Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-12-15

ed as clerks in making up fictitious claims
in forging legal documents and in making
false affldavits In the way Of proof.
When tie patents to the lands claimed
within the forest reserves had been issued
they were used to locate large tracts OF
valuable lands In other parts of Oregon.
California. Arizona and New Mexico, and
new patents to forty thousand acres had
already been issued when the conspiracy
was discovered The discovery was due to
an accidental disclosure by one of the con-
spirators to a special agent OF the land
office.
Defendants Wealthy and Prominent.
The chief defendants In the California
cases are wealthy and prominent real es-
tate dealers and spectators in public lands
in San Francisco. Frederick A. Hyde, one
of them, has been conspicuous citizen for
thirty years and has welded great social
and political influence He is now presi-
dent of the board of education in San Fran
cisco. John A Benson, his partner, Is also
very wealthy, but some years ago was
caught in another lot of land frauds for
which he was indicted but escaped con-
viction. Henry p. Dimond, prominent at
torney, has been their lawyer and has man.
aged the legal part of the frauds for them,
while Joost II. Sch4eider of Tucson, Ariz,
has been the practical man in the field, Sc
lecting and locating lands. under large
salary, and 1t was through him that the
conspiracy was disclosed Schneider Is now
in Washington under $4,000 bail, awaiting
trial upon an indictment found in the Dis
trict court by the grand jury last Febru-
airy
Hyde and Benson.
Hyde and Benson, with the assistance OF
Dimond and Schneider. purchased nearly
100000 acres of school lands in Cali
fornia and Oregon for s1.2o per acre.
The laws of Oregon prohibit the sale of
more than 800 acres to any one person. In
California the limit is $40 acres, but the
conspirators evaded that law and secured
vast tracts of land by the use of fictitious
names and by securing the signatures Oh
bootblacks, labOrers and other unsuSpect-
ing persons to applications and afidavits.
Having obtained titles to these lands,
amounting to nearly 100000 acres in the
forest reserves, from the states of oregon
and California, they brought their deeds to
the United States land Office and exchanged
them for better lands outside of the forest
reserves which they were able to sell all
the way from s. to $40 per acre. IT Is as
serted that not one single acre of their
enormous holdings has been honestly OBJ
tanned, and that the desperate measures
which they have been using to avoid being
brought to Washington for trial indicates
that they realize how serious their preolca-
ment is.
The government has seldom been able, In
the western courts, to convict any one or
prominence or wealth of plunderng the
public lands Public sympathy Is always
with the defendants In such cases. Every
body is against the government Although
an army of special agents and lawyers are
constantly employed. they seldom succeed
In convictng persons who can appeal to
political commercial or social influences.
No rich man is ever sent to Jail. Poor men
are sometimes convicted. Last year $1O6,O71
was recovered in fines and judgments for
depredations upon the public domains, 324
criminal prosecutions are pending. and 125
civil suits are awaiting trial for the recov-
cry of s., OO9, S63-the value of the timber I'M
lawfully taken.