orders, and 716,337 acres theretofore reserved were restored to entry or other proper disposition.

In some instances the reservations were in the nature of blanket withdrawals, without taking into account certain tracts which had been theretofore entered or patented, so that the totals given do not represent with absolute accuracy the amount of public, unentered, or undisposed of land affected.

The withdrawals and restorations made during the year follow: Stock driveways.-Eleven new stock driveways were established under section 10 of the act of December 29, 1916 (39 Stat. 862), and 12 were modified. The area withdrawn for such purpose aggregates 92,287 acres and that released from such withdrawal 17,765 acres. The total area included in driveway withdrawals at the close of the year is 9,282,975 acres.

Air navigation sites.-Public lands aggregating 12,090 acres in Arizona, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming have been withdrawn for use by the Department of Commerce as beacon sites and intermediate landing fields in the maintenance of air-navigation facilities, and 350 acres have been released from such withdrawals. The withdrawals during the past year include navigation air site No. 4, embracing 400 acres for Greenlee County, Ariz.; site No. 13, 240 acres, for Lordsburg, N. Mex.; site No. 25, 20 acres, for Weaverville, Calif.; site No. 7, 400 acres, for Rawlins, Wyo.; site No. 2, 320 acres, for Milford, Utah; sites Nos. 15 and 18, 640 acres, for Las Vegas, Nev.; and site No. 27, 640 acres, for Ajo, Ariz.

National forests.-There have been added to national forests from the public domain 28,099 acres, and 13,542 acres excluded from such reservation, and 991 acres released from forest withdrawal.

National monuments and parks.-The additions to national monuments and parks from the public domain amounted to 6,440 acres, and 169,803 acres were withdrawn for monument classification; 3,620 acres were released from such withdrawals.

Recreational.-Sixty-nine thousand and eighty-nine acres have been withdrawn for recreational purposes at the instance of States, counties, or cities, and 15,594 acres have been restored from such withdrawals.

Coal. No withdrawals for coal classification were made during the year, but 57,006 acres heretofore withdrawn were restored.

Oil.-Ninety-two thousand one hundred and forty acres heretofore withdrawn as potentially valuable for petroleum were restored to entry during the year. No withdrawals were made.

Phosphate. No withdrawals during the year, but 24,741 acres heretofore withdrawn were restored.

Potash. One million eight hundred and seventy-four thousand four hundred and seventy-three acres were withdrawn during the year. No restorations.

Power sites. By two interpretations 1,353 acres were withdrawn, and by 6 restorations and 2 interpretations 15,111 acres theretofore withdrawn were restored to entry, leaving in reservation for powersite purposes on July 1, 1929, 2,483,900 acres.

Public water reserve.-Thirteen thousand four hundred and forty acres of public land were withdrawn by 4 Executive orders and 24 interpretations, and 1,085 acres theretofore withdrawn were restored

to entry by 3 Executive orders. On July 1, 1929, 405,231 acres were held in public water reserves in 12 public-land States, in addition to the land surrounding all springs and water holes on either surveyed or unsurveyed land.'

Power classifications.-By 26 orders and 3 interpretations, 104,343 acres were classified as valuable for hydroelectrical-power purposes and 701 acres theretofore so classified were restored to entry; 1,515,445 acres were on July 1, 1929, so classified and reserved from entry or other disposition.

Reservoir sites. No withdrawals were made for reservoir sites during the year, and 478 acres were restored; 254,050 acres were so withdrawn at the close of the fiscal year.

Power-site designations.-By five departmental orders 5,524 acres were restored to entry, making a total now designated under the Arizona and New Mexico enabling act and the Oregon & California Railroad Co. revestment act of 1,079,952 acres.

Reclamation.-Three million two hundred and eighteen thousand two hundred and five acres were withdrawn during the year for reclamation purposes under the act of June 17, 1902, and 217,476 acres theretofore withdrawn were restored.

Carey Act.-Under section 4 of the act of August 18, 1894 (28 Stat. 422), and acts amendatory thereof and supplemental thereto, 156,708 acres were withdrawn from general disposition for the benefit of the various States applying therefor, and 18,555 acres previously withdrawn were restored to the public domain.

Miscellaneous.-Two hundred and seventy-six thousand six hundred and seventy-four acres of land were placed in a state of reservation for various purposes, other than those herein before referred to, either by Executive or departmental order, and 230,847 acres theretofore reserved were restored.

