Americus times-recorder. [volume] (Americus, Ga.) 1891-current, 1912-03-02
GRAFTERS GOT
LARGE LOOT IN
INTERIOR DEPT.
RICH FIELD FOR TIRATES
Also Bad Thorn in Flesh Of
Republicans

Washington, March Though the
grafters have been found in every
government department and huge
sums of money stolen in one way or
another the department of the interior
leads the list of departments in fur
nishing rich spoils for financial pir-
ates. Dirng the last twenty-five years
| it has been estimated that more than
/ $50, 100000 has been stolen from the
government in the shape Of lands. Re-
/ Gently this estmate has been some
| what augmented when it was found
that certain corporations had laid
greedy hands on valuable mineral
lands in the West and in Alaska. In
Alaska alone the total land grabbing
has been estimated at over 100000
coo.
This is one of the fruits of a re-
publican administration.
Land depreciation in the early days
was confined mainly to the ranchers
This form of land grabbing was term
ed illegal fencing" From that the
frauds extended to real estate dealers
who bought soldier scrip, homestead
entry deeds, lieu scrip and other
forms of government deeds conveying
public lands porivate owners. In la
ter days corporations entered the field
4til practically all lands in the West
We're owned by syndicates.
Public clamor made 1t mandatory on
the pant of the government to under.
take an investigation. Detectives wer
hired, special bureaus We're organize
and the work of retaining lands il
legally obtained from the government
was commenced The mares nest
thus unearthed brought within the
reach of the law some of the mos;
prominent men in public and private
life. Numbers of the men were sen,
to the penitentiary and others were
allowed to retain their good names
and regulations only after the strong
est pressure was brought to bear.
This condition of affairs greatly re-
fiected upon the various republican ad-
ministrations. Not a secretary of the
interior department down to the Bal
linger regime under Taft passed four
years in office without having been
lnder fire. Either as to his action in
res"eCt to the opening of the public
lands to entry or in prosecution
of the grafters who obtained lands
from the government. Some harsh
criticism was directed to several Of
the secretaries, and in one case it has
been openly stated that the cabinet
officer was too closely allied with thu
interests to dispe the cloud of graf
! Secretary Ballinger, who resigned
his portfolio was under constant fire
from the time he entered President
! Taft's cabinet The finger of accusa-
ton was pointed at him by reason o.
! his action in respect to the Cunning
/ ham coal claims in Alaska, in whic}
/ it was alleged that MI Ballinger had
passed the claims after having been
! advised that they We're tainted witt
fraud.
In the main however, large corpo-
rations of the country have been the
principal offenders. Real estate firms
mining firms and other companies en-
gagged in large industries in the mid
die West have been accused at differ
ent times of land-grabbing. The mos
gigantic frauds, however, were those
carried on by a ring of real estate
dealers in San Francisco. Their mode
: of operation defied detection by the
officers of the government for years.