days to two or three months. It is well known that the same person rendered several successive tours of such service, and it is not probable that the number of individuals who served in that war will amount to more than 50 per cent. of the number of enlistments reported in the table. The same percentage will hold good for the Creek Indian war of 1813-'14, and probably for the Florida Indian war of 1835-42, and nearly all of the other Indian wars prior to the latter date. It will not, however, apply to the Mexican war, or the later Indian wars, where the proportion of regulars was much larger, or where the seat of war was more remote from the thickly peopled part of the country. Attention is called to the following authorities for data given in the table and for other remarks: Revolutionary War.-Report of General H. Knox, Secretary of War, May 10, 1790; American State Papers, Military Affairs, vol. 1, pp. 14, et seq. Returns on file with the Washington papers in the Department of State, and "Navy of the United States," by Lieut. George F. Emmons, U. S. N., pp. 40, et seq., and 26, et seq. The number of pensioners does not include those paid by the several States who died or were discontinued prior to the transfer of the pension rolls to the General Government in 1791, or the pensions of certaid officers of Virginia State regiments, which were assumed by the General Government under the act of July 5, 1832, and which were in part settled in the Treasury Department. Northwestern Indian war (Generals Harmer, St. Clair, and Wayne).-American State Papers, Military Affairs, vol. 1, pp. 20et seq., p. 36 and p. 67. Also Lossing's Field-Book, War of 1812, pp. 51 and 52. War with France.-"Navy of the United States," by Lieut. George F. Emmons, pp. 48 et seq. War with Tripoli.-"Navy of the United States," by Lieut. George F. Emmons, pp. 54 et seq. Northwestern Indian war (General Harrison).-Lossing's Field-Book, War of 1812, p. 201, Niles's Weekly Register, vol. 10, p. 154, and official report of Adjutant-General United States Army to Pension Office, dated January 6, 1872. Creek Indian war, 1813-'14.-Lossing's Field-Book, War of 1812, pp. 749, 752 to 759, 761 to 777. Some of the militia and volunteers engaged in this war may have served and been included in the estimate for the war of 1812. War of 1812-15 with Great Britain.-American State Papers, Military Affairs, vol. 6, p. 927; Report of Third Auditor United States Treasury, showing number of militia and volunteers; Records of the Adjutant-General United States Army for Regular Army; Niles's Weekly Register, vol 9, p. 221, for part of Navy; and "Navy of the United States," by Lieut. George F. Emmons, pp. 56 et seq., and pp. 170 et seq. for Navy and privateers. Seminole Indian war, 1817-18.-American State Papers, Military Affairs, vol. 1, p. 718, and vol. 2, p. 104, and returns in Adjutant-General's Office. A count now being made in the Second Auditor's Office, United States Treasury, will doubtless increase the estimate of the number of "troops engaged." Black Hawk Indian war, 1831-32.-Report of Adjutant-General United States Army to Congress, March 4, 1872. Wisconsin Historical Collections, vol. 8, pp. 265-268 and 311-16. The count being made in the Second Auditor's Office, United States Treasury, may somewhat change the estimates of "troops engaged." Cherokee removal or disturbances, 1838-'39.-Report of Adjutant-General United States Army to Congress, March 4, 1872. The count being made in the Second Auditor's Office may change these estimates. Creek Indian war or disturbance, 1836-'37.-Report of the Commissioner of Pensions, 1875, which has not been fully verified. Some of the troops engaged in this war may have served and been included in the estimate for the Florida war. The count in the Second Auditor's Office may affect this estimate. Florida Indian war, 1835-'43.-Report of the Commissioner of Pensions, 1875, only partially verified. The count in the Second Auditor's Office will doubtless change this estimate somewhat. Aroostook disturbances.-Estimate from report of the Commissioner of Pensions. 1875. Mexican war, 1846-'48.-Estimate of Pension Office. Congressional Record, 1884, p. 4505. Executive Documents H. R. 48, second session Twenty-ninth Congress, and 62, first session Thirtieth Congress, "Navy of the United States," by Lieut. George F. Emmons, pp. 79 et seq. The Regular Army, amounting to 11,299, and the Marine Corps, not actually at seat of war, are not included in the table. Apache, Navajo, and Utah Indian wars, 1849-'56.-Report of Adjutant-General United States Army to Congress, March 4, 1872, for volunteers, and estimate for regulars. Comanche Indian war, 1854.-Report of Adjutant-General United States Army to Congress, March 4, 1872. Seminole Indian war, 1856-'58.-Report of Adjutant-General to Congress, March 4, 1872. Pensions for Indian wars and other disturbances.-As it would require an examination of the papers in each case to classify the pensioners of the several Indian wars and minor disturbances, only the totals of pensions allowed are given for said wars, &c. Navy pensioners.