The daily morning journal and courier., 1903-12-19
ARRESTED FOR LAND FRAUDS
NARS WEALTHY
 SAN FRANCISCO MAN.

John A. Benson Whose Dealings Arc
 Alleged to Cover a Dozen States and
 Territories Taken Into custody-sec.
 retary Hitchcock Incenaed at Bare.
 laced Effort In City of Washington,
 Washington, Dec. 1S.-John A. Ben- son, wealthy San Francisco real es- tate operator, charged by the interior department with being the head of the alleged land frauds extending over a dozen western states, and territories, to which Secretary Hitchcock referred vigorously and at length in his annual report, was arrested here to-day at the Willard hotel by Secret Service Officer John A. Burns, just as he was prepar- ing to leave the city for New York.
 The charge on which the arrest was made was bribery, it being alleged in the affidavit of MT. Burns and in the warrant that Benson had paid $500 to Woodford D, Harlan, formerly chief of the special service division of the gen. eral land office and now clerk in that office, on March 15 of this year, for the purpose of extracting from him infor- nation regarding the investigation of his operations at that time being made by the land office.
 The warrant was issued by United States Commissioner Anson s. Taylor and as soon as Benson had been ap- prehended by Officer Burns he was taken before Commissioner Taylor. He wished to have preliminary hearing of his case postponed and the date for hearing was fixed at Monday, Decen- Der 30. He gave ball for his appear ance on that date, when the government attorneys will ask to have him held for the grand jury. 4:n-..
 The statement was made by an officer of the government tonight that the in- formation obtained regarding the al- legged conspiracy duplicates number of persons at present employed in the interior department at Washington and elsewhere. Numerous arrests are eS- pected to follow that of Benson in short order and some employees who may not be arrested will be dismissed from the service. It is said that Secretary Hitchcock and the special attorneys in the case have considered it absolutely necessary to the successful working out Of the case, that no action be taken in reference to any of the other alleged of lenders until the principals in the case have been apprehended. The government attorneys, Arthur B. Pugh, who has been the special attor- ney for the interior department on the land frauds, and, Oliver E. Pagin, as- |sistant attorney of the department of justice, who has also been employed on
 the cases, stated in asking for a large bail bond for Benson that he had been guilty of bribery during his present visit to Washington, since last Monday and in the interior department itself, notwithstanding that he was fully aware that his connection with the al- legged frauds was fully known by the department. The statement was made later that Secretary Hitchcock was So incensed at the fiagrancy of this alleged offence that he told the officers to have Benson arrested at once although 1t i had not been planned to apprehend him at present. Another assertion of the government officers is that Benson came
 to Washington in answer to decoy let
 ters and with the intention of bribing people in the land office who were in
 reality acting for the secret service.