The Marion daily mirror. (Marion, Ohio) 1892-1912, 1910-02-26
Will Tell About the Miss
ing Documents.
Former Special Agent of the Land
Onicc, Horace 4. Jones Goes on
tho stand and Substantiates the
Evidence Already Given by CLAWS
and Others Who Have Been Called
to Testify In the Interior Depart
mcnt Investigation.
By United Press wire.

the announcement that Clifford Pin
chot former chief forester and party
of the second part In the hyphanated
controversy over conservation, would
probably take the witness stand, a
crowd packed the hearing room of
the congressional Investigating COM
mittee when that body resumed its
sessions Friday.
Half OF the audience were ladies
and there was a flutter of excite
ment, n craning of necks and a rus
tlng of feminine furbelows when
| Pinchot, accompanied by his brother
Amos, appeared In the room. All the
| principals in the controversy except
Secretary Ballinger and Assistant
Secretary Pierce were present when
the committee convened.
c. A. Christensen, who succeeded
l.. II. CLAWS as chief of the Seattle
field service. had come in response
| to subpoena issued by the commit
tee week ago. Christensen is
called by the Ballinger forces to tes-
tify concerning the alleged finding OF
certain official documents long
thought to be missing in boxes con-
tanning Claws effects at Seattle. His
testimony will probably be the signal
| for a hot cross examination by At
torney Brandeis for CLAWS. as the
latter has characterized this as
"frame-up."
The committee held short exec
utive. session prior to the public
hearing When they filed into the
hearing room Attorney Brandeis.
who is counsel for Pinchot, immedi-
ately arose.
| "I desre,' he said. ''to introduce
the evidence recently given by J. N.
steele and Stephen Birch, members
of the Morgan -Guggenheim syndi-
cate. before the senate committee on
territories, relative to the connection
which that syndicate had with the
Cunningham claims"
1t was finally decided not to receive
this evidence at this time but to call
steele and Birch to testify.
81 want them as my Witnesses,
said Brandeis. Chairman Nelson said
these two men had already asked to
be present and testify.
Brandeis then called Horace Tillard
Jones, former special agent of the
land Office and an associate of l.. X.
CLAWS, i'm his investigation of the
Alaska coal cases. 1t was on June
21, 1907, when Jones said he was first
directed to begin investigation of the
Alaska coal cases by q letter from
Acting Commissioner bennett. On
July s. according TO his testimony and
documentary evidence submitted by
Brandeis, he went to Juneau, Alaska,
to investigate those claims.
Jones said that on July 20, 1907. he
called on Commissioner Ballinger
then in Seattle, in company with Spe-
cial Agent Love and talked over coal
land regulations. Subsequently Jones
said he had numerous conferences
with Commissioner Ballinger in the
law Offices of the latter.
with the exception of one inves-
tigation." Jones testified, "all these
conferences related TO the Alaskan
coal cases.
AT one OF these, ! told the judge
that Love who wa. associated with
me seemed to be half-hearted in his
work and / told him of a conversa-
ton / had with Love in which he said
lie was glad / had the direction of
the work and not himself. because OF
his friendship for some of the people
involved. 1 told this to Judge Bal
linger and said I did not think this
was proper spirit for an investigat-
or and he agreed with me-"
~ understand my Instructions were
TO investigate thoroughly the Alaskan
cases." declared Jones, "and also to
report progress 10 Commissioner Bal
linger. l tried TO carry them out"
Continuing. Jones related the cir
cumstances leading up to his report
of August 10. 1907. The witness
corro borated in every particular the
testimony of previous witnesses as to
the action of Special Agent II. X.
4 Love. associated with Jones in the
! investigation, In refusing to sign this
report
q Referring to an Interview which
the witness said CLAWS and himself
. had with ex-Goyernor Miles c.
O Moore. one of the promoters in the
a Cunningham group, IL herad Moore
say" Jones declared, that II IL had
not been for CLAWS. his people would
. have had their patents We feared
we would not be able to get an af-
:, fidayit from Clarence Cunningham
: because Moore might bring pressure
to keep him from talking"
. CLAWS testimony relative 40 lef-
: forts he made to obtain criminal pro-
ceedings for fraud against Alaskan
j, claimants was also corroborated by
Jones,
AT this point Brandeis produced q
document obtained from the interior
department.
II have here assigned statement b,
l.. r.. CLAWS and H.. II. Jones'
Q Brandeis said. and then read the
Q agents affidavit relative to the con.
4 versation with ID. A. McKenzie. Of
, Seattle.
y mckenzie came to our ONCE June
}. '26. 1902, We had q stenographer