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Receiver's books.

No. 2,700. S. E. 1 of N. E. 1, should be N. W. 1.

2,717. Section 32, should be section 22.

2,734. N. W. of N. W. 1, should be N. W. of S. W. 1.
2,741. N. W. of, should be N. E.

of.

2,774. Township No. 21, should be township 20.

2,898. $51 13, should be $51 15.

2,902. $200 82, should be $209 80.

2,904 and '5. Township 18, should be township 17.

2,911 and '12. Township 18, should be township 17.

2,917, '18, and '19. Township 16, should be township 14.
2,949. S. should be W. .

3,000. Township 21, should be township 20.

3,052. $396 05, should be $369.

3,077. Application wrong. The section measures 638.43, instead of 638.34; the quarter will therefore be 157.11, instead of

157.09.

3,102. $297 66, should be $297 64.

3,178. 520 acres, $650, should be 546.55 acres, $683 18.
3,180. $247 91, should be $248 44.

3,189. $96 67, should be $99 67.

3,192. N. W. of N. W. 1, should be N. W. of S. W. 4.
3,197. $181 82, should be $181 89.

No. 24.

LAND OFFICE AT OPELOUSAS.

DONALDSONVILLE, LA., June 23, 1836. SIR: I have the honor of remitting you a copy of my report to the Secretary of the Treasury, of the examination of the office at Opelousas. It commenced on the 3d instant, and terminated on the 15th; which, deducting the two intervening Sundays, leaves eleven days. My reports of the 9th and 15th bear the dates of the arrangements of materials; but were written at this place, and have employed four days. I found the office in good order, the plats in tolerable state of preservation. The method of book-keeping adopted here by the register differs from all others, but answers every purpose. It is the old register of certificate! kept by the late Valentine King, namely: the blank applications have been bound in a book form; and, after being filled, instead of being cut off and filed, become his record, and are signed by him. The register has had a press made for keeping his plats; its internal arrangements are well adapted for the intended object; I think it ought to be allowed.

My object in stopping at this place was to receive from the surveyor general the instructions which he had promised relative to the intended examination at St. Helena; but he only returned yesterday from New Orleans, where he had been to assist the officers of the land office in the last struggles of the expiring double concession law. The press of business, he tells me, was considerable. He found himself obliged to allow the partial double concessions, where the parties could not agree among

themselves. The southwestern district will be the only one where such a favor will not have been extended; and the relief law, which I suppose the closing of the office at Ouachita will induce people to sue for, and which, it appears to me, cannot be refused to them without injustice, will open the door to an extension of all the obnoxious laws which it was to be hoped had expired forever.

I have been told that the Maison Rouge and Bastrop claims have been disposed of in Congress. I have had access to papers, which prove that the former claim was never made to Maison Rouge, otherwise than as a trustee for the emigrants he might introduce; and that he was not even empowered to allot them the grounds himself, which was to have been done by the commandant; and, further, that the original claim did not extend so far down as is now represented; the accession being made by the commandant and the heir of Maison Rouge.

I am, very respectfully, sir, your obedient servant,

ETHAN A. BROWN, Esq.,

V. M. GARESCHE.

Commissioner of the General Land Office.

Copy of a Report to the Secretary of the Treasury.

OPELOUSAS, LA., June 15, 1836.

SIR: I entered on the examination of this office on the 3d instant, and commenced where I presumed my predecessor, Mr. Barry, had left off. The account of the receiver stood as follows:

ᎠᏒ.

To the balance of the last account, rendered April 30th,

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$2,567 75

33,586 91

3,715 214

$39,869 871

- $25,500 00

59 50

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June 2. By balance in Mechanics and Traders'

Bank,

deposited by me in said bank,

Balance in favor of the receiver,

I have received from him $200, on account of salary.

The double concession law is understood here and acted upon in the same way as it is at the office at New Orleans, being both notified by the surveyor general of the intentions of Commissioner Hayward respecting the same. But the planters, supposing there must be some mistake, or that the instructions must be repealed, and not wishing that their silence should be construed into an abandonment of their rights, have filed their claims in the office and deposited the money for their partial back concessions, and wait for a decision from the Department. I have already

mentioned this case in my report dated New Orleans, April 31, fol. 4, and in fol. 2 of my report dated Plaquemine, 31st May. The surveyor general returning a survey for a whole concession only, in conformity with the instructions of Commissioner Hayward, although this concession is in the hands of different owners, it prevents those individuals from obtaining their certificates, which might enable them to raise money by depositing them in banks. The designation of the back tracts being left blank, prevents the issuance of the certificates.

Several people had filed their pre-emption claims and floats before the law had expired; they were notified to designate both, and neglected doing so; the cases were published. I did not suppose, under those circumstances, that they were entitled to the floats; and advised the officers not to grant them until they had a decision from the Government on the subject. Certificate No. 962 is for a back concession of 206 acres. The property falling into other hands, the present owner finds that he was entitled to a larger area, and claims to enter the balance, which I did not think should be allowed without the assent of the Commissioner.

No. 242. Under this number Ch. Prifere entered, 25th March, 1830, the northeast and southeast quarters of northeast quarter of section 21, township 9 south, range 4 east. Under 1,296 Ch. Martin, 19th March, 1836, entered the southwest quarter and southeast quarter of northeast quarter of same section, township, and range; the southeast quarter of northeast quarter being therefore entered twice. The error probably originates from the entry not being made on the plats. A portion of section 4, township 1 south, range 1 east, is in the same case; being sold 8th March last to I. L. Garrett, and on the 8th June, 1835, to M. 1.. Flint: see certificates Nos. 1,282 and 1,097. No. 1,251. Under this number there has been entered the southwest quarter of a section, stated in the register's books to contain an area of 161.56 acres; the plat and tract book state the area of the whole section (No. 30) to be 752.96 acres, the fourth of which is therefore 188.24 instead of 161.56.

