REPAYMENTS. The existing laws governing repayments, section 2362, United States Revised Statutes, act of June 16, 1880 (21 Stat., 287), and the act of March 26, 1908 (35 Stat., 48), provide for the return of moneys covered into the Treasury of the United States received in connection with the disposal of the public lands, to be repaid to the entryman, his heirs or assigns, or his legal representatives, in the absence of fraud on their part, in all cases where lands have been erroneously sold; where money has been paid by innocent parties on fraudulent and void soldiers' and sailors' additional homestead entries; where entries were canceled for conflict; where entries are erroneously allowed and can not be confirmed; where applications to make entry, filing, selection, etc., are rejected; and where any amount has been paid in excess of the legal requirement. Under said laws there were stated during the last fiscal year 1,700 accounts, allowing repayment of $218,971.46, and during said period there were denied 940 claims for repayment. This number of claims allowed and the amount repaid includes 10 accounts, allowing repayment of $14,246.32, being moneys received in connection with then pending claims for coal lands in Alaska and repaid in pursuance of section 3, act of October 20, 1914 (38 Stat., 741). Repayment claims allowed and denied, by years. Since the issuance of the last annual report 20 national forests have been reduced and 3 enlarged under the act of June 4, 1897 (30 Stat., 34, 36), and 1 discontinued as an administrative unit by transferring the remaining areas after exclusion of certain lands therefrom to other national forests. The Kansas National Forest, Kans., has been abolished, and the unwithdrawn public lands formerly therein, aggregating 135,870 acres, were restored to homestead entry in advance of settlement by the unit system, a unit comprising 320 acres, and a small portion of the area formerly constituting the reserve has been granted to the State of Kansas under the act of Congress approved June 22, 1916 (Public, No. 102), as a game preserve. Certain interforest transfers have been made involving four national forests, and the consolidations have been made as follows: The Nebo National Forest with the Manti, Utah; the Sundance, Wyo., with the Black Hills, S. Dak.; the Moapa with the Toiyabe, Nev.; the Marquette with the Michigan, Mich.; the Kern with the Sequoia, Cal.; the Pocatello with the Cache, Idaho and Utah; and the Jemez and Pecos National Forests as the Santa Fe National Forest, N. Mex. There are now 153 national forests, embracing 175,940,351 acres, of which area approximately 88 per cent is public land. The decrease in area of national forests since the beginning of the fiscal year is 8,300,245 acres. The public lands subject to disposition in 8,526,129 acres excluded from national forests during the fiscal year have been restored to settlement and entry under the provisions of the act of September 30, 1913 (38 Stat., 113). Areas temporarily withdrawn for forestry purposes but not needed therefor are released from withdrawal upon recommendation of the Secretary of Agriculture. Since the issuance of the last annual report 83,520 acres have been released from such withdrawal and the public lands therein subject to disposition opened to settlement and entry. During the fiscal year four administrative stations, embracing 245 acres, have been withdrawn by Executive orders under the act of June 25, 1910 (36 Stat., 847), for use by the Forest Service in the administration of the national forests, and 350 withdrawals for such purpose have been revoked, covering 70,993 acres. There are now 25 rights of way for wagon roads and 1,431 administrative sites withdrawn, embracing 281,942 acres 160 sites covering 19,438 acres being near, and 1,271 sites covering 262,504 acres in the national forests. For table showing areas by forests and States, see page 106. NATIONAL MONUMENTS.1 The important reservations known as national monuments and created under the provisions of the act approved June 8, 1906 (34 Stat., 225), now number 35. Three new ones were created during the fiscal year, namely, Dinosaur, Utah, on October 4, 1915; Walnut Canyon, Ariz., November 30, 1915; and Bandelier, N. Mex., on February 11, 1916. These made a total of 33 at the close of the fiscal year, but since that, namely, on July 8, 1916, and August 9, 1916, two additional monuments were created, the former, Sieur de Monts, in Maine, and the latter, Capulin Mountain, in New Mexico. 1 Since the preparation of the above report, Congress, by act approved Aug. 25, 1916 (Public, No. 235), has established a national park service, to promote and regulate the use of Federal areas set apart as national parks, monuments, and reservations, in conformity with the fundamental purpose for which such parks and reservations were created. Dinosaur Monument, Utah, embraces 80 acres of land and contains important Jura-trias beds of sandstone, in which are found saurian remains of the reptilian age, the most striking of which belong to the dinosaur group. Walnut Canyon Monument, Ariz., and Bandelier Monument, N. Mex., embrace prehistoric ruins. Sieur de Monts Monument, Me., perpetuates in a public reservation the historic landing spot of Samuel de Champlain on the North American coast, and exhibits also striking geologic, botanic, and faunal conditions. The 5,000 acres contained within this monument were relinquished to the United States by patriotic and publicspirited citizens of the State of Maine, under the provisions of section 2 of the national monument act above referred to. Capulin Monument, N. Mex., is another example of the formerly extinct volcanoes similar to Lassen Peak, Cal., which has recently been in violent eruption. These 35 monuments are located in the States and the Territory of Alaska as follows: A fund to protect many of the monuments from unlawful exploitation and vandalism has been sought from Congress for a number of years past. This necessity was partially met by an appropriation contained in the sundry civil act, approved July 1, 1916, which