Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1906-12-01
COMMERCE COMMISSION ON WAY
TO DENVER FOR LAND IN
vEsTlGATloN
COAL MINES INVOLVED
Charge That Union Pacific Has Stolen
Thousands Of Acres-lntimation
That Attempt Was Made to Remove
Land Office Detective.


Denver. Nov. 30.-The News today
says Edgar e. Clark, Interstate Com
merce Commissioner, is on his way to
Denver, where next Monday he will
begin an investigation into the
charges made against the Union Pa
cific Coal company that the corpora
ton has stolen thousands of acres Of
coal lands to which 1t holds no right
full title. A. ]. Smith, of the Smith
Bradbury Mining company, who stands
sponsor for some of the charges
against the corporation, initimates
that an attempt was made to remove
Michael A. Myendorff, land officer de-
tective, who testified in Salt Lake City
Wednesday and who mentioned two
Wyoming senators unfavorably during
his testimony. 1t is also alleged that
two attempts were made to poison A.
F. Abbott, General Manager of the
Peerless Copper Extracting company.
who, with Smith, had been largely in
In bringing about the in
vestigation.
Pollock Makes Denial.
Washington, D. G. Nov. 30-George
F. Pollock, chief of department B, In
terror department, has emphatically
contradicted the allegations in the affi-
davit made at Salt Lake City by Mich
ael A. Meyendorff, a special agent of
the government, that Pollock had In
structed Meyendorff to destroy four
affidayits he had procured against the
Union P,cafic Coal company in the
coal land fraud investigation in Utah.
Mr.. Pollock issued a statement In
which he said:
"Mr. Pollock says that the state
ments contained in the morning pa
pcrs, rejecting on his conduct and mo-
tives In connection with the above
stated matter, are absolutely untrue.
He states most emphatically that he
has never personally nor officially, by
direction or suggestion, expressed or
implied, nor by an act of commission
or intended omission, aided or coun-
tenanced failure to prosecute or the
suppression of any prosecution of the
investigation referred to.
Says Statements are False
"Mr Pollock characterizes the
statement that he advised Mr.. Meyen-
dorff to destroy the affidavits alluded
to as willfully false. He afflrms that
he never saw and was never informed
Of any affidavits which did not In due
and regular course become and re-
main part Of the records of the office;
that he gave Meyendorff no instruc.
tions whatever in regard to the in.
vestigation except as expressed in OFF,
cial letters, which are on file and rec
ord in the land office. No other ad.
vice to him was necessary, as the we'll
established rules of the Office instruc-
ted him fully as to his duty"
Investigation of the coal land scan
dals in Wyoming and Utah will be
pressed by Secretary Hitchcock in or
der that definite conclusion may be
reached before the expiration Of his
service on March next He hopes
to have prosecutions under way by
the time of his retirement.
Mass of Evidence In Hand.
An enormous mass of evidence is al
ready in the hands Of Secretary Hitch
cock and before the Department Of
Justice. Additions are being made
daily. The testimony being taken by
Iuc
will greatly aid in preparation for
prosecutions.
Special Agent Rhodestrom of the
Department of Justice last spring
completed an examination Of the land
frauds in Utah. He submitted full
report covering the methods mployed
to give valuable coal lands to interest
ed railroad companies owned by the
roads. The report involved many
prominent men,
No action was taken on the evidence
filed, the matter being deferred until
the Secretary of the Interior and In
terstate commerce commission could
conclude Investigations which were in
progress.
Hitchcock Starts Investigation.
In the meantime a report made by
Special Agent Myrendorff Of the gem
eral land office, which had been side.
tracked and never reached the hands
of Secretary Hitchcock, was discover
ed and came into possession of the
secretary. This covered the acuui-
sition Of coal lands in Wyoming by
the Union Pacific railroad and the
Union Pacific Coal company. Dunn
mics were utilized to file claims
which we're subsequently transferred
to one of the companies.
Mr. Hitchcock at once ordered a
further investigation based on the dis
coveries made by Mr.. Meyendorff. He
also demanded an explanation from
Commissioner Richards of the gener-
al land office, as to why the report
filed by the special agent had been