Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1909-11-10
PUT Up TO CONGRESS THE CLAWS CHARGES
Customs Frauds Feature of President May Take Up Case
Macveaghs Report. With His Advisers.
BACKING COLLECTOR LOEB POLITICAL ANIMUS limited
Department Behind Him in Efforts Attending Reitaon Ac
to Reform the Service cusahons Against Secretary
CENTRAL BANK NOT DISCUSSED OFFICIAL WORD
Of
ks to Be Yesterday deredF Until
Heartily Endorsed.
President May Take Up Case
With His Advisers.
POLITICAL ANIMUS limited
Gossip Attending Reiteration of Ac'
cusations Against Secretary.
LAST PRESENT OFFICIAL WORD
Mr.. Ballinger's Denunciation OF
Yesterday Considered Final Until
Mr.. Taft Takes Matter Up.

Secretary Ballinger's denunciation of
| the CLAWS publication yesterday will
probably be the last official word upon
| that subject until after the Presidents
| return and the incident is discussed
| with him. The official record in the case
! stands thus:
That CLAWS presented charges against
Interior Department officials to the Pres
| ident. by the latter referred to the At
torney General for Investigation. and
upon report the charges dismissed by
the President as without foundation, and
| the author of them summarily discharged
| from the public service for bringing false
charges. 1t has been stated that the rec
ords of the government do not disclose
| a more unqualified, unequivocal and
| hearty Endorsement of an official by his
superior than President Taft's sustaining
| Of Secretary Ballinger.
Thereupon CLAWS carried his charges
| into print, without presenting new evil
dence. it is claimed. and Secretary Bal
linger again denounces them. That is
l the record officially.
Another Side to It.
But there is another side to il all
which has only been limited. and which
may VI may HOt TeCelNe dttcUtlOn ITOul
the administration, namely. the alleged
political animus back of the reiteration
and publication of the charges after they
had been dismissed by the reviewing au-
thority.
The trouble about that phase of the
| situation is that to take cognizance of the
political animus. If such exists, would
necessitate action which might place
| some off1cials in the attitude of martyrs
and further complicate affairs for the
administration. Whatever is done in this
line will be done only after the President
has taken the case up with his advisers.
| 1t is said.
Readers Of The Star became we'll ac-
quafnted with the gravamen of the loud
est charges during the Pinchot- Ballinger
controversy last summer. 1t was called
the Pinchot-Ballinger controversy because
Mr.. Pfnchot In his speech out west at
tackled the conservation policy Of this ad-
ministration as enforced by Secretary
Ballinger and indorsed by President Taft.
The affair Immediately took a graver is
sue. however. by intinations from CLAWS
that in his administration Of a new con-
servation policy Secretary Ballinger had
almost allowed valuable coal lands in
Alaska to pass into the hands Of fraudu-
lent claimants.
Summary Of CLAWS Charges.
Mr.. Claws charges in this connection
as published in Golfers Weekly, are sum-
married as follows:
November Il. 1906, President Roose-
Welt withdrew all coal lands in Alaska
from public entry. but previous to that
time there were about 800 claims filed.
covering about 10000 acres (nearly the
whole Of the coal fields). The law at
tempts to prevent monopoly Of such
claims by limiting the amount of each
claim and providing that each claimant
must take up the land in his own in
| terest and for his own use This law
has been interpreted by the Supreme
Court of the United States to forbid
speculating in coal lands before entry
either by dummy entrymen or by pre-
vious agreements to consolidate claims
after entry. OF these 900 claims to
Alaska coal lands-among them the So
called Cunningham group-tbe majority
are fraudulent.
"As to the action Of the land office
on these claims, I assert that the land
office ordered the Cunningham claims to
patent without due investigation when
Commissioner Ballinger knew they Were
under suspicion: that while in office Com
missioner Ballinger urged Congress To
pass q law which would validate fraudu-
lent Alaska claims: that shortly after
resigning from Office he became attorney
for the Cunningham group and ether
Alaska claims: that soon after he became
Secretary oe the Interior his office rem
dered a decision which would have vail
dated all fraudulent Alaska claims. re-
yersal of that decision on every point
vas obtained from Attorney General
Wickersham. Had IL not been for Mr..
Wickersham's decision every fraudulent
Alaska claim would have gone to patent.
CLAWS Superseded.
oI assert that in the spring OF 1903 the
land office urged me to an early trial
of these cases before the investigation
| was finished. and when Secretary Bal
Iinger. as the President has stated. knew
that the Cunningham claims were in
valid. When l appealed to Secretary
| Ballinger for postponement he referred
me to his subordinates. The Department
! of Agriculture intervened. I was super
| man who superseded me Endorsed my rec
| concentrations, and the postponement
was granted. Immediately thereafter l
| made my report on the Cunningham
! cases to President Taft. and was dis
missed from the service for insubordina-
| ton"
Mr. CLAWS contends that II the Cum
lningham claims had then gone to patent
5000 acres of coal land would have been
diverted to the Cunningham group with
out adequate investigation OF the title
When the Cunningham claims were or
dered to patent 1t Is charged by CLAWS
that Secretary Ballinger must have
known the suspicious character of those
| claims.
Protest Against Issuance.
| He says he protested by telegram
against the issuance OF the patents. The
orders clearly stating the patents were
then revoked and CLAWS went ahead with
his investigation Of the nature of the
claims.
| CLAWS also charges in the Collier
article that Secretary Ballinger urged
legislation upon Congress which, II
enacted. would have validated fraudulent
patents to practically 100000 acres OF
| Alaska coal lands.
In his statement published in The Star
yesterday Secretary Ballinger asserted
that 1.-The statement of CLAWS has gained
nothing either as to its veracity or justi-
ncation In the interval since its presenta-
ton TO the President
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