The record-union., 1894-12-04
Interior Department.

natural consequence such an equalization
of party benefits as will remove all
temptations TO evade or abandon it.
Interior Department.
The report Of the Secretary of the In
terror exhibits the situation of the
numerous and interesting branches OF
public service connected with his depart
ment. l commend this report and the
valuable recommendations of the Secre-
tary to the careful attention of Congress.
The public land disposed OF during the
year amounted to 1O, ,4OS, l0077 acres, in
Guiding IS, ,S67.05 acres of Indian lands. 1t
is estimated that the public domain still
remaining amounts to little more than
6OO,OOO,OOO acres, including, however,
about 800, 1000, 900 acres in Alaska, as well
as military reservations and railroad and
other sections OF lands yet unadiudi-
Gated The total cash receipts from sale
of lands amounted to S2,674.2S5 79 in
Guiding S9I. .9Sl 03 received from Indian
lands.
Thirty-five thousand patents were
issued for agricultural land and 300
patents were issued Indians on aliot-
ments OF their lands in severalty the
land so allotted being inaiienable
by the Indian allottees for period
OF twenty-five years after patent
There were certified and patented on ac-
count OF railroad and wagon road grants
during the year S63, ,556, 400 acres or land,
and at the close of the year 5000, 900
acres were embraced in the lists OF selec-
tions made by railroad and wagon road
companies and awaited settlement. The
sections of swamp land and that taken as
indemnity therefor since the passage of
the Act providing for the same in 1919
amount to nearly or quite ST. 800, 900 acres,
of which 5S,0O0,0 900 have been patented to
States. About l3S, 600 acres were patented
a va laSt 81
OF school and educational grants were
approved during the year. and at its
close ,250,363 acres remained uuad-
justed
1t appears that the appropriation for
the current year on account of special
service for the protection of the public
lands and the timber thereon is much
less than those for previous years, and in
adequate for an efficient performance of
the work. a larger sum of money than
has been appropriated during a number
of years past on this account has been
returned to the Government as a result
Of the labors of those employed in the
particular service mentioned, and | hone
1t will not be crippled by insufficient APP
preparation.
FOREST RESERVES.
l fully indOrse the recommendations Of
the Secretary that adequate appropriation
be provided for our forest reserves. and
that a comprehensive forestry system be
inaugurated. Such keepers and superin-
tendents as are necessary to protect the
forest already reserved should be pro-
vided.
l am of the opinion that there should be
an abandonment OF the policy sanctioned
by present laws under which the Gov
ernment for very small consideration is
rapidly losing title to immense tracts of
land covered with timber, which should
be properly reserved as permanent
sources Of the timber supply.
The suggestion that a change be made
in the manner of securing surveys of the
public lands is especially worthy OF con-
sideration. l am satisfied that these sur
veys should be made by a corps of COM
petent surveyors, under the immediate
control ana direction Of the Commissioner
of the General Land Office.
LAND CONTESTS.
An exceedingly important recon-
mendation of the Secretary relates TO the
manner in which contests and litigated
cases growing out of efforts to Obtain
Government lands are determined. The
entire testimony upon which these con-
troversies depend in all their stages is
taken before the local Registers and Re-
ceivers, and yet these officers have no
power to subpoena witnesses or to enforce
their attendance to testify. These cases.
NUNS Derlng tnree or 1Our thousand an
nually, 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 Registers and Receiy-
ers without an opportunity of thorough
personal examination. Nearly 1000 OF
these cases are appealed annually from
the Commissioner to the Secretary of the
Interior. Burdened with other inn
portant administrative duties his de-
termination of these appeals must be al
most perfunctory, and based upon the
examination of others.
Though this determination of the Sec
retary operates as final adjudication
upon rights of very great importance, |
concur in the opinion that the Commits
soner of the General Land Office should
be relieved from the duty of deciding
Iitigated land cases; that q non-partisan
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 de-
cisions of the department are now final.
The proposed court might be given au-
thority TO certify questions of law on mat
ters of special importance to the Supreme
Court of the United States or tho Court of
Appeals for the District of Columbia for
decision. The creation OF such tribunal
would expedite the disposal of cases and
insure decisions of more satisfactory
character. The Registers and Receivers