From the above summary and statement it is clear there are now 410 homestead entries upon the former Cheyenne Reservation and 72 entries upon the former Standing Rock Reservation that are subject to cancellation. Very few of the purchasers of the lands sold at public auction have paid more than the first payment. Something over 90 per cent have paid interest in advance upon subsequent installments and are now being carried by the Government. Notwithstanding authority is lacking under existing law, the Secretary has directed that no cancellations be made because of these delinquencies pending the proposed enactment of this bill (H. R. 9710) or until August 1, 1922. The same order applies to delinquencies upon installments due upon the land sales. It is imperative, therefore, that the extension provided for in the pending bill be granted, or many of those who are delinquent must forfeit their entries and lose what they have with much labor and sacrifice put into their lands. In addition to the hard conditions that are facing farmers all over the country, the settlers upon these lands are undergoing the hardships incident to the development of a new country. Most of them had a very limited capital to start with and the last two years have brought to them a practical failure of small grain in some localities owing to drought and the ravages of the red and black rust which attacked their small grains. This, together with extremely low prices of most farm products and the high prices of what they must purchase, have reduced them to a point where it is essential to extend the relief provided for in this bill. The above recommendations are concurred in by the Department of the Interior, as will be observed from the following letters to Mr. N. J. Sinnott, chairman of the House Committee on the Public Lands. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR, Hon. N. J. SINNOTT, Chairman Committee on the Public Lands, House of Representatives. MY DEAR MR. SINNOTT: I am in receipt of the request of your committee for a report on H. R. 9710, entitled "A bill authorizing extensions of time for the payment of purchase money due under certain homestead entries and town-lot purchases within the former Cheyenne River and Standing Rock Indian Reservations, N. Dak, and S. Dak." The proposed bill provides that any homestead entryman or purchaser of town lots within the said former reservations, who is unable to make payment of the purchase money due under his entry or purchase, as required by existing laws or regulations, on application duly verified, showing that he is unable to make the payments required, shall be granted an extension to the 1923 anniversary of the date of his entry or purchase, upon payment of interest in advance at the rate of 5 per cent per annum on the amounts due from the maturity thereof to the said anniversary. It further provides that if the entryman or purchaser at the expiration of the extended period is still unable to make the payment he may, upon the same terms and conditions, in the discretion of the Secretary of the Interior, be granted such further extensions of time as the facts warrant. Congress has already passed two acts providing for extensions of time for payment for lands within the former Cheyenne River and Standing Rock Indian Reservations, N. Dak. and S. Dak. The act of April 13, 1912 (37 Stat., 84), as amended by the act of May 28, 1914 (38 Stat., 384), authorizes extensions of time for payment on homestead entries for those lands within the former Cheyenne River and Standing Rock Indian Reservations opened on May 2, 1910, under authority of the act of May 29, 1908 (35 Stat., 460), and provides that the time for any payment about to become due may be extended for one year upon the payment of interest in advance, at the rate of 5 per cent per annum, and that any payment so extended may annually thereafter be extended for a period of one year in the same manner, but that the last payment and all other payments must be made within a period not exceeding one year after the last payment becomes due under the act under which it was made. The act opening these lands provided that the price should be fixed by appraisement and that one-fifth of the purchase price should be paid at the time of entry and the balance in five equal annual installments. The act of March 26, 1910 (36 Stat., 266), amended said act of May 29, 1908, so as to permit the payment of the first annual installment two years from the date of entry and the remaining annual installments three, four, five, and six years from the date of entry. The utmost time allowed, therefore, for the completion of payments made under the said act of May 29, 1908, is seven years from the date of entry. Section 1 of the act of March 4, 1921 (41 Stat., 1446), authorizes the Secretary of the Interior, in his discretion, to extend for a period of one year the time for the payment of any annual installment due or thereafter to become due of the purchase price of the lands on the remaining portion of the Standing Rock Reservation, opened under the act of February 14, 1913 (37 Stat., 675), upon the