Los Angeles herald., 1910-02-16
CLAWS SCORES
ANOTHER POINT
DEPOSED FIELD CHIEF TOLD
TO REPLY FREELY
VERTREES FAILS TO CONFUSE
FORMER FORESTER
Many in Washington Expect Inquiry
VIII Result in WhiteWash.
Public Aroused by
Exposures
Continued from Page one)

about forty of the 900 Alaska claims
that had gone to final entry and that
thirty three of these were in the Cum
ningham group.
You said yesterday" remarked Yer
trees, that you regarded Mr.. Ball
inger's act in stating that he was conf
ing to Washington to see what con-
gress could do for the relief of the
Alaska coal claimants as one of the
reasons for his not being fit for office.
In that connection l would like to read
the following paragraphs from Pfesl-
dent RooseVeit's message to the SIX
tieth congress. He says:
THE regulations should permit coaI
lands to be worked in sufficient quantl-
ty by the several corporations. Inc
present limitations have bene absurd,
excessive, and served no useful purpose,
and often render 1t necessary that there
should be either fraud or else aban-
donment of the work of getting out the
coal.
"Coal land laws should be changed
so as to meet the peculiar needs OF the
territory. This should be attended to
at once, for the present laws permit
individuals to locate large areas of the
public domain for speculative purposes
and cause an immense amount of trou-
Bile, fraud and litigation"
earfield's Testimony
Vertrees also read into the record
part of the testimony of former Secre-
tary Garfield before the house commit
tee on public lands, favoring a change
in the local land laws so as to permit of
the patenting of claims where it was
shown the full price had been paid TO
the government and where the total
area did not exceed something under
5000 acres.
Vertrees then took up the witness
accusation of misconduct against Fred
bennett, commissioner of the land Of
flee. CLAWS had declared that after
hearing H. +. Hartman, one of the
claimants, make certain admissions rel
atiye to his claim, bennett answered a
telegram from CLAWS saying none OF
the claimants had made admissions.
Vertrees brought out that CLAWS tel
egram had been sent more than a year
after the Hartman admission, and that
the witness knew of no more admis-
sions among the 900 claimants.
And you condemn Mr.. bennett as
an improper official from this?'
mot from that alone replied the
witness.
CLAWS admitted that an affidavit he
made June 29 1909, as to certain state
Donald had said he had made to Den
nett, may have been too broad. If 1t
was, the witness said he was anxious
to correct 1t.
what else did bennett do?" asked
Mr.. Vertrees.
"Well, he wrote those funny letters
from Seattle and Portland"
How did you get copies of those let
ters?"
special Agent Spalding acted as
Dennett's stenographer and told ne
about the letters and I asked him to
furnish me with copies"
Commanded Him
''You ordered him to do so, didn't
your
II was his superior officer"
HE refused, and you ordered him?'
"He hesitated. He said the letters
under a frank and I thought that made
them official"
"You used that argument to Spald-
ing, didn't you"
"I don't know that I did"
Vertrees went into the letters In
more detail. They were written by
bennett to H. H. Schwartz, chief of
the field service, and have heretofore
been introduced in evidence.
Vertrees sought to show by letters
and kilograms in the record that
delay in hearing the Cunningham cases
had not been favorably received by
bennett, were not substantiated by the
evidence.
In one telegram bennett wired Bal
linger, suggesting he authorize delay
until certain evidence could be secured.
Ballinger, in reply, said that in view
of his personal reluctance to direct
proceedings in the Alaska case, bennett
h; chr erfxr tho fliTaN-
tions to Schwartz.
"That convinced me-" said CLAWS.
that Mr.. Ballinger was personally di-
Tecting the cases, for in all my expe-
rience with the interior department
never heard of it being necessary for
the commissioner to appeal to the Sec
retary for permission to delay hear
| ing"
| Mr.. Vertrees read into the hearing an
extract of letter from bennett to
| Schwartz, in which bennett said:
IF more time is necessary we will
I have to grant it, but 1t seems TO me
November is putting off the matter
rather long"
Vertrees here requested that Miss
Ella NJ. Shartel of Seattle, a stem
| ographer, be summoned as a witness.
"While you are about it, Mr.. Chair
man." interjected Attorney Brandeis.
"please also summon Special Agent
Frank L. Spalding from Cheyenne and
| w. w. Darr from Seattle"
! Vertrees also read into the record
part of a letter from Schwartz to Spe-
cial Agent James Sheridan, putting the
latter in charge of the Alaska coal
| cases in place of Claws The letter
was dated July p, 1909, and said in
part:
EVERY report received from CLAWS
| in this case concludes with some state
ment or observation as to what future
and further investigation will develop
precludes this Office from taking any
action and he has been advised from
| time to time II is the purpose and in
full and complete investigation as to
the final action Of these entries
Notwithstanding Mr.. CLAWS state
ment the record shows he had at his
disposal the entire field force and he
also had explicit notice that 1 had
| pledged the entire field force of the de-
partment for report in these cases
at a certain time.
HE has failed, however, and the re-
| port cannot be made. You have been
| placed in charge of the Cunningham
| group of Alaska coal cases for the ex-
| press purpose Of properly completing
| the Investigations speedily and thor
oughly and thereafter to conduct the
! hearings upon which the government
will endeavor to cancel the claims
| Enough OF the record has been reciteo
to advise you that I expect this result
| to be Accomplished
1 vs.. 4 \, n faf