The Fairmont West Virginian. (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1904-1914, 1905-07-03

TONLET'TER

lUNLEl lEk
tFronh Our Regular correspondent.l
Washington, D. G. July .. 1905.
The extraordinary course OF John
E. Wallace, Chief Engineer of the
Panama Canal and member of the
Canal Commission, in resigning his
position for one that offered him
greater remuneration. Secretary Taft's
scathing arraignment of Mr.. Wallace
and the Presidents virtual dismissal
of the Chief Engineer have practically
monopolized public attention In
Washington during the past week.
wailace's dismissal was Immediately
followed by the appointment of ]. r.
Stevens, the engineer who construct
ed the Rocky Mountain division of the
Great Northern Railroad, and who was
later general manager of the Chicago.
Rock Island & Pacific Railway, to sue
coed him as Chief Engineer. but the
place which Mr.. Wallace vacated on
the commission will remain untitled
for the present, probably until secre.
tary Taft returns from the Philip
pines, late in October.
With characteristic frankness, Sec
rotary Taft made public the full de-
tails of the events which led up to
Mr.. Wallace's resignation, not exclud.
ing the scathing arraignment which
The Secretary delivered to the Chief
Engineer when he learned his pur-
pose, and men old in the service of
the government declare that never
have they known cabinet officer to
deliver to prominent public official
go sevsre verbal castigation as that
administered to Mr.. Wallace by Sec
Rotary Taft. All sorts of rumors gain.
ed currency in the interval which
elapsed between the publication OF Mr..
Wallace's desire tn resign his position
as Chief Engineer and the publication
of Secretary Taft's statement, but
tho latter disproves them all and dem
onstrates beyond question that there
was no foundation for the reports of
friction in the Canal Commission, an
excess OF red tape, a hamperlng OF
Wallace's effort, and that mere lu.
cre,' to use Mr.. Taft's expression, led
the Chief Engineer to adopt course
which the Secretary characterizes as
dishonorable. disloyal and selfish in
the extreme.
There were some peculiarly agra.
waiting circumstances connected with
;he sudden resignation of the Chief
Engineer. It is now learned that he
was made member of the commits.
sion at his own solicitation. that his
views were consulted and his opinions
respected in every instance, that no
effort seemed too great to his asso'
ciates on the Commission when 1t
would contribute to the facility with
which he discharged his duties.
Moreover Mr.. Wallace had been urged
to complete the organization of the
engineering force on the Isthmus, but
had failed to do SO. AS result, he
left the Commission without a compe.
tent head in charge of the work on
the Isthmus, and without such organ
ization as would Insure its confirm.
ance along proper lines.
L -HI+- pe1a ~ - =
In the conversation which occurred
between Secretary Taft and the Chief
Engineer, the Secretary. after hearing
Mr.. Wallace's statement as to his rea.
sons for changing his mind and desir.
ing to resign from his position as
chief engineer, but to retain his place
on the Commission, said:
"NIr. Wallace. for mere lucre you
change your position overnight with.
out thought Of the embarrassing po
sition in which you place your govern.
ment by this action 's II you
could withdraw from your new ar.
rangements, which I do not suggest
could have no confidence (since
know now your conception of duty
that you would not in the future re
peat the same act at moment even
more critical, when the consequences
might be even more embarrassing
and injurious to the govern.
ment am bound to say that
I consider the public interest requires
that you tender your resignation at
this moment and turn over the rec.