St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1890-09-23
SAINT PAUL.
WIND-UP OF CENSUS.
Plain and Unvarnished Tale
of the Twin Cities Census
Troubles.
Three Reports Presented to
Members Of the Chamber
Of Commerce.
Federal Officials Declared to
Be Inimical to This
City.
Special Agent Wardle Failed
to Keep With the Census
Committee.

The members of the chamber of COM
merce ought to have had their fill of
the Twin Cities census fight. Every
day since last June the subject has been
discussed in the one form or another in
the daily press. and yesterday three
yoluminOuS reports were read before the
chamber. The first one was presented
by Capt. Castle. This report dealt with
The inception OF the census trouble
down TO the arrest and visit Of the first
delegation to Washington, Capt. Castle
wrote:
1uty 10 watch the census OF Minneapolis.
No such duty was Ia id upon US, and we had
no desire or intention to assume it. But on
The Sd OF June. one day after the enumera-
ton began. some citizens of st. Paul. who,
entirely without our knowledge, had en-
ployed Detective j. II. Mason 10 investigate
the methods of taking the census of Mime
apoliS, brought TO US his first startling report
that an elaborate system of ingenious and
gigantic fraud, by the manufacture OF hct-
tious names. was in full operation there
under charge of Z. A. Stevens. The paid agent
OF the Minneapolis citizens committee. Inc
statements were almost incredible to us.
but we felt bound, in justice 10 all the inter
erests involved to follow the matter at least
far enough 10 ascertain whether the facts
would justify bringing ii TO the attention OF
the officials of The census bureau. Accord
ingly We employed detectives from another
agency 10 watch Mr.. Mason. Within twenty
four hours we received from full corrobora-
tive evidence of Masons truthfulness, and
from him further revelations. concluding
with the statement that he was himself shad-
owed-the two sets of investigators thus I'M
consciously confirming each other.
Supt. Porter was acquainted with the
evidence of the alleged fraud, and lie
ordered special agent, Mr.. Boudinot,
to Minneapolis. Mr.. Boudinot arrived
in MINI eapoliS June II under instruc-
tons 10 confer freely with the st. Paul
committee. Mr.. BOudinOt'S inveStiga-
tons fully convinced him of the truth
of Detective Mason's statements. In
his presence. and mostly at his dicta-
ton. the following telegram was writ
ten and forwarded to Supt. Porter:
The committee. having submitted the evil
dence at hand TO legal counsel. believe that
10 obtain important testimony it is necessary
that search warrants should be issued and
arrests made at once VIII you give instruc-
tons TO your special agent here 10 act imme-
diaiely: As the United States district at
torney Is a resident Of Minneapolis action
should not be taken primarily through him.
Accompanying this went a TELEGRAM
from Special Agent BOudinot confirm
ing it. MI Boudinot waited all next
day in ST. Paul in feverish expectation
of instructions 10 swear out warrants.
The reply al length came. the substance
or which was:
The ST Paul committees telegram. with
your Endorsement, Is received. This Office is
not YET in possession of sufficient proof to
justify arrests. Postal card returns from
Minneapolis as from 81. Paul. are coming in.
regular on their face. If committee wish
rests authorized. they must forward affidayits
here. cannot assume that because the dis
trict attorney lives III Minneapolis he viii not
DO his duty You will carefully refrain from
identifying yourself. and thereby this depart
ment- with either faction 10 this quarrel, and
proceed with the duties assigned you.
Mr.. BOudinOt seemed to regard the
reply as a reprimand. and sought no
more conferences with the st. Paul
committee. The members of the COM
niittee were astOuDded at the refusal of
Mr.. Porter TO act on the recommends
ton of his own trusted agent, and be-
gan 10 fear that he was trying to cover
up rather than expose the fraud which
was now so well established. Hon. w.
=. Murray then secured warrants under
which eight Minneapolis enumerators
were arrested and ''Seven of the gunny-
bags full of priceless proof of wholesale
guilt were snatched literally from the
Jaws of destruction and preserved to
convict the guilty." The report pro-
ceeded:
While we did not advise or procure this
action of Mr.. Murrays, we thoroughly in
~.
public duty which few would have had the
nerve TO perform. but which, aside from its
moral aspects. was prime necessity of the
hour for the preservation of the most vital
material interests of the city of st. Paul.
The scheme Of fraud which was to have
added 5000 or more to the actual popula-
ton of Minneapolis was so ingeniously de-
vised that the census experts at Washington
say it would have passed through their office
wit hout suspicion if those arrests had not
been made the seven bags full of corrobora-
tive documentary evidence would have
been destroyed within twenty-four
would have rested on the testimony of an
UNKNOWN detective. confirmed only by the Sc
cret reports of a terrorized special agent st.
Paul has seen enough of Supt. PorterS weak
ness and insincerity. when confronted with
the political influences Minneapolis knows
so well how TO exert to justly estimate what
would have been the prospects of his even
ordering recount OH such showing as
that. Any man who proposed it would have
been hooted out of Washington, and st. Paul
would have stood recorded. for ten years to
come. with population nearly or quite 100
0G0 less than that of her rival, with which
all her values and all her prospects are nee
essarily compared st. Paul would have been
dwarfed, and the whole state Of Minnesota
would have been robbed by q fraud from
which there would have been no redress and
no appeal.
The arrests, the refusal of the dis
lrict attorney to follow up the ARE SITS,
and the VlSlt OF the hrSt delegation to
Washington were referred to at lengt b.
The officers of the attorney generals
department were cOmplimented upon
the fact that there was mo hesitation
or Sinking" of responsibility, and the
report concludes:
We do not propose that this committee, OF
this chamber, or this city shall be put on the
defensive i'll this matter-our record has
been clear and straight from the beginning
We have no apologies to make or regrets Il
express for any acts of ourselves or our col
leagues on the several committees connected
with this work if we could go back and take
each separate step over again. with all the
added light we now have. we do not see how
any step could be improved. We seek M
personal vii.dication. for every act of Our.
has been already from time to time, ratified
and Endorsed by this chamber. If the fina
recount of St Paul had footed up 100, O0O i
is easy TO see that the few small voices o.
censure would have been lost in the grand
acclaim of mutual congratulations. AS it is
we accept our proper share Of dlsappoint-
menl and look forward with increased con
fidence in our city's splendid future.
The report is signed by f. Driscoll
Sr.. Charles Nichols and Henry A
Castle.