian Schools.
The Intelligent Indian school management
of the past year has been followed by crafty
Ing results. nave O6eu maze TO aQ-
vance the work in sound and practical man
ner. Five Institutes Of Indian teachers have
been held during the year and have proved
very beneficial through the views exchanged
and methods discussed, particularly applicable
to Indian educat on. : Efforts are being made
in the direction OF IA gradual reduction OF the
number Of Indian contract schools. so that in
a comparatively short time they may give way
altogether to government schools, ANA it is
hoped that the change may be so gradual as to
be perfected without too great expense to the
government or undue disregard OF investments
made by those who have established and are
maintaining such contract schools.
The appropriation for the current year end
ing June 30, 1895. applicable to the ordinary ex-
6os 49, being less by 1888, 40 81 than the sum
appropriated on the same account for the pre-
vious year.
Pensions.
At the close Of the last fiscal year. on the
Both of June, 1894, there were $50 54i persons on
our pension rolls, being a net increase Of 3,532
over the number reported at the end Of the
previous, Year: These pensioners may, be
survivors of all wars. 753,968; widows and rel
atives OF deceased soldiers. 215.162: army
nurses in the war Of the rebellion, Ala OF
these pensioners 2O39 are surviving soldiers
of Indian and other wars prior to the late civil
war, and the widows and relatives OF such SOL
diers The remainder, numbering 937505. are
receiving pensions on account OF the war Of
the rebellion. and Of these 46s3H are on the
rolls under the authority of the act of June 81,
$780, sometimes called the pendent pension
law. The total amount exp led for pensions
during the year was S139 81 s,4Sl 05, leaving an
unexpended balance from t lie sum appropri-
ated of $685. 1895. The sum necessary to
meet pen sion expenditures for the wear ending
June 80, 1895, is estimated az $40 100000.
Pension Frauds.
The barefaced and extensive pansion frauds
exposed under the direction of the courageous
and generous veteran soldier now at the head
of the bureau leaves no room for the claim
that no pnrgatton Of our pension rolls was
needed or that continued vigilance and p.onpt
action are not Necessary to the same end. Tho
that an effort to detect pension
frauds is evidence OF unfriendliness towards
our worthy veterans, and q denial OF their
claims to the generosity OF the government.
suggests an unfortunate Indifference to the
commission Of any orense which has for its
motive the securing of a pension and indicates
q willingness to be blind to the existence Of
mean and treachefouS crimes which play upon
demagogic fears and make sport of the patri-
otto impulse of a grateful people
Eleventh Census.
;. The completion of the eleventh census is now
in charge OF the commissioner Of labor. The
total disbursements on account OF the work
for the fiscal year ending June 80, 1894,
amounted to s10,3j5,67681. At the close OF the
year the number Of persons employed in the
census Office was $40. At PRESENT there are
about 40l. The whole number OF volumes nee
ess sry to comprehend the eleventh census will
be twenty-five and they will contain 1920
printed p,geS. The assurance is confidently
made that before the close OF the present cal
endar year the material still incomplete will