El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1910-12-06

special official stamps and stamped en-
velopes for the various forms of franks
now used to carry free of postage the
vast volume of departmental and con-
gressional mail matter,
Parcels Post.
With respect to the parcels post, L
Respectfully recommend.it adoption on
all rural delivery routes, and that II
pounds-the international limit-be
made the limit of carriage in such post
Peary.
The complete success of our country
in arctic exploration should not remain
unnoticed For centuries there has
been friendly rivalry in this field OF
effort between the foremost nations
and between the bravest and most &C
compliShed men The unparalleled
achievement of Peary in reaching the
North Pole. April 6, 1909, approved by
critical examination of the most expert
scientists, has added to the distinction
Of our navy. TO which he belongs, and
reflects credit upon his country
recommend fitting recognition by con-
gress of the great achievement OF Rob
ert Edwin Peary-
Appeals In Land Cases.
The secretary of the interior recon-
mends a change of the law in respect
to the procedure in adjudicatinS claims
for lands by which appeals can De
taken from the decisions of the depart
ment TO the court of appeals OF the DIS
trict of Columbia for a judicial consld-
Grafton of the rights of the claimant
This change finds complete analogy in
the present provision for appeals from
the decisions of the commissioner or
patents The bill is pending. 1 believe,
in the house having been favorably re-
ported from the committee on public
lands and I recommend its enactment
Reclamation.
The total sum already accumulated
in the fund provided by the act for the
reclamation of arid lands is about s6s--
449 05S, and OF this, all but S6,Z41O5S
has been allotted to the various projects,
of which there are 80. / appointed a
board of army engineers to examine
the projects and to ascertain which are
feasible and worthy CT completion That
board has made a report upon the sub
ject which / shall transmit in separ-
ate message within few days
We haxe. excluding Alaska forests.
total of about $4,000, coo acres Of for
ests belonging TO the government which
are being treated in accord with the
principles of scientific forestry. The
law now prohibits the reservation OF
any more forest lands in Oregon,
Washin gton. Idaho, Montana, Colorado
and Wyoming, except by act or con-
gress. Congress ought to trust the ex-
'ecutive to use the power OF reserva-
ton only with respect to land most
valuable for forest purposes. During
the present administration 6,25O,0oO
acres of land, largely nontimbered. have
been excluded from forest reserves, and
100000 acres of land, principally val
liable for forest purposes, have been
included in forest reserves, making
reduction in forest reserves OF nom
-timbered land amounting to 2,15O,OOo
acres. The bureau of forestry since its
creation has initiated reforestation on
about Is, 600 acres.
About s25.O0O,O00 worth of timber in
the national forests was destroyed
during the last summer by forest 1lreS-
Coal Lands.
Yhe next subject. and one most i'm
pcrtant for our consideration. is the
disposition of the coal lands in the
United tSates and in Alaska. First. as
to those in the United States; 79,903,-
2S9 acres remain withdrawn from en-
try ard await classification, and clas-
sified coal lands cover 10.429,372 acres.
valued at s506,000. 600.
The Leasing system
Authorities of the geological survey
estimate that in the United States to-
day there is a supply of about 5000
billions of tons OF coal, ana thdI OF TINS
1000 billions are in the public domain.
1t has been urged that the leasing sys-
tenn has never been adopted in this
country, and that its adoption would
largely interfere with the investment
of capital and the proper development
and opening up of the coal resources.
| venture to differ from this view.
My Investigations show that many
owners of mining property of this
country do not mine it themselves, and
do not invest their money in the plants
necessary for the mining: but they lease
their properties for term Of years,
varying from 20 to 80 and 40 years. un-
der conditions requiring the erection
of proper plant and the investment of
a certain amount of money in the de-
velOpment of the mines, and fixing a
rental and royalty, sometimes an abSo-
lutte figure and sometimes one proper
toned to the market value of the coal
L have looked with some care into 4
report made at the instance of presi-
dent Roosevelt upon the disposition of
coal lands in Australia, Tasmania and
New Zealand. These are peculiarly
mining countries and their experience
fUE