The San Francisco call., 1910-02-26
Special Agent of Department
Calls Official in Charge of
Cases Incompetent
Permitted Counsel for Defend.
ants TO Examine All Evil
dence, Is Charge
Sensational Testimony Before
Congressional Committee in
BaIIinger-Pinchot Inquiry

WIAsHrNGroN. Feb 25.-The
wv charge by Horace Jones. q spe-
cisl agent Of the land ofice,
that James NJ. Sheridan. who was sent
by the authorities at Washington TO
take charge of the hearing in the Cum
ninghsm coal cases, practically threw
the government's case away by giving
counsel for the claimants an opportunity
TO examine all evidence collected by
special agents working under Louis r.
CLAWS, furnished the sensation today
at the Ballinger-Pinchot inquiry.
Attacks Sheridan's Competency
Jones made bitter attack upon the
competency of sheridan. who replaced
CLAWS in charge Of the cases, and de-
clared that although Claws was no
lawyer he knew more law than did
Sheridan.
Asked why he failed to protest to
Washington regarding the alleged in
competent presentation of the case,
Jones replied scornfulIy that he might
have been deemed insubordinate The
witness worked with CLAWS on the
Alaska cases and said he felt it was
reflection upon CLAWS that Sheridan
should have been sent out TO relieve
him.
On direct examination Jones proved
a most effective witness Under cross
examination he proved stubborn ana
defiant. flinging curt answers at com
mitteemen and counsel alike
Witness Badly Tangled
Aside from Jones the interest Of the
day centered in young man named
" ". Barr. q timber dealer brought
from Seattle 10 testify for CLAWS in
refutstion OF the charge that p miss
ing letters from the government files
had been found in q box belonging to
CLAWS and stored in the government
building in Seattle. On cross examina-
tion Barr became badly tangled.
Barr said he had suggested TO CLAWS
10 telephone his successor at Seattle
to see If the latter had found the
papers that CLAWS had turned over
following his dismissal from the serv-
ice Barr said he listened at an ex-
tension telephone while Christensen,
now chief of division. replied that
everything was 20. X" He said he
did this to protect Claws.
Asked to detail the conversation the
witness declared that he could only
remember that Christensen said that
everything was 20. X" He told also
OF visiting the storage room with
CLAWS, but said that neither he nor
CLAWS put any letters IN the box.
Partners in Land Deal
II was brought out on cross exsmi-
nation that CLAWS was assisting Barr
TO get possession of some timber lands
claimed by the state OF Washington.
but 10 which Barr says the state has
no right CLAWS is TO share equally in
the profits. The witness could not de-
tail all that CLAWS had agreed to- His
memory was bad. and the memorandum
Of agreement had been left in Seattle
Although he and CLAWS had been
chums for some years. and he had been
dealer in timber lands for seven
years, Barr denied that CLAWS had ever
given him any benefit Of his connec-
zion with the field service of the land
Office.
He said CLAWS picked out lands
which he and Barr are trying to OBJ
tain Barr said ne proposed to pay for
the lands with scrip issued by the gov
ernment to the Northern Pacific rail-
road for lands passed back by the rail
road into forest reserves.
Andrew Kennedy was the third wit
ness OF the day. Testifying to what
ne knew of the box in which the al
legged missing letters were found, he
said the box had been left partly open
ali the time it was in the federal build
ing This testimony was introduced
by Brandeis in advance of the testi-
mony that is TO be offered by the de-
fense as to the finding Of the docu-
ments