The Saint Paul globe., 1904-12-08

retary of the interior, says:
The past year has been one of much
executive achievement in all branches of
the service The reclamation service in
augurated under the act approved June
II, 1902 providing for the construction of
irrigation works and for the reclamation
OF arid and semi-arid lands in the West
ern states has been perfected and, un-
der surveys made by it, contracts have
been let for effectuating the Salt river
project, Arizona. the Uncempahgre valley
project. Colorado. the Minidoka project in
Idaho, and the Trucixee- Carson project in
Nevada in all twenty-ene contracts, COW
ering an expenditure of approximately
SO, ,270. 7S7. %. The work on these projects
Will be prosecuted most eXpeditiously.
There has also been tentatively allotted
for surveys and construction work for this
$23, ,699,642. and Investigations as to
way.
Nine additional forest reservations have
peen established by presidential procla-
nations; one reservation has been abolish
ed; four somewhat reduced in area: two
nave been enlarged. and two consolidated
into one: The management of the forest
reservations. in the main, has been salts
factory, but better administrative results
could, doubtless. be secured if this service
We're transferred to the supervision of rthe
secretary of agriculture.
Prosecuting consprators
The laws relating to the protection of
the public domain and the timber thereon
have been rigidly enforced, and con-
spiracy entered into between certain per
sons in California and Arizona looking to
the deffauding of the government of a
large acreage of public lands has been
defeated and the leading spirits therein
indicted. In addition seventeen residents
OF: Oregon have been indicted for con-
spring to defraud the government of pub
lie lands, forgery and other criminal acts
In connection with the requirement of
public lands; five of these have pleaded
gulity; one has been convicted and con-
vietions viii doubtless be obtained as a
result of the trial of the other cases,
which is now in progress.
The method adopted last year of So
netting bids for the sale of lands and the
purchase of timber thereon instead of
dispoSing of the same at public auction
was employed with creditable results in
the matter OF the sale of timber on the
Chippewa ceded lands in Minnesota as
well as in disposing of part of the lands
embraced in the Grand Ronde Indian res
eryation in Oregon. Satisfactory sale was
mad OF lands OF the Red Lake Indian res
eryatlon of Minnesota and the opening to
settlement and entry of the Rosebud In
DIAN lands in South Dakota the Devils
Lake lands In North Dakota and arid
lands OF Nebraska was successfully eff
fectuated
The first sales of timber on the Chippe-
va ceded lands in Minnesota, held at
Cass Lake, Mimi, on Dec. and 2S 1903,
under the system of sealed. bids estab-
lished by the act of June 27, 1902, known
as the Morris act, We're the most sue
CSoSlul SdtSS VI lndI character ever held,
both as to the quantity of timber sold
and the price received.
Equally successful was the sale under
the act of February 20, 1904 of Red lake
lands at Thief River Falls and Crooks
ton. Mimi, the opening to settlement
and entry of the Rosebud Indian lands in
South Dakota, the Devils Lake lands in
North Dakota, and the sale of the Grand
Ronde Indian lands in Oregon.
Disposal of Lands
TbaPn yUara dicnncad of, ,7,1ripcr tI7fa fcooJ
year ended June 30, 1904, public lands
aggregating 16.405, S21.95 acres, classified
as follows: Cash sales, 2,307, .73 acres;
miscellaneous entries, embracing home
steads. land warrants, scrip locations.
state selections, swamp lands, railroad
and wagon road selections, Indian allot-
ments, ETC., 13, 951, ,54821 acres, and Indian
lands, 146,92901 acres, showing decrease
of 6.418,477.70 acres as compared with the
| aggregate disposals for the preceding ifs
cal year.
year aggregate $9, ,2S3, ,341.9S, a decrease of
$1,741, 4O1.67 from the preceding fiscal
year.
The total expenses of district land offices
for salaries and commissions of registers
and receivers, incidental expenses and eX-
penses of depositing public moneys dur
ing the fiscal year ended June 80, 1904,
| were $S42, ,975.5 81, an increase, as compared
with the fiscal year ended June 80 19O3
of $14,112.S9.
Under Timber and Stone Act
Large areas of timbered lands, sought
to be entered under the timber and stone
act, having been surveyed upon affidayitS
of settlement and such settlement found
to be fictitious it was decided during the
last year to use the corps of examiners OF
surveys to investigate in the field all ap-
plications for surveys that alleged settle
ment, and the result has proven the wis
dom of the procedure.
In the timbered regions no real settle
ment to any extent was found, and in
7nct niJ1or hIJf will
furniture and destitute of means of
housekeeping was all that the examiners
could discover on the ground. The al
legged settlers, it was learned, lived in
distant towns and cities and were induced,
by promises of reward after the survey
to lend their names, evidently without any
intention to make their homes on the land
The investigation has thus far resulted
in materially checking the rapid abSorp-
tion by unscrupulouS persons of the val
liable timber now standing on the public
lands in the mountain districts.
The work of examining the lands in the
former Chippewa Indian reservation,
ceded under the act of Jan. IA, 1889, was
brought to a completion. March 81 last.
There were examined during the past year
725,S1S.9S acres, embracing lands in the
Pigeon river, Fond du Lac, Bois Fort,
Deer creek, Red lake and Chippewa Of
the Mississippi reservations. Of the total
lands examined $500 acres were classi-
fed as '|pine" lands, and the estimates
indicated that there are 172. AS, 900 feet Of
merchantable pine timber thereon.
There We're two sales of pine timber on
ceded Chippewa lands held at Cass Lake,
Mimi, in December last, AIS. 100000 feet
of timber being sold for 81, ,650, $685. or an
average of sc. 50 per thousand feet Twen-
ty per cent of the amount of the sales
has already been paid.
Instructions and schedules have also
been issued for the sale at Cass Lake.
Mimi, on November Is next, of the pine
timber on 116, 100 26 acres of "pine" lands,
estimated to contain 210,774.000 feet OF
timber and for the sale at the same place
on Nov H. 1904, of 95 per cent, of the
pine timber on 16.S33.96 acres estimated
to contain 12,967 900 feet of timber.
Logging Operations
During the past logging season there
We're cut from ceded Chippewa lands
45, $50 44S feet of timber, the price paid
being s26s 1878, or an average of $3.50
per thousand feet. The expense to the
Indians of logging said timber was $14.-
421.82, or a little over 5 p recent.
Logging operations have, except as to
about / 4oo 900 feet still standing, been
completed in the pine" lands on fifteen
of the school sections in the Red Lake
and White Earth reservations, embracing
6.912.23 acres, the timber on which was
sold at Crookston, MINI, on March 2,
1903 eOu these sections the scalerss re-
ports show that there were JIG, 6,495,58I feet
Of timber cut. These sections, except
as to one section examined in 1899. IN
which case the estimates and amount cut
are about equal, were examined IN the
wears 1893, 1894 and 1895, by government
estimators, who reported that there were
o,oIv n 15l 0OO feet thereon or about 90