The Montgomery advertiser., 1902-04-20

for having Induced President Roosevelt
 to take mp the cause of Cuba, and this
 has led to some opposition To HIS meas
 ures and policies in the Senate
 Now the Secretary is under rre because
 he withheld the Gardener\report from the
 public. and in the debate of the Philip
 pine bill, which begins in the Senate to-
 morrow and which is likely to run Tor
 several weeks the Secretary or War IS
 sure to come in for lively fire or criti-
 cism. The Democratic Senators are load
 ed with ammunition made out or the dis closures as to the conduct of our troops
 in the Philippines which nave so much stirred up the country, and they snow a scapegoat for the whole wretched affair They do not conceal their intention to make matters so hot for him that he may | be driven to retire from the cabinet Naturaliy this str.ngthens the case ot | General Miles. for if Mir. Root Is to be placed on the defensive for having sup I pressed the Gardener report, Senera Miles Is more likely to escape rteiTemen' l for having called that report to the at' | tention of the country.
 It has also been urged against Seeretar; Root that he some time ago determlneo to drive. General Miles out of once. and | that had 1t not been for the influence oi | the Secretary over the President. the re- | tirement program would never have been carried to the point 1t is today | The charge does Secretary Root an in. | justice He has never urged President | Roosevelt to place the General on the re- | tired list On the contrary, he has just urged the President to let the matter drop. and has said over and over again | that he is able to get along with General
 Miles in the War Department ny ,ne s,W, 2, | ple means of having nothing whatever to | do with him. The Secretary has explain eded that his only trouhh With Niles was | when he attempted to maintain relations | with that office. and that he has solved | trn
 Any version of the affair which repre-.
 sents Secretary Root as claiming tnat Il. cannot manage the war Departmeh, properly as long as General Mics IS tner. | is not a correct version Secretarv noo' | has not claimed that at any time Gen. eral Miles has no power. ana MT; Hoo' | is absolute master. It is President Roose- | welt who has insisted upon retirihg uen' eral Miles, not Secretary Root. :. l The friends of Secretary Root say n | would be absurd for the country to holo | him responsible for crimes committed py l American soldiers in the Philippines. lie | has as much responsibility thereIore' they declare, as Attorney General hnox or Postmaster General Payne for violations | of the postal or internal revenue iaws lll | Tennessee or Texas. As to the cnarse | that Secretary Root did wrong III sup
 pressing the Gardener report they re, plv that this much-talked of document when read In full does not warrant me | excitement which it has caused besiues All the charges made in IL were sehersa, and not specific. and. in their opinion, the
 Secretary s@u s did exactly right in failing to
 ton which he had oraered had aressr ssen eall
 ee eeperal spIn complaint against the troops ii in
 a specific arraignment so that the inves, yes, f,eation might proceed in an orderly manner. r.,>oorat,c sen- | tore intend to make much of Secretary
 a.o5f Roots % neglect to give this interesting re,
 nort to the public and the debate now now Commencing on the Philippine auesupSn r iSn ! ia expected to be memorapie one HI '"e annals of the Senate.