The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, November 17, 1903, Page 1

Fo wind. cisco for 30 hours ending mid- night, November 17, 1003, Sen Prancisco and Vicinity— Fair Tuesday; fresh northerly G. E. WILLSON, Local Perecaster. 3 it San Fran- THE VOLUME XCIV—NO. 170. SAN FRANCISCO, TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 1903, PRICE FIVE CENTS. CASHIER HAYS RESIGNS FROM NATIONAL BANK IN RIVERSIDE AND RAILROAD OFFICIALS PROBE THE RIGHT-OF-WWAY FRAUDS CRAND JURY a Postoffie GOSTLY FIRE AUSSIA NOW | | AGCUSER MAY UNVEIL ' EXPECTS WAR . . | | . | § Charges Dietrich Oregon Courthouse Hurrying Troops! With Taking a | Mysteriously | to Scene of | Bribe. Burned. j Trouble. ? Sequel to a Fight for Destruction of Books Quarter of a Million| in Said to Have Been = Men Ordered to Nebraska. the Motive. Far East. Federal Indictment Filed|Mention Is Made by Rumor‘Japan Accuses England of Against a National of Officials Who Feared Deserting Her at Criti- Lawmaker. Accountants. | cal Time. Special Dispatch to 1tn- Call : }!»ns}(‘n\\'v Nov. 16.—The Russian mil- ; v in | Ing. 1t is the general opinion that the | tude on the part of China that the con- | | ¢ ting wes Brolity die of the |tinued dispatch of troops to the Far | | | st is now said to be directed against | = y who were interested in prevent- investigation of the public fire blazed with remarkable ss and the firemen aver that ved on the secene oil was wall, the Detectives 1 an inside 1g it down been engaged to investigate the o matter and the incident promises to . o S e nteresting developments. against Postmaster Fishe 1ty Clerk says the loss to the \ g an agreement with | county in uncoliected taxes will be per- Senator 1 hich the former | paps $1500. The bullding was erected in was n 1 money, | 1900 at a cost of $4500 and was insured EVIDENCE. ng OTHER CASES PENDING. FOUR , 1O twc ame tow White « mostly e of a sim- estigated by port on all or - »on is said to be the first against a United States charges of this nature emen intense official cire in Omaha ing towns when it be BASIS FOR INDICTMENT. ame public. | he section under which the against Senator are drawn is dictments Dietrich &and Ja Fisher tion 1781 of Revised Statutes of the United States, which forbids m: e s from profiting by cont cts or offices. The ent is drawn under secti tevised Statutes. Postmas W formerly tayor een prom- nent in Republican politics of Nebras- ka for seve ars. He said in Omaha -night There really nothing in th charges and my friends will support | e in my defense, been permitted 1o have been cross-ex- amined the res would have been quite differ 4 no indictment would 1‘ cal quarrel have follow matter who v «ppointment i bave trumped P iarges 10 ‘get even EXPLAINS FOR DIETRICH. WASHINGTON, Nov, Dietrich and Editor Rosewater of the Omaha Bee have arrived in this city | and to-night all inquirers as to the in- dictment of the Senator were referred At the last election U. W. Conder was elected Judge. Last month, at his in- stigation, the County Court empowered firm of accountants to expert the ty books. These men began. thei labors last Monday. The books had never been experted before and it is openly asserted that the proposed in- spection of the books was the direct e the f ————— RM A BRIDGE ACROSS THE STREAM Massed Salmon in Mill Creek, Shasta, Almost Tempt Pe- destrians. EDDING, Nov. 16.—The salmon are ick in the mouth of Mill Creek just e rnment fishery racks n right up to the sur- ly packed a person looking upon the FISH FO in fa of the together th: nass would feel that he could cross the water and so clos creek dry shod by stepping on the backs of the fish ppear above the wa- ter. They are crowded up by the mass which extends down to the bettom of the stream the fishery the fish can be secured greater quantities than can be nd the hatchery is running at ci So s many secured. People southern part of the county hatchery for the fish, which are given away after the spawning op- ggs are eration. Many millions of young sal- mon will be hatched this season, as op- erations have been under way for some time and may continue for some time longer if the river does not rise too high. ————— and | SLAUGHTER OF SHEEP MAY CAUSE LYNCHING Wrath of Owners in Modoc Aroused by the Acts of Mis- creants. REDDING, Nov. 16.—Unknown per- sons last week attacked and killed a -parate | Bumber of sheep belonging to John | Empress as apparently greatly dis- Robinson in Modoc County. This act has greatly aroused the ire of residents of that county and lynching is po ble. A band of sheep belonging to John Robinson of Gouger Neck had been at- ac s ble consideration for | tacked by armed men and a number | ican and Japanese legations for assist- were killed. The trouble is in all probability the outcome of a bitter feeling existing be- en the sheep and cattle men. In one ase a sheep herder’'s dog was Kkilled a few feet from the herder. The assail- ant fired from ambush. The sheep men are organizing for their own protection p;and the near future may see some clashes between the two elements, 17 witnesses had | @A @ to Rosewater, who declared that the indictments were the result of a politi- Rosewater asserted that Men have pushed this | gepator Dietrich had a good defense turned down for re- | ang added that the Senator had come UP | to Washington at this time to bring | about the removal of District Attorney | Somers. He said they had already been 16.