The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1896-12-05
THIRTEEN YEARS AT THE PRES
EMF RATE WILL WIPE
1T OUT.
INTERIOR I ANNUAL
REPORT.
PENSIONS, INDIAN LANDS AND
BOND-AIDED ROADS DIS
CUsSED BY FRANCIS.
LUMP SUM SETTLEMENT THE BEST.
Advice of the Secretary to Congress
Regarding the yexed Pacific
Debt Problem.


report of Secretary of the Interior
Francis was made public today 1t
deals with all the affairs of the various
branches of the interior department
during the past year and makes a
number of important recommendations
1t proposes a solution Of the vexed
problem of the bond aided roads, deals
exhaustively with the pension admin
lstrat1on, reviews the progress of the
Dawes commission negotiations and
touches upon various matters of espe-
c1al significance in the West
The report opens with a discussion
of the public domain. 1t shows that
the total number of acres disposed of
UP to June 80 last, was GAG, 600 600, leav-
ing public domain still vacant esti-
mated at over 600, 100000, not including
the district Of Alaska, with an area of
over 1863 100000 acres. Since the home
stead act was passed May 20, 1862, there
have been 162,S9l 1872 acres entered by
homestead settlers. Of this. almost.
l03,000.OOO acres will all be patented
when the legal conditions have been
made OF the remainder, $4,000. 900
acres represent entries Cancelled and
almost 100000 acres committed in
entries up to- date is 29,S20; patents to
railways and wagon roads. since the
first grant was made, reach S5.72s. ISL
acres. There also have been 335. 691, 1852
acres disposed of by pre-emption. cash
sales, scrip, locations military bounty
land warrants, town sites, desert
land, timber culture, timber and stone
entries, Indian allotments and dona-
lions to settlers.
There are yet due to railroads and
wagon roads, under their grants, ia
1S66S9 acres, of which not more than
oo per cent are available for patent
ing under the conditions Of the grants.
me total grants of lands to the vari-
Gus states and territories up to March
IL last, aggregated 1s1,86s,630 acres in
ADDITION to agricultural college scrip
LOT t'e3o,0OO acres The total Of all
lands segregated from the public do
main aggregates 946,219,160 acres. The
report says:
I'll In e. figures demonstrate that the coun-
tLy Is peing settled with great rapidly. and
tnat the public domain is being diminished
py great strldes. II the rate of disposition
ecr ene last thirteen years. which is 25 900 600
acres year, is continued for thirteen wears
20 come, there will be little of the public
domain outside of Alaska in possession of
"a ose government at the expiration of that time.
OF the ll4Q00,000 acres granted to railroads
put not patented, there can be no objection
10 transferring possession and control Of
i Mila. eyer porton has been earned by comply
irS Win the grants, and that may be avail
ap 2 hereunder ESTIMATED at 70 600 600 acres)
Win as much promntpess as possible: but
onoii these grants are adjusted, no additional
OLE eres should be made. During the wear IL
9zl io44 acres We're patented to railroads IN
DER congressional grants w
discussing forest reservations. tbe
report says no permits to cut timber on
puplle lands should be granted for anv
purpose other than to supply the naeds
OF actual settlers in the neigbborbood
OF the forests where timber is to be emf
ana should be accompanied nv all noe
sible safeguards. Of the Des Moines
river land claims. over Sill, 632 have
peen paid and the remainder
this calendar year Secretary
FRANCIS urges upon congress- The
necessity for legislation for the re
clamation and disposal of lands within
the arid regions. Unless the Carey act
could De amended SO as to give the
states power to pledge lands for their
reclamation, he says it would be better
to place the lands under the direction
OF the states only SO far as many be
necessary to secure their reclamation
for the benefit of actual settlers.
All applications made by persons who
had paid the double minimum price for
LANDS EAST OF DULUTH.
along the Northern Pacific railroad
grant to have the excess Of SIPS per
acre refunded; have been suspended to
await the final location Of the Eastern
terminus Of the Northern Pacific by
court OF competent Jurisdiction. The
department has been unofficially in
formed that a suit shortly will be
brought for that purpose.
The total amount paid by the govern
ment in pensions and the cost of dis
bursting the same for the last thirty-one
years is $2,094, S17, 769. This lacks only
a little over 1916, 712, 500 of being equal
to the high water mark of the interest
bearing public debt. The present num-
Der OF pensioners, which is 970,6 is
greater by 1866 than in 1893, when the
maximum annual cost was reached,
and Is greater than ever before. This
is due to the death of old soldiers and
the continued payment Of allowances
to their heirs, while the amount paid is
decreased through the death of invalid
pensioners leaving no dependents.
The pension policy Of the department
has been to make the pension list roll
Of honor, rather than to save money to
the government; the effect has been to
defeat the designs of impostors, while
recognizing the claims of the needy
and deserving. General public senti-
ment, however, is the obligation Of the
government is confined to those who
fought for it's maintenance and those
dependent upon them.
The total number Of our pensioners
in foreign countries is 1871, who last
year were paid 1852, 735. The commits
sicner of pensions has been directed to
accept from pensioners residing in Ger
many only such declaration and other
papers of claimants as may be made
before a United States minister or con-
sui, OF other consul officer of the Unit
ed States. The state department has
been requested to instruct representa-
tives abroad to make the nOtarial fee
% cents, a compensation in vogue here
Increase of some So to $12 per month IS
recommended for all wholly disabled
and destitute Mexican war survivors.
Under the head of Indian affairs the
secretary repeats the recommendation
of his predecessor for commission Of
three, one of whom shall be an army
officer, to take the place of the COM
missioner and assistant commissioner
of Indian affairs. With regard to the
dispute over the Uncompahgre Indian
reservation i'm Utah, in which valuable
deposits Of asphaltum have been dis
covered, Secretary Francis expresses
the opinion that the commission which
treated with the Indians for the allot-
ment Of their lands, totally misunder-
SlOOQ~ the agreement OF 1851 DyT winch
the Uncompahgre's were removed from
Colorado. The Indians declined to pay
$1.25 an acre for the lands allotted to
them, because they were led to believe
that the purchase money would come
out of their trust fund of 1,250, 000
which furnishes them $4,000 per an
mum. This is not the case. The pur-
chase money would not disturb the
trust fund. but would eventually come
out of the proceeds of the sale of their