St. Paul daily globe., 1890-07-13
PORTER is PREVIOUS.
There Is No Charge Of Fraud
Against the st. Paul
Census.
Correspondence Which Raised
a Smile on Committee
Faces.
The Situation at the Federal
Building Undergoes a
Change.
Attorney Baxter Removes the
Minneapolis Case Over the
Way.

SuS bureau in Washington had SuSpl-
cions that a system of padding had
been pursued in St. Paul distressed Su-
pervisor Smith. He was surprised,
dumbfounded. He had made his re-
ports in all sincerity and truthfulness,
and he had not seen aught that seemed
to arouse any suspicion of transgres-
sion against the census laws. In order
to ascertain what truth there was in the
story he sent the following telegram:
ST. PAUL. July IL, 1S90.-To Robert P.
Porter, Superintendent of Census, Washing
ton D. c.: telegram from Washington has
appeared in the public press here to the ef-
feet that Assistant Superintendent Hyde has
found evidence of fraud in the st. Paul CEN
srs enumeration. Figures Indicate no at
tempt TO make false returns While want
to conceal nothing, am unable to answer
INQUIRIES concerning the alleged fraud. st.
Paul citizens demand q statement and
thorough investigation at once, and would
respectfully recommend and urge that MIR.
HYDE OF some one else be sent TO make the
closest scrutiny of the territory with the re-
turns IHEo. f. SMITH,
Supervisor Third Census District.
The answer which was received yes
terday puts very different phase Oh
the matter 1t states In straightforward
way that neither Mr.. Hyde nor Supt.
Porter had made the statement attrib-
uted to Mr.. Hyde, and it is positively
known here that Inspector Boudinot
has 10 idea that there is anything
wrong connected with the st. Paul
enumeration. This telegraphic re-
sponse was received from Supt. Porter:
WASHINGTON, D. c., July H. 1907. f.
Smith, Supervisor or Census, st. Paul, Mimi: (:
There is no necessity whatever for any one
IN no nj tn
ules with the enumeration district The eX-
animation of the schedules here has devel-
Oped certain anomalies that Call Tor rlgld
scrutiny and do not seem susceptible OF any
satisfactory explanation. There is nothing,
however rejecting in any way upon your
| self as supervisor, and the sensational dis
| patch to which you refer need not occasion
| the citizens of St Paul any serious apprehen-
sion. 1t was not authorized either by MIR.
| Hyde or myself. ROBERT p PORTER,
Supervisor of CenSIs.
The anomalies were easily explained.
| The ceusus department reported that
| the schedule for district I'll had not
been received. Mr.. Smith Was quickly
notified of the discrepancy and con-
suited his memoranda, and he found
| that this schedule had been regularly
forwarded. and he straightway ac-
guaInted Mr.. Porter of the package i'll
which it had been sent. An investiga-
tion at the bureau in Washington
| quickly demonstrated the correctness of
| Supervisor Smiths statement. 1t was
found in the very package he had Specl-
fed, and had been overlooked by the
clerical force of the department.. Then
there was another anomaly. 1t was
| said that some of the enumeratorS had
| taken more names ill day than an
| enumerator could list. Supervisor Smith
hot Cfno IIy
| as was explained in these columns
yesterday. He is the manager for a
literary publishing company, and among
| his enumaratOrS were several skilled
| and experienced directory men, who
could easily do twice the work in day
that could be encompaSSed by a novice
who had never had any experience.
| This is true of any class of work where
| an expert can excel a green emplOye.
| Mr.. Smith is anxious thathiS work shall
be vindicated, and is willing that eerti-
| fed copies of the questioned districts be
| returned aud new canvass be MADE by
| United States detectives.
! Yesterday forenoon the citizens eX-
| ecutiye committee met in the mayors
office and discussed the situation. There
were present Acting Mayor Cullen, and
Messrs. Flandrau, SanbOrn, Nichols and
Driscoll. The attorneys of the commit
| tee, Messrs. Lawler and Mum. were
also present, but purely in the capacity
of counselors. The questions involved
were freely discussed, but no positive
action was decided upon, save to
! petition the department of justice
| for the removal of all Instructions to a
speedy prosecution of the alleged Mill
neapoIis frauds.
The members of the committee
thought it inadvisable to publish all that
was said and done, and the Impression
| seemed 70 obtain that too much public
ity had already seriously handicapped
| and impeded the committee. Several
| short speeches were made, in which it
was demanded that nothing shall him
der speedy exposition of the whole
| course. 1t is intimated that Mr.. Hays
course was the burden of caustic criti-
cism. The committee believe that he is
| still posing as an obstructionist. Mr..
Lawler stated after the adjournment of
| the committee session, that the GLOBE
has published truthful and impartial
recital of occurrences from the incep-
ton. Nothing had been said but
were positive facts, and its reports
have not been colored by pre-
| iudice for either side of the
controversy. AS anattorney for the
committee, Mr. Lawler did not feel at
liberty to speak in particular way of
the things that really occurred at the
harmful. But" said he, pleasantly,
81 am willing to say our course to-day
was not in the interests of the defense
in the Minneapolis cases." whatever
he meant by that.
II was amused" he afterwards said,
ito read the recountals of our thrilling
experiences in Washington as portrayed
by the Minneapolis Tribuue's special
correspondent. During ali the time we
were there this correspondent neg
lected US. He did not call upon us
once. Van Antwerp, of the Journal,
| called several times, as did the reporter
for the Dispatch. We were not coldly
received by any of the officials
Mr. Baxter has removed his Office to
the Germania National Bank building,
directly opposite the federal building. 1t
is SAID that he found it necessary be-
cause of MIR. Hays attitude. Mr.. Hay
insisted upon inspecting every move
ment made by Mr.. Baxter. and the citi-
Zens' committee avow that they believe
whatever Mr.. Hay was able to detect
from day to day he at once reported to
the Minneapolis attorneys. The two
government inspectors were still en-
gagged in looking over the seven sacks
full of documentary evidence, classify
ing 1t and making a sort OF an index
whereby certain things may be found
without unnecessary delay when the
hearing occurs. Detective Mason is
also active in giving what information
he has stored away for the trial. He
was with Mr.. LaWler for some time last
evening.
IF PAID UNDER PROTEST