ALASKA FORUM
(OFFICIAL PAPER)
James B. Wingate, Editor and Manager
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SATURDAY, JULY 15. 1905.
WILL INVESTIGATE
THE “INVESTIGATOR"
There are the very best of reasons
for believing that the charges which
have been made against the officials of
the Third division—graft and corrup
tion-will receive an extensive congres
sional airing. Such a course is justifi
able and necessary, owing to the per
sistent attitude of the president in up
holding the unsavory report of Special
“Investigator" Day, relative to the
judiciary of the Third division. The
corrupt methods adopted by Day in se
curing data from which to compile his
report, together with the jobbery of
others closely connected therewith,
should be given the greatest publicity.
Such corrupt schemes as have been
planned and executed by Wickersham
and his henchmen, should not be con
doned nor permitted to receive the en
dorsement of the president, without the
matter receiving a thorough public ex
posure of the unjust official manipula
tions connected therewith. The re
-marks of Special U. S. Attorney Heney
at San Franeisco, recently, are "justly
applicable to the existing state of af
fairs in the Wickersham administiation
and Day’s investigation thereof. Re
ferring to frauds against the govern
ment, Attorney Heney said: “The
- trouble is that we have one thousand
officials who are passively dishonest to
one who is actively honest!”
There are inspectors of the different
departments for the express purpose of
preventing and detecting frauds again
st the government. When these offic
ials fail to detect and report existing
. frauds and corruption, it follows that
either-bribery, incompetency or self
implication prevents them from action.
f
“INVESTIGATORS” TRAVEL
WITH “BRASS BANDS”
The fact that “Special Investigator”
Day with a brass band, came hunting
“partridges” in Alaska. Being met
on the Yukon by the well drilled band
of henchmen belonging to the “part
ridges” of the Third division, a truce
was declared.. Day partakes of the
f
forbidden fruit; refuses testimony on
matters under investigation, and re
turns to Washington with a fixed report.
When once the operating machinery
of a corrupt administration becomes
perfected, it is almost impossible to
segregate any part therefrom through
charges of corruption. The fact has
been fully demonstrated in the Third
judicial division. Judge Wickersham
has so manipulated the welding togeth
er of the different parts of the govern
mental machinery under his control,
that even the president’s “personal
representative” was moved by the
power thereof.
The fact that Deputy marshal Geo.
Dreibelbis made a profit of 300 per cent
to the extent of several thousand dol
lars, on supplies furnished the govern
ment by himself, through his exclusive
food supply privilege, and was upheld
in such manipulation by his superiors
in office as well as by the inspector
speaks for itself. The fact that the
grand jury was officially prevented
from examining the marshal’s books,
might also be considered as bearing on
the matter.
The fact of the existence of fraud
and corruption in Commissioner J. Lin
dley Green’s office being publicly
brought to the attention of Judge Wick
ersham, and the strong arm of official
protection thrown around the accused.
The commission of frauds against the
government is thus encouraged by the
chief executive of the Third division,
and shows that something is radically
wrong. The senatorial airing which
Wickersham matters are to receive will
strengthen the remarks of Mr. Heney,
and also place certain “inspectors” and
“special investigators” before the pub
lic in their proper light.
Wickersham does not attempt to dis
pute the truthfulness of the charges of
graft and corrupt manipulations be
cause he well knows them to be matters
of record. He has been held in office
by the president, against political cour
tesy due the senate, and demands for
justice from the people. This action
gives him and coll?agues ample time
to rectify, if possible, any recor ds of
graft and corruption, as well as the of
ficial power to overcome, through their
corrupt methods, existing evidences of
their guilt. That is their reason for
saying; “The president bears as great
a dissimilarity to his party as a jewel
bears to a dung hill.”
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