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About Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922 | View Entire Issue (Aug. 14, 1918)
THE BEE:- WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 14; 1918. JRIG6S CALLS SHUMVAY ON THE POTASH LEASES Reviews History of the Held-Up Applications, the Juggle of the Law, and Makes Per tinent Suggestions. . Antioch, Heb., Aug. 7. To the Edi tor of The Bee: In your paper of T..t on i -i:-t juiy was 1JUUU5UCU an arutic writ ten by Commissioner G. -L. Shum way on the potash question, in which he says: "We have tried to 'give equal courtesy to all in this matter snid have no interest in who are the - successful contestants for the depos its on state lands just so they are square with the state." As to this statement I would like to have hi honor answer a few questions: Why was the application for miner al right on section 36, township 26. range 45, Sheridan county, held up in the commissioner's office from the 15th day of May, 1917, till July 26 of the same year, on which date I re ; ceived the following letter, mailed at ocottsbluff, Mr. Shumway s old home . town: '"Scottsbluff, July 26. 1917. Mr. T. L. Briggs, Antioch, Neb. Dear sir: Since your application for a mineral lease upon section you hold under your agricultural and grazing privil ege was received, another application for'.the same section has been received for the same land. I judge it might be well for me to postpone any ac tion until 1 return to Lincoln, after which I presume it will be necessary under the Tules of the board to adver tise and give the mineral privilege to tne nienest bidder, i am now on ; iv vacation and expect to return in coupie oi weeKs. in ine meantime it you wish to communicate, either write the office or me at this point. If you should happen to be coming to ftcottsblutr. please let me know a few days in advance, as I may be out ot town for a time. The state is par ticularly interested in securing the earliest possible development of the potash industry on its lands, while the war prices and conditions are on, and by development companies that are best equipped to handle the matter quickly. It might be well for you not to tie to any one at present, for the other applicants' ability to handle the matter might be just as well for you and the state and better for the country. Should I learn anything I will immediately communicate. Yours truly, (Signed.) G. L.SHUMW.'-Y." Discrepancy in Dates. You will notice the date on the foregoing letter, but on examination of the records at the commissioner's office in September I found only two applications on file. The first was my own, filed May 16; the other was that of Mrs. Cora Sams of Scottsbluff (Mr. Shumway's home town), filed July 29, three days after the receipt of above letter. Attorney Honnell and Mr. H. L. Sams were in Lincoln in, the interests of Mrs. r Sams at this' time and tried to make a compromise with me, and agreed to let me heve one lake if I would let Mrs. Sams have the other one, or proposed that we ask for a joint lease, or that they would withdraw if I would give them $3,500. I refused all proposals. Dur ing our conversation they learned that I had the above letter and the next morning the date of the second ap plication was changed to read July 19, but the change could be easily de tected. Anpther Application Shows Up. We thereupon demanded that the changed application be kept in the same condition as it was at that time, but since then it has disappeared and an application from Mrs. Honnell has been filed in its place. I could not say under whose act this feat was ac complished. Then Mr. Shumway ad vertised to sell a lease on Section 36-26-45 at auction to the highest and best bidder, but on the day set for the the auction the rule was changed and the board called for sealed bids, as they had, received a sealed bid from Mr. Honnell of Scottsbluff. There were in all four bids which were refused and the land was advertised a second time. At the second auction I was asked to bid and refused, and tried to explain to the board that there was no lawto dispose of the mineral as it proposed to do. The only statute applying to the leasing of state school land was an appraised valuation and the lease should pay 6 per cent of that value. Board Ignores the Law. " I tried to explain to Mr. Shumway that the only logical way was to sur vey the area of the deposit and meas ure the depth of the sand and analyze the brine, but the board was fully decided to lease it according to their own ideas, so I filed a written protest against ' any further action on the part of the state toiispose of the min erals in that way, until a law was passed giving the board that power. The board issued the lease over my protest. Then comes before the su preme court the case of Fawn " ake Ranch company vs. Cumbow. The five judges and the supreme bench sustained me in my contentions and cancelled 227 leases that were issued contrary to statutes. Then comes the extra session of the legislature, and Mr. Shumway worked very hard to get a bill passed validating these same leases which were- cancelled 'v by the supreme court. Juggling the New Law.' The last day of the session a bill was finally passed with the following section: "Section 9. Where two or more applications are received for the same land, the rights thereon may be awarded the legally qualified appli cant paying the highest and best bid, to be determined by taking Into con sideration both the bonus and royalty, the award being made after proper legal notice in such manner as the state board shall determine best cal culated to protect public interest." However, the majority of the land board wants to overlook Section 9 and act according to Section 16, which reads as follows: "The holders of mineral leases heretofore granted b the Board of Educational Hands and Funds, which leases have been de clared invalid, may apply under the direction of this act for , new leases, and the board may in its discretion determine if the bonus and royalty is equal or better than bona fide com petitive bids. If the lessee has made extensive and expensive preparation ar.d prepared for proceeding with de velopment, the board may in its dis- First Boone County Soldier Is Killed. Sheriff Clark Promptly Spikes a Campaign Canard Got?, lesier ?Bofy Corp Lester C. Cook of Albion is the first Boone county soldier to pay the supreme sacrfice. He was killed in action July 23. NEVILLE TO WAIT CHOICE OF JUDGE. UNTIL NOVEMBER Governor to Fill Vacancy on Bench With Aspirant Re ceiving Highest Vote at Election. From a Staff Correspondent. Lincoln, Aug. 13. (Special.) Gov ernor Neville will not appoint a suc cessor to fill the vacancy on the Ne braska supreme court bench caused by the death of Judge Francis G. Hamer until after the general election in November. Then for the remain der of the unexpired term he wMl choose the candidate who received the highest number of votes among those men who are not now members of the bench. The governor announced Wednes day morning that he had decided not to select a man for the place now, be cause if he did so, the man would have an advantage in the race. He believes this would be unfair to the candidates. ,A new appointee who is not in the race would scarcely have time to familiarize himself with the duties when the time to step, down arrived. . The supreme court is now in its vacation season and will reconvene in September. 1 he new judge whom Governor Neville is to appoint for the two months interim between election and the beginning of the new term next January will come from among these four: Grant G. Martin, L. H. Aldrich, E. B. Perry and George Corcoran. Smith Says Clerical Errors Responsible For Wrong Valuation From a Staff Correspondent Most of the supposed irregularities in assessments alleged by Douglas county officials to exist in a number of other counties in the state were due to errors that were -afterward corrected by the county authorities. This is, the answer of State Auditor Smith to the complaint ftf d with the state board of equalization. Auditor Smith has submitted to the board a volume of correspondence he- had with some of the county of ficials as long as eight or nine months ago. . Omaha, Aug. 13. To the Editor of The Bee: The Omaha Daily News of August 9, published most con spicuously, what purported to be an account of a soldier, Private Joesph Davis, who had been brought from Fort Porter, N. Y.. by the United States government and delivered to the sheriff of Douglas rounty. This newspaper account was , absolutely false from beginning to end. and was so written as to convey the impres sion that .this unfortunate man, suf fering from a mental disease had been thrown into jail and mistreated y me as sheriff of Douglas county. As soon as I saw the article I went j the office of that paper and gave lem the true facts which I expected iey would publish as prominently as ey had the false report. I have aited several days, but the Omaha aily News has made no effort to orrect the wrong impression given y their original report and I am therefore compelled to Rive a state ment in this manner in ordef that the citizens of Douglas county may have the real facts as follows: On the 24th day of July, 1918. Gen eral hospital No. 4, at tort Porter, N. Y., telegraphed the" Board of Com mtssioners of State Institutions at Lincoln, that Private Joseph Davis, suffering from a mental disease, had been recommended for discharge and woiild require institutional treatment and asked the board to designate the institution to which' he should be sent In answer the board