The daily morning journal and courier., 1903-12-17


 abused, particularly by certain United States commissioners who have been parties to wholesale frauds in connec- ton with entries allowed on affidavits made before them, some of which cases have been reported for proper proceed ings against the guilty parties"
 MT. Hitchcock indorses the land com missioner's recommendation for the re- peal of the timber and stone act and the | communication clause of the homestead act. The Desert land act, also, he l thinks, should be repealed, unless it is amended by cutting out the provision permitting assignment of entries before | final proof. ...... .i.. INDIAN AFFAIRS.
 The total Indian population of the | United States remains about the same as last year, approximately about 270,- GOO, of which the five civilized tribes and New York Indians embrace about ninety thousand, leaving about 1S0000 occupying 156 reservations, containing | 55, ,127, 900 acres outside of the Indian 1 territory and the state of New York. The policy of requiring Indian allottees to work portions of their allotments has been continued during the year, thus, by l their industry, largely contributing to their support. Indians were largely employed during the year in the agency and field service, as harnessmakers, shoemakers, blaeksmiths, herders, butchers, teamsters, polce and Ike oe- equations, and in the school service as nurses, matrons, clerks, cooks. laun- dresses, and as industrial and other ! teachers, whose salaries aggregated nearly $500. 1000. ..-.. 1 The amount appropriated by the Indi- an appropriation act for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1904, is $S,521, ,306.77. For the fiscal year ending June 30. 1903, the sum of 9,132, ,02S.10 was appropriated, and in the general deficiency act of March 8, 1903, the additional amount of s4o,245 was appropriated, making the total appropriation for the fiscal year 1903 $9,172,27310. During the fiscal year 1903 there were in operation 257 Indian schools, as against 249 the previous year.
 By reason of the increased appropria- tion for the fiscal year 1908 (s15o,000) the irrigation work on the various reserva- tions has been considerably extended. | PENSIONS. ..m i The report of the commissioner of pensions shows that during the fiscal year ended June 30, 1903, the total num- Der of pensioners on the roll was 1,o4S,- 393, net loss of 2,sO1 from the previous year. s<.-... ,
 l The gains to the rolls during the year were 40,OS6 new pensioners and 4,401 restorations and renewals, total of { HAST; of this number 2s1 were pen stoned by special acts of congress-. The losses to the rolls during the same time by death were 40,9o7 and from oth- CT causes, 6,4S1, a total of 47,3sS. net loss for the year of 29o1, The number of deaths of soldier pensioners for the year was g, ,123, and of this number 27,- S42 were volunteers of the civil war. The pension roll at the close of the year contained the name of 723,732 soldiers 5 2671S9 widows and dependents, and 624 aramy nurses.
 In 1893 the cost of the pension system per one thousand dollars of the aggre- gate wealth of the United States was s224, while in 1903 it had decreased to ' $232 The commissary expresses the opinion that in ten years the pension system will cease to be noticed as a
 burden. to the people of the United
 States.
 PATENTS.
 The report of the commissioner of pa
 tents on the business of the patent of flee for the fiscal year ended June 30, 1905 shows that there were received during that year 49,199 applications for
 letters patent, S01 applications for de- s signs, 156 applications for reissues, 1,T67
 caveats, 2530 applications for trade
 marks, 1,2OS applications for labels, and l S62 applications for prints. There were 29,S92 patents granted, in c1uding reis-
 sues and designs, and 2,194 trade marks,
 910 labels and 233 prints were registered. The number of patents that expired
 was 2S,S90. The number of allowed ap- plications which were, by operation of law, forfeited for non-payment of the final fees, was 4760. The total receipt . of the office were s1591, ,251,04, the total
 expenditures were $1, 1,423,094.4o, and the surplus of receipts over expenditures, being the amount turned into the treas ury, was $16s, ,15664. The commissioner s report shows that the business of the
 patent office is growing rapidly, the in- ' crease from 1899 to 1903 having been about thirty-two per cent, while the 5 number of employees during the same
 period was increased only eight per cent. The commissioner states that the 5 increase in the business of the office
 renders necessary the establishment of , new division, and asks that appropri- } ation be made for the salary of a new chief of division and assistant, at the l coming session of congress, as we'll as $ for ten additional clerks.
 , EDUCATION.
 The number of pupils in the common } schools enrolled during the year was : 15,925, 1887, the same being POPS per cent l of the entire population, estimating the , same at 7s,544,S16. The average daily : attendance for 1902 was 10999,273, the l same being sixty-nine per cent. of the total number enrolled. This is the largest average attendance on the s number enrolled ever reported in the
 United States. The average monthly { wages of teachers is given at $49.05 foi l men and $39.77 for women, slight in. crease over the previous year.
 l ST. PAUL'S CHURCH RECToRATE