New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1886-06-30
THE PAN-ELECTPIC REPORTS.
OFFICIALS WHO VIOLATED THEIR oArHs
A scATHING REPORT PROM THE MrSoRfTY-wHAr
Mr.. HALE HAS TO SAY IN ExCULPATTON.
fBY TELEGRAPH TO THE TkiBUSg.]

cd to present to tho House the views OF
himself and three OF the other Democratic members OF
the committee. It 10 understood that he will aso sub
NIT resolution for the action Of the committee which.
II receives the assent Of majority Of the msmbers
viii be presented to the House. IL IL presumed thss
this resolution will acQuft Messrs Garland, Harris and
Goode Of corrupt actions motives In tho Pan. Electric
business. Chairman Boyle would have presented the
document to-day had 1t not been for lingering hope
that Colonel Hale would agree 10 1t. When that hope
abandoned 1t too late to mako tho corrections
necessary 1t had been printed - the report OF the
committee but turns be only the views OF fous
Of the members Chairman Boyle naturally feels an'
noyed and disappointed account OF the loss OF pres
tige which his report has suffered by the refusal OK
Colonel Hale to subscribe to It. He has decided not -
permit the document 10 be made public until rhursday
morning.
The Republican members OF the committee have de-
cided after consultation with Chairman Boyle to give
their Vows to the press aud An abstract OF the
report prepared by JUICE Ranuey is given below To-
gether with synopsis OF the Views OF Colonel Hale.
On very important branch Of the investigaton-thas
relating to the reason and authority for brngi'e the
Government suit-t will DO found that Judge Rinney
and the four Republican members. constituting
majority OF the committed. have reached substanally
the conclusion, which Is that tho suit should NOS
have been instituted the and upon the bzsis
adopted. Anybody who takes tho trouble TO read the
several reports carefully must conclude that had NOS
been forhe Pam Electric statesmen whose personal in-
stake ani the supposed political neccs.
sty OF "vn1icatins" Cabinet officer the Governments
suit would never have been recommended by Secretary
Lamar upon the presented TO him. ordered by
Solicitor. General without examination OF any OK
tho testimony upon which that accommodation was
based. The truth Of every statement IN Tue TRIBUNE
respecting the PanElectric scandal IL fully sustained
by the exhaustive and searching report prepared bJ
Judge Ranney and signed by four members OF the COM
mitee and 1t is not conoyerted In any respect by Cole
nal Hxla he namo fiC me
HISTORY OF TIE GREAT SCANDAL
In its report the minority say that the coLlme
tee has taken than thousand printed pages OF
testimony addition that has hal before all
tho evidence which the various parties iad before tho
Department Of the Interior and the department OF JUS
tice The report several years after the
Bell telephone had into extensive use Mr. j. Harris
Rogers patented some additional improvements on the
mechanical construction OF the telephone. Mr. Rogers
and his father company with paper capital al
$5, 100000 to market these improvements They
gave away $3.500.O00 Of the stock to gentle
men who for IL put In no money. but
merely lent the of their names and regulations and
stipulated the outset that ali they should contribute
would be little not exceeding $3.50 eacl for cur
expenses Attorney-GenerAi Garland testified ,aas
"it was simply an association Of five elk very mpe-
cunious who wanted to hSteer their condition" Dr.
Rogers calls ther. the Pam Electric statesmen aud
he wa: ready TO give away V35O0OOO out Of S5oot0o0
to their and influence The first parties to
1t were Senator Garand, Attorney General Senator
Harris the leaders of his political party the Hon.
Casey louug. then Repre- from Menphs
General j. ID. G. Atkins, NJ C., whose term was abodt 10
expire who expected TO De elected Clerk OF tue
House at the session, and IA now Commissioner OK
Indian Affairs; General Joseph f. Johnston, now United
states Commissioner OF Railroads ani Govsrnme Di.
rector Pacific Railroads and Teegraphs. Each Of
them became director and took 100000 OF stock.
