THE SOLICITOB. 795 



as compared with 44 similar cases reported in 1909. Eighteen cases 

 terminated in favor of the United States in 1910 ; fmes were assessed in 

 the aggregate of S-,397; 15 cases w^ere disposed of in 1909, resulting 

 in the collection of fines in the sum of $890. In one case during the 

 fiscal year 1910 the defendant w\as fined $1,000 and sentenced to ten 

 months in the house of correction, and in another a fine of 850 and a 

 sentence of ninety days' imprisonment were imposed. No cases were 

 lost, 8 were dismissed for lack of evidence, and 26 were pending at 

 the close of June 30, 1910; no cases were lost in 1909, 7 were dis- 

 missed for lack of evidence, and 22 cases were pending at the close 

 of June 30, 1909. Property of the Department, unlawfully detained 

 by cooperative Weather Bureau observers, was recovered in two 

 cases in 1910 and in three cases in 1909. Two employees of the 

 Department were indicted for falsifying their expense accounts and 

 will be tried this fall. The indictments charged offenses under sec- 

 tions 5392 and 5438, Revised Statutes. Four hundred and nine 

 agreements and 87 bonds were prepared in 1910, as compared with 

 702 agreements and 58 bonds in 1909 : the General Supply Committee, 

 for all the Departments, prepared, in the fiscal year 1910, a large 

 number of the agreements which would otherwise have been prepared 

 in this Office. Disregarding these agreements, a substantially larger 

 number of contracts and bonds was prepared in 1910 than in 1909. 

 Nine applications for letters patent on inventions of emplo^^ees of 

 the Department, for dedication to the public, were filed in 1910, as 

 compared with 7 in 1909; 5 patents were allowed and 1 disallowed in 

 1910, as compared with 4 patents allowed and 1 disallowed in 1909. 

 No count has been kept of the number of memoranda, in the form of 

 briefs, transmitted to United States attorneys, for use in connection 

 with the preparation of formal briefs or in arguments, before the 

 courts in connection with cases in which this Department was inter- 

 ested. It is the practice of this Office to cooperate fully with the 

 United States attorneys, upon rec[uest, in searching for authorities and 

 in the formulation of arguments to support the contentions of the 

 Government wherever this, becomes necessary in the trial of cases 

 arising under acts of Congress intrusted to the Department for 

 administration. 



As stated, since January 15, 1910, the law work of the Forest Service 

 has been under my immediate direction. A detailed statement of 

 the work done in this connection appears elsewhere in this report. 

 Some idea of the large volume of work handled is conveyed by the 

 statement that 105 cases of apparent violations of the acts passed for 

 the protection of the National Forests were reported to the Attorney- 

 General for appropriate action in the period from January 15, 1910, 

 to June 30, 1910. Fifty-one written opinions were rendered to offi- 

 cers of the Forest Service on the legal phases of questions arising in 

 the administration of the National Forests. Fifty-three agreements, 

 150 leases, and 47 bonds were prepared during the same period on 

 behalf of the Forest vService. Five hundred and sixty-five cases of 

 contested chiims to lands within the National Forests, initiated under 

 the public-land laws, including the iiomestead and mining laws, were 

 disposed of during the same period by the branches of this Oflice in 

 the field. In addition to such work on behalf of the Forest Service 

 as may be assigned them by the Solifitor, these branch offices in the 

 field also handle law work on behalf of the other Bureaus, Offices, and 

 Divisions of the Department, under his direction. 