sent a telegram stating that he should be sent to Omaha for examination by the county insanity board, and by the said board to be committed to an institution. Copies of these tele grams were sent by the state board to the board of insanity of Douglas county. July 25. On August 4, I received a telegram from General hospital No. 4, Fort Porter,- N. Y., reading: "Private Joseph Davis leaves Buffalo this date tinder escort due to arrive in Omaha 8:30 a. m., August 6. Meet train. Brownrigg." Just previous to receiv ing this telegram I had received a letter from the adjutant general, Gov ernors Island, New York City, stat ing that Private Joseph Davis had been ordered discharged and sent un der a suitable escort to Omaha to be delivered to me in accordance with telegraphic instructions from the Board of Commissioners of State In stitutions at Lincoln, and that Hos pital N. 4, Fort Torter. would com municate with me in regard to the probable time of the soldier's arrival at Omaha. The letter also contained a medical certificate giving some par ticulars in regard to the -patient's mental condition. Private Davis arrived under escort August 6, and we met them at the train as requested ui the telegram. Within a few moments after he reached our office, the clerk of the district court as clerk of the insanity board was notified that Private Davis had arrived and was in our custody. The soldier who acted as escort had with him a typewritten list of each article of clothing worn bv Davis and insisted that, under his instructions, he must take back with him all the articles mentioned in tht list, which he did. I furnished the patient with clean clothes and placed him in the hospital ward of the, county jail and awaited instructions from the board of insanity of Douglas county as to what further disposition was to be made of him. In receiving Private Davis, I acted under instructions from the state board of commission ers and felt that I had no discretion in the matter. It is the duty of the sheriff to take charge ot insane pa tients when they are properly brought to his attention and to hold them subject to the orders of the board of insanity of his county. It is his duty to see that they do not injure them selves or injure other people, and in performing this duty it is necessary for him to hold them in custody until an examination can be given the pa tient by the board and some dispo sition made of the case. The sheriff is an executive officer, and when a patient is placed in his charge by the board of insanity, he must hold the patient subject to their order, in a citv the size of Omaha there are large number of these unfortunate cases. It is my policy to give these patients the most considerate treat ment possible under tne circum stances. They are not prisoners and yet they cannot be allowed to go at large and the state has provided at great expense institutions for their treatment, which results in many cases in the patient being returnee to his family m restored hea'.th. Private Davis received every con sideration at my hands that was pos sible to give him under the circum stances. There is no "squalid insane room in the county jail, as stated in the Dauv News. Private Davis oc cupied the hospital room wh,ich is a large, well lighted and well turnished room designed and intended as the hospital, for the county jail. I invite any person in Douglas county to visit the jail at any time and satisfy him self as to the cleanliness and manner in which it is kept. The patient did not ask for an opportunity to use the telephone and he was not refused that opportunity. A friend of his visited him the afternoon of the day he was received and he was taken to the couhty hospital August 8, by or der of the board of insanity. Of all the duties which fall to the sheriff to perform, and there are many, none are of so delicate a na ture as the care and control ot the insane. 1 sympathize witn tnem and with their friends and have never had a criticism of the hundteds of cases which have passed through my hands. The statement in the News is not in, accord with the facts and is false in every material t?ct. Private Davis received every consideration at my hands. MICHAEL L. CLARK. -Sheriff of Douglas County. Letter Carriers Hear Speeches by Candidates Fremont, Neb., Aug. 13. (Special Telegram.) Kearney was selected as the meeting place in 1919 by the Ne braska Rural Letter Carriers' associa tion at the closing session of the con vention late this afternoon. The following officers were chosen: President, W. D. Beyrer, Bertrand; vice president, L. P. Davis, Schuyler; secretary-treasurer, A. R. Smith, Cul bertson, re-elected. A resolution endorsing President Wilson and his administration for the successful conduct of the war was unanimously adopted. In the afternoon session