Helena weekly herald. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1867-1900, 1883-02-01

I
in the Territories and therefore his wild
and foolish talk is menace of cost to every
ranch owner in the Northwest. Is such 6
man to be allowed controlling privileges in
the national pleasure grounds" which he
proposes to make "a place of resort and en-,
ioyment for the people not only Of the
United States but of all countries" by ex-
Guiding competition in hotels, controlling
the curiosities, and filling the millions OF
acres with his wild bulls and COW boys
They will probably no more respect law
than Mr.. Hatch proposes to do, when he
defes civil and military opposition.
That this loud mouthed citizens interest
in the Yellowstone Park has no better mo-
tive than the great opportunity OF laying the
public domain under tribute, is evident from
collation. of his language as reported. He
says: This enterprise" (Of hotels, etc., Il
regarded at first in the light Of an ornamental
and patriotic enterprise" Then, as it seems
he felt no interest in it. He goes on to say
when l was in the Northwest in August
last, met some friends, Messrs. Hobart and
Douglas who had conferred with the Interior
Department on the subject of opening the
Park and had obtained contract for some
leases of grounds as hotel sites. They got
me interested in the matter to a degree /
never dreamed of at the outset. did not
then (at the outset) think there was much
money to be made by keeping hotels out in
Wyoming Upon looking into it l supposed
that l might run some cattle ranches in con-
nection with the hotel enterprise on property
somewhere near the Park in Montana, Da-
kota OF Wyoming. l had no idea it could be
done in the Park !" (Sic.) Why then this
"close proximity? If the Vest bill cannot
stop Mr.. Rufus Hatch, how does he
suppose hundred thousand cattle will stop
at the imaginary line between his ranches,
pushed close to the Park, and the national
pleasure ground over which Congress, with
his permission, propose to exercise jurisdic-
tion-under the pow ers Of the Constitution ?
He says, while speaking of me as ''one Of
the newly t1edged reformers in the interest
OF the National Park: 1T may or may not
interest that gentleman to know that more
than two months ago | wrote letter from
Chicago to the Secretary OF the Interior,
which was signed by Messrs DOuglas Hobart
and myself, and is on file in the Interior
Department, asking the Secretary to use his
influence at the present session of Congress
to the fullest extent to preserve the Park" "
The patriotic virtue of this appeal is ma
terially affected by the fact that it was in
august last" that the other two signers,
after obtaining contract for a lease of all
the most interesting portions OF the Park, had
interested Mr.. Rufus Hatch in the speculation
out of the peoples pleasure ground. Mr..
Hatch had assumed that he ct al. owned it,
therefore wished to protect his own. The
letter, also, as it accused the United States
troops of destroying timber and curiosities,
was ingeniously designed to spike General
Sheridan's gun, and to weaken the effect of his
official opposition to the surrender of the
Park to speculatOrs. Mr. Hatch makes moth
ing by his effort to prove patriots interest,
in connection with the desire of his co-lessees
to protect the property claimed by them.
Not patriotism, but common, cold blOoded
greed dictated their letter. They simply de-
sired a virgin field for plunder.
A question of deferred veracity" between
General Sheridan and Mr.. Hatch would be
an anomaly No one of more refined sus-
ceptibility than the latter would seriously
take such position. General Sheridan de-
MES the charges against the United States
troops, trumped up two months ago by Mr..
Rufus Hatch The nation will believe Gen.
Sheridan. He has never attempted to plum
der the national domain, by extortionate
monopoly or stealing forage for his cattle.
But the slur that General Sheridan in
command of the Military Department which
he officially traversed with United States
troops, marched at Government expense, re-
quires one sharp word of comment. If Mr..
Rufus Hatch had ever happened to belong to
that military ring" of patriots which carried
the flag Of the Union twenty years ago; and
if he had saved the day at Winchester; if
he had by mastery military qualities
brought to bay the gallant hosts of our de-
feated brethren, now and forever our fellow
countrymen, proud of every national possess
sion if he had been created Lieut. General
of the army of the United States; does he
think if he had been ordered to visit and re-
port ON the country which Mr.. Hatch ct al.
would protect if they could, he would have
paid the expenses of the duty out of his own
pocket? Not if he is the same Mr.. Rufus
Hatch who locates vast cattle enterprises
close up to- the unfenced National Park,
and seeks a monopoly inside the Park to con-
nive at his own shamelessly intended tre-
pass. Not if he is the same Mr.. Rufus
Hatch who lately testified before the COM
mittee on Monopolies and Corners. Not if
he is Mr. Rufus Hatch at all. This slur is
absurd.
1 would not willingly have so much OBJ
truded his name into this etter, but he is
the incarnation Of system of plunder, and
the unscrupulous energy of the man makes
a vicious system doubly vicious and danger
ously irremediable. Under his bare-taced
avowal of a purpose to defy or overreach
Congress, again L urge, more emphatically
than ever before, the necessity of vigorous
and pure government, in the interest of all
the people and especially of the Northwest,
for the Park of the Yellowstone. Especially
l would urge the absolute annulment of
every unauthorized lease made in the in
terest, and by the Vaccinations, of monopo-
lists inside, and would-be trespassers outside
the peoples pleasure ground. Again / reit-
crate my conviction that no person, more un-
fit than Mr.. Rufus Hatch to exercise mo-
nopoly therein, or determine who are or who
are not trespassers on the peoples pleasure
ground is, at present, visible in the United
States. All the abuses that have made
Niagara bye-word of disgust will attend
such an administration and the past we'll
considered legislation for the great National
Park will have been made useless by mer-
cenary and vulgar abuses. The present is
the only moment to determine whether the
Park shall be national pleasure ground, or
monopoly and private cattle ranch of a de-
fant speculator.
I am sir, very respectfully;