The Bemidji daily pioneer., 1913-01-18
The Graham Investigation.

The Graham Investigation.
The report of the Graham investi-
eating committee, of which extracts
were printed in this paper yesterday
has brought to light many facts
which the people of Minnesota sus-
pected had existed but of which they
had no proof. In order that the read
ers Of the Pioneer may have more in
formation on the matter, the follow
ing additional paragraphs are print
ed tonight from the report.
The report describes the White
Earth reservation as a erich heri-
tage." ''It embraces approximately
10000 acres of land with valuable
forests of pine, probably 500,00O,000
feet, and an ample quantity and var
iety of hardwood for fuel" said the
report. "A large portion of the land
was of great fertility and being
prairie was easy to break and culti-
vate.
'The first inroad upon the .reser-
walton was of the requirement of four
townships in the northeast corner,
and was made by the lumber COM
panies. First, statement was Sc
cured from those in authority that
the Indians did not need all the land
in the reservation. Then, under the
act of Jan. IA, 1889, these four
townships were ceded back by the
Indians to the government to be sold
for their benefit. The pine on them
was to be disposed of at not less than
SO per 1000 feet and the agricultural
lands at not less than $1.25 per acre.
Through incompetency or for some
reason, the estimator grossly under
estimated the amount of the standing
pine timber. 1t was advertised to be
sold at auction to the highest bidder
at Crookston, Minn., Nov. q, 1900.
"Your committee finds, from un-
disputed testimony that this sale was
fraudulent in the details of it's accom-
plishment. In addition to he false
estimates used to fix the minimum
price there was gross collusion among
the real purchasers. The evidence
taken clearly demonstrated this. One
witness testified that after partici-
patin in the bids for one day he re-
ceived the sum of $4,000 for. the pur-
chases that he had made, upon his
promise to depart and not further
interfere in the sale. We believe that
by such ,underestimates and collusion
in the interests of big lumbermen
the Indians did not receive one half
the fair value of the timber on these
four sections. No authorized person
was present to represent them or
watch. their interests. Most of the
purchases were made by paid agents
of lumber companies, their principals
meanwhile standing by mute. 49,
"The resultisg scandal was 80 great
that rumors- of it reached Secretary
of the Interior e. A. Hitchcock, who
took such measures as he could to in
vestigate. Finally the purchases
were required to make sworn state
ments that they were not parties to
any collusion before certificates Of
sale would issue. This was very
easy, as they were mere dummies, and
their principals, the men to whom
they afterwards conveyed, were the
principals in collusion. The secretary
was thus hoodwinked, abstracts Of
title made for the benefit of the COM
mittee fully substantiated the charges
Of this conspiracy, it appearing there
from that many years after the sale
deeds were placed on record showing
that practically all the timber with
in certain boundaries was secured by
one concern, and that within certain
other boundaries by another. These
two concerns, to-wit: The Nichols
Chisholm Lumber company. and the
Wild Rice Lumber company. are the
same concerns that afterwards Sc
cured the bulk Of the timber upon