848 ANNUAL REPORTS OF DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



Law work for the Forest Service during the year, other than 

 under the Weeks forestry law, included handling the following cases 

 and other business : 



Claims to lands 



Hearings attended 



Depositions taken 



Briefs prepared and filed- 

 Oral arguments 



Trespasses : 



Grazing 



Timber 



590 

 56 

 64 

 52 

 11 



117 



67 



Trespasses — Continued. 



Fire 37 



Occupancy 40 



General litigation 30 



Written opinions 741 



Contracts 1,967 



Proclamations 2 



The following summary shows what the office did in the fiscal year 

 1916 in connection with the acquisition of lands under the Weeks 

 forestry law : 



Character of work. 



Purchase authorized by the National Forest Reservation Commission 



Agreements of purchase prepared 



Titles in process of examination at the beginning of the year 



Examinations of titles completed and reported to the Department of Justice: 



Purchases recommended 



Condemnations recommended 



Examinations of titles completed but not reported to the Tepartment of Justice 



Titles in process of examination at the end of the year 



Completion of direct purchases after approval of titles by the Attorney General. 

 Completion of purchases of lands acquired through condemnation 



Acreage 



54,89S.00 

 150,321.00 

 263,761.00 



170,9^1.33 

 143,247.67 

 66,702.52 

 160,873.07 

 254,948.81 

 103,733.77 



Two meetings of £he National Forest Reservation Commission 

 were attended. 



In addition to the 1,967 contracts prepared for the Forest Service 

 and the 153 purchase agreements under the Weeks law, 135 con- 

 tracts, 217 leases, 63 bonds, 315 renewals, and 40 notices of termina- 

 tion were prepared for the several bureaus, divisions, and offices of 

 the department, making a total of 2,890 documents of these classes. 



One thousand three hundred and eighty-two written opinions, in- 

 cluding 741 for the Forest Service, were rendered. No account was 

 kept of the numerous informal opinions. 



Twenty applications for letters patent on inventions of employees 

 of the department for dedication to the public were prepared and 

 filed. 



Fifty-six claims for balances due estates of employees of the de- 

 partment who died intestate were examined, the necessary papers 

 prepared for their payment, and advice furnished administrative 

 officers of the department relating to the same. 



Eighteen cases involving questions of irregularity or misconduct 

 by employees in their official duties were reviewed. In each the facts 

 were investigated. In nine formal charges were prepared; after 

 the employees concerned had had full opportunity to reply, the 

 charges, the answers, and the evidence received consideration, and 

 the matters were reported to you for decision. In addition, nine 

 memoranda were prepared on general questions relating to the per- 

 sonnel of the department. 



Several conferences were held with representatives of the Bureau 

 of Plant Industry and importers with reference to formulating a 

 plan for carrying out the agreement with Germany to allow sugar- 



