The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1886-05-05
EDITOR DANA AS A WITNESS.
lie Appears at Washington and Testi-
fies in the Pan-Electric Inquiry,
Criticising the Attorney General and the Pres
ident with Great Freedom-Further
Trouble with Mr.. Bayards Consuls.


.xamine6 by the telephone committee to-day.
He produced the letter of the Encouragement
accompanying Van Benthuysens original appli
eation to the Department of Justice to have suit
brought against the Bell company, and read the
Endorsements showing the reasons assigned by
Van Benthuysen for its withdrawal OF the At
torney generals letter the witness said he had no
recollection at this time. He believed it was not
the custom to restore an application to the party
making it.
Commissioners of Patents Montgomery took
the stand and testified as to the withdrawal of
Van Benthuysen's application. Van Benthuysen
called upon him, saying that he had decided that
there was no necessity for the proceeding. and
assured him the withdrawal was In accordance
with the Attorney generals wishes his per-
mission, so the witness allowed him to withdraw
the paper. The witness admitted that he had
been little careless, and would not do such
thing now. Six or seven weeks after he had
done this stupid thing, some one had applied for
b copy of the application, and the witness had
demanded the return of the application from
Van Benthuysen, and it had been restored to the
files.
Representative lie Fevre testified that he had
returned postal-telegraph stock sent by DR..
Rogers and had ignored his invitation to attend
meetings at his house.
Mr Charles A Dana was then called. He
10
Washington. Nov. 8:
Enclosed send you full history of the Pan
slectric Telephone Company, which wrote some
time ago-not with view to publication at the
time. I furnished the Tribune correspondent
with the original information upon which it was
based. Every allegation in this article, except
the one that Mr.. Garland attended the meeting
ut 1874 Ct street, is upon my Own knowledge, and
not hesrsay. If you think it is news, and wor-
thy of publication, send me o check for what it
Office
sc N. HILL.
"P. ST. shall not offer it to any other paper"
To this letter Mr.. Dana said he directed re-
ply to be made to the effect that he had con-
eluded not to publish it. "The reason why de-
ciined to publish Hills communication, he said,
e'was not that it did not seem to be news. was
not willing to take any part in attacking the ad-
minis tration, or any member Of it, and that was
the reason why Hills communication was not
used."
The Chairman-Did you regard Hills letter
~ attack upon the administrator
TheWitness-Most decidedly; I regarded it as
. scandal most injurious, if true, to the admin
issration.
The Chairman-Has the Sun, since then, taken
part in the discussion of the matter from that
stand-pont7
to influence public opinion and to influence the
administration against any prosecution Of the
original Pan-electric scheme of making the
United States Executive party TO patent suits
deavored to influence the administration against
the prosecution of government suitf
The Witness-Not particularly inlthe prosecu-
zion Of q patent suit 1t seemed to be fatal
blindness and folly for the President to engage
she United States IN private controversy.
see no reason for the President being involved
fn it, and still less when the proceeding origi-
pated with lot of dead-beats. who should not
be tolerated in any respectable party.
The chairman inquired if he meant the Attor-
n
negative.
The Witness-No. sir.
The Chalrman-To the Rogersesq
The Witness (dryly)-They are poets No
articles had been published in the Sun at the in
stance of the officers or individuals of the Bell
company; they had been published without
solicitation or suggestion from any quarter. No
money had been paid, and he owned no stock in
the Bell company or in any kindred company.
Mr. Boyle asked If the witness had conferred
with the Bel attorney on the general subject
and he replied that he had conferred with Mr.
Dickerson, an old friend, on the scientific ques
tion. II have had quite dispute with him on
the subject" Mr. Dana added.
Sand yet your views seem to have been alike
remarked the chairman.
'"rhey are more alike now than they were at
that time" replied the witness.
'Mr. Dickerson from the frst-when the In
terror Department proceedings were pending
held that government suit would be brought,
while denied it, saying that no President en-
dowed with good sense and q conscientousness-
of uprightness would allow such suit to be
brought" The witness further said that he con-
sidered the matter generally as a kind of scan
DIAL in which tho executive of the United States
is made auxiliary. He had never fully approved
Of Clevelands civil-service principles, but there
was nothing about that of q scandalous nature.
1t was bad politics and bad patriotism But the
pan-electric was of different nature. The scan
uai, he said. consists In using thesAttorneygen
Aanl obi IL
the Department of Justice to promote purposes
OF private speculation. :.
Mr.. Oates-Are you aware he became mem
Der of the association long before he was ap-
pointed Attorney gcneral}
The Witness-He was q member as / under
stand it. while United States Senator, and in
stead of initiating the example of General
LeFeyre and others, who sent back this gratut-
pus donation, he accepted it. That, / think,
was not proper. 1t is merely question whether
public officer should be interested in an estab-
llshment in which he may be required to vote in
his official capacity.
Mr. Oates inquired if the witness did not
know that the Attorney general had been absent
when the application for the Memphis suit had
been made.
The witness replied that he did; but no scru.
pulous Attorney general would have been away
and allowed such thing to be done.
Suppose he did not know that the application
was TO be madeP suggested Mr.. Oates.
s'He ought to have known that there was a
mighty sharp set of fellows around, responded
the witness. "The Attorney general should not
have allowed it; he should have resigned rather
than have had anything to do with it, The case
seems to be entirely similar to th9 old Credit
Mobilier. where members of Congress took stock
In an establishment on which they were going to
vote and whose interests they were going to pro
mote"
Mr.. Oates-You said that the President should
have had more sense than to permit suit to be
brought, Your belief. think, very high Ia
the genilemans 1.-THE Presidents) abilities before
the elections
The Witness--I thought very highly of his
abilities in some respects / think he was very
bad Democrat. and tried very hard to beat him.
came mighty near doing 1t. too. He had
light squeeze-a plurality of only thousand
sotes in New York, and Burchard did that
iLauehter The Democratic party would be a