The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1898-01-03
fspecial Corresnondencel

Especial correspondent
Boise, Ida, Jan. 1.-The inside facts sur
rounding the case of Surveyor General
Perrault are coming out slowly. and it is
left for The Herald which has given ex-
clusively the news of the matter hereto
fore, to lay them before the public. Mr..
Perrault was seen by the writer today
and consented for the first time, to make
a statement for publication.
Il have paid no attention to the state
ments made on the streets by my enemies.
political or otherwise he said but now
1 feel that 1 owe it to myself, although
having nothing to defend. to comply with
your request and make a statement for
publication, every scintilla of which is
backed up by the correspondence on file
in this office
Continuing, the surveyor general said
that the contracts complained of by State
Engineer Mills were let prior to his as
Stunning the duties of the office. They
were let by Surveyor General Straughan,
who was authorized so to do by Commits
Sioner Hermann of the general land office
When l took charge l found that these
contracts had been let, covering year
of my incumbency," he said. Mr.. Mills
came to me and attempted TO dictate what
course l should pursue in the matter, and
l informed him politely, but firmly, that
l felt entirely capable of attending to all
matters pertaining TO the Office; when a
feeling of incOmpetency came over me
l would step down and out. He went
away in a sweat Prior to his arrival on
the scene 1 had decided what course to
pursue. That was to write the commits
siOner and enter what might be construed
as protest against approval of the con-
tracts. But l felt 1 had no right to enter
a formal protest, in view OF the fact that
Mr.. Straughan had acted under the au-
thority given by the commissioner, not
withstandlng the latter was aware 1 had
been appointed to succeed Mr.. Straughan
and would take charge in a very short
time. l merely suggested that II appeared
the contracts had been let to the Oregon
parties with unseemly haste. The ap-
prevail of those contracts has so far been
withheld. Whether my communication
had anything to do with il. | know not.
Whatever Mr.. Mills may have written to
the department is of no concern TO me-
The fact that General Perrault had even
thus mildly protested against the man
ner of letting the contracts has not been
in an investigation it is possible that some
one may get hurt Mr.. Perrault said he
could not say anything more about the
contracts than that their execution had
been unnecessarily hasty. 1t is known.
however, that with the facts he has in
his possession, only the authorization of
the commissioner. which he has on file
in his office, restraints him from the use
of a great deal more vigorous language
in connection with the contract subject.
These contracts aggre gate $26,000 and
are ten in number, eight of them being
let to Oregon parties. Idaho surveyors
claim they were not given due notice.
Whatever there may be to that charge,
it is a fact that only two of them Sc
cured contracts, and those but small ones.
Another fact that will probably be in
vestgated is that the contracts were let
at the same figure, showing almost be-
You'd question the lack of competition
There are two classes of contracts. for
one of which the government maximum
price is $40 an acre. and for the other a
maximum of $25 an acre, the latter being
the highest price authorized for any class
of government surveys of the character
required, in Idaho at least The peculiar
feature of these contracts is that the
price barely comes under the maximum
in each instance. the one class being for
SIS. % per acre and the other for a sum
a few cents below $25 per acre.
1t is obvious that Commissioner Her
mann has a delicate job on hand, especial
w in view of the fact that the Oregon
parties are for the most part warm
friends of his. The bare fact that they
belong to the same state would of itself
doubtless embarraSs him.
POLITICAL SITUATION.
Indications are not wanting that the
Idaho political situation is going 10 clear
and that the internecine warfare that has
been going on in one branch of the silver
iorceS IN the state Is ABOUT TO give way
to harmony. The action of Congressman
Gum in bringing the chief silver back
slider, Senator Heitfeld. into the fold
lcain. has had a great deal to do with
The impending change that will doubtless
result in tranquility in the silver camp
and possibly bring about a union of all
me white metal forces. Congressman
Gum tells the story in a letter to the
HALEY News-Miner, mentioned in The
Herald last week.
In connection with this subject 1 learn
hat the strongest kind of an effort is be-
ng made to unite all the silver forces of
he state for the next campaign. 1 also
near that it is more than likely that
Frank Walton. the brainy young editor of
he Sentinel the leading POpulist paper in
he state. will be the candidate of the
Union Silver party for congress. / under
stand Congressman Gum is willing TO
axe all the chances involved in the nom
nation for congress for the purpose of
advancing the interests of the proposed
silver union though we'll knowing that
lie will owing to his various disputes with
prominent PoDulists. enter the race with
handicap But the congressman is max
nix a good record in congress. and his
Oyalty 10 silver in the recent somewhat
bitter controversy with the fatistS will
n nowise injure mis- cause.
REX OSBORNE.
T.,