The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1904-09-19
Those Mineral Leases.

the Commercial club.
Those Mineral Leases.
Has Mr.. Damn read section 6,666 OF
the general statutes of lS943
Apparently not, for in his reply to the
reports Of Public Examiner johnson,
published today, he still maintains that
he had perfect right to lease state
land to his own land clerk, or any one
else This section of the law was quoted
in Mr.. Johnson IS report, and Mr.. Dunn
has no excuse for passing it by. He
should have been familiar with it when
in office, but having disregarded it then,
he has no excuse for failing to read it
in the published report of the public
examiner, Of which he has copy.
| The section Of the law says:
A public officer who is authorized to
sell or lease any property or to make any
contract, in his official capacity, or to
| take any part in such sale or lease, or
| contract, and voluntarily becomes inter-
ested individually, In such sale, lease or
! contract, directly or Indirectly, is guilty
| of misdemeanor.
George A. Finn and I. @. Patterson
were respectively land clerk and assist
ant land clerk in Mr.. Dunn g office. AS
such they had direct charge Of mineral
leases. Doubtless they had read this
section of the law, for in the cases cited
they were usually careful not to put
their own names on the record. Two
other names were substituted, and after
the clerks had left the state employ, the
transfer was made to Finn and Patter-
son.
Mr.. Dunn maintains that it makes no
difference who applies for lease. "The
governor, the ianitor or messenger boy
has just as good right to take out
lease as any one else.' Certainly, for
neither the governor, the ianitor or the
messenger boy has anything to do with
the giving out Of leases. Neither is it
charged that the state was defrauded.
The point is that the officials Of the
land department had neither moral nor
legal right to use their special knowl'
J edge for private gain. The fraud was
upon the public, which is entitled to- an
even chance at all the "good things.'
The history Of the famous "Slive,
lease,' held in the name Of Mabe
. Evans, is told by Mr.. Dunn, and his owl
telling is enough to prove the charges
The land in question was shown to be
swamp by the surveyor s notes, and, as
in duty bound, Mr.. Dunn claimed it fo1
the state. Contest was instituted, anC
! the state was in the midst of a hare
/ Illegal battle when the application fo1
lease was made.
Io,, +ho RI oo ~ \.
tract, what must we conclude as to Mr.
1 Dunn's attention to duty when. he says
When the lease was brought to me t
Z sign during the last days Of my admins
tration I did not even glance at the name
and even If I had itfWould not have mad
the slightest difference, for i would hay
I issued the lease just the same. The at
: torney for the lessee, G. s. Wilson Of Du
luth, gave the state the benefit Of his val
liable assistance.
It made no difference to Mr.. Dun?
that the lessee was the sister of his as
q sistant land clerk, resident Of his ow
town, and already appearing in a doze
20 leases to which Finn and patterson
L. have since succeeded. He did not loo
~ to see who was getting the lease, for
Il made no difference to him. IF he ha
III looked, he could have seen the "woo6
chuck' and the plain disregard Of LAY
IN with half an eye. Fortunate blindnes
for Finn and Patterson.
~ The ffty-year contract for this trac
e. which is worth millions of dollars.
e. still in the name of, Miss Evans, but a,
as cording to ttformer state official
no speaking in defense Of Mr.. Dunn in th
IS C+ pa,r1 Nar1rs. of CAN'T La E%L.. oo,,+ro<
OF is really owned by Finn and Patterson
IT. The interview says:
Since Dunn has been out of offit
,e- Archie Chisholm Of Duluth was sent
VT him with the message that If his friend
l. Finn and Patterson, who had meantirr
Ao come into the Silver by contract, did NJ
ne drop the legal fight oyer the case, the PEE
le- pie interested in filing on the proper,
TO would beat Dunn out Of the nominate
~ for governor.
W The suit filed was decided In favor
Finn and Patterson, the lessees, und
lp- the states claim to the land, and at tt
in lowest estimate the Silver contain
in 2, 100000 tons Of ore, from which the sta
- will get royalty Of $500, O00 But for tt
no lease being issued to parties who won
mt have assisted In fighting the claim, Il
in would-be squatters, the state would ha;
re- lost this 25-cents-a-ton royalty abs
,os lutely.
In this statement, which is echoed
in Mr.. Dunn 8 reply, no credit is given
re- W. B. Douglas, former attorney gener;
ed G. W. Somerby, his assistant, State A
lat ditor Iverson, or Wayne McVeagh, tt
led distinguished Washington counsel wi
he handled the case for the state. Accor
,od ing to this showing the state wou
DIV never have won the case but for t.
it help Of the attorney employed by Fiji
ate and Patterson.
zen Mr.. Dunn charges the public examin
red with being in collusion with the clai
the ants in an effort to destroy the state
title. That is too foolish an argume
YER to consider. The states title is abr
me lutte, and the facts shown by the repc
1ch would not tend to harm it in the lea
for They have no bearing on the states
the tie, but on the way the state lease "
1dy kept in the hands Of state employees, ]
md the making Of their fortunes.
ave The facts in the public examiner IS
port are admitted. Mr.. Dunn g offic
family is clearly shown to have obtain
his vol, h1a CT OTTO 1aaaac al ,.,oo&iaolI,r