payment of interest in advance at the rate of 5 per cent per annum upon the amount due, and provides that any payment so extended may annually thereafter be extended for a period of one year in the same manner, but that the last payment and all other payments must be made within a period not exceeding one year after the last payment becomes due under the act under which it was made. The said act of February 14, 1913, fixed the price of the land at $5 an acre if entered or filed upon within three months after the opening, at $3.50 an acre if entered or filed upon within the next three months, and at $2.50 if thereafter entered or filed upon, and provides that one-fifth of the purchase price shall be paid at the time of entry and the balance in five equal annual installments commencing two years from the date of entry. Accordingly, the utmost time allowed for payment on entries made under this act is seven years from the date thereof. Under authority of section 5 of the act of May 29, 1908 (35 Stat., 460), it has been the practice of the department to grant extensions of time for payments on town-lot sales upon proper application to the General Land Office. Provision for such extension is not necessary, therefore, in the present proposed bill, and it is suggested that so much of lines 3 and 4, page 1, as reads: or purchaser of Government town lots" be stricken out and that there be inserted instead the words, "of lands." It is also suggested that the words "or contract of purchase," in lines 7 and 11, page 1, and the words "or purchaser of town lots," lines 2 and 3, page 2, be stricken out and that the title of the bill be changed to read: 46 "A bill authorizing extensions of time for the payment of purchase money due under certain homestead entries within the former Cheyenne River and Standing Rock Indian Reservations, N. Dak. and S. Dak." From the numerous requests for extensions of time received in the General Land Office it appears that conditions in the vicinity of these lands justify further extending the time for payment, and this department has no objection to the passage of the proposed bill with the suggested amendments. It is thought well, however, to call attention to the fact that the bill, if passed, will affect only homestead entries upon which the seven-year period expires prior to 1923, the acts of April 13, 1912, and section 1 of the act of March 4, 1921, above cited, already providing for extensions of time from year to year until seven years from the date of entry. With the suggested amendments the bill will read: "Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That any homestead entryman of lands within the former Cheyenne River and Standing Rock Indian Reservation in North Dakota and South Dakota, who is unable to make payment of purchase money due under his entry as required by existing law or regulations, on application duly verified showing that he is unable to make payment as required, shall be granted an extension to the 1923 anniversary of the date of his entry upon payment of interest in advance at the rate of 5 per centum per annum on the amounts due from the maturity thereof to the said anniversary; and if at the expiration of the extended period the entryman is still unable to make payment, he may, upon the same terms and conditions, in the discretion of the Secretary of the Interior, be granted such further extensions of time as the facts warrant." As amended it is recommended that H. R. 9710 be enacted into law. Hon. N. J. SINNOTT, E. C. FINNEY, Acting Secretary. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR, Chairman Committee on the Public Lands. House of Representatives. MY DEAR MR. SINNOTT: On January 25, 1922, the department recommended that H. R. 9710, entitled "A bill authorizing extensions of time for the payment of purchase money due under certain homestead entries and town-lot purchases within the former Cheyenne River and Standing Rock Indian Reservations, N. Dak. and S. Dak., be amended by eliminating the town-lot clause and as amended be enacted into law. Hon. William Williamson, who introduced the bill, has now requested that consideration be given to his suggestion that the bill be further amended so as to include purchases of these lands made at public sale. Section 2 of the act of Congress approved March 4, 1921 (41 Stat., 1446), authorizes the Secretary of the Interior in his discretion for a period of one year the time for the payment of any annual installment due or thereafter to become due of the purchase price of the lands within the former Cheyenne River and Standing Rock Indian Reservations sold under the act of May 29, 1908 (35 Stat., 460), and regulations of February 27, 1920, upon the payment of interest in advance at the rate of 5 per cent per annum, and provides that any payment so extended may be extended annually thereafter for a period of one year in the same manner, but that the last payment and all other payments must be made within a period not exceeding one year after the last payment becomes due under the regulations under which it was made. The said regulations of February 27, 