—Senator | to the White House on this mission. Rosewater declared that District At- torney Somers had ‘pushed the charges against Senator Dietrich for the reason that they were politically antagonistic. ! China. Despite the pacific turn of the | so-Japanese dispute, troops total- ing 250,000 were ordered to the Far | East when hostilities appeared immi- | nent and E: being continually drafted from the government of Mos- c and the nine surrounding prov- | inces. With the troops already in the | Far East, this will give Ru whelming force with which to overawe | China. PEKING, . 16.—The foreign dip- lorats at are awditing devel- { opments in the Russo-Japanese nego- tiations with the keenest interest, but a an over- | Confession Is Given to Company’s ‘ Officials. Speclal Dispateh to The Call 0S8 ANGELES, Nov. 16.—Al- though the officials ~of the Salt, Lake Refipoad.Company hava’ yet mide neofficial statement of the ‘matter, and beyond practically compelling H. T. Hayes of Riverside to convey to | are not sanguine of tlheir success, be- cause they are unable to see what terms are possible, unless one nation | distinctly sur ers. Japan ha ted that Russia's ful- fillment of the evacuation convention is essential to an engagement and has ised China not to sanction any en- gement impairing China's sovereign- pro L ty in Mane | All of Rus officials in the East declare that her dom churia is necessary fo and the safety of the Railroad and that Russia must hold all | that she has taken. Advices from Japan are to the effect that the Japanese are growing bitter gainst Englard because they believe t the latter country is unfaithful to her alliance with Japan. They now believe that England entered into an alliance with Japan, expecting that its | proclamation would result in Russia withdrawing from anchuria and therefore regarding war as a faint pos- sibility. sia refuscd to retire and now aring that she may be drawn into war through the alliance, is exerting her influerce as an ally to induce Japan to recognize what Lord | Cranborne called “Russia’s rather spe- cial position in Manchuria.” Premier | Balfour’s exhortation to Japan to make moderate demands also is considered | helpful to Russia in the negotiations by notifying her that England’s support of Japan is lukewarm. It is noticeable that China no longer secks British assistance regarding Manchuria,, but consults only the American and Japanese Ministers in- | stead of all of the diplomats, as for- merly. While the Chinese official world is greatly excited over the Manchurian situation, the helplessness of the Gov- | ernment was never more conspicuously | displayed. Several long councils have | been hela at the palace during the last | fortnight, but the highest officials de- | vote more energy to intriguing against their rivals and trying to shift the re- 1 sponsibility than dealing with the prob- | 1em of what measures should be taken. | A foreigner who has frequently been | at the palace describes the Dowager | tressed. The Manchus are beginning to realize that the loss of the seat of | their dynasty means the loss of their prestige, and possibly endangers the | succession. After applying to the Amer- ance, the Chinese Foreign Office admits | that its policy is to await the devel- opments of the Russian-Japanese nego- | tiations, hoping that they will result in a partial restoration of Manchuria. The idea of closer relations between China and Japan is spreading rapidly |and is much discussed by officials in the press. | ———— | ! Ends Life on High Peak. | ALBUQUERQUE, N. M., Nov. 16.—The {body of J. M. Scheller, until recently a soldier in the United States army in the Philippines, has been found at the sum- mit of the highest peak of the lofty | of dollars to him while the company property worth $12,000 to secure it in some degree against finan- ial loss, have taken no action, there is which the company was made a vic- tim will reach much greater propor- | tions than was first announced. There is also reason tc believe that Hays was not alone the beneficiary of the real estate dea that . ‘ulnno engineer the affair by which the | company was forced to pay thousands he as its confidential agent, but that there are others who are benefited thereby. Whether there are others who had guilty knowledge of Hays' transactions will not be known until the company com- pletes its investigation which was be- gun nearly two months ago Hays was only an incident. CONFESSION IS MADE. As to Hays' guilt there is no doubt, for he has made a confession, part of it in