CONTESTS

Two thousand five hundred and eighty-nine contest records were received during the year, and 296 were brought over from 1928. Decisions were rendered in 2,517 cases, leaving 368 unadjudicated.

INDIANS AND INDIAN LANDS

Allotment applications.-Section 4 of the act of February 8, 1887 (24 Stat. 388), provides for allotments of grazing or agricultural land to Indian settlers on the public domain and to their minor children. Disposition was made of 738 cases under this act, including the issuance of 48 patents.

Fee and trust patents.-There were 4,053 cases of fee and trust applications for the benefit of the Indians considered, and 1,208 fee patents for 177,643.92 acres and 887 trust patents for 95,804.38 acres issued.

Court of Claims data.-In connection with compilation of data (land) and money) of ceded Indian lands involved in suits pending before the Court of Claims, information was furnished for the Cheyenne River Agency, Cheyenne River, Fort Peck, Pine Ridge, Uintah, and Ouray Indian Reservations. Pursuant to requests received during the year, similar compilations were begun but not completed in connection with the following reservations: Si-you-te and 17 other Indian

tribes in California, Saginaw, Swan Creek, Black River, Oto Missouriae, Standing Rock, Rosebud, Steilacoom, Duwamish and Shoshone, or Wind River Indians.

Ceded Indian lands.-No new legislation affecting ceded Indian lands was enacted during the past year. There were 5,860 cases involving entries or purchases of ceded Indian lands. The largest number involved the Cheyenne River and Standing Rock Indian lands, and next in order were Fort Peck lands. In the former the first payment under the act of March 31, 1928 (45 Stat. 400), was required on December 1, 1928; and in the latter the time for payment finally expired on November 1, 1928. Entrymen in all cases of entries or purchases of ceded Indian lands are allowed to relinquish a portion of their entries and have the money theretofore paid on the whole applied to the part retained. This privilege has resulted in many relinquishments or partial relinquishments.

Exchanges for the benefit of Indians. The act of April 21, 1904 (33) Stat. 211), provides for the enlargement of Indian reservations, established by Executive order, through exchange of privately owned lands within the limits of such reservation for vacant, nonmineral, nontimbered, surveyed public lands of equal area and value in the same State. Under this act 75 cases were considered during the past year, of which 4 exchanges were completed, 1 finally rejected, and those remaining await further action on the part of the applicants.

STATE GRANTS AND STATE SELECTIONS

Of

Indemnity.-Selections of school lands were received aggregating 741,401 acres, including new selections and those in connection with which requirements had been made, which in addition to 161,612 acres pending at the beginning of the year totaled 903,013 acres. this amount, 169,927 acres were approved and title conveyed to the States, 20,726 acres were canceled, requirements made with respect to 472,480 acres, and 47,431 acres otherwise disposed of, leaving 192,449 acres awaiting consideration.

Quantity selections under grants for specific purposes.-New selections were received to the amount of 102,330 acres, and 71,330 acres in connection with which requirements had been made. Only 779 acres were brought over from last year. The new selections were principally under grants recently made by Congress. The amount before the office for action during the year totaled 174,439 acres. this amount 2,914 acres were approved and title conveyed to the States, 2,228 acres were canceled, requirements made as to 151,662 acres, and 792 acres otherwise disposed of, leaving 16,843 acres before the office for action.

Of

In addition to these quantity grant selections, applications under such grants were received, not allowed by the local office, but transmitted for action because of conflict with oil and gas applications or permits, or for other reasons, as to which there are pending applications awaiting office action to the amount of 101,669 acres.

Conveyances amounting to 6,690 acres were made to the States, with reservation of certain mineral deposits to the United States, including coal, potassium, oil and gas, or phosphate.

Title to 52,714 acres of land was conveyed to certain States under cooperative agreements providing for the exchange of school-section

lands within the boundaries of national forests for other lands within such boundaries. In all, there have been conveyed to the States pursuant to such agreements an aggregate of 708,388 acres.

The act of January 25, 1927, granting mineral school sections to the various States greatly increases the work of adjudication of indemnity school-land selections, as many complications arise, both as to lands within reservations and otherwise, in determining whether title passed to the State under the original granting act as nonmineral land, or under the act of 1927 as mineral lands, and whether the State is entitled to indemnity on account of the mineral character of the land or for other reasons.

