The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1876-06-11
SWINDLING THE VETERANS.
ExTENSIHB FRAUDS IN THE ISSUE
or WARRAN TS FOR LAND.



the Interior Department Clerk Dis
missed Tor Exposing the ConspirRtors.
WAsuINuToN, June 0.-The Committee
on Invalid Pensions have dis overed some very
irregular practices In the issuing Of bounty land
warrants. The Chairman, Mr.. jerks, found in
one Instance where several hundred warrants
had been issued to one party, that these war
rants were Issued on claims Of parties residing
IN almost every State In the Union and having
heard that Mr.. Jos. Luckey, who had been Dep
uty Commissioner knew a great deal about
fraudulent bounty land claims Mr.. jerks had
Mr.. Luckey subpUnaed MIR. Luckey testified In
Substance as follows:
Underline act Of 1855 and previous acts granting
bounty lands to soldiers, over 10000 claims
werc aled for bounty land warrants In the PEN
sion Bureau. or these about $1,000 were held w
for tcchnlc i and other objections. After the
close Of the late war the necessary legislation by
Congress was secured for relieving these claims
from the objections found against them, aud
their adjustment was directed. In the mean
time VIM. Van Marten. OF Lyons, N. Y. and Da-
mon L. Cheney, Of Orange, Mass. procured from
the clerks In the bounty land division OF the
Pension Once a complete list OF all these unset
tied claims, together with the post Office ad-
dress OF all the claimants. They then sent
agents In every direction To search out the
claimants, and obtained, wherever II was possi-
bic, a release Of their claims on the payment OF
Il small sum Of money. vlrylng from go To $50.
These agents reprcs nted that they were sent
out 10y the Government TO settle w all these old
Clalu II any new Cvidpucf required IT.
would be obtained by these agents.
All these facts. Luckey saws, we're obtained by
special agents sent out 10 Investigate these
cases. The principals m this fraud In this man
ner obtained n vast number Of land warrants,
worth about $50 each Tor the trnng sum Of $40
or tD. In many cases the claimants were dead.
and to meet THIS am iulty Van Marten y Chrn v
Hhi themselves appointed anu ttii-irdi RI OF
such parties as they were nm tbla 10 ind alive.
Luckey says II was necessary, in order tn carry
out this Gigantic scheme II frau =. t. obt ain the
favorable interest Of tine Commissioner Of Pen
sions. luis, he ", was cert dolly accomplished
IN some way, because the cases settled up by
Van Marten Cheney were. 10y orier Of the
Co,nmissloner. made speci' and toy The slme
order ana without apparent authority other
than an agreement between the parties, the
warrants were sent to \. II Iiill Of Dunkirk, y.
Y. ms Is proved. Mr.. LuCkcy sid, 10y the
following letter, which accompanied list OF
over loo names:
OsAoE. Mass, April 10 1871.
non H. Van Aeraam Coma " Ptia'as Bassn0-
non. il; I'M q sGs IN Inst, sunni, II o.
Se the proofs practeSOe IN .nch c,se- as are Ia,
ths Hn TJn S'u9a c ~ Sonr DC sent 10
WV '''' '''''' DAsSs e. CHENEY
The endorsements thereon are rs follows:
r. W. Room lis. special. nv. 4. April Is 1871.
rants the Don y. II. Hill. April is, 1871. IL VI 4.
These endorsements are in the handwriting OF
commissioner ' an AtrN IN. IutkeN continues
as follows IN his statement During ten months
of the years 1870 aud 1871, 1913 warrants were
issued ana sept To \. H. Htll, representins
e ,ses Cheney Hin had no authority to call
them ~, ana In tue others their only minority
was from Ndn rten, IA administrator" The
witness also produced letters showing conc'u-
sveiy that tho parties named lad means Of ob-
tanning Information surreptitiOusly frOm the
Pension once.
DEAD WOMAN COMES TO LIFE.
Mr.. Luckey gives copy OF a petition un which
Van Mattcn was appointed administrator Of toe
rosate Court OF Wayne county, n. Y. This pc
tition sets forth that Jane raylor late Of the
county Of Coles. In the state OF Illinois. died IN.
tcstate, and that she left no Will. The only
property she left was one oInty md wartast
winch the petitioner, Van Msrten, hold. and
there l. due the petitioner. for work peri formed
ana money advanced IN procuring said bounty
land warrant, si5, and having failed, after dit
gem search. 70 mud any heirs or noxt OF Kin OF
sad Jane ra,or he prays 70 toe made sdnns
ten made the usual oath. and. after the re-
qI.S h was appoIted M
warrant belonging q Jane Taylor.
On this case Luckey makes tue following; re-
marks; " warrant was issued and sent to v
H. liill for Van Marien as admins rator OF the
estate Of Jane Taylor, July -, ISL. April T.
ls12. ne Taylor made application IN her own
behalf From the aOoye, which Is . sample OF
hundreds Of petit Ions on which Van Marten was
statement sworn to ny Mr.. Van Msrten, alleging
the death Of Jane Taylor, was false, aud that his
%
was also false, for he had NJ cl i'm for money
paid and work and Labor in applying for a blunty
land warrant" lie never would nave heard or
had knowledge OF the existence OF ine Taylor
except for the inturmtttun surrepti inusY OBJ
tained from the files 81 the Pension Once.
An advertisement of nOti q To the heir, OF 122
persons fgr whom Van Narteu had m ide ippii-
cation To the surrogate Court to he appointed
administrator u thoir estates, wa prlntei m The
Albany Argus for six weeks, beginning ADrl ;,
ISL. For all these intcstates Van VI irten was
appointed administrator. aud he received the
lan1 warrants belonging u them. MIR. Luckpy
states that IAN Marten has by some means come
into possession OF a list Of all the unadj usted
Once during the last twenty years.
CONGRESSMAN ASSISTS.
MIR. Luckey having satisfied himself that Van
Marten 4 Cheney had oeen systematically
pr ctsing these frauds, and wero belul aided
therein ul -ome person or persons In the county
land division ~ the Pension once, laii all thu
facts before tue Secretary OF the Interior some
time Ia ISL He pressed tue matter vigor-
ou-li that ne comuelled the Secretary to ask for
the resign .tiun of Van Aernaln, ana o discharge
all the suspected clerks. rms DONE Van War
ten, Cheney, and liill ware suspended from
practice before the Pension Bureau. Hill. how
ever, brought such influence 70 bear that the
Secret ~ restored him TO practice. bit allowed
Luckey to prescribe the cond tlons On which he
should transact business with the bureau. These
conditions were very stringent aud were IN
tended TO prevent HUI from working through
any more Of Van MMten Il Chenays frAudu.
lent bounty land warrant clans. sun he per
sisted IA trying 10 got through cases belonging
90 his principals and succeeded In many II
them before Mr.. Lucke, found Il out. After he
was detected he hid the Hon Walter l.. Sessions,
member ~ Congress ftln the rnrtv-secpnd
District Of New Yord, c II up his cases for hun
and put Them through. To prevent Luckey
from interfering WITH this Arrangement, Com
TO Issue the following order;
DEPARTMENT OF lsrEel'H,, PrssIoS. oyyIcE,l
SIN TIE scereiar, a 3 arr95s my ~ ~ cases
Sous u.s." Tor tmcat without Tefereae. to TIE a,l,r
neysithcy BIZ cons, ret upon ihcr neil,- ano without
uniform pr. uer Of tae once, Let the order be exc