A few of the more pertinent figures are here submitted: Increase in voting population from 1904 to 1914. Increase in value of agricultural implements from 1904 to 1914. Per cent. 55 74 34 92 80 102 142 67 31 In valuation of all property, the increase from 1892 to 1904 was 17 per cent, while from 1904 to 1914 the increase was 108 per cent. The general result of the investigation of this law, under the first 10-year period of its operation, is such as to justify the original friends of the measure, it being apparent that the acreage taken up thereunder has for the greater part not been absorbed in large holdings, but continues to be held and cultivated by the small holder and entryman; and further, that during such period the territory covered thereby has made a marked advancement in every way, largely attributable to the operations of the law. The final deduction from the entire study of this subject is justified that the enlargement of the homestead was a timely recognition that the area of the entry should be measured by the earning capacity of the land. In operation, the enlargement of the homestead entry to 320 acres may be recognized as a successful demonstration of this theory in that portion of the country where stock raising may be successfully united with dry farming, but not so in those communities where only cattle grazing is a profitable use of semiarid, nonirrigable land. The stock raising homestead bill now pending before Congress is in effect a recognition of this conclusion, making provision for a homestead entry for 640 acres of lands chiefly valuable for grazing. RECLAMATION. During the fiscal year ending June 30, 1916, additional farm units have been opened to entry, either by the issuance of public notices or the announcement of the availability of water for the irrigation of the lands, on the Uncompahgre Valley project, Colorado; the Minidoka project, Idaho; the Huntley project, Montana; the Umatilla project, Oregon; and the North Platte project, Nebraska. In addition, large areas have been released from withdrawal under the provisions of the reclamation act of June 17, 1902 (32 Stat., 388), and restored to the public domain, as no longer needed in the interests. of the several projects in which they were formerly embraced. These lands have been opened to settlement and entry under the general provisions of the public land laws. Other lands have been added to several of the projects by withdrawal, either under the first form of withdrawal, from all forms of entry, or under the second form of withdrawal provided in section 3 of the reclamation act, from entry, except under the provisions of the homestead law. A new general reclamation circular, containing the laws and regulations covering entries within Government irrigation projects, has been prepared and was approved on May 18, 1916. During the fiscal year ending June 30, 1916, 332 assignments of homestead entries within reclamation projects were examined and accepted, and 11 of such assignments were rejected. In 68 cases the decisions of registers and receivers were reversed on appeal, and in 118 cases the decisions of the local officers were affirmed. One thousand one hundred and twenty-four original homestead entries were examined and accepted, 28 original entries were canceled, and 141 were closed by relinquishment. Seven hundred and sixty-four final homestead entries were approved for patenting, and 24 of such entries were canceled; 62 applications for amendments of homestead entries were examined and accepted. Fifteen assignments of desertland entries within irrigation projects were examined and accepted. Two applications for extension of time within which to submit final proof upon desert-land entries within irrigation projects were examined and allowed, and one such application was rejected. Ten original desert-land entries, subject to the terms and conditions of the reclamation act of June 17, 1902, were examined and accepted, and two were canceled. Ten final desert-land proofs were approved for patenting, and one was canceled. HOMESTEAD ENTRIES IN NATIONAL FORESTS. During the past year notices were issued in accordance with the provisions of the act of June 11, 1906 (34 Stat., 233), involving the restoration of 1,525 lists of lands in national forests, by which approximately 152,000 acres of agricultural lands were opened to homestead settlement and entry of not to exceed 160 acres each. In the previous year approximately 280,000 acres were restored under said act, and the total area thus restored to date is about 1,837,000 acres. While the number of listings has diminished, the general work incident to entries, amendments, appeals, etc., has increased. The number of final proofs upon such entries has greatly increased the past year, and a large percentage of the entries describe the lands by metes and bounds. Approximately 1,350 patents under this act were issued the past year. The listings of these lands and action on final proof under this act are practically up to date. LIEU SELECTIONS FOR LANDS IN INDIAN RESERVATIONS. The act of April 21, 1904 (33 Stat., 211), provides for an exchange by an owner of private land over which an Indian reservation has been extended by Executive order for nonmineral, nontimber, surveyed public lands of equal area and value, and situated in the same State or Territory. Under the exchange provisions of this act, selections made in New Mexico and Arizona have been patented aggregating an area of approximately 1,400,000 acres of land. On December 28, 1912, a deed for approximately 327,000 acres of land was accepted and duly recorded, embracing lands owned by the Santa Fe Pacific Railroad Co., within withdrawals of January 8, 1900, and November 14, 1901. In 1913, on protest filed by the Land Commission of Arizona that the base land offered in making selections in Arizona, under the said act of April 21, 1904, and selected lands in lieu thereof, were not equal in value, all selections made in Arizona under said act were suspended. The total area involved in the selections suspended was 427,277.80 acres, 96,349.15 acres having base within the Moqui Indian Reservation. A hearing was had before the department in May, 1914, on the protest of the Land Commission of Arizona, and thereafter it was held that the said withdrawals of January 8, 1900, and November 14, 1901, never placed such lands within an Indian reservation, and therefore they were not subject to exchange under the act of April 21, 1904, supra. From field examination made of the lands mentioned in said deed of December 28, 1912, it