Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-11-12
PARKER WAS M|SLEO
How he Came to Make Such
Reckless Charges.
RUMORS OF TREACHERY
DEMOCRATIC CANDIDATE SAID TO
HAVE BEEN BETRAYED.
It is Said That He Trusted Persons
Who Furnished Him With the
Basis for His Statements.
RUMORS OF TREACHERY
BY WILLIAM E. CURTIS.

Written for The Evening Star and the Chicago
Record Herald.
If the democrats should hold an inquest
over the presidential ticket and have a
post mortem, some sensational information
would probably be brought out. There are
already whispered rumors of treachery at
their headquarters. A member of the
democratic national committee told me
this morning that perdition would be to
pay all along the Wabash before many
weeks have elapsed He was very mys-
FERROUS in his illusions and refused to give
specifications or formulate charges, but he
intimated very plainly that certain persons
In whom Judge Parker had placed great
faith had betrayed him; had Intentionally
led him into making false statements; had
urged him to attack Roosevelt for black
mailing the trusts, and had failed to fur
nish proof as promised, and had gone into
the campaign for the purpose of prevent
ing his election. While other reasons for
the volcanic upheaval of public opinion are
very apparent. Judge Parker certainly did
more than anybody on the republican side
to accomplish his own defeat by the reck-
less statements he has been making In his
speeches. If he had made q few more he
would not have carried single state
Parker's Many Misstatements.
I suggested several weeks ago that ito
know the truth and speak it" is an essen
tial qualification for a presidential candl-
date, and the result of the election proves
it. 1 do not believe any candidate for
office ever said so much that was untrue
In the same number of speeches as Judge
Parker. And what Is more extraordinary
all OF his misstatements were absolutely
unnecessary and easy to disprove. This
seems to confirm the proposition that he
was betrayed. 1t is evident that somebody
In whom he had confidence has been
''stuffing" him with cock and bull stories
which he has repeated on The stump and
made himself responsible for without STOP
ping to inquire into their accuracy.
For example, If he had asked single
question of any pension attorney, or any
member of Congress, or any clerk in the
pension office, or If he had taken the
/ trouble to read the pension laws, he could
not have made the mistake he did when
he accused President Roosevelt of usurp-
ing the authority of the legislative branch
of the government and violating the Con-
stitution by his order concerning the
limit OF age for dependent pensioners If
he had asked ex-President Cleveland, or
Hoke Smith, or Gen. John c. Black, the
last democratic commissioner of pen
sions. they would have protected him
from making blunder, but he evidently
got MS information from somebody who
ma!1clously misled him or who knows
nothing about the pension system of this
government In issuing that order Pres
ident Roosevelt simply followed prece-
confirmed by President Mckinley. and If
he usurped the power of Congress thew
showed him how to do it.
Ignorance as to the Treasury,
In his discussion of treasury nna++ers
Judge Parker showed the same tgnor-
ance For several days in succession nm
I'll somebody called him down, he charged
ana reiterated the charge that he and
the Pubic at large were unable to obtain
any Information concerning the condition
OF the treasury; that the administration
was determined that the facts should not
pe known; that 1t was deceiving the neo
PIE and prohibiting the emnIovas of ~
department. from giving information. IF
Judge Parker had consulted Mr. CarIis,a
Wn3 was with him frequently, or former
<Assistant secretary Curtis, who has been
one or the managers of his camnaipn ba
would not have made that blunder And
IL ne mad conferred with lis coIIaa pua
.ne candidate for Vice President, he
thisht nave obtained all the information
ne desired concerning the subject
Mr. Davis has been in constant coror,,,,-
t .itoatIoIl with the treasury officials from
tist,cp trhis, or .he campaign. and the sta
stios Whlcn ne has used in his speeches
we're furnished him by Mr. MacLennan
chlet or the warrant division of the Trna g.
u ufy department. Mr. Davis knows. from
his long experience and associatfo,, ,.,ith
the treasury officials, 1t would be jmnossi-
pie TOT them to deceive the public or CON
ceal the condition of the finances for q
single nour, because at II o'clock every
week day, for the last thirty-fve vaars
the chief of the warrant division bao
placed upon the desk of the Secretary ~
the treasury balance sheet the contents
az "nicn are instantly telegraphed to ey-
erV financial newspaper, to every clearing
mousse, TO every stock exchange and to al.
most every bank In the entire country If
tnat statement should be withdrawn a
ha
tempered with the fact would he instar+Iv
detected by a hundred financial expertS
whom 1t would be impossible to deceive
Publications Of Fiscal Conditions.
There is an ancient law still standing
upon the statute books requiring the Score
tary or the Treasury to publish a state
ment OF the finances of the government not
less than four times a year, and before the
CIVIL war IT was customary to print as an
advertisement in the organs of the admin
istration a detailed column of figures ey-
cry few weeks. But during the early part
of the war, when there was so much spec
ulating in gold and bonds. Secretary Chase
used to give out the balance sheet every
day. The custom has prevailed ever since
and If the Secretary of the Treasury. or
the President or any one else, should at
tempt to interfere with it he would shake
the credit or the nation. And yet Judge
Parker seriously asserted again and again
before large audiences that 1t was impossi-
BILE for any one to ascertain the truth about
the finances.
To establish this extraordinary assertion
he produced circular signed by the chief
clerk of the treasury. in which all officials
and clerks of the department were pro-
hibited from giving out information con-
corning the estimates for appropriations
for the next fiscal year. That, Mr.
Parker said, was damning proofs of con-
spiracy.
If Judge Parker had taken the trouble to
consult anybody who is familiar with the
conduct of the government in Washington,
or II he had telephoned to any newspaper
correspondent, he might have ascertained
that such a circular, in precisely the same
language. is Issued at this time every No
vember The laws require the Secretary of
the Treasury to submit to Congress, at the
opening of each session. statement setting
forth the requirements of the government
for the next ensuing year, as closely item
lied as possible, and each of the executive
damn f ont -