

PUBLIC DOCUMENTS. 



649 



This careful oversight on the part of the people has 

 proved a constant stimulus to improvement. During 

 the past year there was an increase of 2,134 post-offices, 

 and the mail routes were extended 27,177 miles, mak- 

 ing an additional annual transportation of 10,804,191 

 miles. The revenues of the postal service for the en- 

 suing year are estimated at $38,845,174.10, and the 

 expenditures at $42,475,932, leaving a deficiency to be 

 appropriated out of the Treasury of $3,630,757.90. 



The Universal Postal Union has received the acces- 

 sion of almost all the countries and colonies of the 

 world maintaining organized postal services, and it is 

 confidently expected that ail the other countries and col- 

 onies now outside the Union will soon unite therewith, 

 thus realizing the grand idea and aim of the founders of 

 the Union of forming, for purposes of international mail 

 communication, a single postal territory, embracing 

 the world, with complete uniformity of postal charges 

 and conditions of international exchange for all de- 

 scriptions of correspondence. To enable the United 

 States to do its full share of this great work additional 

 legislation is asked by the Postmaster-General, to 

 whose recommendations especial attention is called. 



The suggestion of the Postmaster-General that it 

 would be wise to encourage, by appropriate legislation, 

 the establishment of American lines of steamers by our 

 own citizens, to carry the mails between our own ports 

 and those of Mexico, Central America, South America, 

 and of trans -pacific countries, is commended to the se- 

 rious consideration of Congress. 



The attention of Congress is also invited to the sug- 

 gestions of the Postmaster- General in regard to postal 

 savings. 



The necessity for additional provision to aid in the 

 transaction of the business of the Federal courts be- 

 comes each year more apparent. The dockets of the 

 Supreme Court, and of the Circuit Courts in the greater 

 number of the circuits, arc encumbered with the con- 

 stant accession of cases. In the former Court, and 

 in many instances in the Circuit Courts, years in- 

 tervene before it is practicable to bring cases to a 

 hearing. 



The Attorney- General recommends the establish- 

 ment of an Intermediate Court of Errors and Appeals. 

 It is recommended that the number of judges of the 

 Circuit Court in each circuit, with the exception of the 

 second circuit, should be increased by the addition of 

 another judge in the second circuit, that two should 

 be added ; and that an Intermediate Appellate Court 

 should be formed in each circuit, to consist of the cir- 

 cuit judges and the circuit justice, and that in the 

 event of the absence of either of these judges the place 

 of the absent judge should be supplied by the judge 

 of one of the district courts in the circuit. Such an 

 appellate court could be safely invested with large 

 jurisdiction, and its decisions would satisfy suitors in 

 many cases where appeals would still be allowed to the 

 Supreme Court. The expense incurred for this inter- 

 mediate court will require a very moderate increase of 

 the appropriations for the expenses of the Department 

 of Justice. This recommendation is commended to 

 the careful consideration of Congress. 



It is evident that a delay of justice, in many in- 

 stances oppressive and disastrous to suitors, now 

 necessarily occurs in the Federal Courts, which will in 

 this way be remedied. 



The report of the Secretary of the Interior presents 

 an elaborate account of the operations of that depart- 

 ment during the past year. It gives me great pleas- 

 ure to say that our Indian affairs appear to be in a 

 more hopeful condition now than ever before. The 

 Indians have made gratifying progress in agriculture, 

 herding, and mechanical pursuits. Many, who were 

 a few years ago in hostile conflict with the Govern- 

 ment, are quietly settling down on farms where they 

 hope to mase their permanent homeSj building houses, 

 and engaging in the occupations of civilized life. The 

 introduction of the freighting business among them 

 has been remarkably fruitful of good results, in giving 

 many of them congenial and remunerative employment, 

 and "in stimulating their ambition to earn their own 



support. Their honesty, fidelity, and efficiency as 



carriers are highly praised. The organization of a 



police force of Indians has been ( 



maintaining law and order upon tin- r 



in exercising a wholesome, moral inlhu-n.-.- :. 



Indians themselves. 1 concur with t:. 



the Interior in the recommendation tliut the pay of this 



force be increased as an inducement to the best class 



of young men to enter it. 



Much care and attention have been devoted to the 

 enlargement of educational facilities lor this Indians. 

 The means available for this important object ha 

 very inadequate. A few additional boarding-schools 

 at Indian agencies have been established, and the 

 erection of buildings has been begun for several more, 

 but an increase of the appropriations for this interest- 

 ing undertaking is greatly needed to accommodate the 

 large number of Indian children of school age. The 

 number offered by their parents from all parts of the 

 country for education in the Government schools is 

 much larger than can be accommodated with the means 

 at present available for that purpose. The number of 

 Indian pupils at the Normal School at Hampton, Vir- 

 ginia, under the direction of General Armstrong, has 

 been considerably increased, and their progress is 

 highly encouraging. The Indian school established 

 by the Interior Department, in 1879, at Carlisle, Penn- 

 sylvania, under the direction of Captain Pratt, has 

 been equally successful. It has now nearly two hun- 

 dred pupils of both sexes, representing a great variety 

 of the tnbes east of the Rocky Mountains. The pu- 

 pils in both these institutions receive not only an ele- 

 mentary English education, but are also instructed iu 

 house-work, agriculture, and useful mechanical pur- 

 suits. A similar school was established this year at 

 Forest Grove, Oregon, for the education of Indian 

 youth on the Pacific coast. In addition to this, thirty- 

 six Indian boys and girls were selected from the 

 Eastern Cherokees and placed in boarding-schools in 

 North Carolina, where they are to receive an elemen- 

 tary English education and training in industrial pur- 

 suits. The interest shown by Indian parents, even 

 among the so-called wild tribes, in the education of 

 their children is very gratifying, and gives promise 

 that the results accomplished by the efforts now mak- 

 ing will be of lasting benefit. 



The expenses of Indian education have so far been 

 drawn from the permanent civilization fund at the dis- 

 posal of the Department of the Interior ; but the fund 

 is now so much reduced that the continuance of this 

 beneficial work will in the future depend on specific 

 appropriations by Congress for the purpose ; and I 

 venture to express the hope that Congress will not 

 permit institutions so fruitful of good results to perish 

 for want of means for their support. On the contrary, 

 an increase of the number of such schools appears to 

 me highly advisable. 



The past year has been unusually free from disturb- 

 ances among the Indian tribes. An agreement has 

 been made with the Utes by which they surrender 

 their large reservation in Colorado in consideration of 

 an annuity to be paid to them, and agree to settle in 

 severalty on certain lands designated for that purpose, 

 as farmers, holding individual title to their land in fee- 

 simple, inalienable for a certain period. In this way 

 a costly Indian war has been avoided, which at one 

 time seemed imminent, and, for the first time in the 

 history of the country, an Indian nation has given up 

 its tribal existence to be settled in severalty, and to 

 live as individuals under the common protection of the 

 laws of the country. 



The conduct of the Indians throughout the country 

 durinw the past year, with but few noteworthy excpp- 

 tionsAas been orderly and peaceful. The guerrilla 

 warfare carried on for two years by Victorio and his 

 band of Southern Apaches has virtually come to an 

 end by the death of that chief and most of his follow- 

 ers on Mexican soil. The disturbances caused on our 

 northern frontier by Sitting Bull and his men, who 

 had taken refuse hi the British dominions, are also 

 likely to cease. A largo majority of his followers nave 



