The Washington herald., 1913-02-02
The Department of the Interior,
the Governments Chief
Agent in Construc-
tive Work.
Secretary's Manifold Official
Personality.

The Bureau OF Education. established
in 1861. as a medium through which
every best or special feature OF
school and college work I'm any part of
the Union, and in foreign countries,
should be made known in other parts.
speedily became recognized as a center
OF light and influence. This small office,
under able commissioners, has made
many interesting studies and investiga-
tions. and published reports of the high
est value. II has no administrative
Jurisdiction except in Alaska, where II
has established schools for whites, In
dians. and Eskimos. The work has been
accomplished by agents and teachers
who, with the zeal OF missionaries and
courage of explorers. have sought out
every center of population of whatever
race. The funds have been gradually
increased by Congress to S240. 900 a year
and the enrolment of pupils has risen
to near 400. Medical attention is given
the natives through the schools as far
as possible. The first General Agent OF
the Bureau found the food supply very
precarious. starvation often destroying
whole villages. He conceived the idea
Of introducing domesticated reindeer
which Were not found in the country
and hundreds of these have been shipped
across BehrIng Strait from Siberia Now
a feature OF a school is tho herd OF deer
Tho boys are trained in their care anC
mana cement. and on leaving school art
given a number start in life. There
ar. about 1900 deer in the district, OF
which the natives own over half. They
furnish food. and means OF transpor.
tation for the mails. travellers, anC
freight. and the sale of their meat ir
the States yields u considerable revenue
To the Bureau Of Education IS dele
gated the distribution OF the fund created
by the Morrill, act Of 1890. whereby S25,
O0o year are contributed to each State
for the support of instruction in agri
culture and the mechanic arts.
The Geological Survey, organized un-
DIR a director in 1879. has been the
greatest possible aid in developing the
mineral resources Of the country. Its
work may be explained as the making
Of a topographic and geologic map OF
the United States. This great chart. on
scale OF one inch TO the mile, would
cover an acre OF surface. In reality II
is made in atlas sheets on scales OF one,
two, or four miles to the inch, accord
ing to the features to be represented
The topographic sheets. showing nat.
ural and cultural features OF the sur
face, as elevations. lakes, water courses
roads, villages, and cities, and the geo.
Ip6lO SllttAS, lOI lIS lllt SIfdld Ol
coal. mineral bearing rocks, building
stone. and oil-bearing sands, are Of OBJ
vious utility to the public. and also eff
feet a needed classification of the gov
ernment lands into mineral and non
mineral Considerably more than I.0c0,
Coz copies of maps and reports are
distributed yearly. Also important II
its work OF investigating water resource.
and determining water power sites. IL
view of the effort at the present tim,
to save such resources from private
monopoly.
BY a system of cooperation with tn,
States, by which the latter pay part o
the expense, the survey work has beer
greatly extended. Parties OF the survey
trained topographers and biologists ira
verse the plains and mountains of thirty
States, the trOpic wilds OF Hawaii, tht
wastes and glaciers OF Alaska, durinl
the possible working season, with help
ers, instruments, teams and tents, anc
in the winter report at the office to write
up their notes and plat the results
With the minute detail collected ther,
is no need OF the devices of old geograph
erS who
Afric's maps
With savage pictures filed the gaps
Ger uninhabitable downs
Placed elephants for want OF towns
The working force often numbers LOO
men, the equipment in animals and ma
terial and commissariat is that of u regi
ment. The romance and adventure of thi:
service are often thrilling and perilous
including such episodes as the explor
alton OF the Grand Canyon OF the Colo.
rado. and inspiring Moran's magnificent
paintings.
The New Embellishments.
The Reclamation Service. made a sep
arate establishment in 1902, is an out
growth of the Geological Survey. Its
purpose is to bring into cultivation by
irrigation great areas OF arid lands scat.
tered over sixteen States. In one decade
it has accomplished work fairly com.
parable with the Panama Canal Already
thirty projects are well forward OF
completed, the expenditure approaching
sc, 1000, 600, derived from sales of the pub
lie lands in the States concerned and tc
be repaid to the Treasury by the sale
of reclaimed lands which are richly
productive.
One of tho impressive works is tn,
Roosevelt Dam across precipftou.
canyon on the Salt River, Arizona, ere
ating as its reservoir a lake extending
twenty-five miles up the valley. TIL,
height from spillvay to river bed is -
feet. but it goes down another thirty fee
to bed rock" The thickness at tn,
base is 10 feet and at the top sixteer
feet, serving as a roadway from sid,
to side, a distance OF 1850 feet. Thi:
piece of concrete is OH SO magnificent 8
scale, the proportions so graceful anC
the obvious force eNerted so enormous
that the observer is tempted to clothe il
with individuality as new colossus be.
striding the world. Another work of vas
proportions Is the Sun River project
Montana, which is to irTigate $40 OO
acres. The Belle Fourche project, Soutf
Dakota, has the distinction of being the
largest earthworks yet built. The regu-
Lar employees, engineers. clerks, &c, OF
the Reclamation service average 800, the
laborers in the summer 1,5O0.
|. The Bureau of Mines originated in the
coal testing plant maintained at the st.
Louis Exposition by the Geological Sur
vey. In 1910 it became a separate office
charged with the duty of studying the
governments fuels and coal deposits
the possibility of more complete com
bustion, and the causes aud means oi