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Show REPORT OF THE COMMISSIONER OF INDIAN AFFAIRS. 55 The suthority for this yearb cutting, contained in Department letter of November 4 last, oonfines "the cutting so that the dead and down timber and the timber left standing-scattered on the land heretofore out over-shall be out and banked before any new lands are out over, and in the cutting of tops and butts into shingle bolts you will direct that no timber whioh will make a. merchantable saw log shall be cut into ahingle bolts." There iis nothing in this authority whioh mould authorize the cutting of any tree, nnmerohantable though it be, wholly into shingle bolts, and the agent's reqnest t o out said class of timber into shingle bolts must be denied unless asid timber is to be sold as Dart of the 20.000.000 feet under the ~rovisionso f the act of June 12.1890. " , , " , , the same is so rsnthorized. These instructions were at ouce co~nmunicatedt o Agent Savage. In regard to his request that funds be advanced the Indians for t,heprod-cutiou of the work, I said : Your request for funds to be advanced the Indians with which to do the work, ie not nnderatood, as it has been customary for them to 110 this shingle-bolt nutting at their own expense and ilwsit the proceeds of the sale. As this shingle timber ia not cnt nuder the provisions of the act no part of the $75,000 allowed by said act can be used. These instructions, as I believe, were carefully carried out, a r ~Ad pril 4,1894, Agent Savage asked authority to advertise the bolts, which ' the Department granted April 12,1894, as follows : I ' In eomplil~nee with the reeommendstion oontained in your oommunieatition of the 9th instant, authority is hereby granted for the agent of the Green Bay Agenoy, Wis., top~tblishs n advertisement, as per the formanhmitted and herewithreturned, in whioh dates are to be inserted, in the weekly editions of the Shawano County Advocate; Enquirer, of Oeonto; Advocate, of Green Bey, Wis., two times in the regular issues succeeding the date of receipt of the n,dvertisement, and for six oon-seontivs days from date of reeeipt of the advertisement in the daily editions of the Oshkosh Times, of Oshkosh, Wis., inviting sealed bids to he opened ill the presence of the bidders in the office of the Green Bay Agency, Wis., st 2 o'olook p. m., April 25, 1894, for the sale and disposition of 1,753,710 fret of shingle bolts cut by the Menomonee Indians last spring, under Department instructions of Febroary 20, 1894; said sale and disposition to be in aooordsnee with the provision8 of the rules containel' in Department letter to yonr ofiioe of Februaky 3, 1893. The bids were opened, as advertised, on April 25,1894, and trans. mitted by the agent to this office, and were a% follows: Auguat Anderson, Wolf and Ooonto rivers, 1,825,780 feet, at $3.10. , August Anderson, Wolf River, 573,170 feet, at $2.65. Rsclford Bros. & Co., Wolf River, 573.170 feet, at $1.80. 6. W. Holliater, Wolf and Ooanto rivers, 1,825,780 feet, at $2.50. The prices offered were so low that I hesitated to accept them, and telegraphed Agent Savage as follows: , ' d Do yon recommend acceptance of August Anderson's bid of three ten per thon-sand feet for a11 ahingle bolts9 Or would it be wise to reject all and resdvertiae? Wire answeS. He replied : Wonld recommend soaeptsnce of bid for three ten far all shingle bolts as the best that can he done under ciroomstances. |