The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1910-05-20
BALL|NGER CASE
IS ALMOST ENDED
One More Day Will Finish Up
the Evidence
BOTH SIDES TIRED OUT
Lawler That He Had nm Old
Grudge Against Louis
II. CLAWS

II. 1ldNls
Washington, May 19-The Ballinger-
Pinchot Investigation is likely to end to-
morrow; so far, at least, as the taking OF
evidence is concerned.
The defense practically had rested
wher the days hearing ended, and Attor-
ney Brandeis for the prosecution" was
quoted tonight as having said that his
side would consume but little time in the
examination of witnesses in rebuttal. At
torney yertrees, counsel for the Bailinger
defense, will call one or two more Wit
nesses tomorrow. but expects their con-
tr.butions to be brief.
Both sides today appeared anxious to
wind up the investigation. In further
ance of this desire they have decided to
dispense with a number of witnesses they
had expected to call. II. is probable that
the departure of Senator Root, one of
the republican members of the commit
tee, who left today for The Hague ar
btration tribunal, had great deal to do
with the decision to bring the hearings
to a close. Mr.. Brandeis today concluded
his cross-examination of Oscar Lawler,
assistant attorney general for the in
terror department. and author of the now
famous tentative draft for the Presi-
dent of a letter discussing and dismiss
ing both Special Agent CLAWS and his
charges against Mr.. Ballinger. and there
were no explosions such as enfivened his
earlier testimony. Commissioner Fred
Dernet of the general land office also
finished his testimony. Mr. Perkins of
the Chicago office of the reclamation
service was the last witness of the day.
Important Admission
What was regarded by the prosecution
as an important admission was obtained
from LAWYER. Brandeis was endeavoring
to show that Lawler entertained an old
81 r6ge against CLAWS which untitled him
for the preparation of judicial finding
to assist the President in passing upon
the CLAWS charges.
He was questioning Lawler along that
line when the latter volunteered the
opinion that CLAWS. had demonstrated
himself to be untruthful." This, he said
was three years ago, when CLAWS had
made complaints to the land office that
Lawler was Incompetent to conduct the
prosecution of certain land
fraud cases in southern California. Law
Ter was then United States attorney for
the Southern district of California. and
CLAWS was chief of field division at Oak
land. LAWYER said the charges were in
vestigated by the department of justice
and found baseless He want to trial
with the cases and obtained convictions.
An attempt by Brandeis to obtain the pro-
duction of all papers and documents re-
ls ting to this matter on file at the land
office was blocked by the committee as
involving a collateral investigation. Bran
deis said he desired to show whether Sec
rotary Ballinger knew Lawler entertained
such grievance against Claws.
In cross-examination of bennett, the
fact was>brought out that the Interior
Department had employed two of its
agents to do detective work. In an eff
fort to connect forest service officials
with the preparation of CLAWS affidavit
and to trace the motives of other critics
of the department.
Feature of Testimony
A conversation Perkins claimed to have
had in Chicago on October 20 last with
F. H Newell, director of the reclama-
ton service, whom it has been alleged
Secretary Ballinger intended to supplant
with r. H. Thomson of Seattle, was the
most interesting feature of Perkins tes-
timony. Perkins detailed it as follows:
You should not try to vindicate Bal
linger in the black tent NATTER" said
Newell, IT want to make Balilnger the
goat
you can't do It," replied Perkins, hes
too big man.
Never mind" replied Newell, IT am
going to do it anyhow"
Perkins told of attending at the re.
quest of Clifford Pinchot. a conference at
the home of ex-Secretary Garfield in
West Mentor Ohio. on July IS. He says
that Pinchot, Garfield and Thomas r.
Shipp, of the conservation society, were
present at the conference. the purpose of
which was to insure the retention of
Newell ain office. Perkins said he had
promised to work for Newell and had
done so to the extent of inducing a num-
Der of railroad officials to write to Bal
linger in Newells behalf
Letters Introduced
Attorney yertrees introduced number
of letter. md kilograms, written by Ship
and Go n | regarding a trip our friend
(who J ~ ms said was Pinchot) was to
make to washington to see Newell. The
evident purpose of the deIense was to
show through the testimony of Perkins
and the documents that the conspiracy
which the defense charges exists
against Ballinger had its beginning at the
home Of Garfield, and that Pinchot came
to Washington to try to induce Newell
and other subordinates of Ballinger to
participate in it.
Perkins contradicted much of the tes-
timopy of Director Newell and Chief
Engineer Davis of the reclamation SER
vice, as to the BLACK tent lectures. He
said he himself had initiated the idea of
giving stereopticon lectures throughout
the middle west to encourage people to
settle on reclaimed lands. He said all OF
the western trunk lines excepting the
Great Northern had contributed to the
fund for the carrying on of these lectures
and that President Hill of the Great
Northern had complained that his road
was Disseminated against in these lee
| lures. AS matter of fact, said Perkins
most of the projects advertised in the
| lectures were accessible exclusively by
| the Great Northern.