The evening times. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1895-1902, 1901-08-30
WORK Oh The LAND OFFICE
An Abstract of the Annual Report
Soon TO BE Issued.
over Fifteen and II Half Millions Of
Acres Disposed Of During the Last
Fiscal Ycar-ThC Cash Receipts
Nearly Five Million Dollars.

The annual report Of the General Land
Office viii soon Doe ISSUED. Conditions dur
ing the fiscal year have been more than
Satisfactory To the officials. The follow
ing abstract of the report has been fur
nished by COMMISSIONS Hermann:
This report embraces tabulatsd state
ments showing tha business done i'm tho
district land ofiC.s ia i'm number. with
reports from the surveyors general. mum
bering -. Swing particulars of operations
in their respective districts during the
fiscal year. and also q showing of business
transacted by the ,ario.s divisions Of this
bureau ami with II the history Of the field
service in Expectations. surveys, and for
estry work
when. in my last annual report. / call
ed attention To- tlso remarkable showing
made in tho tabuIatpd etataGa.ut- Of work
then done in this oaicc-of lands disposed
of and cash received for that year-and
which far exceeded the record for many
years preceding. I confidently believed a
maximum had been reached. The cash
receipts Were then et$79.75S. an increase Of
l,3g9,G2l over the previous year 1Sa0. and
an increase of S-.1Ji.7.5 over that Of the
year 1888. The land disposals il was
shown were then -. i53.NA7 acres for that
year G31O. as against gIS2.a13 acres for
the previous year GCG or an increase
exceeding 100000 acres. OF homestead
entries then S.47S.49 acres We're shown in
that report as against C,l-75S7 acres for
the year before.
THE present report for the fiscal year
just closed G99D. greatly surpasses the
exhibit above rccaTitulatcd- There were
s,4sS more final homestead entries made
during the year just closed and covering
1.1So.52S more acres than for any one var
since the passage Of the Homestead act
CMay 20. 1s69. almost forty years ago:
nearly one-fourth as many final entries Of
homest,ads and acres in this year just
closed as in the entire nineteen years fol-
lowing that law.
= The record Of original homestead en-
tries made by settlers on the public do
main the past year is almost as great
a surprise, These entries numbered 6S.G
and covered 9f9I.2I5 acres, an increase
over the great year before of 1873 entries,
and an increase Of LOIS. sec acres.
''In original homestead entries final
homestead entries. and commuted home
stead entries made last fiscal year, there
We're lll.39) entries in all, and these en-
braced 15.455. Cj5.+5 acres for actual bona
nda homes 10 American settlers
"In almost as great a proportion has
other business Of the General Land Office
kept in advance OF the past prosperous
year. Communications received were
232.2i1 as against 1926 the year before
ar increase Of sG9S6. Decisions and let
tiers written numbered 1912 as against
1888 the year before. an increase Of "a
go
THE amount OF land disposed Of during
the last year is 1855. $3.50 acres, showing
faF-P
the aggregate Of disposaIs for the fiscal
year ended June 20. 1870. namely. T. IS. SS7.9j
acres. These figures co not include final
entries the area Of which has been report
cd in previous years as original entries.
The cash receipts are equally astonish-
ing. as they amount to nearly five million
Of dollars CS4.972. 800, exec edinS the high
water mark OF the last year by $50. 402. %.
and exceeding the total cash receipts Of
this office for the fiscal year 1891 by 2.SS4.-
ZZ9- The total cash receipts for that year
were S2.OS-.gal
NO single year within the past ten
years has witnessed so large a sum re-
ceived on disposals II public lands as dur
ing the year just closed.
Attention is especially invited 90 the
cash receipts arising from depredations
upon public lands. compromises. fines,
etc, which for the past year. aggregated
l.J13.Sf as against SIS. O35-25 for the pre-
viOuS ysIr. OF an increase Of S2552S-5g thus
indicating increased vigilance on the part
Of the special agency force.
'Subtracting from the total cash re-
ceipts during the fiscal year the amount
expended and contracted for I'm maiute-
nance of the entire land and forest adj
ministratiou. there remains "a net surplus
In the Treasury Of $3.l5S.til6
Special Efforts are eNerted by this Of
nee to finally close NJ the swamD-iand
claims which still remain Of the different
States and which for many years have
beeen 4 great source OF contention. The
department has been OccasiCued uncea5-
ing trouble and expense In adjusting the
numerous doubtful claims which have
been filed for recognition Last year 2I5,-
9b3-s6 acres were patented as against gS-
1876 the year before. being an increase
Of lI.bhj-5b acres These were swamp
lands in place. Swamp indemnity claims
rejected last year embraced fe2.sD0 acres
as against $500 acres rejected the wear
previous, or an Increase Of rejected claims
covering $3.50 acres
An excellent showing is also made in
the public domain In the past year these
embraced $50. So acres as against T.551. 2s2
acres the previous year, or an increase
OF about 10 per cent
w hen proof is completed on an aDpli-
cation for public land-whether il be min
erdl, agricultural. cumberland. or Sc
lection on the part Of the State or a cor
poT4upn upon some grant. the demand
Is i1sistent that patent issue and thar
TUE may be confirmed early in the
Claimant. Therefore strenuous Efforts
have been made TO expedite the issuance
or patents. and accordingly there were
issued the past year fI.4G8 patents as
against A,3H the previous year. an in
crease Of 13.0Gl
In this connection 10 will also be in
teresung 20 note that i'm patents on rail
road selections under grants by Congress
there were 2.f70 s0f.55 acres patented the
past year as against 12T.572GS acres the
year previous. being an increase Of I Ig2 -
Z5l-y9 acres; and Of waEOurOad selections
there were patented last year IGJ 547.Ig
acres as against y .50l52 acres Of the pre-
vlous year, an Increase of 1Oi. 045 81 acres
on the other hand there were 81 5a5 II
acres of railroad selections Cancelled dur
ing the year. as against 8. y3004 acres the
year prior. and there We're received Sc
lections covering 32S5.67GI4 acres as
against selections for ISL. Sl47I received
the year pr vIOus-
There waTe certified 10 the several
States and Territories during the fiscal
year ended June 30. 1901. lists Of lands Sc
lected by them and approved by the Sec
rotary OF the Interior to the amount OF
.2f5.5l$.s2 acres. showing an increase dur
ing the last fiscal year Of 81. $40. s. acres 90
YOUNG BRIDE A BIGAMIST.
Made Confession when Her Hus-