-In the number of Navy pensioners are included only those allowed for service since the year 1800; all prior to that date are included in the Army pensioners. Military peace establishment.—It is hardly practicable to make an estimate of the number of "troops engaged" on the "peace establishments," who took no part in any of the wars named. REPORT OF THE COMMISSIONER OF THE GENERAL LAND OFFICE. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR, GENERAL LAND OFFICE, Washington, D. C., October 22, 1885. SIR: I have the honor to submit herewith the annual report of the General Land Office for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1885. The operations for this period were chiefly under the previous administration. I assumed the duties of the office March 26, 1885, and accordingly have but three months and a few days of my own supervision of it to account for. This brief period was insufficient to enable me to more than realize the situation and to make a commencement toward such reforms as I soon perceived were imperative in the public interest, the need and importance of which have become more and more conspicuous with each day's added experience. I found that the magnificent estate of the nation in its public lands had been to a wide extent wasted under defective and improvident laws and through a laxity of public administration astonishing in a business sense if not culpable in recklessness of official responsibility. The widespread belief of the people of this country that the land department has been very largely conducted to the advantage of specu lation and monopoly, private and corporate, rather than in the public interest, I have found supported by developments in every branch of the service. It seems that the prevailing idea running through this office and those subordinate to it was that the government had no dis tinctive rights to be considered and no special interests to protect hence, as between the government and spoilers of the public domain, the government usually had the worst of it. I am satisfied that thousands of claims without foundation in law or equity, involving millions of acres of public land, have been annually passed to patent upon the single proposition that nobody but the government had any adverse interest. The vast machinery of the land department appears to have been devoted to the chief result of conveying the title of the United States to public lands upon fraudulent entries under strained constructions of imperfect public land laws and upon illegal claims under public and private grants. I shall endeavor in this report to point out some of the evidences which illustrate the truth of these general statements. From the reports of the subordinate divisions of this office, which are appended in detail, it appears that during the last fiscal year the sales, entries, and selections of public land under various acts of Congress relating thereto embrace 20,113,663.37 acres, and of Indian lands 881,850.21 acres, making a total of 20,995,513.58 acres, being a decrease, as compared with the year 1884, of 6,535,656.41 acres, and an increase over the year 1883 of 1,565,480.78 acres. The receipts from the disposals of public lands are $7,686,114.80; from sales of Indian lands, $933,483.52; a total of $8,619,598.32, being a decrease, as compared with the year 1884, of $4,159,532.01, and with 1883 of $3,086,167.33, to which is to be added $8,821.86 for certified copies of records furnished by the General Land Office, making the total receipts for the year from all sources $8,628,420.18. The following is a statement in detail: Entries with military bounty-land warrants Entries with agricultural college-scrip.. Entries with private land-claim scrip (Supreme Court). Entries with Valentine scrip Entries with Israel Dodge scrip Entries with Sioux half-breed scrip. Donation entries... Railroad selections.. Wagon-road selections Salt spring selections.... Indian homestead entries.... 26, 833. 18 961.83 7,944.37 400.00 477.88 358.85 2,200. 76 State selections-school, swamp, &c.. Total miscellaneous disposals.... Total area of public land entries and selections.. 3,558, 914. 10 128, 066.94 1, 286. 43 299, 239.68 3,637.77 16, 201, 212. 89 20, 113, 663. 38 The foregoing does not include the following final entries, the areas of which have previously been reported in the original entries of the respective classes: In addition to the foregoing, and not included in the total areas of current sales, entries, and selections, are pre-emption, homestead, and miscellaneous filings, viz: The area of land embraced in these filings aggregates 8,000,000 acres. 146,089 00 659 88 65 00 3, 134 45 44,494 63 1,598 75 From fees on wagon-road selections.. From fees on salt spring selections.. Total receipts from public lands... Receipts from disposal of Indian lands.... Receipts from fees for transcripts of records furnished by the General Total 16 00 7,686,114 80 933,483 52 8,821 86 8,628, 420 18 |