The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1873-08-05
"The Fort Smelling swindle.v

The Democratic press have the hap
py Faculty of making much out of little. 1t is
only necessary that they should have mole
Hill of truth to create mountain of f alsehood.
This Fort Smelling business is an illustration.
They have represented it as a brazen swindle,
for which the present Administration is respon-
sible, and. of course, intimate that the swindle
was engineered by and has enured to the bene-
fit of some one or more connected with the gov
ernment But, like ninety-nine hundredths of
all the charges which have been made against
the Administration, this is wholly unfounded,
as may be seen by the following statement:
WASHINGTON, July 31.-Gen. Belknap to-
day, upon his return, permits to be published
the report in the matter of Fort Smelling. This
report gives very different character to the
action of the government from that ascrbed to
it in certain quarters. There has been complete
publicity at every stage of the transaction. The
report, although of an old date, has never been
printed. In Oct. 1870, the Secretary of War
appointed a commission of army officers to Wis
it st. Paul and report M Tas %as
eral; Gen. w. NJ. Dunn, Assistant Judge Ad-
vocate General; and Col John L. Smith OF the
14th infantry The following is brief synop-
sis of the report: The claimants represented
that they purchased the property in 1857 for
$4,000, which was its full value at that time
that in accordance with the contract Steele the
purchaser, paid the first installment, $50 OOO, and
furnished the Secretary of War ample security
in government bonds for the deferred payments.
At the request of the House of Representa-
tives, pending an investigation, the Secretary
of War declined to fulfill the contract. This
aegect caused the claimant much expense for
plotting and surveys. The government then
assumed possession which they have since re-
tanned. Steele declined to fulfill his contract
1,x,r onft la apfi oft ha anfR
sentatives. In 1858 majority of committee
of the House declared the sale invalid. A MI
norty declared it valid. The Attorney Gene
raj, Jeremiah S. Black, informed the then Sec
rotary of War that in law he must fulfill his
contract and make a conveyance to Steele
There are 1910 acres in the reservation. Of
this 800 acres are low morass; the rest is main
ly arabic. The value averages $50 per acre.
The large majority of witnesses before the
House Committee testified that $4,000 was a
fair valuation. The ferry privilege was of great
value to Steele.
The following is the account stated upon
which the War Department made it's settlement
with Steele: Price of 1921 acres purchased for
reservation at $25 per acre, $3.50, 030; for fort
and buildings S12,029 for use and occupation
of premises, being 6 per cent. on $4,000, the
amount of the first instalment paid by Steele
for the nine years of occupancy by the United
States, from April, 1861, to November 1870,
$17,250. Total $6s,2O0 The Board recon-
government pay Steele $6S 2O0 and Gen. Belk-
nap approved this report IN his report to the
President. In 1870 the Secretary of War re-
ferred to this transactien in these words; ''The
act setting apart portion OF Fort Smelling
military reservation for permanent military
post, and the settlement of all claims in rela-
ton thereto has been carried out by having the
location and the facts concerning the claims re-
ferred to be examined by board of officers,
who made report recommending settlement
which settlement was concurred in by myself
and accepted by the claimants"
THE CASE OF HENRY HI. BooDY-In De-
cember last Mr.. Henry Fl Body was arrested
and held in bail in 100000 in civil suit
brought against him by the Rockford, Rock Is
land and ST. Louis Railroad Company. 1t was
charged that Mr.. Body, while a director and
the treasurer of that road, had received for his
personal benefit share in the contract price
for constructing the road, and a commission
for negotiating the company's bonds which
went to pay the contractors, amounting in all
to $277.221.14. This sum, the company claim
ed should have been paid over TO it and not ap-
propriated by Mr.. Body to his own use
On comp amt of the company an order of at
tachment was issued in addition to the previous
order of arrest. Recently the case has come
before Judge Daniels of the Supreme Court of
NPW OTk Ou u 10 VacdCe DOGn the Or
ders of arrest and attachment, and the Judge
holds that while plaintiffs are entitled to cit her
one Of the orders, they are not entitled to both,
aud must elect which they will retain Plain
tiff s counsel chose to continue the order of ar
rest and the attachment is vacated.
On the matter of the right of Mr.. Boody to
hold the money in dispute the Judge says that
while he was director and the treasurer it was
his duty to use his best endeavors to secure the
construction of the road on the best terms DOS
sibie. He had no right to take share in the
contract without the consent of the directors,
and any interest in it would naturally inducc
him to violate his duties as director by stipulat
ing for the payment of larger amount to the
contractors than was reasonable and Just. The
Judge concludes, therefore. that the money re-
tanned blythe defendant as his share the profits
made by the contractors, being the sum of $32,-
221 IA, and that retained as the amount he was
to receive on the sale of bonds being the sum
of $245. 900, tho money of the plaintiffs
and held by him for their benefit, and that
when he refused to pay it to the company he
became liable to arrest.
THE ARoosTooK QUARREL.-A correspond