The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1905-03-22
REBUKES CRITIC OF
CANAL COMMISSION
President Roosevelt, Writing to
Secretary Taft, Sco!ds
DR.. Reed

WASHINGTON, March 21.-Secre-
tary Taft today made public = letter
winch he has written to the nresidan+
concerning complaints made bv Dr q
a. L. Reed regarding the work of tha
lsthmian canal commission. In his let
Ter secretary Taft said that many of
the things complained of would he
remedled by placing the control of the
cahai under one head. or at least I'M
uer commission composed of not
more than three members He added
tnat he Will submit to the president a
pan Ter the Encouragement of the
commission. President Roosevelt i'm
his reply said:
Il have received your renort of NToro,,
LA a., tt8ggether with the report of DIR Reed
1 n1iS tlie answer thereto made by the COM
ppiISSIoi. IL appears from this thar DIR
Reed report (Which of course shnuid ~
uer no circumstances have been oivap 70
n me Pt t until you chose to give it and
until the answer thereto had been mall
by the commission) was. without 49,.
kIloWIeQge, printed in the Medical Jour
MAJ. II iurtner appears that the state
, nneL.S Wnlcn he thus published We're in
n.tn4 instances unwarranted by the facts
ana his accusations in many instances
unsupported by proof
,,o Dr- +t Reed has not displayed in this re-
poIl the qualities of temperament or tae
power OF accurate judicial observation
needeu TO make report valuable to the
Stp .,l1 It is true that he was not
charged with the duty of making Sucr n
report and that he was appointed to he a
commissioner to assess value of real es
tate. Nevertheless. when he assumed to
i' d report on sanitary conditions at
your request as secretary of war, he was
uhuef Obligations to speak with care and
justice on so important a subject and TO
OBSERVE the proprieties as to its publca-
ton.
Judging from your report it appears
mat the chief difficulties that have arisen
nave come from the inherent faultiness
OF the law under which the commission
was appointed 1t further appears how
ever. that in view of our experience with
the workings of the commission. a rear
sanSei eh, Oh dutles and change of per
S SON should be made. 1 am glad that
you are shortly to submit to me a plan
with these objects in view.
Burt Is Wanted
1t is stated that the name of Horace
u. Burt, formerly president of the
Union Pacific railroad, is under con-
SHERATON for executive head of the
canal commission, but it has not been
decided yet whether he will accept the
place. His appointment would not in
terfere with the retention at the head
or the engineering work of the present
chief engineer, Wallace, who, assisted
Dy probably two other engineers, will
nave control of the practical engineer
Ing operations of the canal construc-
ton. 1t is the desire of the president
and of Secretary Taft to make Mr..
Burt the business head of the canal
organization and build up around him
such an organization as he would re-
quire to accomplish the great work.
HIS salary, 1t is intimated, will not eX-
coed $4,000 year. 1t is said to be not
unlikely that William Barclay Parsons
and William H. Burr, two of the en-
gineers now members of the commit
tee, will be retained as assistants to
Engineer Wallace. In other respects
the commissions personnel will be
changed entirely.