of course, it would be years before they could be completed. Meantime, provision should be made for homestead disposition and public auction sale of the lands, with a provision for a preliminary survey at the expense of the applicant, the land obtained to be held subject to a reconformation on the completion of the official survey. Homestead entries, of course, should be for limited amounts; but in order to encourage investments of capital and the introduction of modern methods of agriculture, we think public auction sales of comparatively large tracts should be authorized upon proper conditions and at not less than fixed minimum prices. The islands of Mindanao, Paragua, and Mindoro are almost wholly undeveloped, and will remain so until capitalists are offered an inducement to go there and make large investments.

Persons in possession of land and actually cultivating the same for a number of years ought to be given an opportunity to perfect their titles. The difficulties likely to attend the disposition of the public domain in these islands are set forth in a paper prepared by our commissioner of public lands, Mr. William M. Tipton. He has been in the Philippines only about two months, but he has had eighteen years' experience in the office of the surveyor-general of public lands in New Mexico, and some eight or nine years' experience as an assistant in the office of the United States attorney in the Court of Private Land Claims. He shows clearly the necessity for the establishment of a court of private land claims here, for conditions are not very different from those obtaining in New Mexico. In another paper he states, in a summary way, the provisions by law for the alienation and acquisition of public lands under the Spanish dominion in the Philippines. The two papers are attached hereto as Appendices F and G.

We recommend that the commission be authorized to enact a publicland law, with such limitations as to quantities, prices, and conditions of purchase as to Congress may seem wise. In the last years of Spanish rule provision was made by law for turning over to each pueblo a common from the public lands. It is understood that no such commons have been surveyed or taken possession of; but at several places in our provincial journeys questions were asked as to whether the American Government intended to fulfill the Spanish promise in this regard. In any general authority conferred upon the commission in regard to disposition of public lands, it is suggested that power be given to grant commons to each town from the puplic domain.

MUNICIPAL GOVERNMENTS.

The municipal code was enacted on January 21, 1901. It had been the plan of the commission to organize the municipalities of the several provinces and then proceed in each case to the establishment of a provincial government; but conditions were improving so rapidly at