The Timber Case 'Heralded from Here to Scotland' Ends in Nothing
Summoned before a federal grand jury for cutting timber on government land, James Stewart walks free — and a celebrated case quietly closes.
James Stewart returned from Tacoma yesterday with his face wreathed in smiles. He had been up before the federal grand jury to answer the summons about cutting timber on government land. After a thorough examination the jury decided there was no case against him, and he was released. Thus ended a celebrated case which has been heralded from here to Scotland.
“Thus ended a celebrated case which has been heralded from here to Scotland.”
Who owned the timber on government land was the defining question of the 1890s Northwest, just as it is in today's fights over public forests and logging rights. Stewart's case — famous enough to be 'heralded from here to Scotland' — shows how high the stakes ran over a few acres of federal timber.
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