School sections.-Under the act of January 25, 1927, granting mineral school sections to the various States, it is incumbent upon this office to determine whether the various school sections pass to the States under the original granting acts as nonmineral land or under the provisions of said act of 1927 as mineral land.

Four hundred and eighty school sections were received, which, with 481 on hand, totaled 961 before the office for adjudication; 374 were finally adjudicated and requirements made in 22, leaving 565 pending at the end of the year.

The 374 adjudications involved 13,251.77 acres, the title to which remained in the United States, 124,416.04 acres found to have passed to the States under the original grant, 40,608.73 acres under the act of January 25, 1927, and 14,079.42 acres which passed to the States but in which the office declined to specify the act. The following table shows the adjudication in detail:

School sections in place, July 1, 1928, to June 30, 1929

RAILROAD GRANTS AND SELECTIONS

Railroad and wagon-road listings and selections were received to the extent of 161,493.43 acres; 230,418.75 acres were certified or patented in satisfaction of such grants; 137,408.25 acres of selections were rejected, the total acreage adjudicated being 367,827 acres.

Public resolution approved June 5, 1924 (43 Stat. 461), created a joint congressional committee empowered and directed to make a thorough and complete investigation of the land grants of the Northern Pacific Railroad (now Railway) Co. and the facts and the laws pertaining thereto. House joint resolution of May 28, 1928, suspended action on the grant by the department until June 30, 1929. House Joint Resolution No. 398, approved February 16, 1929, extended the suspension until June 30, 1930, pending final determination in the matter of the investigation.

On June 25, 1929, there was approved an act, Public, No. 22, Seventy-first Congress, first session, altering and amending the Northern Pacific Railroad (now Railway) land grant act of July 2, 1864, and the joint resolution of May 31, 1870, declaring forfeited certain claimed rights of the company, directing the institution and prosecution of proceedings looking to the adjustment of the grant and for other purposes.

The act takes out and removes from the grant all vacant land in the indemnity limits which on June 5, 1924, were in a national forest or other Government reservation which otherwise would be subject to selection by the company to make up for any alleged deficiency in the primary limits. Provision is made that the United States shall compensate the company for any land so withheld that the courts may decide belongs in fact to the company.

All the unsatisfied indemnity rights of the company, where such exist, are forfeited by section 2 of the act.

Section 5 authorizes the Attorney General to forthwith institute and prosecute suit to remove the cloud cast upon the title to land belonging to the United States claimed by the company, to have a full accounting between the United States and the company to determine to what extent, if any, the company is entitled to have land further patented to it under the grant, to ascertain whether the company is entitled to any unpatented land in the indemnity limits, to ascertain to what extent the United States may be entitled to recover land wrongfully patented, fully adjudicating all controversies and disputes respecting the grant and its effect. Section 9 directs further that issuance of patents and muniments of title under the grant be withheld until the suit or suits shall have been finally determined. The act opens no land to entry or sale. Administrative instructions pursuant to it have not been issued.

Railroad adjustments.-The work of adjusting the following nine railroad land grants was completed: Southern Pacific (main line); Cedar Rapids & Missouri River; Amboy, Lansing & Traverse Bay; Flint; Pere Marquette; Chicago Northwestern (Wisconsin); Grand Rapids & Indiana; La Crosse & Milwaukee; Chicago, St. Paul, Minneapolis & Omaha; and Wisconsin Central Railroad Companies. One of these adjustments, the La Crosse & Milwaukee, was approved by the Secretary and the grant closed. One other, the Southern Pacific, was approved but the grant not closed, and the others are awaiting action by the beneficiaries, either by way of acceptance or protest, before submitting for approval.

Two other adjustments are progressing rapidly, viz, New Orleans Pacific and the Vicksburg, Shreveport & Texas Railroad Companies. The work of adjustment of the above grants necessitated a careful tract book, survey plat, and grant plat examination of each smallest legal subdivision in 33,727,447.87 acres of granted and indemnity land, and the transfer thereof, of the former and present status of each smallest legal subdivision to the adjustment sheets. In effect this work means the complete reexamination of every transaction heretofore made in connection with each grant with regard to the then existing law or as since changed by legislation and decisions of the department and the courts.