The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1911-03-01
L,,0sEs SCHEME
To ROB INDIANS
Congressional Committee Finds
That Improper Proposal Was
Made to Senator Gore.
THURST0N AND LONG WERE
MERELY PAID ATTORNEYS
Minority Finding, However, As
serts They We're Expected
to Lobby at Capital.

WASHINGTON. Feb. 2S,-The special
committee of the house, appointed iaSl
summer TO nyestigats r,Sar Senator conmec Gore
tion with ]. f McMurray's lndian AZ
torney contract In Okiahoma, made It's
final report to the house tonight. cha.
The majority OF the committee tinds
that Jake l.. Hamon actually did. about
May 6. 1910. make an Improper proposal
ray contracts and that about June 10,
1910. he approached Representative
Charles F. Creager with an improper pro-
posal on the same subject,
The committee finds no evidence, now :
evei TO show That Hamon was acting
by authority OF OF with the consent OF
knowledge OF McMurray.'
The committee exoncrates McMurray oil
any connection with an attempt impToo'
erly Ia influence members of the house
or senate. II does find, however. that
he used more than undue influence To
secure the support OF Chief Green Nc
Curtain and his son. d. {: McCurtain, IN
getting these contracts. by transferring
n contingent interest Of SIS. 900 in the
contracts 10 u. &. McCurtain,
rhe committee finds that no member
of the house or scnate had any Interest
whatever in the McMurray contracts.
The intmatIon that Representatives
Bird s. Mcclure OF oklahoma had some
and TO have arisen from the friendly re.
lations existing between Mcclure and
McMurray,
Long and Thurston.
The connection of former. Senator Ches-
John NJ. Thurston of Nebraska with the
McMurrsy contracts is held TO have been
simply the interests Of attorneys prop
crly employed.
The committee also finds that a lobby
existed In Washington during the last
session in the interest OF the McMurray
contracts but does not find any evidence
that IL resulted in corrupt practices, or
that improper oyertures were made to
members of congress, evcept in the case
OF the committee is signed by its chair
man, Charles II. Burke of South Dakota,
and by Representative Clarence b Miller
of Minnesota and Representative Philip
+. Campbell of Kansas.
Representative John II. Stephens of
Texas presented minority report say
stor Gore put the house on its guard and
prevented the approval of the McMurray
contracts. thus defeating these out
aS have despoed Tn' ihe Indians Of aeV
eral million dollars.
Mr.. Stephens's report maintains that
1ens ,hess was powerful lobby OBJ engaged by
port, admits having in his employ former
United States senators Long OF Kansas
and Ihurrston OF Nebraska and also Rich
ard G.. Adams an attorney at Wash
ington
Legislative Lobby.
The duty OF these employees" says
the report. would compel them to lobby
very kind OF an amendment that Rep
resertativc MCGUIRE says he received
from either McMurray or Governor John
son and had Mr.. Tawney offer as an
amendment TO bill before a conference
committee"
Mr. Stephens says Senator Gore was
approached by Jake l. Hanon substan-
tally as charged by Gore: that Hamon
probably was acting with authority or
knowledge OF McMurray. that n MEM
her OF congress was approached by
Ilamon substantially as charged by Gore,
that the prepondcrance OF evidence shows
questionable activity on the part OF
member that to my mind indicates an
interest,"" that the evidence does not
Nebraska and a former senator from
Kansas were interested In the McMurray
contracts. but that the evidence shows
no imprppriety OF such interest: nor that
they attempted improperly TO influence
any senator or representative in respect
to the McMurrsY contracts"