St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1885-05-07
A SUSPICIOUS CASE.
Ex-Secretary Teller Implicated in a
Peculiar Land Transaction.
A Whole Township Seized in the
Turtle Mountain Country.
Correspondence of the Globe.

Correspondence of the Globe.
HURON, May A. Your correspondent
heard it whispered, some days ago, that
Surveyor General Fessenden was in posses
sion of certain facts relating to lands in the
Turtle mountain country duplicating ex-
Secretary Teller of the interior department..
An interview was sought, which resulted
substantially as follows:
81 have heard a portion of the facts,
general regarding IN unusual interest man.
ifested by ex-Secretary Teller, in certain
lands in the Turtle mountain country some
months ago. Will you give me correct
account Of the AFFAIR.""
''The secretary did show more than Or
binary interest in a certain township OF
land at the foot of the Turtle mountains,
but what his motive was cannot say. [
do not object to giving you what facts I
know and you may draw your own conclu-
sions. l think that it was late in the fall of
1883 that MIR. Eaton, one of Teller's head
clerks, came to me at Yankton, where my
Office then was, and requested me to have a
township in the north part of the territory
subdivided. The one which he then de-
scribed to me was Immediately west of an
Indian reservation at the Turtle mountains,
CtllO LII tllC OCCOllu lOW VI townships IiOm
the international line. told him it would
be difficult to induce the deputy surveyor to
90 into that country so late in the season,
but that he would have the work done early
in the spring. Eaton insisted, however, on
an immediate survey, and told him that if
he could arrange with any deputy to do the
work had no objections providing the re-
quired guaranty was furnished. He finally
prevailed on one of my deputies to take
thewOrk, and in the midst of the
winter of 'S3 and 's4, that township to-
gether with the one Immediately east Of it
was surveyed, the latter being in the Indian
reservation and it's subdivision made with
out my knowledge. About the time this
work was being done I was in Washington,
where 1 was approached by Eaton who re-
quested me to order the survey of this town.
ship last spoken of which was part of a
reservation and which lies at the foot of the
mountains, northwest of Devils Lake and
six miles from the British line. | told him
I could not order the survey of a tract
which was in reservation. He then left
the hotel and within an hour Teller came to
me with the same request. [ refused him
as promptly as I had refused his clerk.
After urging his point in vain for some time
he withdrew and on the following day
handed me an official document signed by
President Arthur declaring that portion of
the reservation ''opened for settlement" !"
With this, he ordered me to have
the tract surveyed at once, but it seems
that by some means the work was then al
ready done. On returning home I found
the plat for this Indian township on file, all
properly prepared by the deputy who did the
work under a pprehension and without
my orders. The plat was promptly for
warded to Washington. however, according
to custom. Within few days thereafter
received notice from the general land Office
that the date of survey was earlier than the
date of ''opening the land to settlement" !"
for which they wanted an explanation. [
Immediately telegraphed the department
that could explain and would do so by
letter at once. The following day I re-
ceived telegram informing me that the
matter was satisfactorily arranged and l
need give myself no further trouble. On
the return of the plats to my of
flee I discovered that the surveyors
date had been changed and the matter was
thus ''fixed." According to law sent the
plat to the district land Office at Devils
Lake. Beyond this 1 could give you only
what have heard. That of course ended
my duties and of subsequent matters have
no personal knowledge"
'sDid Eaton afterward secure title to any
of these lands?"
81 understand that early in the spring of
1884, ON the day the plats were received at
the Devils Lake Office, Mr.. Eaton, together
with large number Of other men, appeared
at the United States land Office and offered
their filings and proofs simultaneously.
This was against all rules, and Register
Lord rejected the proofs. Eaton immedi
ately telegraphed Teller, who at once wired
Register Lord as follows: Accept those
proofs offered by Eaton Mr. Lord of
course obeyed his orders"
''What possible inducement could there
be for this unusual procedure concerning
this one township of land? Are there any
town site prospects or mineral discoveries
in that vicinity?"
s'There is no railroad within 100 miles of
that place and the township is almost en-
tirely in the hills. I can see no town site
advantages there whatever. AS to min
erals in that locality I cannot say. I was
never there. I doubt if there are any better
qualities of coal there than a good grade of
Ignite. Of other minerals recall but one
statement made by one Of my deputies who
died last summer. He informed me that he
had obtained some quartz from that locality,
had it assayed, and that it proved rich in
gold"
''Do you think there is gold-bearing
quartz in that vicinity?"
ST cannot say that I have an opinion on
that matter. do not doubt the honesty of
my deputy who made the statement and l
do not doubt that he believed there was
valuable quartz there. Further than this l
have no information and no belief"
s'You certainly have a suspicion as to the
object of Secretary Teller in taking so much
interest in this matter and one of his head
clerks coming so far over the country and
practicing such irregular methods, all for
the sake of obtaining little rough land,
100 miles from railroad and six to twelve
miles from the boundary line?"
81 have my suspicious" answered the
general land suppose that you have SIM
liar suspicious by this time. l do not sus-
pect that they would take SO many men
there and get so much of that rough land
in the hope of building a town there. There
is nothing in that locality to sustain town.
There were no settlements there.
There is no inducement to
bring a railroad there. I suspect
that somebody believed that some mineral
deposit existed in that exact locality.
Whether it was coal, silver or gold cannot
say. Of course, 1 do not know that they
had any such belief, but that is the only
reasonable explanation l can give for the
procedure"
''If our suspicious are correct, would it
not have developed before this late day, the
parties having made proof on their lands?"
mo, indeed The proof on the land
does not settle the title. When the patent
is issued the title is settled. The patents
are probably not issued yet. 1t may be
some years yet before the facts are made
public, even if it had been known at that
time that gold or silver quartz did exist
there in paying quantities" ZENA.