The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1908-01-22

To the Salt Lake Herald:
Preston. Ida, Jan. Isl desire through
your columns to take issue with an anon
.ymous correspondent who signed By the
Hsnom de plume of Traveller in the Tn
ter-Mountain Republican Of Jan. 16 and
> an. is, 1903. and to correct some very
palpabie untrCths and very misleading
statements
At the outset I wish to state that the
members comprising the board OF direc-
tors at this time are not new members in
the directorate, but on the contrary Mr..
Stephen Callan has been a member from
the very inception of the orga nzation,
and Peter ID. Maughan during the year
1867, and Director Joshua Adams. recent
~ elected to the board, is by no means a
new man to the district, being the first
one to obtain means to carry on the pro
Ject. and also the first to break ground
on the canal system, having one OF the
largest contracts awarded any one indi-
vidusl. and one Of the largest land own
ers under the canal system at the pres
The correspondent signing himself
Traveller" states that a very grave in
Justice has been done TO Mr.. A. W. Hart
and then he WanderS off into tissue OF
falsehOOds and Misrepresentation. and
for the benefit of the public we will set
out the facts that have actually trans
pired in the district
1t seems that from the first start Of the
organization of this district that a GER
tain element has been inclined to hold the
entire control of its workings within their
have been somewhat apprehensive of its
management during that period of time,
and two different auditing committees
have been appointed to go over the &C
counts, and the results of their work
simply made the people still more appre-
hensive and disconnected as TO the outlay
Of its moneys, and in consequence of this
growing suspicion a committee was ap-
pointed on June %. 1907. and empowered
by the people in mass meeting to engage
the services or an expert accountant to
take up the affairs of the different Off
ces OF the district and make report
of its condition. This committee consist
ed OF Attorney A. c. Smith, Peter j.
Moore and John Z. Taylor. These gentle
men made arrangements with OrSon 2.
Rumel Of Salt Lake City to take up this
work, and he engaged with them at
salary OF $40 per day. This gentleman, In
compliance with his contract. came to
Preston on Aug. 4 1907, and commenced
his labors with the district
Works Against Opposition.
From the very commencement up until
the present time this man has worked
under very intense opposition from
those who were the officers of the COM
pany. George c. Parkinson was treasurer
at that time and A. w. Hart secretary.
Peter d. Maughan, Stephen Callan and A.
d. Henderson composed the board af di-
rectors.
On Nov Is. 1907. Mr. Orson- p. Rumei,
in his official capacity of auditor for the
district, filed a communication with the
board of directors asking for the resig-
nation OF George c. Parkinson as treas
urer of said district on the grounds as
stated therein. Several conferences took
place between Mr.. Parkinson and the
board Of directors before the request of
the special auditor was complied with.
FINALLY Mr.. Parkinson, when he saw that
fine board was determined that the re-
quest of Mr.. Rumel should be complied
with, filed his resignation with the board,
and antedated same.
Now. for the consideration of the public
in judging between these two men, we
will make this statement, that some time
after this man, George G. Parkinson, re-
funded TO the Oneida Irrigation district
in one check. $3.50. and another 81 500,
making total of 5000 that he returned
TO the treasury of the Oneida Irrigation
district, and which every candid and IN
biased mind will cOncede is the result OF
the work of this man, Mr. Orson p. Ru-
mel, so that the district is actually that
much ahead as the results of this man S
investigation, and in consequence I main
tain that while he IS writing complete
set OF books for the district, from men,
oranda and scraps OF papers as the only
evidence on hand of disbursements etc,
he is recovering for the district more
money than his salary will ever amount
TO.
On Oct Is, 1907 Mr. Parkinson put In
an itemized claim against this district IN
the sum of SS34S5, for railroad fares, etc,
and during all this period in said bill or
expense he was riding on a pass granted
by the Oregon Short Line Railway COM
pany, and also was in the employ of the
Utah Sugar company at a salary of $3.50
per month and expenses, and through the
efforts of Mr.. Rumel these matters Were
brought to the attention of the board of
directors, and said bill was cut to s21e. 20
and the further results of the inVestiga-
ton brought the following letter from
George c. Parkinson. which I submit for
the consideration of every candid and
fair-minded man:
Preston. Ida. Nov %. 1907.
The Honorable Board of Directors and
the Official Auditor. Oneida Irrigation
District, Preston. Idaho:
"Gentiemen,-Conside agitation
and the most intense feeling seems to be
attached 10 the auditing of the accounts
of the district of a nature conveying the
general impression that some great wrong
has been committed, and il is for the pur-