The Memphis appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1886-1890, 1886-05-05
DANA and PAE-ELEGTRIC.
THE EDITOR OF THE 'SUN- As
A WITNESS
Before the Congressional InVesti.
eating Cnmmittee-His Opinion
or the Transaction.

| W AohAN1lONg ts-FlIbl Ab5t6l-
ant Sec etary Muldrow OF the Interior
Dep rtment was examined by the
Telephone Committee to-day. He
produced the letter of the Attorney
General accompanying Van b nthuv.
sens original application to the De-
partment of Justice to have suit
brought AGAINST the Bell Company,
and read the Endorsements showing
the reason assigned by Van Benthuy-
sen for its withdrawal. OF the At
torney-Iene ais letter witness said he
had no recollection at this time. He
believed it was not the pra tice to re-
store an application Go the party max
ing 1t.
COMMISSIONER or PATENTS MONTGOMERY
took the stand and testified as to the
Withdrawal OF Van Benthuysen's APP
plication. Van Benthuysen had
called upon him saying that he had
| decided that there was no necessity
for the proceeding, and q sured him
that the Withdrawal was in a cord
ance with the Attorncy-Generars
wishes or his permission, so the Wit
ness allowed him to Withdraw the
! pap.r. Witness almitted that he had
| been q little careless, and would not
do such a thing now. Six or seven
weeks after he had done this stupid
thing some one had applied for
| copy OF the application, and witness
| had demanded the return of the APP
! pication from Van Benthuyspn, aud
It had been restored TO the files.
REPRESENTATIVES, IIFEyEE
testified that he had returned Posta
Teleg aph stock sent by Dr. Rogers
and had ignored his invitations to at
tend meetings at his house.
MR.. oHAs. A. DANA
was then called. He read the follow
i ( letter from f. N. Hill, dat d
Washington, November O.:
Enclosed | send you full history
of the Pan-Electric Telephone Com
pany which l wrote some time ago;
not with a view to publication at the
time. furnished the Tribune cores
pondent with the original information
upon which it acted. Every allegation
in this article, eX 'ept the one toat
Mr.. Garland attended, the meeting at
1927 g street is up n my own knowl-
ge and not hearing. If you think
it new and worthy of publication send
me q check for what it is worth, if not,
you can give it to the office cat.
e. N. HILL.
"P. 81 shall not offer it to any
other paper
To this letter Mr.. Dana said he
directed q reply to be made to the |
effect that he had concluded not to |
publish i. "The reason why | de- |
clined to publish Hills communica
tion," he said, "was not that it did |
not seem to be news. | was not |
willing to take any part in attacking |
the administration or any menbeT OF |
i and that was the reason why Hills |
communication was not used"
The Chairman-Do you regard Hills |
letter as an attack upon tue admins
tration2
Witness 49, Most decidedly. l re-
garded it as scandal most injurious,
if true, TO the admin stra.ion.
J he Cha rman Has the Sun since |
then taken part in the discussion of |
the matter from that standpoint?
Witness-Always; and / have en-
deavored TO influence public opinion
and to influence the administration |
against any prosecution of the origi- |
nal Pan Electric scheme of making the |
United States executive a party to
patent suits.
The Chairman-You say that you
have endeavored to influence the ad.
mlnistration against the prosecution
of governme suit?
Witness-Not particularly in the
prosecution of a patent suit. 1t seems
to be fatal blindness and inexpressible
folly for the President to engage the
United States in private controversy.
see no reason for the President be-
ing involved in it, and still less when
the proceeding originated with a lot
of dead-beats who should not be toll
Grated in any res pectable party.
The charm n inquired if he meant
the Attorney General. to which the
witness responded in the negative.
The Chair-Do you refer to Senator
Harris?
Witness No, sir.
The Cbair-To the Rogers?
Witness ldryly) - They are poets
No articles had been published in
the Sun at the instance of the officers
or individuals of the Bell Company.
They had been published without So
licitation or suggestion from any quar-
ter. No money had cen paid and he
owned no stock in the Bell Company,
or in any tiDdred company.
Mr.. Boyle asked il the witness had
conferred with the Bell attorney on
the general subject.
He replied that he had conferred
with Mr.. Dickerson, an old friend, on
the scientific question. 81 have had
quite a dispute with him on the sub
ject Mr.. Dana added.
"And yet your views seem to have
been alike2" remarked the chairman.
They are more alike now than
they were at that time, replied the
witness. "Mr. Dickerson, from the
first when the Interior Department
proceedings were pending held that
a government suit would be brought,
while l denied it, saying that no
President endowed with good sense
and conscientiousness OF upright
ness would allow such a suit to be
uIOuEuls W lluthS luINlltI Hdlu tllhi
he considered the matter generally
as a kind of scandal, in which the
Executive of the United States is
made auxiliary. lie had never fully
approved OF Cleveland's civil service
principle, but there vas nothig
about that of a scandalous nature. II
was bad politics and bad patriotism.
But the Pan-Electric was of a differ.
ent nature. The scandal, he said,
consists in using the Attorney-Gen-
eral making him stocsholder and
then using tn Department of Justice
to promote purposes OF private sp.cu.
lation.
Mr.. Oates Are you aware that he
became member of the association
long before he was appointed attorney
general?
Witness-He was a member, as !
understand it, while a United States
Senator, and instead of initiating the
example of Gen. Leievre and theirs,
t.,,1- Nhsr L L