The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1907-01-08
COL. MOsBY HITS
BACK AT DIETRICH.
Says His Opinion Of Ex-
Senator Long Been In
Land Office.
DECLINED TO MEET
HIM INCONVENIENCE
Refused Invitation of Dietrich to
Visit Him and Discuss Mat
tiers "He Did Not Wish
to Commit to Writ
ing"-Further
Exposures.
fFrom our Resular Correspenden;.

From Our Regular Corresponoeh;.I
WASHINGTON, d. c., January i.-Col-
oncI John s. Mosby, who has been con-
fined to his room for several days with a
severe cold, was we'll enough to-day to
sit up, and even went to his Office in the
Department OF Justice for a short time
He sxas also we'll enough to take very
sharp notice of the statement attributed
to ex-senator Dietrich, of Nebraska, in
to-day's Tlmes-Dispatch, in which the
ex-senator denounces as false the state
ment alleged to have been made bs the
colonel that the ex-senator had endeav-
ored to have any firm or corporation
fraudu,ently acquire the title to or inclose
any part of the public domain.
Regarding the alleged interview with
him as printed in the Lincoln tGeb)
Journal. Colonel Mosby says such inter-
view never took place. The Washington
bureau of the Journal. whence the inter
view purported to have ernanated. dis
avows all knowledge OF the alleged in
terview. Colonel Mosby said he had not
used the name OF Mr.. Dietrich in year
The brash language imputed to me"
said Colonel Mosby. Stamps the whole
thing as spurious. l have never felt
IL necessary to say ! was not afraid Of
anybody
His Opinion on Record.
"As for my opinion OF Dietrich and his
efforts to prevent the removal of illegal
fences on the public domain, all these
are matters of public record in the Cen
eral Land Office" and the colonel smiled
sardonically.
Enough to say he continued. that
Dietrich's statement that he was actu-
atcd by the humane motive OF protecting
poor cattle from starvation is of n piece
with his conduct throughout the matter.
How pulling down fences and thus tenn
paTaeiiy giving cattle more range would
result in starvation is beyond the ken
of n1ortals and the General Land Office,
as the result shows. About all the fences
came down. and those that haven't will
shortly be pulled down by United States
soldiers.
IN September. 1902 while I was at
Alliance. Neb. Dietrich wrote me to come
TO Hastings, 200 miles away. He wrote
that he wished to confer with me about
some matters he didn't wish to commit
to writing have his letter now. There
was but one inference to be drawn. and
wrote declining the invitation.
"Now. Dietrich says he only wished to
inform me contidentially of conference
which had been held between the Pres.-
dent Secretary Hitchcock the cattiemen
and myself.
Dietrich knew that Senator is not
used as a channel for confidential in
structions to special land agent. as I
was. They could only come through the
Land Office"
Further Exposures Likely.
Colonel Mosby, as the special agent of
the Land Office. was the first man to un-
earth even a small portion of the enor-
nous amount of rottenness which sub
sequent investigation and developments
have shown to exist in connection with
wholesale theft OF public lands in the
West. The present controversy may be
regarded as only surface indications Of
that old exposure. and of exposures which
will be made in the course of tn. next
few months, involving men III high Off
cial positions, unless Secretary Garfield.
who succeeds Secretary Hitchcock on the
4th of March. calls Oft the dogs OF war.