Show Acres of Public Land Settled in Year Report of ot Lan Lane The American people are taking up the public domain in homesteads homestead I so rapidly that in a few years all of the arable land will be settled according according according ac ac- ac- ac cording to the annual report of Secretary Sec Sec- Secretary of the Interior Franklin K Lane The secretary says that the solution lon tion of ot the problem of getting more morel moreland l land and nd for the people lies in the devising de- de of somo some scheme for utilizing the he great hidden reservoirs of at water which lie He under the earth Secretary Lane says that the pioneer pioneer pioneer pio pio- neer spirit is as much alive aUve in America Ameri Ameri- ca today as It ever was and points to o the fact that nearly twenty milion mil mil- lion ion acres of ot the public domain were taken aken up in homesteads in the last fiscal year This compares with 17 acres the previous year ear 16 16 for or 1913 and for tor 1912 Secretary Lane advocates special legislation to provide for tor work on bringing ringing underground waters to the surface either by the government or r by hr private parties Secretary Lane report that the bureau bu bu- reau cau of Indian affairs has been working work work- ing ng steadily to better the tho condition of or orthe the 10 red men and has Increased the me Indian population slightly The lives of at many any Indian babies have been saved by an Indian baby I saving campaign conducted by the interior department and the death rate has been reduced 7 per cent Approximately wa was paid out in pensions to old soldiers and beneficiaries under tho the pension laws last year Secretary Lane re re- re- re ports Seventy thousand applications for patents were received last year the report shows o Twenty-four Twenty irrigation projects ha have ye been pushed by the reclamation reclamation tion service according to the report and ten projects have been completed ed during the year This has has added farms totaling ac acres to the irrIgated country The bureau hureau of ot mines has worked on the perfecting of improved methods methods meth math of treating low grade ores so as asto asto asto to recover the largest possible amount of valuable metal Two new national parks ono one In Hawaii and aud the tho Lasson Lassen Volcanic park parkIn In northern California have been completed tho the report says aars Consistent progress has been made during durm the year on the government r In Alaska the first coal mine in n the fields having been opened up as a result resin t. t |