Colonel Lo0ney Of Memphis, took $4,000 without any
payment OF money, and became the active agent TO
make sales and bring in money. Tho Rogers
| patents were assigned to this syndicate. They
sold they called estate rights" and realized
enough divide $4,000 in the first year. invest
ment Of not 5000. Tho Natioua Improved
Telephone Company, now copromoter Of tho Gov
ernment suit with the Pan Electric. pubshe IN the
New-Orleans newspapers In the fall o. 1884 their
opinion OF circular OF tho Pan-Electric Company. Is
sued, they state. under tho sanction OF General john
ston Senator Hairs and Senator Garland. They say:
Is it possible that business AMI sensible psrsons
can he induced to give .such company AMI such .
circular one moments consideration We believe that
you gentlemen realized position be-
placed IN. for there is single patent
aed in your lis. OF telephone patents that We would
give S. for"
In order 70 sell anything. the Pan Electric Company
had the idea the did infringe
the Bell patent and consequently would not DO on
joined So Senator Garland gave an opinion January 8.
1884. that the Pan Electric telephone did not Infringe
satisfied thoroughly so" This opinion was the in-
ducement Which ed-arge numbers OF persons to pay
money to tue Pan Electric Company, part OF which
divided Mr. Gar.and and his assoc iaes A.
that time the Pan Electric Company knew that hs tu
strument did infringe upon the Bsl patent. BY Mr..
Garlsnds advice they obtained reliable the
opinion OF Mr. Marble ex Commissioner Of Patents He
informed them that. 50 oug tho Bell patent
taned by the courts the invention Of Mr.. Rogers will
be subordinate thereto" TINS opinion was not made
public but Mr.. Garlinds favorable opinion was pub
lshcd Most OF these associates had known Dr. Roy
ers for twenty or thirty years The various letters ot
and senator Garland OF him In of the
thersrore that he dapsd ihem for they went into th:
enterprise with him bocause they knew what sort Of
man he was General Johnston tcstihes:
o-You said understood DIR. Rogers son.
who interest ey relied upyn
,'s M % % 's What Ms
rogers PATENT was putting On the in such way a.
to dnd purchasers
EFFORTS TO PLACE THE STOCK.
There Ia great deal OF testimony to the effect
When Congress met At Its next session about 900
Of this stock hold by members Of Congress- and Dr.
Rogers was very busy endeavorng to distribute Of
It, somc accepted IT, among whom the Hon II. ID.
Money then chairman OF the Committee Pos; Offices
and Post Roads IL offered many Others such 40
MI Cox. Mr. Randall. Speaker Carlisle, Mr. 10 fcvre.
Mr. Beach aud Mr. Hewitt. but they poremptorlly re.
official Endorsement of Congress for scheme Their
p.n WAS 70 sb s-se hs Rogers appointed ecS.
branches OF Congress OF their presiding officers have
tho Capitol furnished with Pan-E cctrc teephOuea
This plan Was c0ncurrrci In by all Of them,
Mr. Garland. who testified 1--WE wanted TO place ieio.
phones In the House and Senate" They got
into The House resolution that Rogers appointed
electrician "And that they be permitted Introduce e
their own expense system OF electric lighting teie
phone exchanges to all parts Of tho House. ana that
WAS referred To cOnmttee OF which Mr. Young was
member But when tho committee applied chitecs
Clark no told them. as he had previously told
Harris that there were too many members OF
Interested To make ~ decent and was dropped
Nevertheess, NJ Young. member OF tbs
Public Buildings and Grounds. had one Telephone put
into that comitteo into tho Office Of
the superintendent OF Public Grounds and OF the
adversouents VI their sulconpaDy Informed public
wishing 10 purchase stock that they could 10 tlsre and
examine them That was pretty near to a Congressional
lnuOr rsoiDent.
appeara that they hesitated about directly selling
stock IN the Pan Electric Company because General