Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1906-11-20
Theft of Coal Lands Alleged to
Have Been With knowledge
of Land Office
MINE DEALER MAKES AFFIDAVIT
Filed in Washington and to Be Brought
to Attention of the President-Caim
is Made That Commerce Commission
Shielded the Department-Hish Of
fcers Accused.

on file with the government here and
have been called to the attention of
President Roosevelt, charging that the
gigantic land frauds whereby the Un-
ion Pacific Railroad Company and the
Union Pacific Coal Company secured
Illegally coal land in the state of wy
oming, valued at many millions of dol
lars, were perpetrated with the full
knowledge of the government land Of
flee, If not with its connivance. and
were known, if not tacitly assented to,
by the department of the interior.
The affidavits are made by Artemus
j. Smith, of Smith & Bradbury, dealers
in mines and mining at Denver
The charges he makes are sensation
al in the extreme, and call into ques-
tion the Integrity of William A. Rich
ards, government land commissioner,
and others high in the employment OF
the government,
1t was the knowledge of the earlier
charges made by Mr.. Smith which led
to the Investigation made by the in
terstate commerce commission recently
at Omaha, Salt Lake City and Denver,
and by hich fraudulent land deals Of
great magnitude We're uncovered
In pursuing the investigation the in
terstate commerce commission was ex-
ceedingly careful not to uncover the
fact that these steals and all the de-
tails connected with them, together
with the names and dates and amounts
paid for perjury, held in the possession
of the department of the interior for
more than three years. Acting under
the commission of government officials,
the commission carefully avoided ex-
posing or making an attack upon CO.
ordinate branch of the government.
Emboldened by the disclosures Of the
commission, Mr.. Smith has again ap-
pealed to the department of the interior
for justice. declaring that he has a
prospective interest in the lands in
question, and that he desires to Assert
and protect this interest.
Mr.. Smiths charges may be summar-
lied as follows:
That on Nov. 81, 1908, he placed be-
fore the department Of the interior
facts and data and offered to prove, il
given the opportunity, that vastiacre-
age of land had been and still was be-
ing stolen from the government. and
that little or no attention was paid to
his petition.
That after insistent demands and re-
peated charges, M. e. Myendorff, spe-
cial agent OF the land department,
made an investigation in the Evanston
district Of Wyoming, which substan-
tiated the charges made by Mr.. Smith.
That, Immediately thereafter. Mr..
Myendorff was transformed perman-
emily to Los Angeles.
That Mr.. Smith again protested and
furnished additional facts, making his
interior, and that the latter official Of
f1cer ordered Commissioner Richards to
make an investigation.
That, altho Mr.. Smith repeatedly Of
fered to prove his charges, he was no.
titled that a hearing and an investiga-
ton by the land commissioner had
been made.
That on Dec. 26, 1905, a star cham
Der investigation was made at Evans
ton, Wyo., during which only Witness
.es in the employ of the Union Pacific
Coal Company were called and were
secretly heard,
That, almost Immediately after this
hearing, and on the very day the de-
partment received determined protest
from Smith, together with substanti-
ating facts, patents We're issued to
stolen lands valued at more than ST.
100000.
Regarding his attempts to arouse the
government to secure it's aid in pre-
venting these frauds, Mr.. Smith says:
Il reluctantly charge the general
land office, with all it's helps, and the
government with failing to keep faith
with me- and by a system of procrasti-
nation and Indifference compelling me
to resort to such indirect methods as
the records of these proceedings dis
close.
ct make the bold assertion that
there is now in the records of this case
in the general land office, an affidavit
that carries the aspersion that this
arm of the government is controlled
by the corporations known as the I'm
ion Pacific Railroad Company. the I'm
ion Pacific Goal Company and the Su-
perior Coal Company I do not give
much credence to this sworn statement,
and only refer to it so that I may be
justified in my belief that am the
victim Of misplaced confidence when I
appear before the department as an
American citizen and ask recognition"