The Caucasian. (Clinton, N.C.) 188?-1913, 1909-05-20

deal. but failed In the EFFORT. losing
two hundred dollars
| He explained his hank accounts.
stating that Ia the spring OF 1895 a.
purchased siT.ooe worth OF property.
sold ti4.oee worth. and gave mort
cages amounting TO ti3.oeo. The
eross-examInstion began at O'Clock.
court taxing recess At $40. recon-
yening ~ eight. and tbs session last
ed until IL o'clock The eross-ex-
animation had not heen concluded
when an adjournment was taken an
til Monday.
Disposition Of Congressman ss~veax
Am now serving my seventh term
In Congress. Am member Of commit
tee on Indian affairs. am nov the
ranking member. being there twelve
years. was member when ChIeasaw-
Choctaw Court was created. Mans
| heid. MeMurray and Cornish were
active agents In having the court
created. After the court was ere
| ated, this firm was In Wash
ington again to get an amendment;
placing Jurisdiction TO III the attor-
neys' fee In Citizenship Court. and
taking II out OF the hands of the
Commissioner OF the Interior. Be
fore the Citizenship Court was Great
ed. IL was the universal cry that so
per cent OF the Indians on the roll
were there by fraud. The numbers
stricken from the roll by the new
court. were but few for fraud. bu,
almost all on some technical ground
OF non-residence or other cause.
No member OF the law Arm ever
fled briefs in such arguments In any
Indian bill before my committee.
Have often seen them talking pri-
vately to members OF the committee
and buttonholeing members OF Con-
gress.
/ introduced a claim in Congress
to investigate the Indian claims mat
ters, and the allowance of this enor-
nous fee, but my resolution was
lpigeon-holed in the committee. am
often In Oklahoma and Indian Terri
tory. 1t being near my home. / know
| the general reputation of Chief JUS
tice Adams In this section and IL is
| bad. / made two speeches In Con-
gress with reference to the conduct OF
this court and the allowance OF this
fee. Ex-senator Marion Butler had
| nothing whatever to do with the
making or preparation of these
charges on the floor of Congress by
| me, nor did he ever speak to me
about these matters before those
speeches In his life.
| I had tried hard to get a bill
through to allow an appeal in the
Citizenship Court but could not get
1t taken up. The law firm were ae-
tive with members Of the committee
I Cross Examined.
l meant the Riddle case when
said most of the cases were decided
on technicality. That was the test
case. This being decided on a techni-
cality, 1t followed that all others
were, because this case involved the
very existence of the court. 1t was
generally called the court that Mans
field, McMurray and Cornish created.
| Senator Overman never read to me
a letter from Judge Adams, demand
ling an investigation. I never could
get any resolution for an investiga-
tion before the committee. Mr.. Sher-
man. ranking member of the commit
tee, seemed to be very intimate with
Judge Adams. l did everything /
could to prevent passage of the law
creating this court, thought IL the
most unjust law ever passed by Con-
gress. The idea of the court seemed
to be to keep as many as possible
off the rolls instead of doing justice.
The Citizenship Court in the test
case overturned the decision of the
Dawes Commission and the United
States Court, and deprived over 1900
Indians of their accrued rights under
lluOo6 QSCihlOuS, WOTtu ucdTiy S0sUOU
leach, and there was no appeal.
I do not know that this court re-
ljected a single case that was allowed
by the Dawes Commission.
Counsel for defendants here offer.
ed in evidence the Congressional Rec
ord of February 8. 1908, containing
a speech made by Congressman Ste
phens charging corruption on the par
, of members of the Chickasaw-Choc
: taw court. To this the prosecution
objected. Judge Long sustained thu
, objection. and the speech was not al
lowed to be presented as evidence
Justice contended that the speech
) being privileged, the publication o
the same in a newspaper was priv
legged.
Judge Long said Il might be tn
4 Congressman could fall back on hi
: privilege. but he could not say tha
applied to newspaper publishinI
i the same.
Deposition of N. A. Ledbetter. o
Ardmore, Oklahoma:
Having practiced law here for 4
: years, I knew the general characte
and reputation during the last fe,
: months of the residence here O