today, Congressman Lobeck of Omaha and Congressman Charles H. Sloan made short talks. At the forenoon session former Governor John H. Morehead spoke. ; ' X1 nnrlnM fit a m. ji-.. T II .m Fremont, Neb., "Aug. 13. (Special Telegram.) Alfred Fowler, son of Mr. and Mrs. W. H. Fowler of Fre mont, Jio has been in training at a French officers' school near Paris, in a recent test won the weight lifting event for his brigade. cretion consider the same and issue new leases under and by virtue of this act." What Briggs Offered. The honorable commissioner will have to admit that I have offered to start the bid on this tract at $10,000 cash bonus and start the royalty bid at l2!3 per cent of all minerals. Can Mr. Shumway make the public bdieve that $1,000 is better' than $10,000, or that 12lA per cent royalty is better than 18 per cent of 20 per cent, as that high a bid might be offered should there be any competition. . I ottered to tav at least $5UU a day to the state within 30 days should I get the lease. If Mr. Harrington of the Ridgell company gets the lease, it will be at least eight months be fore the state would receive any bene fits from royalty. Some Pointed Questions. Can Mr. Shumway make the public believe that production in one month is not as good as production in eight months? And Mr. Shumway admits that he is responsible for all the rules of the board and admits that it was through his influence that the potash leasing bill known as house roll No. 9 was passed. He also stated that he is laboring to speed up potash produc tion. I tried to show Mr. Shumway a few days ago, where he is delay ing the game as I can produce at leas' $100,000 for the state, while he is wait ing for a decision from the supreme court. If Mr. Shumway cannot give me a lease under the decision ot the district court of .Lancaster county, why does he offer to give Mr. Krause a lease on Section 16. T. 2$, R. 45. if Krause will pay the state 121A per cent, and H. L. Sams of ScoUsbluff 7Yt per cent? Still he says he is not interested. Shumway 'says Briggs.1 Krause and Hampton expected to get potash from state lands for nothing. I defy Mr. Shumway to show where at any time we have tried to do this, as we have been fighting for a year to keep Mr. Shumway from giving this mineral away to some of his dear friends. When his honor answers this letter Need of Economizing Men Emphasized in Secret Order , by General Ludendorff ' By Associated 'Press. With the British Army in France, Aug. 13. A captured enemy order signed "Ludendorff" lays stress on the necessity of economizing men. The order asserts that the two ele ments essential to the future conduct of the war are to 'maintain every where our fighting strength and the spirit of offensive." The captured document was issued late in June. "It is essential," says the order, "that all commanders of whatever rank, as well as all troops, should be imbued with the idea that the war cannot be won by stubborn defense, but only by a further succession of vigorous attacks. These attacks, however, cannot lead to victory unless -we adhere to and improve -on the methods of warfare adopted in the recent offensives." The order says "it is absolutely essential that we should avoid our old fault of attacking in too dense formations and we should reduce our casualties by every possible means. The necessity holds equally good for the defense fronts. The divisions must do their utmost to reduce cas ualties to tha absolute minimum by a distribution in depth and the creation of extended outpost zones. "Notwithstanding instructions." the order points out, "too much attention still is paid to the possession of ground, the holding or retaking of portions of trenches, villages and woods, and to fighting for points whose only value is that of prestige. Now, more than ever, divisions in the line during hostile attacks, large or small, must if possible, employ elastic avoidance even on so-called unhealthy fronts." The order is frank in explaining that because of reduced German strength, it frequently will be impos sible to hold continuous trench lines, and recommends instead the crea tion of centers of resistance. The document warns commanders that should the enemy obtain a foot hold within the German lines they must consider carefully whether a counter attack is necessary or worth risking a large number of lives. The value the Germans placed on ground that they have lost is seen in a captured order signed by General von Hutier, drawing attention to the difficulties in Germany's economic situation and calling on his troops to assist in affording all possible relief in regard to food supplies. The order, dated before the opening of the present allied offensive, begins by ruling that not a scrap of food or forage, beyond ration limitations, shall be consumed. .The order says: "Now and dur ing the coming weeks the crops on the territory occupied and covered must be harvested. Vast stretches of land and huge fields under good cultivation promise us a rich harvest." It adds extreme measures must be taken and that it must be remembered in allotting the billeting of the areas it should be done so as to overcome the labor shortage. In other words, the units that were restng were" to have robbed the lands of crops plant ed by the French peasants. -In this connection it was ordered that "every available man must be used without reserve. For example, the higher staff orderlies and servants must go into the grain fields and form themselves into special working parties." Senator Norris Called To Washington to Vote On the New Army Bill "From a Staff Correspondent. Lincoln, Neb., Aug. 13. (Special.) United States Senator George W. Norris passed through Lincoln this afternoon, having been summoned to Washington by the sergeant-at-arms of the senate on a hurry-up call sent out by the committee in charge of the netf army bill. , According to the-senator, the com mittee has the bill already for action by the senate and is desirous of get ting it considered as early as pos sible. "The president has finally come ti our way of looking at it," said Sen ator JN orris, "and is in sympathy with the committee's ideas on what the bill should contain. ."Those of us who opposed the president's idea of how the bill should be drawn were considered unpatriot ic, but now that the president feels the way we did I suppose we are all right now." Senator Norris was compelled to cancel all his speaking dates includ ing the one at Aurora Wednesday night, where )ie expected to run up agamst Clark Perkins who has been I will put some very pointed questions saying things about the senator in at him. THOMAS L. BRIGGS. hii paper which has caused much comment and it is said disturbed the feelings of the senator considerably. The senator said that he much re gretted having to cancel the Aurora date as he desired to say some things in his speech which he would rather say in Aurora than in any other place. Save Thousand Dollars By Using Standard Blanks From a Staff Correspondent Lincoln, Aug. 13. (Special.) A saving of not less than $1,000 per year on printing cost will be effected by adopting the use of uniform blanks at the various state institutions, the state board of control expects. The system will be so standardized as to facilitate checking and making up statistical data. Are You, Buying War Saving Stamps? brandeis Stores ! Our August Fur Sale Continues. Specials In Hosiery and Underwear Very Attractive Values for Wednesday Selling HOSIERY Women's full fashioned, pure thread silk and pure dye Hosiery, silk with lisle tops and reinforced heels, soles and toes; good weight and quality. All colors, including black and white and a few fancy stripes. These are all irregulars and o c go at, per pair OOC KNIT UNDER WEXR Women's Lisle Vests, in Pink and White, fine lace or crocket yokes. Also ' v Lisle and Cotton Union Suits, with tight tT loose C()n knee and beaded tops,, worth to 69c, on sale, all sizes 0JC Yarns for Army Relief Work AT LAST YEAR'S PRICES . We are glad to announce that we have a fair stock of khaki and gray yarn to supply im mediate needs. We would suggest early buy ing, for when our present supply is exhausted we may not be able to secure any more. We are still offering these yarns at last year's prices. $1.15 a Skein. Our special Yarn in gray and khaki, a skein 79 Stamped Turkish Towels, extra heavy and large size. Pink, Blue and Yellow strife on White, French Knot and Cross-stitch designs. Each 75 36-in. Square AH Linen Lunch Cloths. Motto "Polly Put the Kettle On" In cross-stitch. Linen worth more than the price asked. Each S1.25 Scarft Stamped, lace trimmed, buffet and dresser scarfs 18x54 in., plain or drawn thread centers, dainty designs for French Knot work. Special, each 81.19 Fr Instruction in Knitting From 8:30,1. n. to S p. m. Our Annual Clean-Up on Fiber.Rugs These Rugs are away below the factory cost of today and you should take advantage of this sale and anticipate future wants. Rajah Fiber Rugs for House or Porch Use. 6x9 size $5.98 7- 6x9 siz $6.98 8- 3x10-6 siza $8.98 9x12 size $9.98 Rattania, the Finest Fiber Rug Made. A most durable and beautiful rug for house and porch use, beautiful color ings and patterns. 6x9 size. . . .$7.98 7-6x10-6 size $9.98 9x12 size $10.98 Rag Rugs in Plain and Fancy Colors. 24x36, regular price 90c, 79c 24x48, regular price $1.35 .' ..98c 27x54, regular price $1.75 $1.49 Vacation Model VICTROLAS Made for Out-of-Door Music , 'C&3 The most popular entertainer in the party will be your v lciroia. A good sort and a good sport Take one along this year. 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