Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1883-01-09

the Isthmus of Panama--The Carlisle
Blackburn Quarrel Over the SSeakership.
Special Telegram to the Globe.
WASHINGTON, Jan. 8.-There is a wide
spread conviction that man cannot touch
the Indian Office without getting into
trouble. No matter how sturdy the honesty
of a man has been, if he becomes an In
dian commissioner, or inspector, or a gen
eral, or a contractor, the chances are
heavily in favor of his succumbing to the
temptations which surround him. Most
of the crookedness is at the agencies. If
contractor and an agent stand in to-
gether, it is almost impossible to find
where they are crooked. Mr.. Price was
put in his position for his eminent moral
character, but the history of contracts
under his regime indicates that
as important for a man in Mr.. Prices
place as the ability to resist temptation to
speculation. If the government pays four
prices for -four, or the Indians get only
half of the beef they are entitled to, it is
not of much practical Importance that the
CO mmissioner is personally all right. It
is an open secret that Secretary Teller
wants to get rid of Mr.. Price, and he will
do so before great while. Last spring
proposals were wanted for 100000
pounds of beef, and the lowest figures
were 1854 for delivery dt all the agencies
except at Cheyenne and Arapahoe, where
it was 1854. Commissioner Price thought
these figures were too high,
and he could get beef cheaper
in the fall, so he contracted for
only q part of the amount. In the fall he
again invited proposals for 100000
pounds, to be delivered at the Cheyenne
and Arspahoe and the Kiowa and Conanche
agencies. The highest bid was $40 made
by W. q. Oburn, who received the tempo
rary contract last spring, and who is said
to be losing money under it, and the lowest
bid was $4.49, made by P. 81. Kelly, of
st. Paul. Commissioner Price rejected
all of them on the ground that no beef was
needed, as he had enough to last till spring,
and all the bids were too high, and that
the bidders did not have an equal chance,
because he told Obrun something which
he did net tell Kelly, and which led Obrun
TO bid higher. New proposals have again
been called for, and are to
be opened February l, at
Kansas City, and Colonel Hunter
of ST. Louis, tht great cattle raiser, says
the government will not get bid for less
than s..
A year ago the Indian Office contracted
with Ed. Fenlon,of Lsavsnworth for $4,000
lbs. of flour at the old Los Pinos agency in
Colorado at$8.65 per hundred weight, the
great part of this prize being for the OK
psnss of transp ortation. Before any Of
the -four was delivered, the Indians were
removed from Los Pinos to Ouray agency,
in Utah. Commissioner Price had right,
under the contract, to increase or diminish
the quantity 35 per emit, but he did not
diminish the amount called for. He called
Fenelon TO deliver the flour at
Salt Lake instead of at
Los Pinos for the contract price,
and Sc smsd to think he was in great luck
that Fsnslon did not insist on extra pay,
the fact being that Fenslon got rid of the
transp ortation, which was the most e1pen-
sive part of his contract. Fenelon, whose
part in the transaction was perfectly
str aight, directed J. Z. Wallace, of Salt
Lake, to buy $4,000 pounds of -four for
him and he paid him there only $2.25 per
hundred. The government contracted
with Wallace to transport the flour it had
bought of Fenelon $50 miles from Salt
Lake City to Ouray agency at Sc per hun
dred. This made the -four delivered at the
agency cost the government $14.65 per 100
lbs. But there are mills near the agency,
and Wallace bought the flour
| there at $3.50. Wallace took the contract
from Fenelon, and the report of Inspector
Pollock does not show that ever 10000
pounds Of flour were ever delivered, though
the government paid Fsnslon and Fsnelon
paid Wallace for the whole amount. Fen
elon says that on his part of the contract
he cleared $4,000. Nobody knows what
Wallace made, but the government lost
$11.35 on every hundred pounds of -four,
even supposing the whole amount was de-
livered. The beef contract has already
been referred to in these dispatches. 1t
has come to the surface again, but because
proposals have been again invited.
Among the other pleasant stories
told to illustrate Mr.. Prices
lax business management is
one relating to the letting Of general con-
tracts for Indian supplies in New York in
1881. The bids were to be received up to
II o'clock on Nay 3. At 1890 On May 8
Mr.. Price produced bid from his pocket
which he said was given him by friend
and which proving to be lower than the
bids already in, 4 large contract was let on
it. L. n. Pugh, = clerk in the Indian
Office, was present at the time the tardy
bid was put in. That Mr.. Price is inter
ssted in some of the Indian traderships In
charged, but this may net be 80. Mr.. Price
has always borne higher reputation for
honesty than skill in detecting fraud en-
| the part Of others.
THE SOCIAL sHASON.
At last the season is at its full height.
Tba op1 cobinof raoanfiops NJ