Arizona weekly enterprise., 1890-04-26
PUBLIC LAND PIRATES.
RASCALITIES OF A DEMOCRATIC
 GANG IN ARIZONA,
Under Protection of One of Cleveland's Appointees--A Government Special Agent Investigates and Reports Sys- tematic Fraud in Land Entries New Territorial Judge
 Badly Needed.

Agent Investigates and Reports Sys
 tematic Fraud in Land Entries
 New Territorial Judge
 Badly Needed.
 Cincinnati Commercial Gazette, April 17th.l
 INDIANAPOLIS, April 16.-[ Special r. Not long since Daniel Pratt Baldwin, a one-time Republican, presided over Democratic free-trade meeting in this city, and spoke patheticaly of the hardships of the farmers and learned ly of the value of hogs. It turns out that Daniel is considerable of a hog himself, metaphorically speaking, and has been endeavoring, by the aid of corrupt gang, to hog in about three hundred thousand acres of Govern ment land in the Territory of Arizona. He seems to have had fat thing of it during MT. Cleveland's administra- tion, and up to the present time has not been materially interfered with by the present administration, but the signs of the times points to speedy downfall of the corrupt gang, and the calling for settlement. Baldwin is President and chief stockholder in the Wabash Cattle Company, that does business in Apache County Arizona.
 As one Government official ex pressed it to me, the Wabash Cattle Company owns the territory, and un- til recently every official had it's brand on his back. If one-half is true that is reported of the doings of the com pany, 1t is one of the most gigantic rings that have ever disgraced this country The charges against the company, in tke minutest detail, have been laid before the Department at | Washington, with an abundance of sworn and documentary evidence. The company has dominated the Courts and the people, until it has become impossible to get anything like justice when the opponent is the company or one of its gang Water is 8 scarce article in the Territory, and whoever controls that supply virtually controls all the land.
 This company, by a series of what morally, if not legally, are false entries, and by harassing honest settlers, has obtained enough of what are known as ''water holes" to control at least three hundred acres of land in one county alone. Among the methods pursued by this monopoly is the hir- ing of men to make homestead claims and then have the deed made to the company. When they find a tract of land they want they send one of their men to locate on it, paying him a stipulated price per month for the six months he is to remain, the cattle to graze on 1t, the blow and horses to do his planting, and the money to pay for erecting his cabin. When the time comes they furnish the witnesses to prove up his claim, pay the fees, and then have the deed made to them selves.
 Another of their plans it to drive honest settlers from land they want, by harassing them by lawsuits and prosecutions. Only a short time ago they coveted the land located by sev- eral settlers, and to drive them from 1t caused them to be arrested on charges of false swearing in perfecting their titles. They were tried before the Court owned and controlled by the company, and by jury under their dictation. The testimony against them was of the flimsiest character possible, but they were convicted
 fined heavily and sentenced to the penitentiary. After the sentence they
 were told that if they would promise to leave the Territory they would be released. They gladly accepted the offer and took their departure. They
 were no sooner out of the Territory than the agents of the company seized their abandoned lands This is only one case of a dozen or more thai might be mentioned of the doings O this monopoly, of which Dan Baldwin Is the head.
 The Chief Justice of the Territory
 by the grace of MT. Cleveland, is one
 James H. Wright, and from the charges that have been filed agains , him at Washington he is about as un holy and corrupt Judge as ever Sd I on any bench. In all things he is tn, : agent and tool of the cattle company | As Chief Justice he has the right t, = select such counties as he chooses fo his own circuit. He selected Apach I and Yavapai Counties. The frs = named is where the Cattle Compan has its largest holdings. In Prescott is . firm of lawyers by the name of Bald Q win & Johnston. They are the al torneys for the cattle company. Tn county is largely settled up by Mol
 mons. Among them Is one Henr
 Tuning, who has grown immensel Q wealth by peculiar dealings He con trols the Mormon population, an
 when jury is needed he selects it fo
 the company, and the verdict is alway
 known before hand. The firm ( 6 Baldwin < Johnston have never To:
 a case tried before Judge Wright H : was the Judge who tried the men r, a ferred to above, and after sentencin
 them, gave them their liberty on y- promise to leave the Territory an d abandon their property.
 u Judge Wright is not only con plaisant Judge when the cattle con n Q pany demands his services, but "a something of a bulldozer. He hs
 repeatedly been known to go to partit D. having suits in his Court, employin a Republican attorneys, and tell thel Id that they never could gain a case
 his Court because they had employe Iy the wrong lawyers. By this courl d he has actually driven all the Repu d lican attorneys out of the practic
 When President Harrison appointe Id a Republican Governor of the Ter rs tory, the new Governor exercised tt Da Da rights belonging to his office and al " pointed certain Territorial officer f. The Democratic incumbents, at tl an instigation of Wright, refused to su al render, and when the new appointe k appealed to the law the Judge decide
 against them, and the Democrats he ed their places for many many month Tt Among the charges filed again na him at Washington is one of corru eF ton in a recent decision, wherein u Kansas City Mining Company was H1 party. In Apache county is silv 70 mine that has been worked for mo he than a dozen years. The owner CT the claim left it and went to Kans
 City to procure financial help. Whi +a he was gone a man hV the name