was ascertained that such lands were of little or no value, either to the Indians, or as basis of exchange. In view, however, of the fact that all of the selection rights under said deed of December 28, 1912, had been sold to different individuals, cattle companies, and corporations, and they, in many instances, had transferred their rights to other persons whereby equities had grown up, it was manifestly unjust to reject all of such selections outright, whereupon the Santa Fe Pacific Railroad Co. offered to reconvey a necessary area of land, any place in the Navajo Indian Reservation to which they held title, and which land was subject to exchange under the act of April 21, 1904. Under these conditions the said railroad company submitted a deed of approximately 303,350 acres, theretofore examined and selected by agents of the Government, which was sufficient base to cover the area in selections not rejected. The new base submitted was for lands within Executive withdrawal of January 6, 1880, and Executive orders of November 9, 1907, and January 28, 1909. From examination made of such new base land it was estimated that it had a value of $1.50 per acre for grazing purposes; lands under two irrigation projects were estimated to be worth $300,000; coal lands in this area were appraised at over $300,000, and timber values to the extent of $800,000, making a sufficient average value to warrant the exchange hereinafter mentioned. Briefly, it may be stated that the total area of all selected land suspended was 427,277.80 acres. Selections were rejected for various reasons, amounting to 29,604.38 acres, leaving a total area of 897,673.42 acres favorably reported upon, and all such selections. passed to patent, except an area of less than 1,000 acres still pending a resurvey of the land. On June 6, 1916, the department decided that it is not advisable to allow further exchanges under the said act of April 21, 1904, except possibly in some unusual cases which would be found to the benefit of the Government to permit, or where the selector may have acquired some equities. In conformity with these instructions the Santa Fe Pacific Railroad Co. has been authorized to reconvey, in addition to the area heretofore mentioned, approximately 50,000 acres of land in Arizona, and approximately 12,000 acres in New Mexico, making a total area of 62,000 acres of base land still outstanding, subject to the provisions of exchange under the act of April 21, 1904. FOREST LIEU SELECTIONS. The act of June 4, 1897 (30 Stat., 36), which provides for the selection of public lands in lieu of lands in national forests, was repealed by the act of March 3, 1905 (33 Stat., 1264), except as to certain contracts previously entered into involving lands in the San Francisco mountains and Grand Canyon National Forest, Ariz., and the Santa Barbara National Forest, Cal. The area of land which has not been offered under said exceptions is approximately 20,000 acres. Selections under the act of June 4, 1897, were allowed for both surveyed and unsurveyed land until October 1, 1900, since which date selections are restricted to vacant surveyed nonmineral land subject to homestead entry as provided in the amendatory act of July 6, 1900. (33 Stat., 614.) There now remain in all approximately 600 selections under this act, involving between 100,000 and 150,000 acres; some awaiting survey of the lands selected, some suspended for investigation as to the character of the selected land as mineral or otherwise, and some suspended on account of alleged fraud in acquisition of title to the base land from the States of California and Oregon; of these last, some are pending action on field investigations made, and some are under contest charges by the Government, but hearings have not been. held, or the trial records have not been received from the local offices. 62656°-INT 1916-VOL 1-11 In 1913 the State of Oregon instituted suits in the State courts to annul a large number, of patents issued by the State for approximately 25,000 acres of lands which were thereafter offered to the United States in exchange for lands selected under the act of June 4, 1897, alleging that the lands had been acquired from the State by fraud, and under directions from the department action on all pend ing selections involving Oregon base lands embraced in such suits has been suspended. These lands are included in the 600 pending selections above mentioned. Two hundred and ninety-seven selections have been finally disdisposed of during the fiscal year, approximately 250 being patented and 47 canceled. During the year adverse proceedings were directed against 25 of these selections, hearings were had in 58 cases, and the field investigation as to the base lands involved in HydeBenson suspensions were practically completed. This office has been proceeding under the existing rulings of the department to adjudicate the Government contests against these selections, and so disposing of the same as rapidly as possible. Approximately 170 cases are suspended by reason of proceedings pending in the courts or by reason of the administrative rule found necessary to be adopted some time since to secure uniformity of action, namely, of waiting until all the trial records were received involving the lands purchased by one State applicant, for in most cases portions of the same base have been used in several selections. This office has rendered decisions in 50 of these Government contest cases, 7 of which were in favor of the selector and 43 were adverse. The latter were all appealed to the department. On July 1, 1916, there were pending in the department, transmitted by this office, approximately 130 contest cases of the so-called Hyde-Benson selections, involving from 20,000 to 25,000 acres of land. CHIPPEWA INDIAN TIMBER LOGGING, MINNESOTA. In logging operations on ceded Chippewa lands, Minnesota, under the act of June 27, 1902 (32 Stat., 400), there were cut during the past year a total of 28,470,380 feet, valued at $193,426.42, as against 46,272,950 feet of timber, valued at $373,442.83, cut during the preceding year. The total amount cut during the 13 years of logging operations is 1,256,020,826 feet, valued at $8,871,692.90. The amount already cut exceeds the Government's estimates, made before the different sales, by 345,188,130 feet, an overrun thus far of 38 per cent. The average stumpage price of the timber scaled is $7,07. The average number of logs per thousand feet is 112. The total expense in connection with this logging for 13 years is 4.22 per cent of the total receipts. There |