Within the last four years eight important treaties have been negotiated
with different Indian tribes, and at a cost of $1,842,000; Indian lands
to the amount of more than 18,500,000 acres have been ceded to the
United States, and provision has been made for settling in the country
west of the Mississippi the tribes which occupied this large extent of
the public domain. The title to all the Indian lands within the several
States of our Union, with the exception of a few small reservations, is
now extinguished, and a vast region opened for settlement and
cultivation.
The accompanying report of the Secretary of the Navy gives a
satisfactory exhibit of the operations and condition of that branch of
the public service.
A number of small vessels, suitable for entering the mouths of rivers,
were judiciously purchased during the war, and gave great efficiency to
the squadron in the Gulf of Mexico. On the return of peace, when no
longer valuable for naval purposes, and liable to constant
deterioration, they were sold and the money placed in the Treasury.
Pages:
685
686
687
688
689
690
691
692
693
694
695
696
697
698
699
700
701
702
703
704
705
706
707
708
709