The Hartford herald., 1910-08-17
INDIANS YIELDED
TO SHYLOCKS
In Sale of Their Lands,
Is Shown In
/. TESTIMONY OFFERED BY GORE
Lobbyists We're Exceedingly
Active at the Time of
Alleged Bribe.
SOME VERY AMUSING COMMENT

McAlester, Okla, Aug. 13.-While
j. F. McMurray was in Washington
last May urging the approval of his
contracts by which he and his asso-
ciates would be able to secure 10
per cent attorneys fees on the sale of
S3O.OOO,OOO worth of land owned by
the Indians, the Indians themselves
we're being urged to send kilograms
to Washington recommending the
sale.
A few days before May 6, on which
date Senator Gore charged he was
offered a $4,000 or $4,000 bribe
to induce Congress to approve the
contracts. McMurray telegraphed to
Oklahoma:
Send not less than so letters and
kilograms and keep up the work for
a week at different towns. Looks
better here. We will win, l know"
This evidence was brought out in
the investigation of the land deal be-
fore the congressional committee to-
day. Senator Gore said he introduc-
ed it to show the activity at Wash
inGton at the time the bribe is al
legged to have been made
Many Choctaw Indians went on the
stand to show that shortly after Nc
Murray sent his telegram they were
visited by George w. Scott, McMur-
rays agent.
Scott asked the Indians TO sign
kilograms approving the sale of the
100000 acres of coal and asphalt
land on the 10 per cent. attorney
fees" basis.
The Indians kilograms were ad-
dressed to Richard c. Adams, an at
torney at Washington, who was sup
posed by the Indians to give the mes
fages to President Taft.
The Indians readily sent the tele-
grams, they testified, because they
were impatient at the delay of the
Government in disposing of the land
according to treaty promises.
References to Vice President Sher-
man and Senator Charles Curtis, of
Kansas, were made in a letter intro
duced by Senator Gore. 1t had been
explained by Congressman c. E.
Creager that he and Richard Adams
had called upon President Taft and
that the President had announced his
disapproval of a plan to reopen the
tribal rolls so that more claimants
might enter, and his approval of set
tling the Indian land question.
President Taft, it is said, wrote
letter to that effect and declared his
willingness to have it given wide
publicity. After the letter was made
public, George Scott wrote to Mr.Ad-'
ans at Washington: please say
to the President that his course is
TO be commended. He has placed
himself on record in his letter to you
as against the reOpening of the rolls
and as a settlement of our affairs.
His Office will give prestige to our
demands.
with Mr.. McMurray there to state
our claims, with Mr.. Curtis and Mr..
sherman, who understand better
than others what we want, and with
the assistance of the President, It
begins to look like we are coming in
to our own"
Senator Gore stated that he had
NOT introduced the letter because of
the mention of Vice President Sher-
man and Senator Curtis. The lat
ter, together with President Taft, it
already has been shown in previous
testimony, had declared themselves
against the 10 per cent. fee clause
in the McMurray contracts.
Much amusement was caused by
the testimony of j. r. Logan. "one
day last November" he said, "a GER
tain Tom Sanguin called on me to
have me sign the McMurray con-
tracts. | asked him how McMurray
was going to do anything.
"He said, Well, Mack has powerful
influence at Washington. He can at
ford to spend lots of money. For
instance, if he makes $3,OO0,OO0 out
Of these contracts he can afford to
spend 81, 100000 to get it.
"'out of his 10 per cent. he can
give one per cent.to one Senator, one
or two to another couple per cent.
to some Congressman, and still he
will have a fortune left. That way