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Show WASHINGTON, Kcliurz ou the Tliuber 1111 Is Washington, 27. The secretary of the-interior, in bis annual report, refers to his recommendation ol last yer in regard to the Indians, and save: Consideration of the number of agencies has bepn undertaken with a view to a better location of the Indians, which will, at the same time, render more efficient the supervision super-vision possible and reduce- the expenses ex-penses of government, and lessen the opportunities for fraud and peculation. pecula-tion. As far a the appropriations made by congress would permit, agricultural implements and domestic do-mestic cattle have been furnished to the Indian tribes to set the ludians to work for their own support and to encourage industrial habits. An Indian In-dian polico has been organized at twenty-two agencies, and from all of them favorable reports as to the working work-ing of the new By stem have been received. Instructions have been given to discriminate ia the distribu tion of supplies and annuities, which are not actual necessaries, against individual Indians who show no dia position to work, thus discouraging idleness. The allotment of laud among Indiana on the several reservations wnB ordered , and is in progress. The facilities of education have been extended ex-tended as much as possible, and proper directions have been given for the instruction of Iudian children in practical pursuits. The Iudian servicp ha been reorganized iu several of its branches. It was found necessary to remove a number of agents on ao-countof ao-countof improper praotices or lack ot business elliciency, and great care has been taken in filling their places with new men. Important changes have been made in the contract system. sys-tem. The detection of fraud has been followed by vigorous prosecution, prosecu-tion, and on the whole I feel enabled to cay that the character ot the service ser-vice has been raised In point of in tegrity and efhoieocy. The following is a full text of that portion of the secretary of the interior's in-terior's aunual report in which he comments on the two acts passed last winter authorizing tho citizens of Colorado, Nevada and the territories to take timber from the public lands for mining and domestic purposes a&d providing for the sale of timber lands m California, Nevada, Uregou and Washington territory. Secretary Schuiz gays: In the opinion of the commissioner of the general land otlice, which is on record in this department, de-partment, tuese two acts are more calculated to hasten the destruction of the forests in the states and territories named than to secure the prestation presta-tion of them. The commissioner ol the general land in a letter officially to me expresses the following opinion of tho act relating to Colorado, Nevada and the territories: It is a fact well known, that while almo.-t all the timber laud in these states and all the territories, except in Dakota aud Washington, is regarded as mineral, only a Bmall portion ib so iu resliiy. The effect of this bill will be, in my opinion, to prevent toe survey and sale of any timber lands or timber upon tho lands in the states and territories named, thus cutting ofl large prospective revenues that might and should be derived from the sale ol such lands or the timber on tLem. It is equivalent to ado nation of all the timber lands to the inhabitants of those states and territories, which will now be found to be the largest donation of the public domain hitherto made by congress. con-gress. This bill authorizes the registers regis-ters and receivers of the land otH ISiil'.DinoirriVlS malady. Tt is oaly no- I 000 ary to have tho right romody. jcS HALL'S. BALSAM, W,: Tnw lands are situated to mate investigations without with-out any specific directions from the secretary of the interior or tiommis- sioner of the general land otlice; 10 settle and adjust their own accounts, and retain from the moneys coming into their bands from the Baleof lands Bucb amounts as they may expend or cause to be expended. This method will be found exceedingly expensive and result in no good. Experience has shown that the machinery of the land offices ia wholly inadequate to prevent the depredations. Schurz continues: The ruleB and regula tions ieaued in pursuance of the firBt section of this act are to be found in the report of the com miseioner of the general land office, herewith presented. These rules were drawn up with a view to and intention of preserving young timber and undergrowth upon the mineral lands of the United States, and tj the end that the mountain sides may not be left denuded aud barren ot the timber and undergrowth neci-ssary to prevent a precipitation of the raiufall and melting of snows in fbods upon