The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1908-03-07
HARE DISCUSSES
TIMBER MYSTERY
Government Special Agent
Puzzled by Some Features
of Proposed Deal.
is LOOKING FOR KIMBERLY
CERTAIN PHASES BRING MAT
TER WITHIN CRIMINAL LAW.

Captain George Hare, special agent
of the land department, who is inves-
tigating the matter of the promotion OF
timber land entries in an unknown re-
gion and apparently by unknown per-
sons, said yesterday that his office had
no definite information in connection
with the transaction, but that there
were agents at work on it. One of
these agents went TO Draper yesterday
morning, but up to last evening Cap
tain Hare said he had not heard from
him. 1t is known that a large num-
Der of Draper people went into the
scheme to take up timber claims on
tips" furnished by the mysterious
agent of a still more mysterious COM
pany, if such there be. paying for the
tips" from 5000 to $500. When their
entry was completed they were to get
$4,000 for the claim.
Il am still as much at sea as ever
as to where the land can be- said Cap
tain Hare, "if the enterprise is legiti-
mate. l am positively informed by the
commissioner of the general land Of
flee that no reopening of timber tracts
to entry is contemplated, and 1 have
not the slightest notion in the world
where $50 entrymen, the number want
could find quarter sections worth Sl0.-
600 apiece. 1t would take a mighty big
tract to accommodate all these entry
men.
If 1t is Legitimate.
IF the thing is legitimate" continued
Captain Hare, Il do not see that there
is any necessity for any surreptitious
act The courts have held-particu-
larry in q, California case-that a per-
son may buy timber land from any one
who has it for sale. This was illus
trated in the instance of a California
mad who advertised to the world that
he was in the market for timber
claims i'm certain townships and offer
ed a good price for them. He abso-
lutely refused to have anything to do
with any contingent deals. and bought
only from those who had the goods to
deliver. He was within the law.
Il can not understand why there
should be any necessity for agents to
drum up entTymen. Why, anybody
would eagerly snap at the chance to
take up timber lands worth $4,000
without any mystery or without being
prOdded
"The statement that there will be
a leak in the land department in this
particular instance and that the man
to have first information, of course,
brings the whole thing within the
criminal law. The further statement
that the local land office in the dis
trict where this timber land is alleged
to be will so juggle the filings that
those who are in on the agreement
shall have the preference, of course,
also brings it within the pale of the
law
Who Is Kimberly?
Captain Hare said that his office had
not been able yet to identify the man
Kimberly, said to have been the chief
promoter in Salt Lake He must be
d stranger here" said. Captain Hare,
"Or he is keeping mighty quiet"
At last accounts the special train
that was to take the entrymen to their
destination had not been ordered to
leave on schedule time, which had been
for today.
1t is held by some that the fact that
the people who entered into the agree
ment, at least some of them. placed
their money in escrow and that the
agent accepted this condition instead
of insisting on cash payment, as at
first indicates that there is a POSSIBLE
ity of the deal being put through. 1t
is said that $4,000 of Draper money is
held by trustees.