The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1892-04-08
COOPER'SFIGHTO ON RAUM
THE FORMERS CLERK WORKED
THE PENSION OFFICE.

ALbOIhGSS 4OA a SOA454N4OAN
tom Gave the Secretaries OF Mem
pers the Right to Secure Informe-
ton on the Slips of Members.
WASHINGTON, April THE investiga-
ton of the conduct Of the pension bureau
by the House committee, of which Gen.
Wheeler is chairman, to-day developed a
matter Of unusual interest. Commissioner
Raum was on the stand, and Representa-
tive Enloe OF Tennessee was conducting the
examination. To Mr.. Enloe the witness
said that the pension office refused to per
NIT attorneys and claimants to examine
pension papers to ascertain what evidence
was needed to make good their claims As
courtesy to the members of the House aud
Senate, under a long standing practice Of
the office the private secretaries of repre-
sentativeS and senators we're given that
privilege
A CHANCE FOR FEES.
Mr.. Enloe-As an attorney himself cans
not obtain information which might be very
valuable, could ne not afford to pay mem
bers' clerks for it.
Ex-Congressman Payson OF Illinois, Mr..
Raum's counsel-On the face Of it that is
matter Of inference and your Judgment is
as good as Commissioner Raum's.
Mr.. Enloe retorted that he proposed to
show that it was more than an inference,
aud then asked: "Do you know about any
clerk of a member of congress or any at
Iorney getting such information and furn-
fishing IL to pension attorneys throughout
the country, and receiving pay for itIn
This question, TO the surprise Of the whole
committee, sprung decided sensation.
The commissioner evidently bad been
preparing for just such an inquiry, for he
had on the table near him bundle Of
papers in the form Of afiidavits, letters and
Raplvipy 70 Mr. EpIDefa
be said that he knew of such case and the
man was Samuel r. Hersey, private secre-
tary to Representative Cooper of Indiana,
one of the prosecutors in the present case.
There we're perhaps a thousand pension
cases all over the northwest in which Mr..
Hersey was involved.
Mr.. Payson said that It was on this matter
that Mr.. Lineweaver, one Of Commissioner
Raum's clerks, whose absence has been
frequently inquired about, had been en-
gagged. The papers relating to the affair
were offered in evidence by Commissioner
Raum but have not yet been admitted in
evidence, the committee desiring to examine
them and pass upon the matter.
AN OUTLINE OF THEIR CONTENTS.
Their substance is covered in a letter
from the commissioner to the Secretary of
the Interior, dated April 5, recommending
Mr.. Hersey's disbarment. In effect the
letter shows that on Feb. 25 last a
report was received from ]. G. Greenwalt,
supervising special examiner Of the pension
office, with reference to a COM
plant received from John r.
Whittinghill Of Corthersville, Ind,
and formerly in the Ninth Ken
lucky volunteers. In this complaint Mr.
WhittinRhill said that he had received a
letter from c. L. Raglan & Co. Of Kenton,
O., saying that for 80 they would furnish
Mr.. WhittlnghIl the exact status Of his
claim and the testimony necessary in it.
Whittinghill asked if it we're a fraud and if
Raglan could furnish the information, why
could not he (Whlttilghiln get it from the
pension office without expense.
ACTION OF THE COMMISSIONER
The papers show that on Sept. 16 Of last
year the commissioner wrote Mr.. Whiting
hill saying that be was not advised upon
what method Raglan & Co. were working
the pension office and asked him to forward
80 to the firm, for which the pension office
would reimburse him and request the status
This was done and on Nov. 10 Whittinghill
received a reply giving him as full and
accurate a statement of bis claim as If
the man had the papers before
him. Meanwhile the case had been put
aside to ascertain what could come of it,
and it turned out that on Nov. IL the papers
in the case were called for by Mr.. Hersey
upon the congressional slip Of Representa-.
tive Cooper of Indiana. The commits
sioner's letter said that he could not know
that this was any more than a coincidence.
and could not determine whether there was
any connection between Mr.. Raglan and the
Cooper slip.
FOLLOWING Up THE cLEw.
So on Nov. %, Mr.. Whittinghill
was requested to correspond with Raglan a.
Co. relative to the claim of Henry Behrens
OF the Ninth Ohio infantry, the claim hav.
ing been selected at random. On Dec
RlunW Id -
on the congressional slip OF Representative
Cooper and was carefully examined Feb. g.
1892, Raglan writing from Chicago forward
cd the status of the claim. In the meantime
the commissioner had received 6. letter dated
Dec. %. 1891, from ex-Representative Will
Jams of Ohio, calling attention to the fact
that certain Ohio pension attorneys were
having their cases called up for status and
reported upon by Mr.. Hersey on Repre-
sentative Cooper's congressional slips. The
matter was placed In Mr.. Greenwalts
hands, and at his request Mr.. Lineweaver
was detailed to assist him.
ANOTHER MAN INVOLVED.
A man named H. G. Peet Of Columbus,
Ind, a relative by marriage of Representa-
tive Cooper's, was in the transaction with
Messrs. Hersey and Raglan. Mr.. Peet was
clerk for the firm of pension attorneys in
Columbus. Mr.. Peet furnished Mr. Green
walt with several original letters from Mr.
Hersey giving reports Of the status Of the
cases. The plan was, the COM
nstssioner's letter said. that Mr.. Raglan
wrote TO the pension attorneys and claim
ants aud secured business and
forwarded 1t to Mr.. Peet, who
in turn correspondent with Mr.. Hersey,
who used the slips of Representative Cooper
and other members of congress whom he
represented as their clerk. MIR. Hersey drew
the cases and ascertained their status, and
she fees were divided between Messrs, Her
sey. Peet and Raglan. In the course Of the
Investigations by Commissioner Raum's
agents it appeared that a remittance
from one of Representative Cooper's
friends to Mr.. Hersey was sent to Cooper
himself. He returned it to the sender
saying: From your letter II
seems you have sent the money to pay him
tMr. Herseyl for calling up cases. or
course, Jim, l cannot allow you to pay Mr..
Hersey for that kind of work. He is in my
service aud it is only as my secretary that
the work can be done for your
OTHERS SERVED BY HERsEY.
After Mr.. Raum had stated something as
10 what was in these papers, they not hav-
ing been read to the committee, several
questions were asked about them, and Rep
resentative Enloe inquired if Mr. Hersey
represented himself to be an employe Of any
member of congress besides Representative
kia 49,.