The Forest Republican. [volume] (Tionesta, Pa.) 1869-1952, 1905-11-22
WHITNEY To PRESIDENT
Asks For Personal Hearing on
Charge of Misrepresentation .
CLAIMS TO BE A FAIR FIGHTER.
President Declines to Grant Hearing,
Claiming That Mr.. Whitney In Let
ter Asking the Interview Again Mis-
represents Him on the Subject Of
Reciprocity.


Reciprocity.
Boston, Nov. 21.-Henry M. Whit
ney, Democratic candidate for lieuten-
ant governor at the last election, made
public last night correspondence which
had passed between President Roose-
welt and himself concerning the state
ments said to have been made by the
president in an interview during last
winter which was granted to a COM
mittee from Massachusetts on recip-
rocal trade relations.
The president informed the Massa-
chusetts committee that called on him
last week in favor of free hides that
Mr.. Whitney had deliberately misrep-
resented what had occurred at last
winters conference. With this ex.
perience in mind, the president de-
clined to enter upon a discussion Of
free hides with the free hides commit
tee, the chairman of which was Gov
ernor w. l.. Douglas.
The statement of Mr.. Whitney dur
ing the recent canvass in Massachu.
sets that the president told him he
favored reciprocity with Canada was
that to which the president took ex.
ception.
Whtney's Letter to President.
Mr.. Whitney's letter to the president
dated Nov. II, 1905, follows:
"Sir-You have done me a great in.
justice in publicly asserting that
have wilfully misrepresented your at
titude on the question of reciprocity
with Canada, and that this was done
in cowardly fashion by saying what
l did under conditions when the dig.
nifty of your high Office prevented you
from denying.
Il think am not open to this charge.
claim in my humble way to be fair
fighter. l believe l have well estab-
lished and well deserved reputation
In this community for fairness and
justice. l may have misunderstood
you and hence may have been led into
error. You have charged me with IN
offense of which | am not guilty; you
have condemned me unheard. / ap-
peal to your sense of fairness for a
personal hearing.
"My public utterances touching your
attitude on this question are very few
and very brief. will bring them with
me If you grant me this request.
will have the passages marked and it
will not take you two minutes to read
them.
81 trust, therefore, that you will
grant my request; but whether you DO
or not l shall regret more than any
thing else in connection with this mat
ter that the righteous cause of reci-
procity with neighboring countries, of
so much value to our people and TO
the whole of the human race, is not
to have the Endorsement Of your great
name and the benefit of your potent
aid.
81 take the liberty of enclosing
herewith a public statement made by
myself and my assistants touching the
matter of our interview with you last
winter, which perhaps you may not
have seen, and remain, yours very re-
spectfully,
Henry M. Whitney"
Charges More Misrepresentation.
The letter from the president to Mr..
Whitney was as follows:
NOV. 18, 1905.
"Sir-I have your letter of the 18th
instant. In view of my previous ex.
perience with you l am obliged to
state, with regret, that it is out of the
question for me to grant you another
interview. In this letter of Nov. IT,
In which you make this request, you
furnish additional evidence of the wis.
dom of my refusing to communicate
further with you; my refusal being
based upon your evident inability to
understand, or determination to mis-
represent, what say.
"In this letter you state that you
regret more than anything else in
connection with this matter that the
righteous cause of reciprocity with
neighboring countries, of so much
value to our people and to the whole
of the human race, is not to have the
Endorsement of your (my) great name,
and the benefit Of your (my) potent
aid
Nothing that l have said at any
time has given you the slightest war
rant for making this assertion; and
when, in the very letter asking for an
interview and denying that you ever
wilfully misrepresented my previous
remarks, you incorporate another de-
liberate misstatement, you can hardly
wonder that decline to see you; nor
would there in any event be the slight
est point in such an interview.
"In your speeches you pretended to
quote from memory certain statements
made in the course of a long conver.
sation occurring nearly year pre-
vious. You quoted portions of what
said-even as to these portions, your
language was inaccurate and all the
context was suppressed.
"As a result you as completely mis-
represented me as in the sentence of
your present letter which | quote
above. 1t matters little whether this
was due to a deliberate purpose of de-
ception or to a lack, in both your
companions and yourself, of a nice
sense of propriety and of the power of
exact thinking and correct apprehen.
sion and repetition of what was said.