The San Francisco call., 1910-11-27
OFFICIALS DELVE
into OIL FRAUD
Merritt Practically Everything
in the Haiwee Pacific
Company
No Land Owned in InyO County
and No Petroleum Dis
covered There

with. fraud in floating oil stock, was
unearthed yesterday by State Mineral
ogist Lewis z. Aubury and H. w. Gray
special agent Of the state mining bu-
reau. who is investigating fraudulent
oil companies.
That Merritt was practically every
thing in the Haiwee-Pacifc oil COM
pany is evidenced by the later develop
ments. Arthur G. Holland of New York
according to the prospectus, is presi-
dent OF the company, but as a matter
Of fact Holland is dead. The name OF
J. z. Fox Of Oakland is given as vice
president, but he asserts that his name
was used without authorization and de-
nies that he is in any way connected
with the company.
r Lehman Of Napa. whose name was
used as one Of the directors, resigned
from the Office some time ago. and
according to the state mineralogist, did
so because he was suspicious of the
Merritt proposition. c. T. Hummel OF
Erie. Pa. is said TO be the president
Of the company. Merritt is the secre-
tary and manager. while Mrs. Merritt,
A c. Daley. clerk in the office OF
the master mechanic Of the Southern
Pacific in Oakland. and W. A. Noyes
=.
other directors.
That no oil has been discovered in
Inyo county, despite the alluring state
ment in Merritt's prospectus to the
contrary, is the assertion Of State Min
eraIogist Aubury, who says the forma-
tion is not such as TO indicate that oil
viii be found
serted by Aubury that the Haiwee-P Pa
cif1c oil company does not own any
land in Inyo county, although it is rep
resented in the prospectus that the
company holds $500 acres.
Merritt may also have difficulty in
explaining satisfactorily to the author
titles how some of the land in question
was fled upon by q person giving the
name OF Maggie Cadogan of 2S05 Six
teenth street, San Francisco Her name
appears with that Of Merritt and 9TH
ers who fled on 1850 acres of placer
locations. but the Investigations of the
mining bureau brought forth the in
formation that no such woman was
known at the address. nor lived there
a the time Of fling the application.
The others who filed on land osten-
sibly for the company were Fred w.
Setter of Lodi. y. T. SWEET of Oakland,
William J. Clark, an attorney of Inde-
pendence; C Howard Merritt and A. c.
Daley of Oakland. c. n. Smith of Hal
geles. Most Of the applications were
made through Merritt as attorney in
fact.
Title has never been perfected by
the applicants and the further point is
made that the land laws do not permit
persons 10 take up placer locations of
$50 acres and transfer the property un-
iii there has been an absolute discov-
cry of minerals. No proof of labor
has been filed on any OF these claims
except two pieces in 1908, when the
proofs were filed by the Roosevelt oil
company. OF the $500 acres shown in
the prospectus as property belonging
10 the company there are 1000 acres
Of vacant government land on which
no application has ever been filed, ac-
cording to Cray.
The land embraced in the locations
OF Setter and Others" said Gray, lis
shown in the prospectus issued by Mer-
ritt as proven high gravity oil land.
IL is worthy Of mention that while
Merritt in his prospectus states that
this land is righ gravity oil land, the
applicants, including Merritt, all swore
10 an affidavit TO purchase the land
that It was nonmineral and 1T for
agricultural purposes only. Even if
they should discover oil, which our
Office claims is impossible in view of
The formation Of the country, the gov
eminent would refuse to confirm this
state selection on the ground that min
eral lands can not be selected by the
state in lieu Of other base lands. The
company is assessed in Inyo county
for only $4,000 on tools and nothing on
real estate To carry on the alleged
development work on two wells Is as
sessments have been levied and about
100000 has been raised
Aubury said that a number Of other
companies were being Investigated and
that there would probably be other
prosecutions for fraud. He refutec
Merritt's charge that he was attackins
the company because Of appeals from
Los Angeles. and added that he merely
sought TO protect the public from
sharks.
The federal authorities will probably
net prosecute DR.. c. Howard Merritt,
the Oakland dentist accused of at
tempting to put through the alleged
Haiwee-Pacific oil company swindle, as
the mails have not been generally re-
sorted to in carrying out the plan.
Postal Inspector Harry b Hall and the
chief Of the city inspectors, James
O'Connell. have not been in touch with
the doings Of Merritt for a short time
but inasmuch as the state and federal
laws on schemes Of this kind are about
the same. except that the state law
does not require the proof that the
mails have been used it will be left
10 the state officials to prosecute.
Merritt Is Arraigned
OAKLAND, Nov. 26.-Dr. C. Howar
Merritt, the Oakland dentist who was
arrested last night upon the charge
OF publishing literature with intent to
defraud in his capacity as secretary of
the Haiwee-Pacifc oil company, was
arraigned before Police Judge SamueIs
this morning. and his preliminary ex-
animation set for December Il. He
was represented by Attorney Harry
Rogers.
Merritt was released from the city
Jail at ] o'clock this morning upon Sc
curing bonds in the sum of $4,000. Oak
land detectives are now working on the
case 10 secure further evidence against
the accused man, who is charged with
having made $4,000 upon the sale OF
stock in fictitious oil property in Inyo
county.