Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1909-01-20
SUMMARY OF rm1LMAN CASE.
The People to Judge Presidents
Charges and TilIman's Reply.
Zach McGhee In The state.)

WashjD gton, Jan. 11.-Senator
Tiilman, having now made his an
swer to the indictment of the Presi>
dent, the case rests with the Ameri-
can people to determine, not whether
Senator rillman is legally guilty OF
fraud or of violation of law, for he
is not SO accused. except as to the
insignificant matter of 2-cent
stamp, but whether he is morally
culpable. Laying aside alike the
opinion expressed by the President
akR this culpability and the cry of
bnal persecution by Senator Till
man as both insignificant, unimport-
ant, and wholly eXtraneous, shall
give as judicious statement Of the
actual facts in the case as am capa-
BILE of giving, together with an un-
biased statement of the contentious
4 of each of the parties to the contro-
very as understand those conten-
tions.
1t Is no matter, let 1t be empha-
sized, that Tillman and Roosevelt are
personal as well as political enemies;
1T iS no matter that the President has
been misusing the secret service
agents of the government: no mat
? ter that Ttllman has q wide reputa-
tion as the zone honest man" in the
United States Senate; 1t Is of not
the slightest moment as touching the
real gisf of the controversy, Inat
the President, to use Tillman's own
words, "has felt called upon to at
tack the character of a man whose
integrity has never before been
questioned" Nor is 1t worth while
or germane to the case at all whe-
thor Co t., 49, 1o Il.
that his Integrity has never before
been questioned" 1t is not, more
over, of any Importance to the main
issue that the source of the charges
now made is the President Of the
United States, and the reputation OF
Theodore Roosevelt for Juggling
tNrts, distorting language and maxi
ing reckless charges cannot weigh in
the slightest IL one would arrive at
the fundamental and one important
truth involved, which whether Sena-
tor Tillman, who twice was elected
Governor OF South Carolina and three
times elected to the United Senate
by overwhelming votes of the people
of his State, has now proved unwor-
thy of the honor heaped upon him
and the trust reposed in him. 1t is
not for me to say. Here are the
facts:
The Land.
In 1898 Congress granted to the
State of Oregon certain lands in
Southern Oregon "to aid in the con-
structiOn of a military wagon road"
1t was stipulated in the act of grant
That the grant Of lands hereby
made shall be Upon the condition
that the lands shall be sold to any
in m 10,
than one-quarter section (160 acres) ,
and for price not exceeding $3.50
per acre."
Shortly after that the State of Ore
gon rogranted the same lands to the
Coos Ray Wagon Road Company for
the purpose of constructing the
road, with the same stipulation
made by Congress regarding the sale.
The Coos Bay Wagon Road Company
constructed the wagon road, but kept
the lands, refusing to sell them on
any terms whatever. But after a
long lapse this company did trans
fer the whole of the lands, which
had then become among the most
valuable, timber lands in Oregon, to
the southern Oregon Company, which
company still holds the lands and
WhiCh refuses to sell them upon the
NN'4.H VI lhS oilSlhdl grant. Nu-
merOuS persons have made efforts to
att Some of these lands in lots of
100 acres at $3.50 an acre, and cer-
lnin attorneys and timber companies
III ore gon have advertised that they
would locate quarter sections for in
dlViduals and bring lawsuits against
the southern Oregon Company to
compel them to sell at the price stip-
Ulaled by the United States Congress
lIS"'c grant to the State OF Oregon
ant IN the regrant by the State of
oregon to the Coos Bay Wagon Road
Company, and which the Coos Bay
Wagon Road Company turned over
TO the Southern Oregon Company
clearly In violation of that stipula-
tiOn.
The lands are not government
lands In the usual sense. They are
not held by the government, but
are held by this Southern Oregon
Company contrary to law.
What Tillman Wanted to DO.
Senator Tillman wanted to get
1e of the land at the stipulated
H. price of $3.50 an acre. Since
4 according to the terms of the origi-
nal grant he could not buy for him
self more than one-quarter section
OF l6O acres, he wanted to buy one
quarter section for each of his fam
lily, one for j. p. Knight, his secre-
tary, and one for w. %. Lee, his
agent, nine in all. All of this he had
right to do, beyond any question
of law or ethics. Mind you, the Sou
thern Oregon Company would not
sell the land, so that in order to get
1t 1t was necessary to press q lawsuit
against them to compel them to sell
at $3.50 an acre.
Dealings with Attorneys.