The Montgomery advertiser., 1903-10-20
SECRETARY RouNrREE's ATTI-
 TTYnE

SECRETARY RoUNTREE's ATTI-
 TUDE.
 On this page appears an editorial from The Birmingham Age-Herald in refer ence to the attempt at defense made be- fore the Investigating Committee of the Alabama Press Association by Secretary Rountree last. Friday. We say attempt at defense' advisedly. for his plea was simply a confession and avoidance. He admitted that he had made money out of the Canadian excursion and he tried to avoid responsibility for the various wrongs committed in that connection.
 The Axe-Herald is eminently right, for the most part. in It's position upon the matter, but 1t is wrong. we believe. in one important respect. It argues that MT. Rountree is entitled to compensation for his arduous services in connection with that excursion of 151 outsiders and q newspaper people; and that he should present a claim for compensation wher he files his itemized report of receipts and expenses.
 We do not think that Mir. Rountree is entitled to any compensation whatever. from any standpoint. He has brought shame and disgrace not only upon the Press Association, but upon the good name of the State which is so closely in- volved with its representative press. It would be adding insult to injury to allow him any compensation for work that was wrong in itself and so injurious in It's results. Furthermore, he received abund- ant compensation in incidental ways for whatever work he did in advance. Tn his personal party were four other persons who went along without any necessary cost whatever. At every one of the ex- pensive hotels he carried the excursion to. he and his party always had a suite of the best rooms with board free. in addi- ton to the commission he appears to have collected on the bills of the rest of the party. Furthermore, the party. on its re- turn, made up considerable sum for a handsome testimonial for him, costing about hundred dollars. It is plain that he received abundant compensation for that portion of his time and that of his stenographer used in working up that ex- cursion.
 Then there Is another point to be con- sidered. This was the twelfth annual excursion, and for a number of years past he has been making larger or small CT sums out of them besides getting his party carried free and receiving testin1o- nials. The investigation so far has not undertaken to go back of this year. If he expects to receive compensation for this years work he should be ready to disgorge the surplus made out of all the previous years. If he is to be let off with all the profits he has made in the past years, he ought not to talk of pay for this years imposition.
 The fact of 1t is. secretay Rountree is In a most unenviable attitude All that The Advertiser charged about his conduct of the Canadian trip has been proved, and much more. He finds himself in such a tight place that he refuses to make an accounting, after he had Committee ap- pointed for that very purpose. He even refused to render an account to the Ex- ecutive Committee, who delegated to him the authority to conduct the excursion. He intimates now that he will make an account to the State Press Association, in convention assembled as a whole. But 1t | is generally believed that when that Con vention meets in special session on Octo- ber 30th, he will refuse to render his ac- couns to it, on the ground that 1t is no; the constitutional annual session. He has employed a lawyer for defense and Is standing on every technicality he can l find. The indications are that he hopes to wait until the annual meeting next Spring. and then to be able to prevent any unfavorable action by threatening many individual members to expose their transactions with him during this and other years.
 But the prospect is that he will fall in all his schemes. The large majority of the State papers have had no conception until now of the enormity of his sins, the magnitude of his opera tions. or the extent to which he has made them pay him tribute. He has wheedled some of them into bad breaks, but the bulk of them have not intended to do wrong. and now that they see him in his true colors. they will have little patience with his wiles and no fear of his threats. The more of their possible individual mis- doings he exposes, the bigger spectacle he will make of himself and the severer the punishment he will bring down on him. self