Heppner gazette. [volume] (Heppner, Morrow County, Or.) 1892-1912, 1911-07-06
History of Coal Cases.

| tory OF the cunningham coal claims
is as follows:
1903-Originally located by Clarence
Cunningham as agent.
1904-NeW land law passed.
| 1904-Claims relocated by Cunning
ham for original group and severa
new entrymen.
1905-6-Claims investigated by H. X
Love, who reported favorably.
1907-Claimants furnish proof of en-
try before Department of Interior
19O7-Proofs allowed and final re
ceipts issued for payments on land
190S-Claims Investigated by L. R.
CLAWS and H. T. Jones for the
Land Department. An adverse re-
port was made.
1909-Hearing ordered in Seattle
which was followed by hearings
in Spokane, Cleveland, New York,
Washington, d. c., Paris and Rome.
1909-Hearings closed in April.
1901. r. CLAWS, Clifford Pinchot
and others discharged from the
public service.
1911-Secretary of Interior Ballinger
resigns and Walter L. Fisher is ap-
pointed to succeed him.
1911-Secretary Fisher approves de-
cision of Commissioner Fred Den
net, disallowing the claims and
conceling the entries.
Washington, June 26.-By action
of Secretary Fisher of the Depart
ment of Interior in officially APPROX.
ing the findings of Fred bennett,
commissioner of the land office, the
famous Cunningham Alaskan coal
claims were formally disallowed to-
day.
1t was these claims through which
it has been alleged that the Morgan
Guggenheim syndicate made plans
to extend their great interests in
Alaska and to secure control of one
of the most valuable coal fields in
the world. Secretary Fishers de-
cision today is believed to be vir.
tually the closing of the last door
to the Cunningham claimants, whose
claims have been held up since 1907,
when they were first disapproved by
Louis r. CLAWS and H. T. Jones, as
special agents of the land office.
Although attorneys for the claim
ants have threatened an appeal to
the United States Supreme Court,
such an appeal cannot be based on
the findings of fact as announced
by the department, which Secretary
FISHER says in his decision he con-
siders conclusive, but only on some
point of law involved.
Since the Cunningham claims came
into public notice two years ago,
they have caused the Ballinger-Pin-
chot investigation by congress, and
the dismissal from the public service
of Clifford Pinchot, chief forester,
and Louis r. CLAWS, chief of a field
division in the land office, who had
the claims, besides sew
eral minor officials The dismissal
of both Pinchot and CLAWS was
brought about by their insubordina-
ton in attacking R. A. Ballinger,
then secretary of the interior
Washington, June 26.-The Cana
dian reciprocity bill emerged from
Its first ordeal in the senate tonight
unscathed. The Root amendment,
a modification of the wood
pulp and paper section of the agree
ment was defeated after seven hours.
Of debate, by an overwhelming vote.
The friends of the amendment were
so satisfied of its defeat that a roll
call was not demanded.
Senator La Toilette announced that
he would give the senate a chance
to pass on general tariff amend
ments for free paper, free lumber
and lumber products and for reduc-
tions in other schedules. Senator
Clapp also announced his intention
Of offering a free paper amendment
ater and other senators gave evil
1ence of their purpose of force con-
of tariff revision on the
widest plane.
Attack on the Root amendment was
with attacks on the
whole reciprocity measure in the de-
bate which resulted in the defeat
1f Senator Roots proposal to change
he house bill by requiring that all
Canadian provinces should remove
heir export restrictions on pulp
wood and its products before the
reciprocal features of the wood pulp
and print paper section of the agree
nent went into effect