The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1909-01-11
TILLMAN DENIES
THAT HE TOLD
FALSEHOODS
Answers Presidents Charges
Relating to Land Deal
CHARACTERISTIC ADDRESS
Describes Negotiations on Detail and
Makes Expected Attack on
Chief Executive.

Washington, Jan. Ex-senator Till |
man yesterday replied to charges made |
against him by the President of hav-
ing exerted his official influence as
Senator and for his own benefit to
bring suit against railroads of the
Northwest in order that he might be
able to purchase land held by the
Western Oregon Company and grant
ed to the state of Oregon in 1868 for
the construction of military road.
Mr.. Tillman arose to a question OF
personal privilege, declaring that for
the first time in the history of this gov
eminent, so far as he has been able to
learn, a member of the Senate had
been brought to the bar of public
opinion before the Senate itself to be
judged under indictment by no less a
person than the President of the
United States The manner of doing
It, he said, and the animus and zeal
displayed by the Chief Executive were
worthy of consideration.
An examination of the Presidents
letter to Mr.. Hale, which might just as
well have been a special message of
the type with which we are so famil-
lar, said Mr.. Tillman will show that
the Presidents charges boiled down
amount to two in number"
First he promotes me to member
ship in the Ananias club and charges
in effect that | have deliberately lied
to the Senate.
Second he charges that | have ex-
erted my official influence and work as
a SelNtor for my personal benefit
alone to secure the passage of q reso-
luton and to press the Department of
Justice to bring suit against the cor
poration which hold so much suit of
the public domain in the West, and
will not sell it to settlers under the
terms of their grants from the govern
ment.
Let us suppose for a moment that
| was found guilty of a falsehood in
declaring that had not undertaken to
purchase any land What did that
have to do with DORIS transparent
| and open use of the mails to induce
| men to send him money to purchase
land? DORIS declaration that | had
paid the fees is an absolute falsehood
and the Postoffice inspectors, while
they searched the records for entries
at Coquille and noted that Reeder and
Watkins had filed several hundred ap-
plications no where mentioned that
and had been filed in my name or for
me. Therefore the falsehood is PROV
en- on Dorr
Now about the lying: My letter of
February 18th of which the President
secured a Photographic copy antedates
by four days my statement in the
1 Senate that | had not bought any land
or undertaken to buy any, and the
president considers this positive proof
of falsehood l did not say / had not
considered the purchase of land; did
not say | had not contemplated the
purchase of land because | had done
both.
In my conversation with the attor.
ney general in regard to the resolution
which | introduced, and which he him
self prepared after we had talked
over the whole land situation l dis
tinctly remember telling him that my
interest in the matter had been first
aroused by my desire to purchase
some of the timber land and that my
coming to him was due to the fact that
| discovered upon investigation that
| could not buy it through any agency
whatsoever, that I could not buy II
even by law suit because / was ad
vised by every able lawyers in the
West that in attacking the holders oi
those land grants no one would have
any standing in court except the gran
tor, the government itself. l was per
haps disingenuous, but a moments
thought will convince the honest MIND
ed man that as | had not signed any
papers, had not paid any money, haC
taken nobody's receipt, the usual pro
cesses by which one undertakes t
buy land, | was speaking accuratel!
and not falsely.
Just what law did break? Wha
wrong did do or contemplate?
81 have not attempted to deceive
anybody; | have not told any false
hoods; ! have not broken any law
| have not been guilty of any immora
conduct. | had the right to purchas,
the land If / could, but my judgmen
told me It was unsafe as an invest
ment. | would like to get some of |
yet and If the Attorney General an
his successors shall not die of old ag
before anything is done, It may be pc
sible that / may have the opportunit
to purchase some of those timbe
lands of which he made mention In hi
report
"The president dismisses with
wave of the hand any possibility Q
, my honesty by saying: It is unne'
essary to comment on his propose
, made in this letter to use his inhuenc
as q senator to force the government
to institute suit which would max
! It easy for him personally to obtai
, some of the land IL might be we
: to inquire whether or not the alto
: ney general has been ordered not
obey the law Of Congress passed lai
. April which / will call the Tlllmal
? Bonaparte law ordering suit to be Il
a stituted for the recovery of thes
/ lands. My culpability Is of such ma
4 nitude in contemplating the purcha'
. of 1140 acres of land at $3.50 an acl
). I'm the eyes of this stlckler OF offici
!. rectitude--in others-that II may
found that he is determined to bloc
.aF,rt,,,a Auu,,ao ~ Iona