The Athena press. [volume] (Athena, Umatilla County, Or.) 18??-1942, 1906-05-08
MORE LAND FRAUDS
NJ ILLI0NAIRE TIMBER KINs
INDICTED BY FEEDER
Letters From Fulton and Williamson
Urging Patents to Land Are
Sensational Features.

Millionaire bankers and timber
kings of Michigan and Minnesota,
prominent business men and lawyers
of Crook and Linn counties, Oregon,
several we'll known residents of Port
land a former special agent of the
interior department, former United
States commissioner, an ex-county
judge of Crook county and a number
of timber locatoIs are defendants in
an indictment returned Saturday after
noon by the federal grand jury at
Portland charging huge fraud in the
acquisition of valuable land in this
state.
Nine hundred square miles of tim
Der land in Crook, klamath and Lake
counties. roughly estimated to be
worth $8,0OO,000 are alleged to have
been secured by the principal defen-
dants, in direct violation of law.
Hundreds of persons were procured by
heir agents to take up claims which
were subsequently conveyed to the east
ern bankers, and it is charged that
the proceedings were tainted with
perjury and fraud. The crime charged
against all the defendants is conspir-
acy to defraud the government of its
public lands.
Letters from United States Senator
Fulton and Congressman Williamson
to the commissioner of th 9 general
land Office, urging that patents be
issued on the fraudulent claims, form
sensational feature of the indictment.
F. w. Gilchrist,a millionaire banker
of Michigan, Ralph E. Gilchrist, bis
son, a Yale graduate, who won distinc-
tion in college athletics, Patrick Culli-
gan and James G. Macpherson,
wealthy citizens of Alpena and large
owners of western timber lands, and
Herman W. Stone, cashier of the
Swift county bank at Benson, Mime
sofa, appear in the Indictment as the
chief beneficiaries of the frauds aud
it was in their interests that other de.
fendants in the case procured the
fraudulent entries on over 5000
acres of some of the most valuable
yellow pine tim Der land in Oregon.
Almond G. Palmer and FL. Judd
Palmer, attorneys of Portland, Benja-
min +. Allen, retired capitalist, at
present residing at 236 Thirteenth
street, but formerly resident of Prime
vile, and E. N. White, saloonkeep-
er at Eleventh aud Morrison streets,
are Portland's contribution to the list
of defendants. The Palmer brothers
were formerly in partnership in Prime
vile, where A. G. Palmer was United
States commissioner. Many of the
fraudulent proofs of entry were taken
before him.
Edmund, Dorgan, Francis J. De-
vine and John Joseph Collins, in the
timber locating business at Albany,
under the firm name of E. Dorgan &
Go. were the active instruments of the
eastern capitalists in gathering in the
great block of timber, 30 miles square
at the headquarters of the DesChutes
river. Collins is now langushing be-
hind the bars of the Multncmah coun-
ty jail, because of his refusal to pro-
duce before the grand jury the books
of E. Dorgan 6 Co. showing the firms
operations. His refusal was on the
ground that the production of the
books would incriminate himself.
Among the Prineville men who are
included in the list of defendants are
Charles M. Elkins, merchant; John
Combs, who has played prominent
part in Republican politics; Donald F.
Steffa, editor of the Crook county
Journal, and M. E. Brink, formerly
county judge Of Crook county.
Malcolm McAlpin, merchant, and