have already made an agreement with him to that effect. I was still confident, notwithstanding this fact, that McCornack could not be hindered materially in his operations, and as Jones suggested that, rather than jeopardize his own interests he would prefer to go it alone, I agreed that it would be the better plan, and our partnership dissolution was the result.
This break in our business relations, however, was not supposed to affect the understanding between us in regard to the forty persons located on eighty claims in Township 3 North, Ranges 7 and 8 West, in which deal we were equally interested.
Previous to this I had met F. Pierce Mays at different times and he never lost an opportunity of bringing up the "3-7" deal, and would invariably caution me to be careful, stating that he would very much dislike to be forced to prosecute me, on account of the fair manner in which I had treated him in securing certain lands for him throughout the State, as well as school section 36 in Township 3 North, Range 7 West. Mays told me on one occasion that there was a special agent sent out by the General Land Office to investigate the "3-7" deal in which Jones and myself were interested, and that he was onto our scheme, and further, that this agent would be at the Oregon City Land Office to bag those forty homestead and timber entrymen as soon as they made their filings.
I told Mays at this time that Jones and I had no deal on of a fraudulent character, whereupon he informed me that he knew better; that we already had contracts signed by forty people and that these contracts had been placed in a vault in East Portland for safe keeping. Mays likewise volunteered the information that he was familiar with the contents of the contracts.
How Mays should know of the existence of these contracts, and more particularly, how he should be apprised of their nature, and of their place of keeping, was somewhat of a mystery to me, but as I was not much given to talking about my business, or making admissions, I let the subject drop without comment.
It was sometime after the dissolution of partnership between Jones and myself, that I met the latter on the street, and the subject of the "3-7" deal came up for discussion. Jones acted strangely and seemed averse to going ahead with it, declaring that he had been advised by Mr. Mays that we would both be up against it if we made any further attempt to proceed in the matter, and further, that he had learned Mr. Lumbarger, our financial backer, was not disposed to consider the proposition, and would probably attempt to break his contract with us. Jones said I might go ahead with the deal personally, if I felt so inclined, but expressed himself as not willing to take any hand in the transaction.
That settled this deal so far as I was concerned, as I was left without a financial backer, and besides, the time was drawing near for the land to be thrown open to entry.
As the survey of the township had been accepted and approved and was advertised to be thrown open to entry on November 11, 1892, the Special Agent was at the Oregon City Land Office bright and early, waiting to bag the forty homesteaders as soon as they filed. When the land office opened at 9 o'clock and none of the supposed entrymen put in appearance, much to the surprise and chagrin of the Special Agent, he inquired of Register J. T. Apperson, how it was that these parties, whose names were on the maps as bona-fide settlers, had failed to appear and file on their land.
The Register replied that he had that morning received through the mail, an indemnity selection list from the Clerk of the State Land Board at Salem, selecting the entire tract as State indemnity school lands, so all that the special agent could do under the circumstances was to pack his grip and hike back to Washington.
As I had been watching the result of the Special Agent's operations at Oregon City in order to learn how matters terminated, I discovered immediately that the State had filed indemnity selection covering the entire tract of
