Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-11-04
GARFIELD IN NEW YORK
OFFICIAL OPINION MADE PLAIN
TO NATIONAL CHAIRMAN.
How Much Information of Bureau o1
Corporations Has Been Classified
and is Accessible to ALI.

Cortely0u or the republican natlonai com-
mittee will make public a statement in re-
lation to the charge that has been made by
Judge Parker, democratic candidate for
the presidency, to the effect that the re-
publican campaign fund has been forced
from corporations under promises of favors
to be shown by the Department of Com
merce and Labor by a failure to permit the
bureau a&,corporations to act against them.
Chairman Cortelyou has persisted in
what he regards as a dignified course In
ignoring this charge. Republicans view
1t as merely an ordinary form of campaign
buncombe, but at the same time, since the
democratic candidate has publicly repeated
1t and assumed responsibility for it, they
believe that Mr.. Cortelyou should take
cognizance of it, vigorously deny it, and
call upon Judge Parker to make his charge
specific, and to furnish the proof, or to
support accusations that allege in effect
corrupt practices and blackmail. They
think that there should be a formal denial
of the charge to make up the issue and to
place squarely upon Judge Parker the
plain obligation of furnishing evidence to
prove his accusation, or to confess by fail
ure to make good that his charge was un-
founded and slanderous. The charge not
only bears upon the campaign, but 1t goes
directly to the integrity of the manage
w.,
1t has become of Importance not only to
men who view it in relation to its political
effect, but also y many of the leading
officials in this city
Mr.. Garfield in New York.
1t is we'll known that Commissioner Gar
field, who has presided over the bureau of
corporations since it was formed, has con-
templated the publication of a reply to
Judge Parker's statement. Mr.. Garfield left
this city last evening without making pub
Tic such statement. He went to New
York and will make speeches in that state,
after which he will go to Ohio to vote.
While in New York he will call at the ma
tional headquarters of the republican COM
mittee and will doubtless discuss with Mr..
CoItelyou the propriety of replying to the
charge that has been made by Judge
Parker.
No one is better qualified than Mr.. Gar
field to tell Mr.. Cortelyou exactly how Of
ficial Washington feels in relation to the
charge that has been made by the standard
bearer of the democratic party. 1t is re-
garded here as quite likely that he will do
this in free and frank way.
When Mr.. Garfield heard this charge he
naturally felt that it reflected on the bureau
of which he is the head. His friends urged
that he should make a reply and he con-
sidered the propriety of SO doing. But this
course was criticised at once. The question
arose that as the charge had been made IN
Chairman Cortelyou to trust magnates the
denial could only come from him if it was
to be of force.
A number of letters have gone from Of
ficials in this city to Mr.. Cortelyou advis-
ing him of the views of others in relation
to the course he should pursue in this mat
ter. If he declines to take notice of Judge
Parker's charge 1t will be in the face of
Secrets of the Bureau.
A statement has been given out by the sec
retary to the democratic congressional cCm-
mittee in this city to the effect that the
secrets" of the bureau of corporation, even
though they may be contained in printed
volumes to be found in the great libraries
of the country are still beyond the reach
of the average citizen because they need
classification and arrangement in order to
make them intelligle. 1t is well known
that the larger part of the Information con-
tanned In the files of the bureau of corpora
ton is contained in the nineteen volumes
constituting the report of the Industrial
committee. OF course, these volumes are
a small part of the great library that has
been gathered by the bureau of corpora
tions, but the report Of the industrial COM
mission Is in large measure an epitome
of charges that have from time to time
been made against corporations. While
that report Is very voluminous 1t contains
summaries of all the thousands of pages
of testimony that were taken, together with
an idex of such testimony. One summary
of the testimony was made by Prof. jerks
and the other by S. Dana Durand, the lat
ter now being one of the experts of the
bureau of corporations.
Not only was all this testimony printed
in that form, but very complete report
of it was made in The Evening Star and
copied in hundreds of newspapers through
out the country. 1t was scattered wide
spread. Congress appropriated money for
a very large edition of the report which
has been sent to every library that has
ever applied for 1t or which ordinarily gets
government publications. Members of the
Senate and House of Representatives also
sent thousands of these reports to their
constituents so that If any one cares to
in possession of nine-tenths of the cor
poration secrets that have been gathered
by the bureau of corporations.