the fertile, arable lands in tho vulleyB beiow, thus destroying the agricultural agri-cultural and pasturage interests ot tuo uijuemi ouu uiuuui.muduo portions ol country, make it the duly ol the registers and receivers to see that trespassers upon timber lands, nut mineral, be duly reported; thai upon the mineral landd, only, timber ol a certain size be cut aud that young trees and undergrowth be projected, and that limber be cut only for the purposes mentioned in the act. These rules and regulations will be euforced with all the power left it to this department to that end, in cr'er to :ivu what may be saved ; but I deem it my duly to call alten tion to itm fact, us ssl forth by tte commissioner in the letter above quoted, that the machinery ul the land offices is utterly inadequate lo accomplish the object in view. After careful cousideratic-u- of the above-named above-named act and its probable t flVcts, I veoture ihe prediction lhat the permission per-mission given the inhabitants of the slates and territories named therein t-j tike timber from the publiu lands in any quantity and wherever I hey can find u, fur all purposes except export and sale to the railroads, will be taken advantage of, not only by ihe setllero and miuers tj provide economical y for their actual" currect wants, but h persoos who see iu this donation a chance to make money, ft wilt stimulate a wasteful consumption beyond be-yond actual need, and lead to wanton dpstruction; that the machinery machin-ery left lo this department lo prevent such waste and destruction, thrnuh thfl eniorrpmpnl of ilm rnlpa abiive mentioned, will prove entirely inadequate; inade-quate; that as a final reuH, in a few years the mountain sidos. of thes-e st iieB and territories i I te stripped bare of the timber now growing upon them, with no possibility of its reproduction, repro-duction, if once wasted ofl from s'.opes, and that the irreparable destruction destruc-tion of the forests will bring upon Ihoee states all the calamities experienced from the. same cause iu districts in Europe aod Asia similarly situated. It appears lo me, therefore, there-fore, that a repeal of the above-named above-named set, and the substitution therefor there-for of a law embodying a mora provident provi-dent policy, similar to thai of the bi:l hereinbefore advocated, is in tne : btguettt degree desirabie. It the de-j de-j Btruction cf the forests in these stales ; be permitted, the agricultural and pasturage interest- in mountainous regions will undoubtedly be sacrificed, and the valleys, in the course of lime, will become unfit for the habitation of man. The act tor tbessleof timber I t-N in the si-tea of Caiitorm.., Ore.,ou ' and Nevada and iu Washington territory, terri-tory, pass?d by congress ul its list aeasion, ia commented upon by the commissioner of the general land office as follows: It is a b;li of h eal and not general application to timber lands of the United fcitates, and adds one more to the special acts for the disposal of publio domain, Xhe price fixed is too low, as much of the land is worth from $5 to $30 per acre. Under the provisions of tne b;ll the timber lands will, in my opinion, be speedily taken up and pass into the bands ol speculators, notwithstanding the provisions to prevent pre-vent such a result. Soil should not be sold with timber where land is no! tit for cultivation. Oly limber ol : certaiu Bizes should bu sold, Hudj young timber retaiued with a view to the reproduction of forest?. Ihe bin should have limited the sale ol lauds to peisous who have farms and homos within the state or territory, and il ought to have required purchasers to Bhow affirmatively that they had need ol the timber tor domestic uses. The last clause ol the second section will permit auy person applying for a tract of timber land, and securing a ceriilicatti from the register, tj bell his right and interest therein immediately, aud the purchaser, although it may have been obtained by perjury, may be entitled to the laud. Section five provides that any person prosecuted under Bection 2,4(31 of the Revised Statutes of the United States may be relieved of tne penalty py the payment ol $1 50 per acre for the laud trespassed upon. This is objectionable for the reason that the penally fixed ia altogether alto-gether inadequate, aud does not require re-quire the payment of the costs ol prosecution, which are often greater than Ihe penalty to be collected. U should rtqiiire that trespassers should pay for tho entire subdivision tro-pased tro-pased upon. There oan be no doubi that, if this bill bacomes a law, it. will be taken advantage of by persons who want fo make money quickly.' Schurz adds: 1 lully concur with the c in miseioner of the general land office in his opinion thus expressed. |