APPENDIX W W.

EXPLORATIONS AND SURVEYS IN THE DIVISION OF THE MISSOURI.

REPORT OF MAJOR THOMAS H. HANDBURY, CORPS OF ENGINEERS, FOR THE FISCAL YEAR ENDING JUNE 30, 1884.

HEADQUARTERS DIVISION OF THE MISSOURI, OFFICE CHIEF ENGINEER, Chicago, Ill., August 27, 1884. GENERAL: I have the honor to submit the following report of the operations carried on from this office during the fiscal year ending June 30, 1884. From the commencement of the year until October 27, 1883, the office was in charge of Capt. James F. Gregory, Corps of Engineers, lieutenant colonel and aide-de-camp to the Lieutenant-General of the Army. On this date it was turned over temporarily to Col. Robert Williams, adjutant general Division of the Missouri, in whose charge it remained until December 15, 1883, when he was relieved by Capt. Thomas H. Handbury, Corps of Engineers, U. S. A.

There has been no field work in progress during the year. The office force has consisted of Topographical Assistants Frederick A. Petersen and Cicero D. Hill. On January 7, 1884, Frederick A. Petersen's term of enlistment expired. He was re-enlisted January 8 for another term of service. The office work has consisted in collecting, compiling and platting geographical information for the improvement of existing maps; in making reductions and enlargements and fac simile copies and tracings of maps of military and Indian reservations, posts, scouts, reconnaissances, &c., for use at these headquarters, for file and forward

ing.

During the year monthly reports of operations have been received from the engineer officers of the departments included in this division. Besides these reports, these officers are required to forward such special reports and maps of work done as may be useful to the major-general commanding the division.

Very respectfully, your obedient servant,

THOS. H. HANDBURY,

Major Corps of Engineers, Engineer Officer, Division of Missouri. Brig. Gen. JOHN NEWTON,

Chief of Engineers U. S. A.

2379

APPENDIX X X.

EXPLORATIONS AND SURVEYS IN THE DEPARTMENT OF THE PLATTE.

REPORT OF LIEUTENANT DAN C. KINGMAN, CORPS OF ENGINEERS, FOR THE FISCAL YEAR ENDING JUNE 30, 1884.

HEADQUARTERS, DEPARTMENT OF THE PLATTE,

ENGINEER OFFICE, Omaha, Nebr., August 8, 1884.

GENERAL: I have the honor to submit, as engineer officer of this military department, the following report for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1884:

Topographical Assistants Henry Kehl and Robert Stone have been on duty in this office during the year.

This office has been without funds during the entire year, and many of the office supplies have been exhausted. From time to time drawing and photographic materials, in limited quantities, have, by direc tion of the department commander, been furnished by the Quartermaster's Department for current use.

A greater part of the working season of 1883 was spent in the Yellowstone National Park in the construction of roads and bridges, to which duty I was assigned by Special Orders No. 73 of 1883, headquarters Military Division of the Missouri. In compliance with this order I left Omaha for the National Park July 28, accompanied by my two topographical assistants. By direction of the Lieutenant-General the two assistants were sent back to their proper station. They reached Omaha September 9.

A special report of operations in the Park up to the time of my return to my station (November 16) has already been submitted. This is too long to be embodied here. A supplemental report to cover the remainder of the fiscal year will be forwarded.

On the 22d of November (in compliance with orders from department headquarters), accompanied by my topographical assistants, I proceeded to Fort D. A. Russell, Wyo., and surveyed and re-established the boundaries of the reservation pertaining to that post. I completed this duty and returned to my station December 5.

By a department order of February 25, 1884, I was made a member of a Board of Officers appointed to meet at Fort Omaha, Nebr., for the purpose of considering the probable effect upon the health of the garrison of that post of the establishment of a pond or artificial lake on its parade. While engaged upon this duty I made such surveys and

examinations at Fort Omaha as were necessary to determine upon the practicability of constructing such a pond or lake, and also upon the probable cost of the improvement.

This comprises all the field work done under my direction.

In the office I have completed tracings of the military and wood and timber reservations of Fort Thornburg, Utah.

I have also constructed a map of the stage road from Beaver Cañon, Idaho, to the Forks of the Fire Hole River in the Yellowstone National Park.

I have also completed the construction of map, upon a scale of 1:5,000,000, of the Department of the Platte and vicinity, showing particularly the transportation routes, and designed for the use and convenience of disbursing officers.

As this office was unprovided with means for multiplying copies of a map of this character, I sent the drawing to Willets Point, and the commanding officer very kindly returned to me for immediate use eighteen excellent copies, printed from a glass negative by the blue process.

Maps, itineraries, topographical note-books, and surveying and reconnoitering instruments have been issued to officers of the department as required, and other matters of routine pertaining to the Engineer office at a department headquarters have been regularly attended to. Very respectfully, your obedient servant,

The CHIEF OF ENGINEERS,

Washington, D. C.

DAN C. KINGMAN, First Lieutenant of Engineers.

APPENDIX YY.

EXPLORATIONS AND SURVEYS IN THE DEPARTMENT OF THE MISSOURI.

REPORT OF LIEUTENANT O. M. CARTER, CORPS OF ENGINEERS, FOR THE FISCAL YEAR ENDING JUNE 30, 1884.

HEADQUARTERS DEPARTMENT OF THE MISSOURI,

OFFICE OF THE CHIEF ENGINEER,

Fort Leavenworth, Kans., June 30, 1884. GENERAL: I have the honor to submit the following report of engineer operations in the Department of the Missouri for the fiscal year ending this date.

FIELD WORK.

Reconnaissance in Western Colorado.-On July 2, 1883, I left the cantonment on the Uncompahgre, Colorado, under instructions from the department commander, for the purpose of ascertaining whether any point between the Grand and the White rivers, and near the Utah line, could be found suitable for the location of a permanent military post.

My party consisted of Second Lieut. E. St. J. Greble, Second Artillery, Acting Assistant Surgeon W. B. Banister, U. S. A., two scouts, and ten enlisted men of the Fourteenth Infantry. We were in the field about two months and a half, and the reconnaissance covered about 3,000 square miles of country.

Whenever practicable the camps were located astronomically. Careful and extended topographical notes were kept, and a number of photographs were taken. A report of my reconnaissance, containing reports on the birds and mammals by Lieutenant Greble, and on the botany of the region by Dr. Banister, was submitted to the assistant adjutantgeneral of this department.

Survey of the Navajo Indian Reservation.-I visited Fort Wingate, N. Mex., on March 10, 1884, to organize a party for the survey of the eastern boundary line of the Navajo Indian Reservation as extended by the Executive order of January 6, 1880.

Second Lieut. H. C. Hodges, jr., Twenty-second Infantry, and Topographical Assistants A. I. Cooper and William Kilp, U. S. A., reported to me at Fort Wingate, and a detachment of the Fourth Cavalry and some Indian scouts were placed under my command at that point. The work was very laborious, the party encountering heavy snows and extremely cold weather in the mountains, and dry and intensely hot weather in the valleys. The country traversed was, for the most part,