1920, required that one-third of the purchase price should be paid at the date of entry and the balance in two equal annual installments due one and two years thereafter. As the sale of these lands was held in the summer of 1920, the purchasers have until the 1923 anniversaries of the dates of their purchases within which to complete the payments, upon the payment of interest in advance as required by the said act of March 4, 1921. The provision in the present proposed bill for extending the time for payment until the 1923 anniversary of the date of an entry or purchase is not necessary, therefore, in the case of these purchases by the clause at the end of the bill giving the Secretary of the Interior discretionary power to grant further extensions of time upon the expiration of the extended period would enable the department to grant such extensions to those purchasers who are unable to complete their payments in 1923, which is not possible under existing law. Therefore the suggested change is concurred in. The bill as amended would read: "A BILL Authorizing extensions of time for the payment of purchase money due under certain homestead entries and Government land purchases within the former Cheyenne River and Standing Rock Indian Reservations, North Dakota and South Dakota. "Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That any homestead entryman or purchaser of Government lands within the former Cheyenne River and Standing Rock Indian Reservations in North Dakota and South Dakota, who is unable to make payment of purchase money due under his entry or contract of purchase as required by existing law or regulations, on application duly verified showing that he is unable to make payment as required, shall be granted an extension to the 1923 anniversary of the date of his entry or contract of purchase upon payment of interest in advance at the rate of 5 per centum per annum on the amounts due from the maturity thereof to the said anniversary; and if at the expiration of the extended period the entryman or purchaser is still unable to make the payment he may, upon the same terms and conditions, in the discretion of the Secretary of the Interior, be granted such further extensions of time as the facts warrant." Mr. Williamson has also requested that information be furnished as to the number of homestead entries that would be affected by the enactment of the proposed bill into law. An examination of the records of the General Land Office shows that the seven-year period allowed for completing payments on those lands under present legislation will expire prior to the 1923 anniversaries of the dates of approximately 1,102 homestead entries. О E. C. FINNEY, Acting Secretary. 67TH CONGRESS,} SENATE. { REPORT No. 555. COMPENSATION OF CLERKS OF DISTRICT COURTS. MARCH 9 (calendar day, MARCH 13), 1922.-Ordered to be printed. Mr. NELSON, from the Committee on the Judiciary, submitted the following REPORT. [To accompany H. R. 8342.] The Committee on the Judiciary, to which was referred the bill (H. R. 8342) to empower the Attorney General of the United States to fix the compensation of clerks of the United States district courts, having considered the same, report favorably thereon with the recommendation that the bill do pass without amendment. The committee adopt the report of the Committee on the Judiciary of the House of Representatives on this bill (H. Rept. No. 673) as its report, which states fully and clearly the reasons for the passage of the bill. The following is the substance of the House report: Under section 2 of an act approved the 26th day of February, 1919 (40 Stats., 1182), it is provided: That the clerk of the United States district court for each of the judicial districts of the United States, except the clerks of the district courts of Alaska, shall be paid, in lieu of the fees, salaries, and per cent now allowed by law, an annual salary to be fixed by the Attorney General at not less than $2,500 nor more than $5,000, based in each instance upon the amount of business transacted by the court and the fees and the emoluments received by the clerks in the four years last preceding." Under the authority of this act the salaries of the respective clerks of the United States district courts were fixed by the Attorney General, based upon the amount of business transacted by the court and the fees and the emoluments received by the clerks in the four years last preceding. Under date of July 24, 1920, the Comptroller of the Treasury held that: "When the salaries of these clerks have been adjusted by the Attorney General in accordance with this statute, the power of adjustment has been exhausted and the salaries which have thus been definitely and permanently fixed must remain in effect unless and until they shall be changed by further legislation. I find no authority of law for readjustment of these salaries by the Attorney General." By reason of this ruling no readjustment of these salaries can be made by the Attorney General under existing law, and however materially conditions may have changed in any district warranting a decrease or an increase in a |