FIG. 7.

should be placed near the object-glass. When the plumbline, the star Alioth, and the north star fall on the vertical spider's line, the horizontal limb is firmly clamped, and the telescope brought down to the horizon; a light, seen through a small aperture in a board, and held at some distance by an assistant, is then moved according to signals, until it is covered by the intersection of the spider's lines. A picket driven into the ground, under the light, serves to mark the meridian line for reference by day, when the angle formed by it and the magnetic meridian may be measured.

WHEN DESIRED BY SETTLERS, SURVEYS MAY BE MADE BY THE SURVEYOR-GENERAL AT THEIR EXPENSE IN CERTAIN CASES.

It sometimes happens that for the purpose of perfecting their title at an earlier day, the settlers on the public lands prefer to pay for the survey of the township in which their claims are located, in order that it may be surveyed before the government is ready to make the survey in the regular progress of the public work. Congress has provided that this may be done when such townships are contiguous to some established lines of the public surveys from which the regular continuity of the surveys can be secured.

By section 10 of an act entitled "An act to reduce the expenses of the survey and sale of the public lands in the United States," approved May 30th, 1862, it is provided: "That when the settlers in any township or townships, not mineral or reserved by government, shall desire a survey made of the same under the authority of the Surveyor-General of the United States, and shall file an ap

plication therefor in writing, and deposit in a proper United States depository, to the credit of the United States, a sum sufficient to pay for such survey, together with all expenses incident thereto, without cost or claim for indemnity on the United States, it shall and may be lawful for said Surveyor-General, under such instructions as may be given him by the Commissioner of the General Land Office, and in accordance with existing laws and instructions, to survey such township or townships, and make return therof to the general and proper local land office: Provided, The townships so proposed to be surveyed are within the range of the regular progress of the public surveys embraced by existing standard lines or bases for the township and subdivisional surveys."-(Sec. 10, p. 410, vol. xii. U. S. Laws.)

Applications for surveys under this law must be made to the Surveyor-General in writing, upon the receipt of which he will furnish the applicant with an estimate of how much the desired survey will cost. On receiving a certificate of deposit of a United States depositary, showing that the required sum has been deposited with him in a proper manner to pay for the work, the Surveyor-General will contract with a competent United States deputy surveyor, and have the survey made and returned in the same manner as other public surveys are.

The Surveyors-General are especially enjoined in all cases to state explicitly in their letters furnishing estimates to applicants, that the payment of the amount required for the survey will not give the depositor any priority of claim or right to purchase the land, or in any manner affect the claim or claims of any party or parties thereto; and that, when surveyed, it will be subject to the same laws and regulations in relation to the disposition thereof that other public lands are.

The money should be deposited to the credit of the Treasurer of the United States on account of the proper

appropriations. A separate estimate is required and a separate deposit must be made for office work and field work; one to be placed to the credit of the appropriation "for compensation of the Surveyor-General and the clerks in his office," and the other to the credit of the appropriation "for continuing the public surveys." The depositary will issue certificates in triplicate, one of which will be transmitted to the General Land Office with the contract and bond of the deputy surveyor.

The account will be adjusted and paid in the same manner as other surveying accounts. Should the amount deposited exceed the cost of survey and all expenses incident thereto, including office work, an account setting forth the fact of such excess may be rendered by the depositor, certified by the Surveyor-General, and transmitted to the General Land Office, with the final surveying returns, to be recorded for payment.

Where a township is surveyed under the provisions of the aforesaid act, the survey must include all the surveyable public land in such township.

CERTAIN SMALL ISLANDS MAY BE SURVEYED AT THE COST OF APPLICANTS.

In the early extension of the public surveys it frequently happened that small islands were omitted when the adjacent lands were surveyed. In the course of time as the country is settled these islands become more valuable, and numerous letters are received at the General Land Office from parties desiring to purchase, asking how they shall proceed to acquire a title to them.

The first step to be taken is to have such islands surveyed by an authorized government surveyor. When the islands are located in a surveying district where there is a Surveyor-General, the application for a survey should be made directly to that officer; should the applicant

address the General Land Office he will invariably be referred to the local office in such cases.

The Commissioner of the General Land Office is by law ex officio Surveyor-General for those older land states, where the public lands have been surveyed and the Surveyor-General's office has been closed; applications for the survey of islands in these states should therefore be made to said Commissioner.

These islands are usually of too little value to justify the government in incurring the expense of survey; but where a party desires the survey made and is willing to pay the cost thereof in advance, upon the conditions set forth in these instructions, it may be done under the provisions of the 10th section of the act of May 30th, 1862.

The party desiring the survey to be made must file a written application with the Surveyor-General, giving an intelligible description of the locality of the island, its distance from the main shore, the width of the narrowest channel between it and the main land, with an estimate of its area.

Upon receiving such application, made in the manner indicated, the Surveyor-General will examine the records and dates in his office, and if it appears that the island is public land and has not already been surveyed, he will furnish the applicant an estimate of the cost of surveying it, as directed for carrying into effect the 10th section of the act of May 30th, 1862, observing particularly that two separate deposits are to be made-one on account of the appropriation for field work, and one on account of the appropriation for office work-a separate certificate for each to be transmitted to the General Land Office with the contract and bond of the deputy surveyor.

It will be understood that these instructions relate only to isolated islands, or islands that were omitted when the public surveys were extended over the adjacent lands, and do not apply to islands falling within the regular course of

current surveys, which must be included in the contracts for surveying the public lands.

As a general rule, a body of land separated from the main land by a perpetual natural channel may be regarded as an island for the purposes contemplated in these instructions.

It will be understood, also, that the paying for the survey of these islands in advance does not give any priority of claim to the party depositing the money, nor in any manner affect the rights of parties in said lands. The survey is a necessary first step to get the land in a condition to be disposed of, and when it is surveyed it becomes subject to the same laws and regulations that other public lands are. It is the duty of Surveyors-General so to advise applicants before receiving their money.