The Sentinel=record., 1912-02-08
SCANDAL IN
 EVERGLADES
HOUSE COMMITTEE DECIDES ON THOROUGH PROBE OF sEcRE-
 TARY WILSON'S ACTS.
Solicitor Mecabe Declares 1t an At. tempt to 5esmireh Secretary of Agriculture Which Will Event.
 ually Fail.

Washington. Feb. 7.-Thoroueh in- yestigation of the charges that gov ernment reports on Florida everglade lands were suppressed by officials of the department of agriculture at the instance Of land speculators and that department engineers were dismiss ed because of controversies in this connection, was determined upon to- day by the democratic members of the house committee on expenditures in the department of agriculture.
 After a conference, Representative Moss of Indiana. chairman of the com mittee, declared the formal order for the inquiry would be executed at meeting of the full committee tomor. row.
 The committee has determined that there the circumstances in connec- tion with this case that need thor ough investigation, said Chairman Moss, "and we already have decided to subpoena as one of the first wit nesses, J O. Wright the chief drain age engineer of the state of Florida, formerly an engineer in the drainage division of the department of agri- culture, who made charges against his former associate engineers in the department which resulted in their dismissal last Saturday by order Of Secretary Wilson,
 A statement issued tonight by So licitor McCabe of the department ot agriculture. with the approval of Sec retary Wilson, declares that the charges against the department are untrue and that "the effort to be. smirch the secretary of agriculture win fail"
 The house committee tomorrow will plan the form Of the investigation and probably the first witness will b. the chief accountant of the depart nlent of agriculture, A Zaphone who also was the first to appear as witness in the case of pr Wiley.
 C. G Elliott, former chief engineer of the drainage division, and his as sistant, A. D. Warehouse. who were dismissed upon recommendation of Solicitor McCabe today engaged az counsel to represent them at the hearing. Henry E. Davis, who defend ed pr Wiley
 Solicitor McCabe's statement an proved by Secretary Wilson, follows
 lin q prejudiced. one,sided state ment given out by Representative Frank Clark of Florida. on the ever glade controversy, it is sought to show that the reason the secretary of agriculture suppressed a circular of information which had been prepared by the office of Dr. Wiley of i1yesti- cations, and declined to print a cop plete report of the drainage work which the department had done in the everglades was because the sec retary did not regard the circular and reports as sufficiently favorable to please the land promoters who were operating in the glades. In Mir Clarks statement it is further sought to show that the recent dis missal of Messrs. Elliott and More house. drainage engineers. was for failure to show sufficient fayors to the land promoters
 Both of these statements are un- true and Mr. Clark's effort to be smirch the secretary of agriculture will fail. The secretary refused to print the report of the work dcae in the glades because not only were his engineers, Mir. Wright and Mir, Ell ott fKs disagreement as to Ahe cor rect Interpretation of the work done by the department in the glades, but MT Elliott, without further inyesti- gation. radically changed his position and the experts of the bureau of plant industry familiar with Florida conditions. disagreed with both Mir Wright and MT Elliott
 Elliott and Morehouse we're dis missed by the secretary of agrieul ture begause they had certified and presented false accounts. knowing them to be false, on which the gov ernment had paid out money Not. only did theyskpow the accounts were false, but they procured the persons to make the false accounts, telline these persons that they would re-