writing, result of the exposure of h to resign his po ings he was forced s cashier of the Orange Growenr: 1 Bank of Riverside. Whatever clse Hays may be, he is loyal to his friends and he has is bearing the brunt of the seandal. It became known P transfer of real estate worth $12,000 by Hays to the railroad company was by no means considered a full and com- plete settlement with the corporation. It was understood by him that this deed was simply a deed of trust to be held pending the determination of the exact amount of the money unaccount- ed for. The exact amount having been determined, Hays will be called upon to pay that amount and if it be more than $12,000 he must make good the dif- ference; if less, its payment will result in the restoration to him of the trust property. To what extent Major J. W. F. Diss, right-of-way agent of the Salt Lake Railroad Company, will be involved, if at all, is as yet a matter of specula- tion. On that subject the railroad offi- clals positively refuse to talk, except to say that their investigation being far from complete they cannot say what the result will be, STATEMENT BY DISS. It was announced last night by Vice Presidents Clark and Gibbon that Ma- jor Diss will soon sever his connection with thé company. To-day Diss threw down the gauntlet and declared that he will mot resign. He spent the day at his desk as usual, and after a con- sultation with Messrs. Clark and Gib- bon he made the following statement: “T am still right of way agent of the Salt Lake Railroad. I have not re- signed nor do T intend to resign. I know nothing whatever and have never known of the deals in which Mr. Hays is alleged to have been implicated. Fur- ther than this I can say nothing. The transactions with him were not con- ducted under my supervision. Any range. A six-shooter with one chamber empty lay near the body. The body lay between two great bowlders, as if the man had attempted to provide a tomb be- fore killing himself. Scheller was Iast seen in Albuqueraue on October 18, when he said that he was going to his home In Kansas City. He same to this city from Los Angeles. further information must be secured from the proper officers of the company, for my position is that of a subordi- nate.” To-night Vice President Gibbon again asserted that Major Diss will soon sever his connection with the company and Vice President Clark confirmed this statement, although n ison to believe that the swindle of | he did not | was acting | and of which the demanding of security from | both gentlemen refused to enter into a [ lost by such deals that the officials are | bank in 1892, anid that he has been able It | “to show every dollar accounted for, assumed th~ attitude of scapegoat and | { price demanded would be paid. | PROMINENT SOUTHERN + CALIFORNIJANS WHO ARE PROMINENTLY MENTIONED IN THE SENSATIONAL | STORY ABOUT THE SALT LAKE RAILROAD RIGHT OF WAY FRAUDS, BY WHICH THE NEW PANY IS DECLARED TO HAVE BEEN SWINDLED OUT OF IMMENSE SUMS. CoM- b IS orporation Discovers That It Has Been the Dictim of Its £ further discussion of that feature ot} the case. | There are abundant indications that | | the Salt Lake Rallroad Company has | been made the victim of its own con- fidential agents for many months. The manner in which these agents or others | | acting for them profited was extremely | | simple and it must have netted them | | many thousands of dollars. METHOD IN THE FRAUD. Since the exposure.of the deals at- tention has been called to the fluctua- tions in value of realty all along the | | line of the railroad. The confidential | agents knew, of course, what route the | road would take and long before the | construction gangs or even the final ! surveying parties started along the | known route, persons to whom this in- | formation was secretly Imparted would | purchase certain property on or near the proposed right of way. This property was cheap, but it would be transferred at an increased figure and after a week or two would again be transferred at an even higher price and this would be repeated sev- | eral times until the last transfer would | in@icate that the property had brought | a good stiff price. Then, when the rail- | | road company needed it, the deeds | would be displayed, showing that the property had been sold for a good price | and a price {n advance of that would be demanded of the raflroad company, and with such evidence before it the Thus property, the original price of which was something within reason, would be forced up in price until the railroad company would be made to pay in some instances twice ifs value. These operations were not confined to any given section nor were they too frequently practiced, but a sufficient number of such deals were made to make it extremely profitable for those who possessed the inside tnformation. PROPERTY MANIPULATION. Another plan was to profit by the manipulation of property in the vicin- ity of tracts which those in the deal knew long in advance would be selected for depot