I have instructed the officers to leave off fractions of cents, which are no longer in merchants' books, and add greatly to the labor of summing up. As directed by the Commissioner, I have also instructed the receiver to discontinue the series of his numbers; but, in preference to those of his predecessor, I have made him adopt the series of the register. A case presented itself which proved the necessity. After Valentine King's death, an individual came to the office, who produced a certificate from him for 80 acres of land, but without receipt, although he averred having paid the money. Mr. Rogers, the receiver, assured him that he had not received it, and the entry on the tract book had been erased; there was strong evidence, indeed, that the money had never been paid; but a regard for the character of her late husband made Mrs. King pay the amount. It is evident from this, that if there had been any identity in the register and the receiver's numbers, any omission of that kind must have been discovered immediately. The officers are also in the habit of describing the tracts of land in the most complex manner: for instance, a quarter section will not be designated by the simple title of northwest, southwest, &c., but is thus described: the northeast, southeast, northwest, and southwest quarter of section, &c. Nothing is more fatiguing than this constant repetition, and the head gets so bewildered, after some time, as not to understand it at once; it is also the source of

most of the errors of posting on the plats and tract books. In recom. mending the abandonment of the practice, I only act, I think, in conformity with the suggestions of the late Commissioner, who thought that clearness and simplicity went together. In the same manner I would designate the northwest and southwest of northwest quarter and northwest and southwest quarter of southwest quarter by the more simple phrase of west half of west half of section, &c. The northwest and northeast quarter of southwest quarter and northwest and northeast quarter of southeast quarter of section, &c., would be the north half of south half of section, &c., and the mind would catch at once the locality, without the aid of a diagram.

I am sorry to hear that the register at Ouachita has closed his office on the day that his commission expired. He expressed his doubts to me about the propriety of discharging the duties of the office after his commission was out; it was on the eve of the expiration of two laws, when it was expected that very numerous applications would be made, and the disappointment of people therefore very great. I quoted a number of cases to convince him that an officer's commission was never considered fixed until he had been notified by the Department; and that, in the mean time, his acts were acknowledged, and his salary and perquisites continued. I represented the injury done to the public, and the consequent attack that might be made on the Department. I thought I had converted him to my opinion; my mortification was, therefore, very great. I hope you will not consider any impropriety in the advice I gave, founded, as it was, on precedents.

I have been told that what remained of the archives of Pensacola at Havana has been sent to New Orleans; with what view, I cannot tell. I am, very respectfully, sir, your obedient servant,

Hon. LEVI WOODBURY,

Secretary of the Treasury.

V. M. GARESCHE.

ERRATA.

REGISTER'S.

No. 1,373

1,268

1,365

RECEIVER'S.

1,312. N. E., N. W., and S. E., should be N. E. and S. E. and E of N. W. and S. W. 1.

1,207. Section 34, should be 24.

1,294. 40.20 acres, should be 40.05, $50 06.

Tract Books.

No. 1,188. E. of S. E., not entered.

1,200. The register of certificates states the area to be 67.57 acres ; the tract book 67.51.

1,202. The register of certificates states the area to be 129.14 acres ; the tract book 129.26.

1,212. The register of certificatesstates the area to be 80 acres ; the tract book 80.05.

1,251. The register of certificates states the area to be 161.56 acres ;

the tract book 188.24.

1,289. Entered at N. E. instead of N. W. 1.

No. 1,296. S. W. of N. W.

and S. W. of S. W. 4, should be S. of N.

E., section 21, township 9 S. range 4 E.

1,323. Section 19, should be section 20.

1,328. Township 6 N., register of certificates; plats, township 6 S. 1,333. 80.30 acres, $100 38; on the register of certificates 80.15; $100 19.

No. 25.

LAND OFFICE AT ST. HELENA.

Copy of a Report to the Hon. the Secretary of the Treasury.

ST. HELENA, LOUISIANA, July 15, 1836.

SIR: I commenced examining this office on the 1st inst., and closed on the 14th, inclusive, making fourteen days, Sundays not excepted, but exclusive also of the time employed in writing and copying reports, &c. 1 found on my arrival that the receiver had gone to New Orleans to make a deposite of public moneys, and was detained by the additional bond required by your late circular. The two officers bear very good characters; they are both intelligent, and, as far as I could judge, disposed to do justice, and accommodate every one. Mr. John Killian, the register, has not had, it is true, the advantages of a classical education, but he possesses good sense and judgment, and has made himself quite familiar with the business of the office, at least, as far as practicable in its confused state. He resides in this village; Mr. P. Childress twenty miles from it, but talks of removing his family to it shortly. As soon as he returned I made out his account, which stands as follows:

DR. To the balance due last quarter,

To sales up to last of June,

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$2,527 544

69,008 831

$71,536 38

$43,000 00

23,000 00

125 00

31 50

9 50

669 18

By cash on hand: Union Bank notes, $1,000

City Bank,

Commercial,
New Orleans,

Atchafalaya,

Gas Lights,

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83 66

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Balance due by the register,

69,548 84

$1,987 54+

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