Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1890-06-13
A Charge Of Attempted Bribery.

A Charge Of Attempted Bribery.
Quite sc9saiion has been created
til. week by the report that the book
trust had attempted to bride ut least
one member OF the Board of Educa-
ton, who are charged with the duty
of selecting textbooks for the COM
mon schools Of the State. 1t seems
that a check for 5000, drawn by
C. E. Eames, was passed to l.. II.
Leach, of Vancouver, Secretary of the
Board, in consideration it is alleged. for
amotion to reconsider tile vote whereby
the American Book Company, an Or
ganization outside the trust, had been
awarded contracts for certain books.
LEACH moved the reconsideration, and
the vote being a tie, 81 .erintendent
Bryan voted ip the affirmative and the
motion was declared clrrie1, Here
the check was placed before the Board
with an explanation OF how it came
into the possession Of Mr.. Leach. 1t
seems, froIh the statement, that he
was offered likewise the Superintend-
ency Of the Seattle schools, rs Il quid for
his seryiees-the temptation offered re-
sembling somewhat the proposition
made by the Devil on the Mount.
Eamcs says in statement to the
Tribune, that he was employed by a
Portland detective agency to shadow
Leach and test his honestly tlRt II
favorable opportunity swssf 4uss pre-
scented; that the check was worthless,
and his efforts were successful, mas
much as. the check was accepted by
Leach. X 80. 80
The Board, under these circum-
stances, made no change in its former
action, and the vote by.whiclsa selec-
ton was made stands as recorded. It
seems to have viewed the matter with
remarkable equanimity- however. as
the adoptieA Of the following reso-
luton will show:
WHEREAS, Documentary evidence having
been placed before the Board Of Educa-
ton of the State Of Washington of an at
tempt by the agents OF q certain book
company to improperly influence Mr.. L.
II. Leach, oseof the members Of the said
board, TO- move reconsid Grafton Of the
vote feZ The purpose -of thasadOption Of
readers and arithmetics. published by
said company, thereby securing to the
said company eighty per cent. of the text
books of the State. and
WHEREAs, This board. believing it for
the best interests Of the cause of education
in the State of Washington to keep the
textbook question forever open and tree
to the composition. Of all textbook
publishers; be id :
Resolved, That this board heartily ap-
prove the action OF Mr.. L. H. Leach in
the MISTER. ~, That this board unquali-
fiedly disapprove the method Of the
agents Of the said book company, or any
other school book publishing house. in
attempting to bias the action Of members
Of the board in the free choice Of text
books upon merit alerfe:. ts): ThGt the
interests Of the SCHOOL children. Of the
State Of VI 6iAgten' ate shove the. per
sonal iatep4lts'tt the aeentscf any pub
liShing house and should forever be
beyond the improper. iniiuence and con-
tro: Of any textbook publishing house. =
Now it seems to us that this was one
of the qGcaeions whep.a Agade. shoulA:
have been called spade; that the
name of the "cdrtain bo6k company"
should .have- been, embodied in the
resolution; that crime so clearly de-
fined by statute. supported by docu-
mentary and oral evidence, was some
thing more than an attempt 70. bias"
the action oket$ leest one member Of
the board. H-sae Hit WAS anything;
deliberate attempt to bfibe. and no
uncertain aagdase should be used il
its condemnation. Charges should be
preferred and . thorough investigation
made in justice to all concerned.
Let us here that no effort viii be,
spared To- fi66e this matter 10 the bot
tom. and that the fair fame Of the
State will'Tnot be tarnnished- by = sus-
picion oi.-wrengs iast as she enters
upon her career Of independence.