purposes. The property near these tracts would be secured on op- tions before the announcemcnt of the exact depot site was made, and by rea- son of the inevitable appreciation in values of this property thoze in the deal would be able to dispose of their options at handsome profits and with but little outlay of money. It is for the purpose of ascertainina, now conducting their investigation. will be impossible for them to secure | restitution in most instances and it may be impossible for them tc fasten | the matter upon any of their agents, | but it is admitted that the company has been heavily mulcted at the in- | stance of some persons who oceupied positions of trust. It is promised that it the guilt of those persons can be | positively established the matter will | be given all possible publicity and may | be carried into the criminal courts. QUESTION OF COMMISSION. The claim made by Hays' friends that the money he made in his real tate deals was simply a commission was refuted to-night by Vice President | Gibbon, who has documentary evidence to show that Hays was appointed con- | fidential agent of the company upon | recommendation of Diss and others, | that he was to receive no direct finan- | cial remuneration, that he was to per- | form his services in consideration of his bank getting the Salt Lake Railroad Company’s business and that he was to | be permitted to realize such profit as | might arise from the increase in values | of. property adjacent to the right of| way by reason of the building of the road, but not by the direct purchase of | right of way property. It is also known that from the real estate men in Riverside whom he em- ployed to purchase property, their com- missions to be paid by the sellers, Hays | demanded one-half of that commission and on one occasion is alleged to have received $2400 from that source. Although the railroad officials will not admit it, tremendous political and other pressure is being exerted In the | effort to shield certain persons, but who they are has not been announced. prore bl et RESIGNATION OF HAYS. Riverside Bank Officials Commend | Him for His Service. | RIVERSIDE, Nov. 16.—At a special meeting of the board of directors of the Orange Growers’ National Bank this morning the resignation of H. T. Hays as cashier of the institution was read and accepted. The resignation reads: “I hereby tender my resignation as cashier of this institution, to take place immediately. With my best wishes for the future success of the bank, I am, very truly yours, H. T. HAYS.” The directors at once adopted resolu- tions commending Hays' work while in the bank employ, stating that he had | Confidential Agents for Many Months. | Pedro, Los Angeles and Salt Lake | road was held in this city to-day and the |Clark, T. E. Gibbons, | F. K. Rule, W. 8. McCornick, Thomas filled the office of cashier with ‘“rare = the affairs of his place in order and every trust well and safely adminis- tered.” M. J. Twogood, whe has served effl- ciently for some time as assistant cash- was promoted to tHe' cashiership, neceeding Hays. Twogood is a son- in-law of Congressman M. J. Danfels, president of the bank, who is noew in Washington. The public story that Hays had be- come involved in alleged unfair.deal- ings with the Salt Lake road caused a nsation in Riverside to-day. Hays was about the bank attending to his usual duties most of the day. With re- gard to Diss, the Salt Lake road right of way agent, Hays declined abso- lutely to say a word. Affairs at the Orange Growers’ Bank will not be affected by the change in of- ficers. Twogood is experienced in bank affairs, is popular and is not in peli- tics. Although Hays retains consider- able property interests here, it is prob- dble that he will not much lcnger make his home in Riverside. —_—— DIRECTORS ARE ELECTED. | Stockholders of the Salt Lake Road Hold Annual Meeting. SALT LAKE, Utah, Nov. 16.—The an- nual stockholders’ meeting of the S: Rail- following board of directors was chose W. A. Clark, W.. C. Kerens, J. Ross T. F. Miller, Kearns, Reed Smoot, E. W. Clark, H. L Pettis and Ross ‘W. Smith. No other business of importance was transacted. The stockholders of the Em- pire Construction Company, which is closely affillated with the San Pedro road, also, met i this city to-day and elected a new board of directors. Dreyfus May Get His Rights. PARIS, Nov. 16.—Henrl Rochefort, in an interview, Is quoted as saying he un- derstands Dreyfus will be re-tried before the Court of Cassation, which he pre- diets will quash the verdict of the Rennes court-martial, and that Dreyfus will be rehabilitated in his rights. —_———————— Want Law Observed. ROME, Nov. 16.—The government has addressed a circular to all prefects throughout the kingdom instructing them to watch for the immigration into Italy of the members of the dissolved French religlous congregations and td see that if possible, how much the company has | ability” since the organization of the | they do not break the Itallan laws.