The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1894-12-07
INTERIOR DEPARTMENT.
Items of Interest Cleaned from the Report
of Secretary Smith-Pensions.

of Secretary smith-Pensions.
WASHINGTON, Nov. 3O.-The annual
report of Secretary Hoke. Smith, of
the interior department, deals largely
with Indian affairs and he presents
some practical suggestions for the de-
velopment and civilization of the
Indians
Upon the subject of allotments he
saws:
do not question the advisability OF allJtting
land TO Indians in severalty. but do most seri-
ously question the propriety OF this course be-
fore the Indians have progressed sufficiently
to utilize the land when taken The allotments
should be made to the Indians in seyeralty for
the good of the Indians. for the advancement
Of the Indians. not for the purpose of obtaining
land connected with the Indian reservations to
satisfy the Unsuitable desire of the bordermen.
who obtain It frequently not for homes, but for
speculation.
The secretary then states his views
as to how the Indian should be edu-
Gated. and, although opposed to sec
tartan schools. he says:
II would scarcely be just TO abolish them en-
tirely. to abandon policy so long recognized
Ny own suggestion Is that they should de-
crease at the rate of not less than 20 per cent.
year This Is the policy which i now con-
trolling the department. and unless it is
changed by legislation il will continue. The
decrease in the amount allotted for the present
fiscal year Is ~ per cent.
Secretary Smith next takes up the
general land Office, the bureau only
second in Importance to the Indian
office. He recommends a change in the
system of surveying and the establish
ment of land court in the interior de-
partment. The present system of sur
veying the public lands is criticized as
slow and defective mode of procedure.
Referring to the protection of forest
reserves. the secretary SAYS:
On account Of the small appropriation for
special agents il has thus far been impossible
TO detail any Of them for the protection OF tie
immense forest reserves which have from time
TO time been created Practically. this great
extent Of reserve land i no more protected hy
the government than are unreserved lands of
the United states. the sole difference being
that they are not subject TO entry or other di.-
poSal under the public land laws.
Congress is urged to make sufficient
appropriations to employ at least one
superintendent on each reservation and
upon the larger reserves to provide
sufficient force of assistants to prevent
public property from being wantonly
destroyed.
The report shows that the entire
number of pensioners upon the rolls
June 50. 1884,. was 900. 544. The esti-
mate for the fiscal year 1896 is $40. OOO,-
900. Pensioners added to the roll dur
ing the year were 59,O5j: number
dropped. 1881.
The greater part of the cases now
pending in the bureau are old cases.
Many of them have been pending for
years. and have been examined one or
more times prior to the present admin
istration. Upon examination it has
been found, in many instances. that
proof was not sufficient to sustain a
pension. The attention of the appli-
cants having been called to the defect
in some cases, efforts have been made
20 supply the needed testimony.