The times., 1898-09-21
ALGER HAS NOT RESIGNED.
Hut His Retirement From the Cab
met Is Imminent

/
| his retirement from the Cabinet was i'm
| minent because of the attacks upon his
administration of the War Department.
Taking this intimation as a tip" GER
| tain newspapers are now asserting that
the Secretary, prior to his departure,
| made a verbal tender of his resignation
| to the President who declined TO con-
| slider IL This is merely subterfuge
| by which to exploit as news al this time
| the information that The Times furnished
when Secretary Alger left Washington.
| The real situation of affairs as affect
| ing Secretary Ayers future connection
/ with the Administration is as follows
based upon authority that cannot be
| questioned:
President Mckinley was disposed to
| stand by Secretary Alger, believing that
| if there had been abuses in the War De-
partment the Secretary was ignorant of
| and not responsible for them. So many
| representations were made to him, how
| ever, that the abuses were mainly due
| to Ayers incompetency and neglect, by
| subordinates, who were determined not
| to be held culpabie for offenses of so
| serious character, that the President
| them.
| 1t Is known that Secretary Alger pooh
| poohed the idea OF an investigation be-
| ing ordered by the President. IL is equal
! ly well known that the President did or
| der an investigation and is now trying 10
| organize a commission 10 conduct it.
| But there were political phases in the
| situation that probably exerted u more
| powerful influence upon the President
| than the protestations of Secretary AL
| GER S Subordinates.
| The President was Informed by party
| leaders In whose judgment he places
| implicit confidence. that the belief in AL
| gers utter incompetence had become gen
eral throughout the country. and was be-
| coming more and more confirmed by the
| uniform tales of suffering told by the
thousands of volunteer soldiers returning
| from the war and from the pestilentiaI
camps in the East and South. 1t was
| represented very plainly TO Mr.. Mckinley
| that the Administration could not afford
| to brand all these tales as fabrications
and their narrators as falsifiers by blind
| ly sustaining Secretary Alger in his con-
| tention that they were sensational inven-
tiens.
| Finally. the President took a look
around for himself. and with his own
| eyes saw some hundreds of starved and
I
months before had enjoyed robust
health. He was then convinced that he
could not afford to play political Sinbad
| to Ayers Old Man of the Sea.
| Having reached this conclusion. so the
| apparently authentic story goes the
President sent for Secretary Alger and
4 placed the situation before him. The
success of the Republican party was the
! paramount consideration. Had il not
| IL
the present Administered ton would have
been Il glorious success. and on its war
| record alone as an issue would have been
/ assured of another lease of power. Those
! scandals had become so serious as 10
| menace the welfare of the party, and the
| President did not feel il party success
| should be imperilIed by sustaining any
one member of the Administration in d.
fiance of public opinion, at least without
some show of complying with the popu-
lar demand for an investigation.
| The President was grateful. of course.
for Algers financial assistance in the
last campaign. and believed, equally of
course that an investigation would vim
dicate the Secretary A request from the
Secretary for an inquiry would, there
fore. relieve the Administration from
much embarrassment. Ii the investiga-
ton showed Ayers innocence. no harm
would be done. and his retention in the
Cabinet would be assured On the other
hand, if culpability were proved it would
| be better that one member of the Cabinet
should be sacrificed than that the entire
Administration should be ruined.
Secretary Alger was greatly chagrined,
/ for he believed that the President should
| have been willing to stick by him through
| thick and thin. He told the President
he was sure that the scandals would die
out if left alone. Somewhat sarcasticaliy
he inquired, it is said, if the President
| would not like 10 have his reSignat tion
then and there
After the report of the investigating
| omnaittee is received there will be time
| enough to talk about that. the Presi-
dent is reported to have said, which was
equivalent TO saying that in case of Eu
unfavorable report the Secretary's resig-
nation would be expected.
Secretary AIger affected an air of non
| chalence and made the request for an in
quiry as suggested by the President.
AS the case now stands ii is understood
/ by the President and Secretary that II
the investigating commissions report con
tains a censure, Alger will resign. This
was what was meant when it was said
that Secretary Alger's retirement from
! the Cabinet was imminent, for with al
the evidence that has been accommodating
nothing less than report of censure i:
looked for in official circles
But Alger's retirement is imminent foI
another reason. The session of Congres:
is rapidly approaching and whether n,
Presidents commission has reported b,
that time or not. Congress will surely
start an investigation on it's own account
When Congress investigates a Cabine
officers conduct of his department it i:
certainly to be an extremely serious affail
for that officer.
The belief is general that President Nc
Kfnley was honest in his conviction tha
such a commission as he Is trying to or
ganize would be able to get at the trutf
despite its lack of power, and in fact
of any legal existence. 1t is also believed
that he earnestly desires that the trutf
should be known, not only because it il
good politics his part just now [,
have 1t known, but because he is really
a friend of the volunteer soldiers and i
not willing that they should be starved
neglected and otherwise outraged Will
impunity.
, Department officials are having a lot OF
, quiet fun over Secretary Ayers granC
swing around the camps accompanied b,
Surgeon General Sternberg and Quarter
master General Ludington One of then
said last night:
"Alger is shrewd During his swins
around the camps he will find any mum
ber of men who will be willing to appea
before the investigating committee to tes
tify that camp life had been one long
sweet dream, that they had been fed OIL
the fat of the land had been provide,
with all the comforts of home and tha
| they had never seen any sickness, suf
| fering. starvation, or dying. 1t is q goot
| thing to pick out your own witnesses an,
have p QlIiet little talk with them hafor