Omaha daily bee., 1907-02-05

III Hepburn Fakss Bitter Speech in
ssnats Attacking It's Administration.
SAYS ITS OPERATION IS VICIOUS
nythins that Would Destroy it Would
Be Welcome.
EXTENSIVE FRAUDS ARE CHARGED
largest Land Grabber said to He Vice
President Of Forestry Association.
KEwLANDs Defends THE ADMINISTRATION
Nevada senator says Land Laws
shoula ne Amended to Meet All
Valid Objections and western
Mea shouId OrEapise.
EEwLAEDs DEfENDs THE ADMINISTRATOR


WASHINGTON. Feb. '4-The senate occu-
pied the first two hours OF its session to-
day IN perfeeting the house bill permitting
the govern to take an appeal on points
Of Law ir 4. criminal cases The bill
is intend 4 cases similar 10 thA'
against the Sez srs
The bin wa = TO permit further
discussion Of =. -ter's resolution
aimed at the recei. ~ the secretary
OF the interior prevt y =, Issuance Of
land patents TO entry - after an
examination on the groL special
agent Mr. Hepburn concluo e remarks
he began several DAYS ago md Senator
Sewlands followed in defense OF the secre-
tary
Mr.. Bacon made 9 brief statement in
tended to show that Senator Beveridge had
been in error in regard TO the operation
of the child labor law in Georgia. Mr..
BeveridEe had said that there had been
5000 applications for child labor permits in
Fulton county, Georgia. under the new
state law and that all Of them had been
granted. Mr.. Bacon said he had ascer-
tained that but ten applications had been
granted
Heyburn Continues speech.
Continuing his speech today in the SEN
ate I'm criticism OF the administration Of the
public land laws. Senator Hepburn said
= there was no necessity for and no hkeli-
hood that congress would loan the for
estry bureau sh0oo.OO0 asked by the
president He said the last report OF the
bureau showed s273.O00 TO the credit OF this
bureau "and yet the proposition Is to
pawn the forests Of the government to the
ez~ q N
seem 20 treat thess forests as their own
private enterprise"
Mr. Hepburn said the government had
gone into his home county in idaho and
taken SO per cent Of the county as a forest
RESERVE The county had previously made
public improvements. but these all had been
lost to the county and acquired by the
government.
Senator Depew asked II the senator's 9
contention would destroy the whole system
OF forest reserves.
a-s.The .ysfam slaf. forest RESERVES as now
operafsd.r responded MIR. Hepburn. is 80
vicious that anything that would destroy
1T would be welcome"
Mr.. Depew asked n 1t was not true that
combinations of eastern capital had gone
into the west and grabbed mp large timber
holdings.
Largest Land Grabber.
the largest land grabber is one OF the
vice presidents OF the National Forest Re
serve association of the United States, .
answered Mr.. Hepburn He owns more
land the title 10 which was Illegally OBJ
tained than any other man all other
men IN the United States and he Is one of
the vice presidents OF the forestry associa-
tion, the president of which is our worthy
secretary of agriculture. read in the
papers that this vice president is going to
build in the neighboring county TO which
live the largest mill in the world for the
purpose OF working up these vast areas OF
timber that have been wrongfuIly obtained
In the state OF Idaho"
Were not these lands acquired by the
vice president spoken of before the reserves
were created?" asked Mr.. Smoot.
mo. a number OF them were acquired
while we sat here In the vain suppositior
, that we were heading on these land grabs
while In another branch of the government
contracts were being rushed through with
all speed that the ink might be dried on
them before we passed the act which shut
out the exchange OF lands" answered Mr.
Hepburn.
zone OF the greatest points for criticism,
said Mr.. Hepburn. was that two acres OF
grazing land 10 one OF timber had beer
withdrawn a. forest reserves"
the remedy. Re said. was 10 take ths
administration cf the public land laws from
the Interior department and put IL In the
hands of special land court. provision fol
which he had made In a specia, bill nov
pending,
When Mr. Hepburn had concluded Mr.
Newiands secured the floor to address him.
selfi 70 the same subject.
Before he proceeded MIR. Hale remarked
that the secretary Of the interior had beer
very sharply oensured all through the dc
bate '.afy impression about that onicial
he continued, is that he Is a capable ant
honest public servant and that whateve'
mistakes he may have made do not in ans
way touch his integrity or his capacits
a. an administrator. But over and above
al. the jurisdiction which ne exercises a
the control OF these matters by the pres
dent. want 10 ask senators whether
these matters have been laid before TN
presidentg"
Mr.. Hepburn said at once. that he eit
not think either the secretary OF the IN
terror or the president was OF could D.
guilty OF doing a wrong act. hut they hAt
been misinformed or were uniformed a
20 the facts and had thus been led into
doing the things he had suggested wer,
harmful Answering a further suggestion
os Mr. Hale as 10 whether he had talket
these matters over with the president, Mr.
Hepburn said he had discussed the for
estry matters, but that he had no intima
s'fs that the president contemplated pre-
uting the issuance OF patents TO ssttleri
- the public lands untl the message Ia,
eorle TO congress that he had taken thi
action.
Newaandn Defends Hitchcock
NJ NeNlands dsfended the secretary O
IL interior. The sesretGry, he said. wa
pAfFioelc aHd a fsisnd OF the west
senator Esw1ands insisted that tn
proper remedy WAS Tor amendments to tn
public land laws and that western senator
should meet the situation by getting 20
gether on the terms OF q revision. Sen
At0r Carter remarked thai the Lumbe
trusf MAS the result OF the administrator
OF the lieu land laws b. the present secre
tary Of the interior He said that ran
roads were aliowed 70 exchange large hold
nGaallnusd On second PAseJ