The Placer herald., 1870-07-23
LARCENY IN LAND OFFICES.

Sfanu larceny carried on III the lulteQ states
land Offices on this coast for the past ten years
that has been a disgrace to the officials and
the Government they serve, and an outrage
and swindle upon all who had business at
the Offices. There may be exceptions in some
of the Offices, but if there are it has not come
to our notice. 1t may be that these rascali-
ties are known of by the President and Sec
retary of the Interior at Washington, and by
them approved of, and the spoils shared with
them; but we are not disposed to believe this
without proof of very positive character
This corruption has gone to, and been partici-
pated in by the very clerks that sign the
Presidents name to land patents in Wash
ington city. These corruptions did not exist
on the first establishment of land offices on
this coast to any very great extent, but they
have now reached point where silence on
the part of those beng cognizant of the fact
is sin. When the Marysville Land Office
was first established, the Register sent blank
declarations of pre-emption to all the neigh
borlloods where the lands were being survey
ed and opened to pre-emption claimants, free
of charge, and in many instances packages
of them to leading individuals, with circulars
giving directions how the neighbors should
fill them up and return to the land Office.
These declarations were filed, and certificates
returned to the proper parties, and in no in
stance did the pre-emptor pay over S5, and
never was required to go to the land Office
for the mere filing of decaratory statement.
Soon after. the Republican party got posses
sion Of the Government, and Republican Off
ci1ls took charge of the land Offices, party
here wished to file declaratory statement in
the Marysville land office, and the party
making out the declaration sent what we to,,,,,
him was sufficient. The Certificate came back
all right, but with it letter telling the party
that if he was going to do that business for
his neighbors and others, that he must in the
future send 81 so if he expected his matters
to be promptly attended to--the Register ad-
hitting in the letter that this sum was over
the legal fees, but intimating that it could just
as well be had as not, and if it did not come
the business might not be properly done.
Subsequent to this, AN attachc or clerk in the
Office would inform parties who were proving
up and paying for land that he had an ar
rangement at Washington by which he could
procure their patents within three or four
months, when in the regular order they
would not come for tLr,e or for years, if the
party would pay him certain sum of money
asking fifty dollars, and in some
instances taking as low as twenty, when he
could get no more. This arrangement was
nothing more nor less than bribing the clerks
at Washington with ten or fifteen dollars to
take up the papers in such cases out of their
order, and sign the Presidents name to pat
cnts and forward them here for money; thus
grossly dcfrauding, and delaying the patents
of others who were not inclined to be bed Or
made party to such illegal rascalitv. We
know Of parties who paid for land in 1859,
nearly eleven years ago, who have not yet
received their patents, and simply because,
we suppose, the bribed clerks at Washington
have been so busy hunting out the papers
and signing patents for which they receive
money from their land office con-
that they could not find time to
attend to the legitimate business in its order.
When corruption invades the department bu-
reaus and bribes the very clerks to sigu
President Grants name illegally and out Of
time, is it not time the public and President
know it? Three dollars and seyentv-fve
cents, in greenbacks, is about the extent of
.he fees the Register and Receiver are both
entitled to for filing and giving a certificate of
1 declaratory statement, and those who pay
more than this are simply swindled out of the
overplus. We know case where one of
these land Office pimps took $50 from a poor
widow woman and died before the patent
come, or he had sent on the bribing fee to
he patent clerk, and she had to pay s25
more to have her patent hurried up. We
lad a talk with an old friend few days ago,
who is now United States District Attorney
or one of the Territories, on the subject of
hese land Office swindles, and he told us that
lie believed it was useless to seek remedy
through Wilson, the Commissioner, but that
application should be made directly to Sec
'etary Cox and President Grant We dis
ike to see our neighbors or the public swind
ed, or men hold public positions who are not
content with the legitimate fees and emolu-
nents of their offices. This thing of keeping
patents back until corrupting money can be
.yacted counled with the ionorauce Of n Dis |