The Bemidji daily pioneer. [volume] (Bemidji, Minn.) 1904-1971, 1910-10-05
Agent Brents Comes to Bemidji and
Declares Bribery Charges We're
Not Authorized By Him
COUNTY ATTORNEY FUNCK CALM
Indicates There Will Be no Battle Fought
Prepares Briefs to Establish Pre-
else Right of Agents.

| Although part of the population
Istill insists on repairing their re-
volvers. sparrow guns and othe,
heavy artillery, Cass Lake for the
most part has subsidized into a state
of coma, and the scene of the real
activities of her fight for law, order,
saloons and newspaper space shifts
to Bemidji and Washington, D. C. 2
The latter place is making ready
to receive DR.. Dumas, mayor of
Cass Lake and ]. M. W1therow,
mayor or ,Moorhead. Tomorrow
the two mayors will be received by
Secretary of the Interior Ballinger
and they will place before him the
details of the complaints of the
people OF the "restricted district. "
AS last resort Mayor Dumas may
inform the secretary that the Cass
Lake fire department is armed
and ready for business.
Bemidji gets into the glare by
having today within her borders T..
E. Brents, the special government
agent, who according to reports out
of Cass Lake has an armful of proof
to the effect that saloonkeepers there
have been paying protection" money
to the Indian agents. i,
A. M. Funck, county attorney of
Cass county, is also in Bemidji and
both gentlemen had more of interest
to say than they were willing to
authorize to be printed.
Agent Brents chose his words with
caution and they were decidedly
limited in number, and none was
intended for publication.
He did make it plain, however,
that the reports of bribery sent out
of Cass Lake were premature. Still
he would not deny but that he had
gathered some interesting facts dur
ing his short stay in Minnesota.
He said he had not finished his
work, that he had made no report
of any kind to the government,
would not do so for some time, had
given out nothing for publication,
could not give out anything and that
any reports indicating that he had
evidence of startling character
must not be con strued as having his
endorsement.
County Attorney Funck had some
things to say about the condition of
affairs in his home town which do
not exactly haromize with the up
and at 'em" reports whichhave been
flashed out of that city. ,. l..
Mr.. Funck's mission here at this
time is to avail himself of the district
court law library in the preparation
of briefs to be submitted in the
Sero-Davis assault case in federal
court at Minneapolis Oct. FL.
There is really but one point to be
es tablished at that time," said Mr..
Funck, and that is whether the gov
eminent agents have right to use
the methods they have used in at.
tempting to do away with contra.
band liquor. ...>. .-......s--...
We doubt the right of the agents
to force persons to submit to an ex-
animation of their personal belong.
ings or to search private residences.
Should an unfavoraLle decision be
rendered it is likely that we shall
carry the case to higher courts as
we are determined to establish jus t
what the rights of the agents are and
how far they can 60 without search
war; ant.
Gas to the jurisdiction OF the
state courts in an assault case Of
this kind, we believe there can be
no ground for doubt. l think that
even the government attorneys
would admit that Mr.. Sero and
Mr.. Davis will be remanded back
to the sheriff and that they will
thus be compelled to pay their
fines, as they would have done in
the first place had not the govern
noc !, + uyic bod thar, - 80.