St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1893-07-14
HIS NAUGHTY LETTER.
WHICH COT DR.. WHITE IN A SeRAPE
WITH FEDERAL AUTHORITIES,
HE rs NOT a BIT, SORRY.

Singular Career Of the Unique.
Letter Wr;ter-A Glass Mate
. Of Roscoe ConkIing-Nothin
in His Life That He Has Cause
to Regret. r-~
DR.. Collins D. White, an intelligent
but feeble old man of over seventy
years, and who has a record of nine
years as surgeon in the United States
navy. occupied quarters in the county
Jail last night in default of $500 bail to
appear before the federal court that
meets in Minneapolis next September.
The old gentleman is under Indictment
for sending an obscene letter through
the mails to the famous Corporal Tan
ner. DIR. White was arrested in Illinois
by Frank Hitchcock, marshal for the
northern district of that state. and
brought to this city by Deputy United
States Marshal George Q. AL
len and turned over to Marshal
J. c. Donahower. The old man is
accused of making rather pointed and
vulgar answers to a list of questions
sent him by Commissioner of Pensions
Green B. Raum. In his answers to the
questions on the blank he stated that he
is single but had been intimate with a
number of women, but he could not
divine what that has to do with the act
of 1890 which provides for a pension
for disability. He also conveyed the
information that lie had replied to the
same list of questions seven times. In
Conclusion he stated that his increase of
| pension could be allowed or diSalowed,
but in any event the commissioner, to
whom he applied an insulting remark,
might seek the fiery lake spoken of by
the preachers. The letter was mailed
to Corporal James Tanner, who turned
it over to the authorities, and the old
man was indicted.
DR.. White was an inmate of the Sol
diers' home near Fort Smelling when he
wrote the letter, and when he submitted
1t to the superintendent it was allowed
Ito pass. He was admitted to the home
| from lie Sueur county in November,
1889. During the spring he wanted to
| be appointed on the board of trustees
of the home, and had an interview with
Gov. Nelson, to whom ne made claim
| that at least one Democrat ought to be
| named on the board. He was finally
! put off by the governor, who wanted
| him tor produce recommendation for
the position. The recommendations
/ were not produced, and he was not APP
pointed In March last he drew several
| hundred dollars, and was given leave
of absence from the home, and has not
| been there since. He says he has a
brother and other friends in lie Sueur
| county, but declined to bother them by
sending for them to 60 on his bond.
Marshal DOnahOWer was very kind to
the old man and allowed him to lie on
| the comfortable lounge in his office
! until nearly O'Clock last evening, when
he asked the old fellow what he wanted
to eat, and making known his desires
for bill of fare including strawberries,
the marshal directed Deputy GoOdner
to see that the old man got what he
| wanted and then to take him to the Jail,
where the marshal had made arrange
ment for comfortable quarters in the
boys ward, and where he will have
room to walk about some.
During the day the old gentleman
was communicative and spoke in Eng
! lish, French and Latin with persons
finding out something of his life and at
tainmentS.
1t was learned that his early home
was in Delhi county, New York. He
was a schOolmate with Roscoe COnklin,
and has now in his possession an inter
/ eSting letter from that distinguished
| gentleman. At the breaking out of the
war he says he wanted to enter the
| Union army, and as he was On the
wrong side of the fence to get COM
mission he enlisted as private in the
One Hundred and Second Pennsylvania
infantry. A short time after he was in
a hospital, and interfered with the hos
pital surgeon. who was about to perform
an operation for a slight wound. Dr.
White was told to do the job himself, if
he Enew better. The surgeon was sur
prised when told by DR.. White that he
did know better than to do as was about
to be done, and, taking the patient, he
treated the wound in a way that sur
priSed the regular surgeon. He was
soon after examined by the proper
board and commissioners second as
sistant surgeon in the United States
navy, and served over nine years in that
capacity, part of the time on the two
ffagshipS Norfolk and Cuyler.
fsi HIS present difficulty was alluded to
I Yesterday and he was asked if he was
PINOT sorry he had written the letter.
Striking his leg with more emphasis
than seemed probable from his feeble
condition he said with strong emphasis.
Es..NO, sir l would do the same thing
again. l was goaded into it. l would
I probably slop over worse the next
/ time"
+ just prior to this outburst Marshal
Bonahower was talking to him about
his life and experiences when he said in
+ a philosophical reflective mood, That
i&part of heaven within me called con-
Science approves in the main what I
have done in my history. If l had my
Fife to live over again l could not change
It AS far as | could see, ard would prob
ably slOp over more often than have"
1t is thought that the friends of the
old man will appear today and give bail
for his appearance for trial. He is
about Seventy-three wears old and has
but a short time TO live. The offense with
which he is charged has penalty at
tached of not less than year in the
penitentiary and a fine not exceeding
! $1,000. In speaking OF the letter. he
said that it was not sent to Commits
sioner Raum, but to Corporal Tan
ner, who was his attorney, and he only
designed the letter to be seen by him
so that he might know how indignant
he was at being @importuned 10 answer
questions that he had answered several
times before.