The Topeka state journal., 1903-12-01
HEATH MAY RETIRE.
His Resignation from National
Committee Is Expected.

Kansas City, Dec. IA Washington
special to the Times says:
Joseph L. Bristow, fourth assistant
postmaster general, declined today to
be dragged into newspaper contro-
Yersy with Perry S. Heath, ex-first as
sistant postmaster general
Mr. Heath declared that General
Bristow was now and had been his un-
relenting enemy for years. General
Bristow said to the correspondent of
The Times today:
"I offered no opinions of my own re-
garding Mr.. Heath, but confined my re-
port to a statement of facts. What
may think of Mr.. Heath or what Mr..
Heath may think of me, has nothing to
do with the facts recited. I cannot see
either what the crush of business dur
ing the Spanish war has to do with
transactions in 1900 and 1901 mentioned
in my report
The enrnity of General Bristow and
Mr.. Heath is of long standing and nu-
merous public men have in one way or
another become involved in the cOntrO-
ver'sy What General Bristow has done
has been in the line of official inves tiga-
ton Mr.. Heath and his friends on the
contrary have relentlessly pursued Mr..
BristoW. Had it not been for the recent
investigation General Bristow would
have long since paid the penalty for his
activities in the Cuban inquiry with his
official head. Two presidents have stood
by him in the discharge of his official
duty. Mr. Heath was closly identified
with President McKinley's political or
ganization, and every effort to discredit
him by President McKinley's close po-
litical friends failed, and it was McKfn-
ley himself who gave the orders to
make the Cuban report public
At the beginning of Roosevelt's ad-
ministration. the fight on General
Bristow was renewed and relentlessly
] whose need
not be mentioned, sought to have him
removed and lesser fry wrote or in
spired newspaper articles which were
widely published predicting. his re-
movaI General Bristows friends be-
lieved that the influences" against
him were irresistible and that his days
as a government official were num-
bered With postoffice investigation
ordered, the tables were turned. Twice.
| in a brief introduction, the president
has taken occasion to express his con-
fidence in General Bristow as an Off
cial. Heath's usefulness as a member
of the Republican national committee
is over if it is accepted that Theodore
Roosevelt is the leader of his party and
will be its nominee in 1904.
Whether Mr.. Heath will present his
resignation when the Republican ma
tional committee meets in Washington
! December IL, or wait until the national
convention meets, is a subject of spec
ulation today Hanna can keep Heath
on the iidtloHdl cOIlHlItlcc uHtl4 tic nd
tional convention is assembled, but not
even Hanna could save him when the
new committee is organized. Harry 5.
Now of Indianapolis has announced his
candidacy for secretary of the COM
mittee since the publication of the Bris-
tow report. He had returned today
from a hunting trip and lost no time in
expressing the opinion that Mr Heath
would retire from the committee De
cember u. Between the calling of the
convention and it's assembling there
Will be much work for a secretary to
perform He will write hundreds of
letters and be a conspicuous national
figure. Mr. Heath is expected to re-
sign in order to relieve his party of
embarrassment.