The Black Hills union. [volume] (Rapid City, Pennington County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1889-1904, 1897-10-29

WASHINGTON Oct. 27.-In his annual
report Binger Hermann, commissioner
of the general land office, reports a
decrease of 3, 1858 original homestead
entries, aggregating 3T8,625 acres In
the entire disposal of public land
there was falling off of 5,37O, 4D6
acres The areas sold for cash reached
4l9,O52 acres and miscellaneous en-
tries aggregated 1894, 554 acres The
receipts from disposal of public lands
amounted to ST., 596 $50 and from dis
posal of Indian lands to $43s,716
There were 81, ,0s7 agricultural patents
issued, approximating 5, 1873, 800 acres.
There were patented or certified with
the effect of patenting for the benefit
of railroad companies, under Congress
sional grants, SOL ,969 acres. de-
crease of over 10, 600, 900 acres from the
previous year.
An approximate estimate of the
number of acres of vacant public lands
in the several states and territories at
the close of the fiscal year is as fol-
lows: Alabama 532, 339, Arizona "a, 400
2l1, Arkansas 3,922, ,O42, California, 49,
e41,044, Colorado 40,O57, 2oa, Florida
l,797.662 Idaho As, 962, S55, Kansas
1,046,5 $50, Louisiana s45, 02O, Michigan
522,431, Minnesota 6,24O, 900, Missis-
sippi AL, ,.2O, Missouri 4q7.b94, Mon
tana 7i,432,9l7, Nebraska jO,669, 1858,
Nevada 61,57s,5 $50, New Mexico 56,-
10
homa s,lo5,2as, Oregon $500, 31s,
South Dakota 10, 25o,7ls, Utah A, 2O5,-
07o, Washington II, 9is,5 Wisconsin
454, 107, Wyoming 49, 341, 5S8, Alaska
800, ,52y, 600. These figures do not in
clude the vacant land in military,
timber and Indian reservations,
reservoir sites, tracts covered by Sc
lections filings, railroad grants, ETC.
The report calls attention to the
necessity for legislative enactment,
either original or amenoatory of the
Carey act, which should tend to make
secure the capital invested in the re-
clamation of the arid lands Owing
to the recent financial depression, es.
pecially felt in the arid land states,
comparatively little advancement has
been made toward reclamation, but
ally and the more ready supply OF
money for investment purposes there
also has been revival of the former
interest in this subject.
The mining industry reached it's
lowest point during the past year,
but is now on the increase. In view
of the expected filing of many loca-
tions incident to the opening up of the
upper Yukon district the commissioner
favors the establishment Of another
land district in Alaska. Noting the
fact that numerous mining syndicate:
are already in the field, competing fo1
title to the many individual loca tion!
on the rich mineral discoveries il
Alaska, it is recommended that tn,
law be so amended as to prohibit the
including of more than one lode claim
or more than 100 acres of placer
ground in a single application o
entry.
There were $40 cases of depreds
tions on public timber reported in
volving $685., ,Ot4, recoverable to tn
government Nearly 800 permits hav
been issued to cut public timber sine
the passage of the permit law, wit
an established estimated amount {
timber thus allowed to be cut of 300
100000 feet Commissioner Herman
says: Large corporations and con
panies have secured permits at diffe
ent times to cut many millions of fee
notably the Big Blackfoot Millin
company, Bitter Root Deveiopin
company and the Anaconda Minir
company, all of Montana. Since n
Induction l have refused to allow an
license issued to use to exceed OF
auarter section, and any further qua
tity upon showing of the real nece
vity. At the present, timber dealer
yearly sweep vast quantities of timb
from the public lands in the intere
Of speculations without paying a dc