Manchester Democrat. [volume] (Manchester, Iowa) 1875-1930, 1911-03-01
SPECIAL WASHINGTON coRREs-
PoNDENCE.
BY CLYDE H. Tayenner.

hall of Congress, and his yindication
has gone into the Congressional Rec
ord, there to remain for all time as
tribute to his honesty and patriotism.
Nearly every reader of this article
Will he able to recall the name of
CLAWS. He is just a young man. He
was once upon a time special agent
under Secretary of the Interior Ball
niger.
Because he did his duty, saving val
liable coal lands in Alaska from
falling into the hands of j. P. Nor
gan, the Guggenheims and others, he
was arbitrarily. summarily and with
otr. hearing dismissed from the gov
ernment service. This was his re.
ward for saving to the people some
80 coal claims containing by actual
survey approximately 66,OOO,O00 long
tons of coal.
President Taft, United States At
tormey General Wickersham and
Secretary of the Interior Ballinger In
tended this boys dismissal should
carry with it disgrace. Perhaps his
punishment was intended as warn.
ing to other employees of the govern
ment not to interfere with the carry
ing out Of policies approved by the
head of a department.
CLAWS took his punishment, and is
now running little fruit ranch out
in the state of Washington. Per-
haps he feels his efforts were not
appreciated. He would not have
thought so, however, II he could
have been in the gallery Of the
House of Representatives when Judge
James M. Graham delivered his
speech ON the Ballinger investiga-
ton. The Illinois, member paid
high tribute to CLAWS.
When this story opens CLAWS was
truly young man-only "a years
Old" said Judge Graham. "He had
no ak to grind, mo enemies to punish,
no friends to reward He had i'm
structions to guide him in his work
He believed they were given serious
ly. He is by nature serious and
matter of fact. He Is not endowed
with much imagination, but he has
an abundance OF courage, intelM
gence and sterling honesty. He was
convinced these claims were ii
fraud of the law, and hence fraud
upon the people.
"A whole corps OF his superior Of
ficers tried to shake his purpose, bu
I'm vain. Losing faith in the goot
intentions of the Commissioner O
the General Land Office, he appeal
ed to his friend Schwartz and t.
The Secretary Of the interior. al
stand arrayed against him. VIVA
shall he do? He knows the value
the enormous value-of the proper
ty which is about to be fraudulent,
taken from the people. He wants t,
prevent it, but he finds the Who'll.
department with which he Is con
nected against him.
: FINALLY he turns to the forestr
5 bureau for assistance. There b
thinks he finds a different standar
Of public morality prevailing. H
finds them as faithful as the 9th
l ers seem faithless; the one alert t
serve the people, the other t,
!. serve the syndicae; he finds tn
difference between active. aggressive
militant. public honesty, and tina
pretense OF patriotism which appeal
to the weaknesses and predudices Q
che people while it exploits them
In short, the difference between Gi,
r ford Pinchot and Richard Ballinger.
There are many ways Of manifes
3 ing courage. The world has cele
: DRAFTED in song and story the courag
Of men who in the clamor Of wa
and the excitement Of battle hav
marched face to face with death, an
would not pluck single laure
8 from their brows, but tell 70
: there is kind OF courage higher e,
en- than that, the kind that stand
0 alone, unaided for months and eve
e years, facing great odds, facing gres
Loss. facing the loss of friends. tn
y loss Of place and OF prestige, an
: yet stands ever solidly for duty an
o for that which is right. simply b
n cause it is right. That is the higl
t est courage, and that is the kind {
: courage shown by this young ma
v Claws"
: The Lorimer Case.
some able arguments are bein
made in senate in favor of Lorin
+ erism. The pro-Lorimer speeche.
s however, sound much like the plea
made by the great corporation Law
: yers. The senators who are urgin
lorimers retention find TECHNICAL
les in the law, and turn them
! favor Of special privilege, instead I
in favor of the people. Query: Ho'
{ does it come that no one ever find
a teehnicality in the statutes whic
can be turned in favor of the pull
nc interest, and against corruption?
Magazines viii Win.
Postmaster General Hitchcock he
o virtually abandoned his fight upo
b the independent magazines OF th
d country. II Congress had adopte
r his plan of increasing the magazin
rate IRON ! to cents pound man
: Of the popular independent maya
h zines would have been driven out {
r business. Hitchcock's explanation I
: the proposed increase was that b
: wished to reduce the postal defici
Only two week before he announce
his attack ON the magazines, howe,
er, the Postmaster General advoca