Omaha daily bee., 1886-06-15
HE LIFTS THEIR CUTICLES,
Senator Van Wyok Makes the Greatest
.isx3 j Speech of the sesson.
LAND GRANT FRAUD uNMAskeD.
Party Promises That are Never prac.
ticed-Senatorial Squirming-A
Family of Soldiers-General
National News.
oratorioal Bomb Among Monopoiists.

OratOriCal Bomb Among Monopolists.
WASHINGTON, June l4-[S pecial Tele-
gram to the BEE. l-Senator Van Wyck lifted
the cuticle of the railroad senators to-day in
advocating the forfeiture of unearned land
grants to the Northern Pacific railroad. Mr..
Van Wyck could not understand, he said,
how and why the same body of senators
arose in their seats and protested every time
congress proposed taking from monopoists
grants from public domain which had not
been earned. The same men have come to
the rescue of the monopolstic corporation
for the past ten years and have done
1t so earnestly, so regularly, so faith
fully ana so unitedly that he was
unable to understand it. 1t looked suspi-
cious. He could comprehend the attitude of
the senators from Oregon. 10 them it was a
local question, yet even they might protest
too earnestly. There were senators now op-
posing the forfeiture OF portions of the
Northern Pacific grant who ten years ago
advocated the forfeiture OF the entire grant
Why this change of mind when there was no
change in the situation affecting the road, or
the law under which it claimed and held the
lands?
Another suspicious feature was the fact
that the monopoly was willing to re-
lease portion of its grant lands
which were worthless, but unwilling to
have forfeited other portions which are
valuable, but which were granted under the
same condition and have in no sense been
better earned. In the course of his remarks
Senator Van Wyck brought up many remin-
isences In connection with the Northern
Pacific, which were very embarrassing to
those advocating the interests of that mon
opoly. No speech during the entire debate
on the subject has had such a profound i'm
preston or attracted so much attention dur
ing the present session. number of
times senators attempted to direct the force
OF Van Wyck's arguments, but in every in
stance were their staten entS annihiated by
the inevitable blows of the Nebraska sena-
tor, who evnced All amazing fund of facts in
connection with the Northern Paciic's his
tory and a wonderful familiarity with land
grant laws. He held up with scorn the
practices of the two great political parties in
relation to land grant forfei:ures for long
time. He said resolutions have been incor-
porated every four years in the platforms of
national parties declaring that these un-
earned lands should be forfeited and prom
ises made to restore TO the public domain the
lands which belong to the people. To the
country the parties went with these pledges
but regularly did they come to congress and
fail to fulill them. This procedure had been
so often repeated that the pledges to forfeit
unearned railroad land grants had become
playthings AND sneer. No one regarded
them win any decree OF since sincerity now; W.
be an open test OF these professions. He
wanted to see just where each man stood
and to know why he stood there.
49, MUST PAY THE PIPER.
II feel confident that the Northern Pacific
railroad will be compelled to pay thu cost of
tile surveys of its land grants, and n conse-
quence municipal taxes" said Delegate Gif-
ford of Dakota to the BEE correspondent
this afternoon.
"What is the basis of your cOnidence?"
"Last week the senate passed Ingalls, bill,
having this object in view. This bill was
substantially the same as the measure which
l introduced early in the session, which was
noted in your paper at the time. The house
committee substituted a bill of its own. 1t
passed, went to the senate and there the In
gals bill took its place. Now it is with the
conference committee and the house con-
freres have decided to recommend its substi-
tuition. twill undoubtedly be agreed to in
the house"
a FRIEND OF LAND GRANTS.
grant forfeiture bill?'
II don't think the public lands committee
bill will pass; beieye ,eo that hat, the raiI,
that the lands should be in the hands of the
railroad company, who will ser them at n
reasonable figure than they should pass into
the possession of speculators who will hold
for u rise, "Do settlers feel the same way ?'
lbelieye that they ali do, will you ask your
constituents for a denomination ~ dakota
is not in the habit OF returning man to con-
grefiS ggrsi for second "nt term ses but tnd
reprehensibie custom is not obsolete,
STATUS OF INDIAN BILLS
The, failure Of the house to consider on
Saturday bills from the Indian committee
was due to the fact that the legislative bill
mad the floor and was not concluded in time
to permit consideration of the special order.
The Indian committee is entitled to the floor
again on Wednesday, but it is hardly likely
that the special order will he recognized as
the naval appropriation and bills from the
labor committee will antagoniZc it. The
chances tor the passage of either the Sioux
reservation bill or the Dawes seyeralty bill
are growing more dubious every dag. Up to
the present time Dakota men here who are
urging the opening of the great Sioux reserv-
alton to settlement have been confident
of ultimate success. They are beginning to
lose hope and are no longer disposed to claim
anything. June 26 is set apart as the day
for the Indian committee in lieu of last
Saturday and another day will probably be
set instead of Wednesday next, when there is
a faint probability that something may be
done with one or both of these important
bills, but the prospects are by no means bright
and settlers who have an eye upon lands
Wltnln the sioux reservation might as well
turn their optics in other directions for the
summer at least.
A FAMILY OF WARRIORS.
Senator Sawyer will report fayorably to
the senate a bill granting q pension to Rich
ard D. Rians, whose case is rather remark
able one At tine age of sixteen he entered
and fought through the war of 1872 At the
age of sxty-three he enlisted i'm the Union
army during the war of the rebellion and
served as a private in Company ID, Thirty
seventh Iowa volunteers, from September,
1862, to March /, 1863. In addition
father, William Rians, served through the
revolutionary war and he had two brothers
and brother-in-law who served with him in
the war OF 1872. Besides giving his own ser
vices to his country during the rebellion, he
had four sons, two sons-in-Iaw and thirteen
stepsons in the union army. He is now
nearly eighty-eight years of age, and
almost blind and helpless and
needing the constant attention and care
of an attendant Some years ago he was
granted pension OF Sl2 month, but his
application for an increase was disOllowed
by the pension bureau. The facts of his in
trmities and helplessness are substantiated
by affidayits of people at Iowa City, and the
committee reports that he be given S72 a
month.
FOR bogus BUTTER. @