The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1905-03-17
DOWLING'S STYLE
IS RESENTED
COMMITTEE CLASHES OVER Elk
ANIMATION OF s. T. JOHNSON.
Chairman of the Investigation Goes
After Former Public Examiner
Rough Shod, Is Called Down by Other
Members Wanting ''Square Deal"
johnson Vindicates His Report.

ana sponsor IOf lue IepoIIS oH Ilc GA
animation of the state auditor office,
was examined as a witness before the
house committee on public accounts yes
terday afternoon.
P. E. Bowling of Eveleth, chairman of
the committee, conducted the examlna-
ton, and his manner bore out the claim
that the investigation of the committee
is being conducted for the purpose OF
withdrawing the auditors depart
man was so plain that it was openly re-
sented by several other members of the
committee, and it is evident that BOWL
ing will not have plain sailing in Sc
curing the adoption of report such
as R. G. Dunn and S. G. Iverson want.
NJ. S. Carl and r. H. Jefferson. were
the most outspoken IN their CRITICISMS
sometimes angered because the COM
mittee did not give him full swing. He
called Mr.. Jefferson, one of the older
members Of the house, obstreperous,
and he called Carl down hard, The
member from Chippewa came right up
smiling, and finally forced the chairman
to admit that certain comment at
tached to the cases during the confer
enees with Messrs. Dunn and lverson
we're not conclusions but only tenn
porary findings. =,
S. T. Johnson, the witness of the
afternoon, was evidently marked Tor q
victim by the chairman, who proceeded
to put him on the grill. He soon DIS
covered that he had caught a. Tartar,
who was quite capable Of taking care
of himself. The sharp passages be-
tween the two were highly divertlng to
the spectators. State Auditor lverson
and Swan B. Molander were at bowl
ing's elbow to help him, but they were
not able to shake the former examiner:
who stuck to his text, and IN the halt
dozen unimportant cases taken up our
ing the afternoon, made his point every
time, that the records proved the .abso-
lutte truth of the statements In his re-
mort. The efforts of the others went to
show that there were excuslng clrcum-
stances, and that johnson should nave
asked for explanations from the audltor
and included them in his report. John
son and his successor, Z. M. herst, VINO
never the practice in making examlna,
tions to ask for verbal explanations OF
DISCREPANCIES. The records were TAX
en- as final.
johnson Wants to Cover Ground.
Mr.. Johnson insisted that the commit
tee must not stop with few cases, but
90 thru the 600 or more in his report.
The members said this was impossible,
and finally compromise was agreed
on. The committee is to- select
twenty-five cases and johnson twenty
five. which are to be gone over TO,
gether. The investigation was resumed
this afternoon.
but they lost interest in the proceed
inps when they heard about the econ,
clusions'' of the house committee, and
began to ask each other what they were
there for, However, most of them
STAYED to see the show. Speaker
Clague was an interested listener most
of the afternoon.
Johnson Summons Explained.
Mr., Bowling opened the session by
a statement to the witness. He said
the committee had gone over almost
a hundred of the cases. and found that
the records as they found them did
not quite harmonic with the report
of the public examiner. "In justice to
vou,D he said, "you have been sum-
moned to show wherein you were justi.
fed in making this report. AS in all
our Investigations, we have called both
sides of the controversy
Mr.. Johnson replied: "Did it ever
occur to you and to your committee
that while you were going over these
cases you might have saved some time
by calling on us to explain the records
wherever you failed to understand
them9'
In reply, Chairman Bowling said the
committee had employed expert &C
countants, and they had the same rec
ords to work on as the public exam
liner.
Bowling Rebukes Jefferson.
Mr.. johnson then suggested that the
books be produced. Chairman Bowling
replied sharply that the committee wa:
conducting the investigation and would
! use it's own methods. This produced thu
first sign of revolt. R. II. Jefferson an
nounced that he protested against thu
chair assuming to be the whole commit
tee The other members had the sam'
rights Mr.. Bowling replied that thu
committee had instructed him to con
duct the examination, and he intimatet
that the gentleman from Cottonwood
was obstreperous: He then callet
up the first case, No. 50 in the exam
iner's report on timber permits, which
proved a poor case for the Dunn-Iver
son side of the controversy. There wa
q sharp tilt over the facts, in whic]
Auditor Iverson and Chairman Dowlin!
both took hand against the witness
but they did not controvert the fact
on an estimate of 100000 feet, an
nothing ever collected. In 1898 tn
cruisers reported it partly cut, and es
timated the standing timber at $500
feet, 1t was sold for $75. Mr.. Ivel
son claimed that under the old lay
before 1895 the permit holder was no
responsible unless he cut the. timber
Mr.. Johnson replied that the attorne
general had given him to understan
that the permit holder was responsible
under the law of 1894. At any rate
? the timber was cut, and the record
show no attempt to collect for i
George H. Wyman asked some question
to straighten out these facts, and Swa
B. Molander, the former stumpag
clerk, came to the front with some e,
plantations about the cruisers report
Mr.. johnson went on to say that til
cruisers reports were not entered i
the record, as the law required, whe
Chairman Bowling announced that the
would pass on to the next case.
y Johnson Their "servant.''
tI'm not thru yet" interrupted tt
former public examiner. "You Gale
this case up, and your oblige me b
letting me finish it..
"You re not running this,' retorte
Bowling, holly. "You re our serva,
in this, and you are in our hands,
However, johnson said the rest
his say before the next case was take
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