The Dallas weekly herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1885, 1885-01-22
Washington Notes.
INDIAN LAND LEASE SCANDAL

INDIAN LAND LEASE SCANDAL.
WAsuINdToN, Jan. 20.-Thomes T..
Berry, of Wellington, Kansas, one Of
the lessees of the vacant lands Of the
Sac and Fox Indians, testified to-day
before the senate committee on Indian
affairs, that Special Agent Townsend,
of the Indian bureau, and licensed
trader, named Picket, obtained the
leases while they were officers of the
government IRON Iowa. They tried To
get leases from the Sacs and FoXs, but
witness was instrumental in preventing
/.
Mr.. Townsend used his authority as a
government agent TO procure the lease.
The Kiowas, so Berry testified,
had not acquired title to their
reservation, and Mr.. Townsend made
them believe that he would get title for
them, if they would give them leases.
| Witness said the Indians believed
Townsend was the government, and on
that belief let him have the lease.
Berry also charged that Townsend
used money TO get his lease. lie
preferred charges against Townsend
before the Indian bureau, but did not
hear from them until he got Senator
! Plumb to inquire about il.
He was then advised that Townsend
| had resigned and the referee of the In
dian commission could not do anything
with him. Witness testified that 1t was
understood that u corruption fund was
used to obtain the Cherokee strip leases.
A RELIEF BILL FOR THOMPSON.
The house committee on judiciary
will report bill providing for the pay
| ment of $3.50 TO John q. Thompson, to
reimburse him for expenses incurred In
the trial of the Kiibourne-Thompson
case.
HAZING.
By vote OF 3 TO the house committee
on naval affairs decided to report reso'
luton providing for the appointment Oh
committee to investigate hazing at the
naval academy at Annapolis.
WILL THEY FIGHT.
| The Acknowledgement Of the army to-
day received a telegram from Bragadler
| General Augur, commanding the de-
partment of the Missouri, an
nouncing that the number of settlers
on the Oklahoma lands was
steadily increasing, having reached
nearly 400, and that resistance to federal
authority was threatened. secretary
Lincoln had a conference with the pres
ident on the subject this afternoon, the
result of which was that Gen. Augur
was instructed to concentrate more
troops ut the settlement and
to remove the invaders from the terri
tory in as peaceaDle manner as pos
sible.
NEWSPAPER POSTAGE.
The house committee on postoflices
and postroads will next Friday consider
the various bills relative to the reduc'
ton of newspaper postage. The com,
mittee is in receipt Of memorial
on the subject, prepared by Messrs
Morrison. Mumtord, Or. Locke
and William Penn Nixon, as
committee representing the newspa'
per publishers OF the west ana north
west. This committee was appointed at
the last annual meeting Of the Western
Associated Press, held at Detroit, to
call the attention of congress to in
equaliiies Of the postal laws bearing on
the rate charged for newspapers and
periodicals. The memorial says
in part: Newspaper publishers
are not mendicants, but they claim to
have such relations to the diffusion OF
light and Knowledge among the people
of the day, which we understand was
one of the objects for which the postal
department of the government was
created, as gives them the right to de
mand fair hearing and just enact
| mnutS,