Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-10-19
MR.. B|XBY IN TOWN
He Calls on the Secretary of
the Interior.
THEN ON JUDGE RYAN
TALKS OF THE DAWES COMMIS-
SONS WORK.
Wants 100000 More for Next Year
Than Last--WiIl Finish
December 81, 1904.
THEN ON JUDGE RYAN

IT will not tell you what Mr. Bixby and
discussed" said Mr.. Ethan Allen Hitch
cock. Secretary of the Interior. this morn
ing, when asked by a reporter to give the
result of u conference he had with MI
Tams Bixby. chairman of the Dawes COM
mission in his office today.
Mr. Hitchcock's answer was very short
and sharp and contained the sum total of
the information to be CLEANED at the de-
partment regarding charges that have been
brought against the Dawes commission.
MIR. Bixby arrived Saturday evening and
called at tie department the first thing this
morning. He was Closeted with the Secre-
tary for about half an hour and then went
to the Office of the first assistant secretary
of the interior Judge Ryan where he had
u long conference in relation to the Della
ware Indian matters and the estimates or
the Dawes commission of the cost of its
work for the next year. Mr.. BiXby was
quite as reticent as the Secretary.
A Significant Visit.
The visit of the chairman of the Dawes
commission is regarded as very significant
by those who have followed the fortunes
of the commission during the past two or
three months. As is known throughout the
country, charges of severe nature were
brought to public attention through a re-
port Dy Agent BTGSluS Oh lneis lnulal ftlSiltS
Association. These charges involved ac-
CuSationS against the. members of the
Dawes commission individually and col
lectively. in which they We're virtually al
legged to be in league with the gang Of
swindlers grafters for the purpose Of
robbing the Indians Secretary Hitchcock
declared. the time the charges were pub
lished that he was fully aware of the
wrong doing in Indian territory and that
he had the matter under investigation.
From time to time statements were made
to the progress of the investigation and
then the announcement was made that a
special investigator would be appointed to
make thorough inquiry into all the allie
cations and make report. In order to
make the inquiry of impartial nature,
Mr.. Hitchcock went outside the government
service to find an investigator and selected
Mr.. Charles Joseph Bonaparte as the rep
resentative of the department and turned
the matter over to him entirely. Every
paper in the cases and every letter that
had been received were sent to Mr.. Bona
parte.
the post office investigation and was work
Ing overtime to complete his work there.
He has not completed it yet, and will not
do so until the trials of the persons in
dicted are finished. 1t is said. In the
meantime, however, he has devoted a little
time to a study of the conditions In Indian
territory at long range. He has not gone
to the territory and up to a very few days
ago had seen no one from there. He was
combining his attention to a study of the
legal aspect of the case, he told a Star
reporter. and when he gets that finished he
investigation further, and then again he
might not. 1t all depends what he finds
in the papers the department has sent
him.