The Evening statesman. [volume] (Walla Walla, Wash.) 1903-1910, 1905-03-27
UTAH COAL LAND FRAUDS.
Names of Noted Americans Figure In
Stories of Millions Lost.

| sought by devious means to gain con-
troll of valuable mineral lands in Utah.
Powerful influences are known to be at
work in Washington to head off an
investigation which may result in the
recovery by the government of rich
properties ana in the Indictment of
men Of prominence.
Among the men whose interests are
at stake are: John D. Rockefeller and
George J. Gould of New York, who are
seeking to gain control of the gold sup
ply of the states of Colorado, Utah,
| Nevada, Montana, Idaho, Oregon,
Washington and California, with the
territory of New Mexico; Adolphus
Busch brewer and politician of ST.
Louis, who is striving to control the
production and sale of gilsonite, a min
eral found only in Utah ana used in
the manufacture of varnish, insulating
material and other things.
Public Men Involved.
Among the public men whose names
figure in this connection are: Senator
Reed Smoot a partner in the owner
ship of gilsonite land, the title of which
was in controversy before the land Of
fee and which was sold to the corpor
alton backed by Busch; George Suther-
| land of Salt Lake, senator from Utah,
| of
firm has for some time been attor-
neys for the principal Rockefeller
Gould corporation in Utah; the Rio
| Grande- Western Railroad company,
which through a subsidiary corpora
ton, the Utah Fuel company, has been
working to secure a monopoly of coal
deposits of the west; Ethan Allen
Hitchcock of st. Louis, secretary of
the interior, political associate of
Busch, in whose department the trans
actions have been going on for years.
apparently with the knowledge of de-
partment officials, who have failed to
show any activity looking toward the
protection of the government; Con-
gresham Binger Herman of Oregon,
now under indictment in connection
with land frauds in that state, to
whom frauds were reported while he
was commissioner of the land office,
and who failed to take any action, at
the same time affording unusual facili-
ties to the Rockefeller-Go agents
to secure patents On the coal lands de-
sired; B. B. Odell, former governor of
New York, one of the organizers Of the
Florence Mining company, which has
valuable mineral lands in Uintah In
James C. Sherman of Utica, N. Y, for
| merly congressman and chairman of
the Indian appropriations committee.
interested as is former Governor Odell.
| Joseph Letter of Chicago, hacker of
the Haven mining company, is also
possessed of valuable mineral rights on
| the reservation.
Other Men in the Deals.
This is only partial list. The ram
| ifications reach other men high in
public life. Nobody at present knows
how many may be involved if tho
rough investigation is made.
Strenuous efforts are being made to
secure the removal of United States
District Attorney Joseph Lippman
who was so "officious" as to seek evil
dence as to whether Smoot secured his
gilsonite interests after his election as
senator.
Investigation made by persons not
connected with the government service
| discloses that not less than 5000
acres of coal lands are involved If
the government had received pay for
| this at the legal price of $40 an acre,
it would have been the richer by So
100000. The property is worth many
times that amount.
Numerous and fragrant cases are
known where coal lands have been
taken as agricultural land. Rockefel-
Ter and Gould's Utah Fuel company
has assumed to itself entire control of
the Utah coal deposits, fighting off
through Standard Oil methods all per-
sons seeking to get a foothold. Although
others have secured coal claims, the
Standard Oil still controls the railroad
and has kept others from producing.
The same interests control the Colo
RADIO Fuel & Iron company and the cor
porations command the coal situation
in the mountain and coast states ex-
cept Wyoming, where the Union Pa
cific mines have all they can do to
handle local business.
Harriman's Union Pacific sought to
operate in Utah coal fields and was
driven off. Senator w. A. Clark mas
been seeking to secure coal in these
fields for his new San Pedro, Lon An
geles & Salt Lake road, but the Rookie
feller- Gould interests have fought him