The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1903-09-10
WASHINGTON LETTER
(FROM OUR REGULAR CORRESPONDENT
Washington, D. c., Sept. 7, 1908

Washington, D. c., Sept 7, 1908.
An epidemic of scandals seems to be
the leading feature of the present ad
ministration of the federal government.
The Postoffice scandal has dragged
along all summer, with every now and
then some surprising development. The
Interior Department scandal, involving
subordinates of that Department and
practically all the members of the Dawes
Commission, has only recently come to
light and is not yet under investigation
and now comes information to the effect
that because of reports involving many
of the subordinates of the Department
of Justice the Attorney General has or
dered q drastic inves igation of every
official connected with his department
located in the Indian Territory juris-
diction." 1t seems that charges against
United States attorneys and marshaiIs.
other than those in connection with the
allotment Of the Indian lands have
reached the Attorney General, charges
which allege the connection of these
officials with contracts for feeding pris-
oners, sharing profits accruing from IL
legimate liquor selling and similar prac-
tices and as result Attorney General
Knox ordered the current investigation
some weeks ago.
Secretary Hitchcock is still greatly
wrought up over the Indian lands scan
dal but he has not yet secured COM
petent man to undertake the investiga
tion ordered by the President He is
trying to secure man familiar with
Indian affairs and one who has no per-
sonal interests in the situation and finds
it difficult to obtain the services of such
an individual. In the meantime, the
facts in connection with the system of
graft" which has permeated the entire
allotment of the Indian lands and which
involves practically every member Of
the Dawes Commission become daily
more conspicuous.
Another feature e. the situation which
is making life for Secretary Hitchcock
anything but bed of roses is the claim
of officials of the Treasury Department
that the Secretary has ignored several
United States statutes and assumed
powers in no way delegated to him in
his administration of the funds accru
ing from the sale of lots in the towns of
Lawton, Hobart and Anadarko, Okla
homa. These funds were to be expend-
ed for public improvements under the
supervision of the Secretary of the In
terror" but there is no provision in the
law exempting the Secretary from the
necessity of rendering an account Of his
stewardship to the auditors Of the Treas.
ury. Notwithstanding this fact, the
Secretary has rendered no account of
the receipts or disbursements to the
Auditor for the Interior Department
and, aside from the fact that he has
some 800, 600 to his personal credit with
the Treasurer of the United States, the
Treasury Department has no official
knowledge that he has ever sold the lots
1t is further pointed out that during the
last two sessions of Congress the Secre
tary has sent in sections of appropria
tion bills exempting his actions from
the review Of the auditing officials of
the Treasury and in both instances the
provisions have been stricken from the
bills on point Of order.
Affairs in the postoffice Department
have taken another lively turn. Louis
Kempner, Superintendent of Registry,
has been discovered to have been con-
Quoting a system of smuggling Cuban
cigars and selling them to his friends in
Washington at prices in the neighbor-
hood of 81 per box. The last consign-
ment of these cigars was confiscated by
the inspectors and turned over to the
Treasury officials. Customs officials
said today that every registered pack
age coming from foreign country and
addressed to a private individual was
held up and the person addressed COM
PEELED to come before custom officer
and open the package in his presence.
From this it is algued that Kempner
must have had the cigars concealed in
registered package, of official mail.
Kempner has long been under investi
cation on other charges but ii is claimed
that this alone would be sufficient to in
sure his dismissal from the Postoffice
Department.
Another interesting feature OF the
past week hos been the summoning, be-
fore the District of Columbia grand
jury, Of State Senator George e. Green
Of New York, in connection with the
Bundy time o'clock contract. II was
this contract that got G. w. Beavers
into the clutches Of the law and it il
predicted that Senator Green, who lives
T..