appropriates $3,500 for this purpose. While this small fund will only be sufficient to make a beginning along the line of protection, it is urged that the fund for this purpose should be commensurate with the object sought. For a table showing location, date of creation, and the area of the national monuments, see Appendix, page 109. BIRD RESERVATIONS. Since the issuance of my last annual report three new reservations for the protection of native birds were created. These are the Big Lake Reservation, Ark., created August 2, 1915; the San Francisco Bay Reservation, Cal., created August 9, 1916; and the North Platte Reservation, Nebr., created August 21, 1916. The Big Lake Reservation embraces the smallest legal subdivisions of public land surrounding Big Lake located in the so-called St. Francis sunk-land district. This refuge is one of the most promising of these important reservations, and not only is it a winter-feeding ground for countless thousands of many species of edible water fowl and plume birds, but also the nesting grounds for many other valuable species. In the past this district has been notorious as a pot and plume hunters' paradise. It became eligible for a Government reservation when Federal title, as against State ownership, under the swamp-land act, was asserted and followed by a survey of the lands. As soon as possible after the completion of the survey the Executive order issued. The San Francisco Bay Reservation embraces Goat Island, located in the San Francisco Bay about midway between the cities of San Francisco and Oakland. Many migrating species rest here, and the island is being used as a propagating station for three species of foreign pheasants, as well as for the well-known valley quail of the Pacific Coast States. The North Platte Reservation includes the smallest subdivisions of land surrounding four artificial reservoirs created by the Reclamation Service and located under the North Platte project in northwestern Nebraska. These reservoirs are the resting and feeding grounds of thousands of edible water fowl during both migrating seasons. The location is suitable and doubtless will become a regular breeding resort also for several species. For a list of bird reserves, showing location, date of creation, and area, see appendix page 109. PROFESSIONAL LAND LOCATORS. From time to time the office in its annual reports has called attention to the necessity of some legislation by which professional locators could be held to a higher degree of responsibility in their representations to intending settlers and public-land claimants. A bill to this end (S. 5899) was introduced in the Sixty-fourth Congress, by which provision is made declaring it a misdemeanor to falsely represent a tract of land as open to settlement or entry, thereby deceiving the person to whom such representation is made, and providing for such offense punishment by fine or imprisonment, or by both. Favorable action was taken upon this bill in the Senate Committee on Public Lands, and it was reported to the Senate with a recommendation for its adoption. Legislation in this direction has long been needed, and the passage of the bill now pending will contribute much toward preventing a continuance of an evil which heretofore has been without remedy under Federal law. In the meantime steps have been taken toward inaugurating a cooperative arrangement between the field agents of this office and the State prosecuting officers, with a view to the prosecution of this class of offenders under State law in proper cases. The activities of dishonest locators are more numerous than is generally understood, and I feel that the interests of settlers justify every effort on the part of this department to put a stop to their operations. FEDERAL OWNERSHIP OF PUBLIC LANDS. During the Sixty-third Congress a bill was introduced proposing the cession to one of the States of all the public lands remaining therein; the same bill was again introduced in the present Congress, and still another proposing to grant all the public lands of the United States to the several States in which such lands are situated. If these bills are to be taken as the indication of a growing policy, likely to be hereafter exploited, some comment thereon is justified. The fundamental necessity of Federal ownership of public lands was early recognized in the foundation of our Government and took form under a resolution of the Congress of the Confederation passed October 10, 1780, providing for the reception and care of such unappropriated lands as might be ceded by States to the United States, and for the disposition of such lands for the common benefit of the United States. In pursuance of this resolution cessions were made by seven States-New York, Virginia, Massachusetts, Connecticut, South Carolina, North Carolina, and Georgia-of an area amounting in the aggregate to 259,171,787 acres of land, and thus was laid the foundation for a common ownership to be exercised on behalf of the entire Nation, which has been observed down to the present day, not only with respect to the lands thus donated, but also as to those which later came into the possession of the United States. Congress, in the disposal of public lands, from the time when the conversion of acres into cash was abandoned for a policy of investment in homes and development, has manifested a consistent care for the highest interests of the citizen, the State, and the Nation, as disclosed in our general settlement laws applicable to agricultural lands, special laws suited to the disposal of arid, timber, and mineral lands, and generous donations to the States for educational purposes and internal improvements. Every acre of public land disposed of under this line of legislation is, in fact, an investment, the profits to be found in the general development of the welfare of the Nation at large. In round numbers, to date we have thus invested an acreage as follows: Homestead entries--- Desert-land entries___ Timber-culture entries Timber and stone entries_. Coal lands Acres. 154, 000, 000 7, 000, 000 11, 000, 000 13, 000, 000 602, 000 |