Ladysmith news-budget. [volume] (Ladysmith, Rusk County, Wis.) 1907-1927, 1907-09-12
REPLIES TO COMPTROLLER
Continued from page !.

If | must also look after your Of
ficers and expose their wrong doings
how then can you earn your salary:
III you did, as you say you did, re-
port to the United States District
Attorney the criminal violations OF
law, then it is certainly your duty
to see that he discharges his duty In
less than three years, after which
the statute of limitations comes In
to effect, and ii he does not discharge
his duty within that time then 1t is
your duty more than that OF any
one else to report his dereliction to
the Attorney General or to the Presi-
dent.
You have my consent to refer ali
my letters to the Department. of JUS
tice. and this, as you say, is the
proper course. | have already re-
ferred yours to the local press, i'll
order that the depositors may see
how the matter stands.
ii at this time the Department OF
Justice is not aware of Mr.. Wheeler
grave dereliction OF duty then there
is omething wrong with the receiy-
err, with our Office and with the De-
partment OF Justice. The head OF IL
Department ought to know what
it's members are doing and W hat they
should do. The evidence is all in
your hands showing that there are
bank defaulters in I4adysmith, Wis.
What more doyOu want? 1t the De-
partment of Justice will not heed
your recommendations how can you
expect that it will heed mine?
You are mistaken ii you interpret
my letters us threats. | tell you the
truth. 1t seems, in these days that
the best way to deceive a man Is to
tell him the naked truth TO his face,
because he will not believe 1t. Had
Binger Herman, Senator Mitchell, j
II. Hall and dozens of Others believed
what told them in the year 1900 and
before they would have Jared better.
| repeat again that the Ladysmith
bank defaulters cannot go free with
out disgrace to your office and to the
Department of Justice.
During two and one-half years not
one move has been made to appre
-h.,H l. Id. f.AP IN IN
to furnish the eyeopener in case you
do not or will nOtsee nor understand
then | can only say that it will not
fail to open eyes. 1t is folly to be-
lieve that the bank defaulters could
silence the federal officers and put
them to sleep without a costly muz-
zIe. Corruption takes place under
cover, and while it cannot always
be discovered it is there just the
same. The fruit reveals the nature
of the tree as we'll as any disease OF
the roots under the soil.
You ask for evidence Of any wrong
doings in your Office. Ii you asked
for evidence of nothing doing" |
could give you any amount OF 1t.
The sum OF $4,000, 600 stolen by bank
defaulters in the year 1906 is also
good proof.
You say you will gladly cooperate
with me If | desire to correct any
abuses in your office, adding, but 1t
will be necessary for you to work in
IL practical way. You mean q
pleasant way. This | do not intend
to do. | enclose some newspaper
clippings that will show to you be-
yOnd doubt that my method OF cor
pleasant. give you these clippings
as Il present which Will prove to you
that the right medicine, which is
stronger than the disease, is always
practical. My methods, which were
successful in exposing gigantic tim
Der frauds and land swindles, ought
TO be successful in exposing corrup-
ton in Il small bank.
| am convinced that the United
States District Attorney, William
Wheeler will not prosecute these
bank cases, and SO is nearly every
man in this community, outside OF
the bank defaulters. Your office and
the Department of Justice, after a
two years farce performed before
your very eyes, ought to be convinced
of it as well. The depositors' money
was stolen, and the defaulters are
enjoying the fresh air of liberty with
out danger of apprehension, and
without any effort to apprehend
them being made during the last two
and one-half years. This is a fact
that officialdOm cannot deny.
Respectfully yours,