Letter from Wilmer W. Miller, 22 June 1895
PHILADELPHIA .
Prest. Wilford Woodr:uff,
My Friend Wilford Woodruff:-
While I am here striking a blow for silver, Louis Martinoti
has begun a contest against my Desert land claim at Ogden, on the
grounds that the character of the land is not "desert" as defined in
the land laws (not for non-compliance with the law) alleging that
timber is grown on it and other agrecultural crops, and that it will
produce agrecultural crops without artificial irrigation. I desire
to prove by you that this is false in every particular. Trial is set
for July 6th, at 10 A. M., at Land Office, Salt Lake City. Will you
volunteer to go and ^send witnesses to^ testify in my behalf to the end that truth and
right may triumph? The land is 3 1/2 miles S. E. of Ogden, viz:
S. 1/2, S. E. 1/4, Sec. 10, Twp 5 N. R 1 West. You go past Cortez's
place to go to it, and if you stop there John Cortez will I think be
glad to accompany you.
I am doing too big a work here to care very much about this.
My writings in the big dailies, and my other work for silver is too
important and the cause of the people is too sacred for personal mat-
ters to hinder or come in between, and from now until the contest
of [18]96, is closed, I shall be in the saddle fighting night and day
for silver, and shall let my friends take the defense entirely into
their own hands. William Bird, the great land attorney has volun-
teered his services and will conduct the defense, and I shall have
affidavits read at the trial by Hon. Wharton Barker, Charles Heber
Clark, and other leading advocates of silver here, showing by cold
facts and figures just what work I have done and what I have accom-
plished, for free coinage, together with an affidavit by myself, stat-
ing that a profound sense of duty to my country necessitates my stay-
ing here until the battle of silver is won.
Besides founding "The Bi-Metallic Association," composed of
leading sitizens here, holding meetings and my writings on bi-metal-
lism, I have been running a circulating library with Coins Financial
School, and have just secured control of a small newspaper which I
will make a silver publication at once, and affidavits covering these
facts will go to Mr. Bird by a later mail.
