The San Francisco call., 1909-11-10
CLAWS DIRECTS
SHARP ATTACK
ON BA[LINGER
Produces Documents, Letters
and Statements to SUBJ
stantiate Charges
Declares Sole Object Is to Pre-
serve to Government Rich
Coal Lands in Alaska

-HNN--AA9 N-AANA VI AiAt HClQ NAA4SlOI Ol
the general land Office. He was dis
missed from the service because of the
persistency with which he pressed his
case against his superior. Now he has
spread his arraignment over the pages
Of Golfers Weekly that the public may
see and judge for itself
The article appears under the title.
The Nhitewashing of Ballinger,~ with
the subtitle. Are the Guggenheims in
Charge Of the Department Of the In
terior?" In part, CLAWS says:
"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 Commissioner Ballinger urged
congress 70 pass q law which would
validate fraudulent Alaska claims; that
shortly after resigning from Office he
became attorney for the Cunningham
group and other Alaska claims; that
soon after he became secretary of the
interior his Office rendered a decision
which would have validated all fraudu-
-ent Alaska claims. a reversal of that
decision on every point was obtained
from Attorney General Wickersham
Had il not been for Mr.. Wickersham's
decision. every fraudulent Alaska claim
would have gone 10 patent
assert that in the spring Of 1903 the
land once urged me TO an early trial Of
these cases before the investigation
was finished. and when Secretary Bal
lnger. IS the president has stated
know that the Cunningham claims were
invalid When j appealed TO Secre-
tarE Bailinger for postpo tponement, he
. referred me 10 his subordinates The
department Of agriculture intervened.
: was superseded ia the charge of the
cases. and the man who superseded me
Endorsed my recommendations and the
postponement vas granted. Immedi-
ately thereafter / made nay report on
the Cunningham cases TO President
Iatt- and was dismissed from the serv-
zee for insubordinatior
Ny FIRST connection with these cases
was when in the fall Of 1907 / discov-
ereo IN Seattle. while Investigating
other matters, that some or an of the
coal claims were not bona fde
In December, 1907 7 was called to
Washington, and explained to Mr.. Bal
Niger. then land commissioner, what l
Asd found out about all the claims, in
cluoi2g tie Cunningham claims / also
stated. tEat the Departments of Justice
would know these facts and would in
TestiSate them if the land office did
NOT MI Baiiinger told me he was
friend Of many Of the claimants but
that Z was authorized TO go ahead and
Investigate all these claims, no mat
ter what the result.
LEAK IN OFFICE ALLEGED
'On January Is. 1903. Cunningham,
agent for the claimants. wrote a letter
10 the Juneau land Office. in which he
said:
The commissioner (AIr Ballinger)
has furnished US with copies of all the
correspondence and kilograms relating
70 our entries between the various spe-
cial agents and also with your office.
Up TO date everything seems TO have
been approved by each depa rtment
chief. so now our only delay will be
occasioned through failure to receive
piats according to Judge Ballinger's
advice
II the Cunningham claims had then
gone 10 patent 5000 acres Of coal land,
containing, according to Mr. Cunning
hams expert, 9l000,O0O tons of coal
would have gone to the Cunningham
group without adequate investigation
of title When the Cunningham claims
were ordered to patent Mr. Ballinger
aud his assistants must have known.
from the reports Of Special Agent Jones
and myself. the suspicious character of
these claims
Here was my first dilemma. I did
not wish to protest to Secretary of the
Interior GARFIELD against the action of
the commissioner, and | did not like
10 see 5000 acres OF coal lands go TO
tie Cunningham group when l believed
the claims fraudulent / did protest
Immediately. by telegram and letter.
direct to Commissioner BaIIinger.
against the issuance of the patents
The order clear listing the Cunningham
claims 10 patent was almost immedi-
stely revoked, and on March /, 1908,
sgGin took up the work on these
claims. Special Agent Jones and l. at
Wallace, Idaho, procured afldavits Of
Cunningham claimants showing their
intention to consolidate their claims
Then we went TO see Cunningham
Cunningham stated that he had heard
that some one complained that he was
taking claims for the Guggenheims
Crhe Jones report TO Ballinger con-
tanned the allegation that all indica-
tions pointed TO the Guggenheims. but
il does not appear how Cunningham
got this confidential information) In.
order TO refute this charge Cunning
ham showed US his books These
books contained a memorandum of
agreement. dated 1903. between the en-
trymen TO consolidate the coal lands.
ms agreement was lleEal Tor two
reasons-because fl stte zapted to con-
solidate more than the law allowed and
because the agreement showed that the
entrymen took up the land with the in
tention Of deciding it to a company and
giving Cunningham one-eighth of the
stock.
INTERVIEW WITH BALLINGER
"Afterward. and while Jones and I
were taking Cunningham's affidavit. |
former Governor Miles c. Moore of
Washington, one Of the Cunningham
claimants, came in and stated that he |
had had a recent interview with Mr..
Ballinger in Washington, and that Mr.. |
Ballinger would have patented the
Cunningham claims but for my pro-
test This Information given Moore.
and announced by him in Cunning
hams presence. came near preventing
my obtaining the AFFIDAVIT from Cum /
ninRham. In fact, the information OBJ
tanned by this claimant Miles c. |
Moore, from the land office in Wash |
ington. considerably hampered me in
my effort TO get evidence. The giving |
out Of such information was contrary
TO express regulations OF the interior |
Mr. Bailinger retired as commits 1
sioner OF the land Office in March. 1908. /
A few days before, while still an Of
6cer of the United stHfes, Mr.. Ballin-