Page:U.S. Department of the Interior Annual Report 1873.djvu/41

Rh 1850, 1852, and 1855, showing the issues and locations from the commencement of operations under said acts to June 30, 1873.

No. 10. Statement showing the selections made by certain States of lands within their own limits under the agricultural college and mechanic act of July 2, 1862, and supplemental acts of April 14 1864, and July 23 1866; also, the locations made with scrip under said acts.

No. 11. Statement exhibiting land concessions by acts of Congress to States for canal purposes from the year 1827 to June 30, 1873.

No. 12. Statement exhibiting land concessions by acts of Congress to States and corporations for railroad and military wagon-road purposes from the year 1850 to June 30, 1873.

No. 13. Estimate of appropriations required for the office of the Commissioner of the General Land-Office, for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1875.

No. 14. Estimates of appropriations required to meet expenses of collecting the revenue from sales of public lands in the several States and Territories for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1875.

No. 15. Estimates of appropriations for the surveying department for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1875.

No. 16. Estimates of appropriations required for surveying the public lands for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1875.

No. 17. Table showing the time when the various railroad rights attach to the lands granted so far as at present determined.

No. 18. Connected map of the United States from ocean to ocean, exhibiting the extent of surveys, land districts, seats of surveyors general and district land-offices; also, localities of railroads of general interest.

During the fiscal year ending June 30, 1873 there were received 56,109 letters, and 48,965 were written and recorded. Forty-five thousand three hundred and seventy-eight patents were written and recorded.

It will be seen, by reference to the foregoing statements, that 30,488,132.83 acres of land were surveyed during the last fiscal year. The amount surveyed for the fiscal year ending June 30 1870, was 18,165,278 acres. These figures show an increase of 12,322,844.83 acres in the annual survey since I assumed the control of the Office.

The disposals of public land under various heads, for the last fiscal year, amounted to 13,030,606.87 acre. The disposal for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1870, was 8,095,413 acres, showing an increase of 4 935 193.87 acres.

Notwithstanding this increase in the survey and sale of lands, which involves a corresponding increase in the work of this Office, I have thus far been able to transact the current business, and largely reduce the vast accumulation of unfinished work which I found on assuming control of the Office, and to which I have alluded in previous reports, and the work of the Office is now well advanced in most of its branches. The adjustment of ex parte homestead and pre-emption cases is now kept up to current dates. The number of contested eases awaiting adjustment has been much reduced, but, owing to the insufficiency of the clerical force, this class of work still remains somewhat in arrears When I took charge of the Office there was a large accumulation of California private land claims unadjusted. This accumulation has been removed and, at this time, only four cases are awaiting examination.

Notwithstanding the satisfactory progress thus far made in bringing up arrearages, the business of the Ollice is increasing so rapidly as to justify the conclusion that present arrearages cannot be brought up and the current business of the Office transacted promptly without a thorough