The Brandon news. (Brandon, Miss.) 1892-1961, 1903-12-31
LAND FRAUDS
WAKING WARY
Arrest of Benson Develops Sensa-
tional Features.
CASES WILL BE PUSHED
The West and South Said to Be In
volved to an Extent That Will
Make Life Burden to Interested
Parties.

Washington, d. C.-The arrest of
John A. Benson, a wealthy real es-
tate operator, of San Francisco, in
this city few days ago, by order of
Secretary Hitchcock, is the first move
on the part of the Interior Depart
ment to bring to justice persons who
have been violating the public land
laws of the United States on grand
scale. In recent years numerous ar
rests have been made by the depart
ment, but for some reason or other
the chief conspirators, men who not
only practiced fraud themselves, but
engaged with others to violate the
law by committing forgery, perjury
and bribery, escaped.
Secretary Hitchcock, on hearing
reports from he West and South of
scandalous operations under the sec
tions providing for stone and timber
entries, ordered his agents to con-
duct rigid examinations. Their re-
ports show that amazing frauds have
been committed in the Western and
Northwestern States, as we'll as in
Louisiana and Mississippi, where
bribery has been attempted or &C
compEshed. It was not the intention
Of the Interior Department to act
quickly Ill ordering the arrest Of Ben
son, for his case is an old and noto-
rious one, involving many counts, but
when he came to Washington, and, it
is alleged, bribed former. Chief of
Division of the Land Office, and at
tempted to bride others, Secretary
Hitchcock decided to take him while
he could get him, remembering that
on previous occasion Benson fed to
Europe when he was wanted. At the
Department it was stated yesterday
that the other cases are not yet ready
for prosecution, but within a few
weeks important developments, coup
led with the arrest of persons who
would leave the United States were
their names to be published at this
time, may be expected, some of them
being in the South.
The career of John A. Benson has
been an interesting one. According
to the official reports in the General
Land Office, he and several associates
stand charged with fraud, perjury
and public robbery of gigantic pro-
portions in the State of California,
covering a period from 1878 to 1885.
But as public officials either were in
collision with the conspirators or
winked at the facts presented by spe-
cial agents sent to California to con-
duct Investigations, punishment was
not melted out to the accused.
John A. Benson was first a school
teacher after his arrival in Califor-
MIA. He soon gave this pursuit up to
enter the service of the government
as deputy surveyor. This Office he
held until May %, 1879, when he
rendered his resignation to Surveyor
General Wagner, as he stated, on &C
count of "wish to engage in bust
ness, which in some respects might
uty surveyor" The character of his
business is best illustrated by the re-
ports Of three United States grand
juries, which investigated his opera
tions in the six years following his
resignation, and returned seventy-six
indictments against him, his associ-
ates and employees, for violations Of
the Federal law Benson himself
was indicted no less than twenty-four
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