64TH CONGRESS, HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES. 64TH CONGRESS,} DESERT-LAND ENTRIES. APRIL 21, 1916.-Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the state of the Union and ordered to be printed. Mr. STOUT, from the Committee on the Public Lands, submitted the following REPORT. [To accompany S. 1068.] The Committee on the Public Lands, to which was referred the bill (S. 1068) relating to desert-land entries, having had same under consideration, begs leave to report it back to the House with the recommendation that the bill do pass. The bill was referred to the Department of the Interior by the Public Lands Committee of the Senate, and the Secretary of that department furnished that committee with the following report thereon: DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR, Washington, January 21, 1916. Hon. HENRY L. MYERS, Chairman Committee on Public Lands, United States Senate. MY DEAR SENATOR: I have received your request, dated December 17, 1915, for a report upon S. 1068, which proposes to enact: "That the right to make a desert-land entry shall not be denied to any applicant therefor who has already made an enlarged homestead entry of 320 acres: Provided, That said applicant is a duly qualified entryman and the whole area to be acquired under the provisions of this act does not exceed 480 acres.' This bill is identical with S. 3200, Sixty-third Congress, upon which the department, on July 28, 1914, submitted a report, a copy of which is herewith inclosed. I would again urge the necessity for an amendment of the bill such as suggested in the previous report, removing the possibility of a construction of the law which would allow a 480-acre desert-land entry in addition to an enlarged homestead entry. Very truly, yours, FRANKLIN K. LANE, Secretary. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR, Hon. HENRY L. MYERS, Chairman Committee on Public Lands, United States Senate. MY DEAR SENATOR: I have your request for report upon S. 3200, which proposes "That the right to make a desert-land entry shall not be denied to any applicant therefor who has already made an enlarged homestead entry of 320 acres: Provided, That said applicant is a duly qualified entryman and the whole area to be acquired under the provisions of this act does not exceed 480 acres." The act of August 30, 1890 (26 Stat., 391), limits the amount to which title may be acquired by entry under agricultural land laws to 320 acres in the aggregate. The acts of Februray 19, 1909 (35 Stat., 639), and June 19, 1910 (36 Stat., 531), commonly known as the enlarged homestead laws, provide for entries under the conditions therein specified of tracts not exceeding 320 acres in area. The last-named acts have been construed as having so far modified the provisions of the act of August 30, 1890, supra, as to permit a person otherwise qualified who holds 160 acres of land under a desert-land entry to make an enlarged homestead entry of 320 acres, and thereby acquire title to 480 acres in the aggregate. Cate v. Northern Pacific Railway Co. (41 L. D., 316). On the other hand, it has been held that the provisions of the act of August 30, 1890, in their application to the qualifications of a desert-land entryman, were not changed by the passage of the enlarged homestead acts (Hopper, 4 L. D., 283). The result is that a person who has perfected an entry or who holds an entry of 320 acres under the enlarged homestead law is not permitted to make a desert entry. S. 3200 proposes to extend the right to make a desert entry for not exceeding 160 acres in such cases. The department has no objection to interpose to the enactment of the measure; but to more clearly define the limitation sought to be imposed, would suggest the insertion, in line 7, after the word "acquired," of the words "as an enlarged homestead entry and," thus removing the possibility that the act might be construed as allowing a 480-acre desert-land entry in addition to an enlarged homestead entry. Very respectfully, 1st PERMITTING CERTAIN REFINED PRODUCTS OF PETROLEUM AS STORES ON STEAM VESSELS, ETC. APRIL 22, 1916.-Referred to the House Calendar and ordered to be printed. Mr. ALEXANDER, from the Committee on the Merchant Marine and Fisheries, submitted the following REPORT. [To accompany H. R. 11623.] The Committee on the Merchant Marine and Fisheries, to whom was referred the bill (H. R. 11623) to permit the use of certain refined products of petroleum as stores on steam vessels carrying passengers, having considered the bill, report the same to the House with certain amendments, with the recommendation that it do pass. Amend the title so as to read: A bill to amend section 4472 of the Revised Statutes. Amend line 3 by adding before the word "that" the following: That section forty-four hundred and seventy-two of the Revised Statutes of the United States of America be, and the same is hereby, amended by adding thereto the following provision: Provided, however. The advisability of this legislation is fully set forth in the following communication from Hon. William C. Redfield, Secretary of Commerce, of date March 31, 1916: DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE, MY DEAR CONGRESSMAN: Referring to your letter of the 17th instant, inclosing a copy of the bill (H. R. 11623) to permit the use of certain refined products of petroleum as stores on steam vessels carrying passengers, and requesting that I give the Committee on the Merchant Marine and Fisheries the benefit of my opinion with reference to the merits of this bill and the wisdom of enacting the same into law, I have to advise you that the proposed measure has the approval of this department. At the time section 4472 of the Revised Statutes, prohibiting the carrying of crude or refined petroleum and other like explosive burning fluids, etc., was enacted, the oil industry was in its infancy, and the expression "refined petroleum" then had reference to oil of an exceedingly low flash point. Since that time, however, the oil industry has been considerably extended, until at present the process of refining crude oil has resulted in obtaining refined petroleum with a flash point of 300° or above, which is not considered particularly dangerous for use as stores on steam vessels carrying passengers, especially if it is carried under proper regulations, to be prescribed by the Board of Supervising Inspectors and approved by the Secretary of Commerce. In this connection it will be noted that section 4472, Revised Statutes, has been amended from time to time to relieve steamships of certain burdens resulting from the provisions of the section as originally enacted. Referring to the bill in question, the department offers the suggestion that it should be enacted as an amendment to section 4472, Revised Statutes. Very truly, yours, Hon. J. W. ALexander, WILLIAM C. REDFIELD, Secretary. Chairman Committee on the Merchant Marine and Fisheries, |