Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1885-10-22

w ASdlNGlON, Ocb. IL u6 IOllOW
ing letter has just been received by
| Commissioner Sparks:
DEPARTMENT OF INTERIOR,
| GENERAL LAND OFFICE,
| Rathdrum Idaho Ter Oct. !, 1885. }
| Hon Commissioner Gen Land Office:
Sr-I have the honor to report that | have COM
peted the reports on the Northern Pacific railroad
| company and the Montana Improvement com
= pany timber trespass cases and herewith trans
init the eight reports, making, with what had al
/ ready transmitted, 81 separate indictments in all
showing that these corporations have caused to
be cut from the public domain, 40, 100, GOO feet of
lumber and bridge timber; 81, IA railroad ties;
IS 400 600 shingles (51 600 bunchss); 32 os5 cords
of wood and ~, 900 cedar posts
To value the lumber al $40 per /, 900 feet which
would be a low figure; the railroad ties at 40
cents per tie; the wood at So per cord the posts
at $50 per 100 and shingles at 81 per 1000 or fifty
cents bunch, would amount to S6l3402. This
does not represent all the ties and wood cut for
| the Northern Pacific railroad company by Eddy
| Hammond & Co., which changed its name into
| The Montana improvement Co.. ia July 1888,
as found 1t an absolute impossibity to get wit
nesses to testify in those to find per
sons OF whom could obtain anything like salts
factory information
! Where the depredations were committed between
Ruthdrum, L T., and Blarmouth NJ. T., the coun-
try is very thuly settled. and the men who were
employed on the contracts during the construction
OF the Northern Pacific railroad have gone to
parts unknown Owing to this IL has taken much
longer to complete this investigation than it
otherwise should. | was hampered by the OIL
GERS of the Montana Improvement company, who
appeared to expect an investigation, and were
| terrifying their position. The company had
agents along the line endeavoring to suppress the
facts or the Montana Improvement company s
operations The company is an INSCRIPTIONS
corporation that will leave nothing undone to
gain their point.
found that no reliance whatever could be
placed upon the statements made by the officers
OF the Montana Improvement company. l have
made you copy in duplicate OF the contract be-
tween the Northern Pacific Railroad company and
the Montana Improvement company Ii was fur
nisned me by II. W. Fairweather, Of Sprague,
W. t., an ex-divisioa superintendent of the
Northern Pacific Railway company l have the
honor to be
Your obedient servant
NJ. j. HALEY.
Special Timber Agent
Rathdrum. /. 7.
The contract referred to by Agent
Haley in the above report is between
the Northern Pacific railway OF the
first part, and the Montana Improve
ment of the secoBd part.
1t binds the railroad company to
withdraw all of its timber lands from
sale or disposal and gives the I'M
pr0vement company the exclusive
right to cut timber from the lands. In
return for this privilege the Improve
ment company transfers to the rail
road company LOCI full paid shares
of its capital stock of value of 81 COO, !
100; reserving to itself shares valued
at 1899, 000
The Improvement company also
agrees to erect at its own expense all
mills and to furnish all the plant nee
essary for its business of timber cut
ting.