The Idaho Republican., 1916-06-02
NEW SCANDAL AT BOISE

A scandal has developed at Boise
in connection with the state land de-
partment over school loans In which
State Auditor F. L. Huston appears
to be the most culpable, and Cover
nor Alexander and Secretary of State
George Barker have been remiss in
their official duties. The state does
not seem to have lost anything, no
grating Is charged, and yet the
transactions In question are irregu-
lar, illegal and unsafe, and an at
tempt was made to save Huston or
his associates In loan, the sum Of
$3.50, the same being loss to the
state. When the transaction was re-
ported and made public, the land
board including the governor and
secretary of state rescinded their
former action regarding the $40
and it will probably be paid If 1t has
not already. Barker and Huston are
Republicans and the governor is a
Democrat, and they sat down to-
getherand did this loose piece OF
business and then Huston took ad-
vantage of them afterwards. Briefly
this is the way it happened:
In February, 1915, applications
were made for loans on four tracts
Of land by Idaho Falls parties, one
Of them being owned by the father
Of State Auditor Huston and the
other three pieces by other people
but the land had just been decided
to them by Huston and was for the
time bein lin their names, not his.
The applications for the loan were
made out in Huston's hand writingl
and three or the tracts were examin-
ed and appraised for the state by
Huston; the other by George Day, /,
state land commissioner. The loansI
were granted and altho the abstracts |
had not been written up to show that
the title was clear, they decided to
draw the warrants for the amountsl
and send them to an Idaho Falls
bank to be delivered when the alb
Stracts were examined and approved.
A letter was written in duplicate to
the. bank with such Instructions,
the warrants were enclosed and seal
ed, copy Of the letter placed on
file, and at this point Huston said
he was going to Idaho Falls and
would carry the letter himself to the
bank. He arrived at Idaho Falls the
next morning, presented three of the
warrants at the bank for payment
and they were honored. The letter
that had been sealed in the same en-
velope was not presented and the
bank knew nothing of the order that
had been made not to honor the war
rants until advised by the land board
to do SO. When search was made
For the copy of the letter that had
been filed in the office of the land
board, it was missing. The warrants
lad been honored and the land de- !.
oartment did not know yet whether !.
he title was clear, but the money !
lad been paid on the warrants. )
The land board charges a fee of / r
)er cent of the amount of each loan +
% defray the expense of examining, +
'r appraising, lands on which loans :
ire made, and this is turned into !
he treasury. The board did not re- v
luire payment of the fees in these +
our cases involving $4,000 and the .
Usual fee would be $3.50. =
1t is not considered the proper +
AAA6 AOA q StdbC OlAC1dl W UUTTOWI
money of the state thru himself and Il
q this instance Huston appraised the q
and, sat on a board that allowed !,
he loans, acted as messenger to car h
y the papers to destination and pre- q
ented the warrants at the bank. n
he disappearance of both copies of q
he letter pertaining to holding the
casts reflection upon Hus- ~
on. The fact that the farms had 9,
cen transferred to others and Hus- r,
on SO active in handling the money N
uggests the probability of his still Z
eing interested IL not the real own st
r of the lands. 81 g,
The rule of the land board is thatl al
OF more than one-third of the valueI 81
the lands shall be loaned on them. IL
luston paid taxes last year on a val
alton of $9,916.20, and the board a
,aned him $4,000 on. the property, u
r about $40 an acre more than it h
as assessed at and it now develops til