The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1907-09-11
BIG LAND FRAUDS.
Secretary Garfield Preparing For
Heavy Prosecutions,
Men of High Position to be Indicted.
Purpose OF the Government to Land
Some OF Them in Jail if Possible.

some OF Them in Jail if Possible.
Since the return to Washington of
Secretary Garfield, of the interior
department, from his extensive tour
of the west and southwest. it has de-
veloped that startling revelations
are soon to be made regarding land
| frauds of which the government has
been the victim.
For several years Secretary Gar
/ fields immediate predecessor in Of
+! ice. Secretary Hitchcock, relentless
| " pursued the public land grafters
in the West and Northwest and land
ed many of them behind the bars.
Cases which Secretary Hitchcock in
itiated are still pending, all Of these
indicted not yet having been brought
to trial. The list of men indicted
through the efforts Of Secretary
Hitchcock included a United States
senator, representatives in Congress
and others prominent in their states.
Grafters all looked alike to Hitch
cock and it made no difference to
him that they happened to occupy
high positions and were influential
and wealthy.
So it appears to be with Garfield.
Since he became Secretary of the In
terror, he has made a special study
Of the land fraud cases. with the as
sistance of Richard 4. Bellinger,
commissioner Of the general land Of
. fee. Garfield and Bellinger were
class mates in college and long time
friends. They have been described
as ":tanatically honest and the de-
scription fits both of them. Neither
one Of them would hesitate to send
his best friend to the penitentiary,
If that friend were convicted of a
crime against the public service. 1t
| follows, therefore, that the wealthy
and powerful land grabbers will have
a sorry time trying to escape from
/ Gartield's prosecution Of them.
The operations Of the government
in the land fraud cases were begun
in Oregan and California and in these
two states most of the indictments
have been found. During the past
few months the work of investigation
has been extended to half dozen
other states in the west. The theater
of present activities is the middle
Rocky mountain region, including
the states Of Colorado, Wyoming and
Utah. The investigation, which is
being conducted by agents of the In
terror Department aided by Secret
Service operatives has disclosed 9
really startling situation. Tens Of
thousands of acres Of land have beer
, acquired unlawfully by individuals
and corporations from the govern
ment. 1t is asserted that substan,
TALLY the entire area Of coal lands ir
Colorado, Wyoming and Utah
, which formerly belonged to the gov.
ernment, has passed into the posses
sion of three or four big corpora.
tons. Every acre Of this land is SAID
to have been illegally obtained from
the government.
j, Already the department Of Justice
has begun to act. The prosecutions
: of the offenders is being directed by
Earl Cranston, United States district
!, attorney at Denver. About sixty in
!. dictments already have been founc
and they constitute only the begin,
ming.
1t has been discovered in many in.
stances that the individuals and com
panies which have acquired the land
have cut away the timber and mined
the coal. Now the government is
considering what proceedings may
be taken to recover the value Of the
timber ano coal.
The men, for the most part,
against whom proceedings either
have been begun or 6 - in contem-
plation, tare of high degree and oc-
cupy notable positions in the busi-
ness, and social life of the west:
Notwithstanding this fact, however,
it is the purpose Of the government
to follow the cases to their logical
conclusion and, if possible, recover
the lands and put the land grabbers
in jail.