New-York tribune., 1905-08-11
DEFENDS HIS BUREAU.
Chief Moore Denies Charges Of
"Graft' in Weather Ser0ice.

Washington, Aug. lO-ProfeSSor WINS L.
Moore. chief of the United States Weather Bu-
reau. to-day issued a signed statement denying
allegations Of graft in the management of the
weather station in the Blue Ridge Mountains.
near Bluemont. Va. disclamng the existence
Of any Irregularities in the administration Of
his office and offering full opportunity for the
investigation OF any specific charges by any re-
sponsbe person. Professor Moore says that no
Secret Service men at work in the bureau
and denounces "a few incompetent or dishonor-
able employees" who have been dismissed 1rom
the service and are secretly endeavoring TO re-
form the institution. The full statement fol-
lows:
a few days ago a statement was puohshed IN
Washington TO the effect that ~ was Iepot Leu ,eu
unoficially that the Secret service has @ uLs
patched agents to the mountain station oMount
Weather Of the United States Weather Bureau),
where the seuths for the last TWO Gays nave
been nosing around"
According to the report these sleuths discov-
cred that the Weather Bureau was paying SS
day for skilled labor, which is twice the amount
paid laborers in the City of washington, ana
that there is complaint on the part OF the ad-
Jacent employers who only pay 20 cents TO u.
A little further down the report says: What
discoveries have been made regarding the con-
duct OF Mount Weather by the Secret Service
II il be true that they are conducting an IN
vestigation, are being kept secret
In answer beg leave to say that the incon-
sistency of this report is par with previous
efforts TO manufacture scandal in the Weather
Bureau ! know that Secret Service agents
are at work in the bureau and If they are they
surely would not be foolish enough to go nos
ing around Mount Weather for the purpose OF
getting information that they could easily OBJ
tain By applying to the central office in WASH
ington for there are no matters connected with
the administration of the weather service that
are not open to the full inspection of any rep
utable inquirer.
The only persons that are practising secrecy
or that need the services or secret 9etectlNes s
or q
that have been dismissed from the weather ser
vice for the good of the latter: and who are
now endeavoring secretly TO reform" an insti-
tuition that has parted with their services
Now. it is a fact that the Weather Bureau
has never paid So a day to any laoorer employe9
at Mount Weather, or at any other pIace, sl,G snG
n the reporter who wrote that statement had
taken the trouble TO ask for the privilege OF
examining the payrolls Of the Neather bureau
which would have been freely placed at his dis
posal. he would have saved his readers the 9p
portunity Of reading secretly secured scaIlodl
instead Of openly procured news woutu iine nc
10 have the entire payroll Of Mount weather. or
Of any other portion OF the Weather bureau
published, so that the public may know Whether
there is an extravagant management inside OF
the bureau or malicious Justification on the out
side.
do not doubt that have disturbed the labor
market in the vicinity of Mount weather. ana ana
I am proud OF the fact. for l was told OF men
working from sunrise TO sunset for 90 cents
day and board, or 15 cents day and they
hoard themselves I believe that such hours
of labor and such wages do not contribute 10
the betterment of American citizenship or 10
the welfare OF the state and so far as 1 have
the mower as the chief of large government
bureau I shall ever strive TO alter such condi-
tions.
With the approval Of Secretary Wilson, who
believes in reasonable hours of labor and a fair
wage scale, 1 established a wage Of SO a day
for stone u1asons. So 30 for carpenters and 81 %
for day laborers- If the sleuths who have been
reporting ''nosing around Mount Weather had
been little more vigilant they might have dis
covered that 1 had also, with the sanction OF
the Secretary Of Agriculture, established an
eight-hour working day, and that fifty to sixty
men had for some time been receiving the ad-
vantages of such scale ard such hours OF
labor.
These wages are not high nor equal to the
prevailing rates in cities, and surely they are
MOI extra yagant Had we been employing thest
people in places where the of living wa!
higher their wages would have been proper
tionately greater If this is evidence of extrava
gance and bad management, it may as we'll b'
told now that the wage scale of each and ever
class of skilled and unskilled labor in th'
Weather Bureau has been materially increase
during the last eight years by secretary WI
on my recommendation. We believe tha
well paid and prosperous mechanics are no
only able to feed and clothe their children anC
keep them in the public schools instead of SEND
ing them the mines and the factories, bu
such workmen and their families furnish a gooC
market for the products of the farm and, wha
is still better grow into intelligent and self-re
specting citizens that knit together the ties tina
bind TO home and TO State. II is surely a bac
haul that these sleuths have TO show for thel
work, provided. as the report says. 1T be tru'
lnaI IneE are cOnIuCllnS an lnNeSllSdliOIi
I believe that wherever government official:
IN any measure have been recreant to theil
trusts their records should be inquired into anC
they held TO a strict accountability; and ais
believe that the greatest enemies of graft arr
the representatives of the American press, whC
should be given free access to the files and rec
ords of every public Office.
First, it charged that Mount Weather
had been constructed without authority of Con
gress. This was dsproved by quoting the &C
OF Congress itself. Next ii was charged tha
the institution was extravagantly fitted UP, bu
the most that critical examination could show
was that building comfortably fur
nished for the scientists who must remain there
during the entire year.
AS to the charge of its being a summer amer
10 the Weather Bureau, ii not possible Il
locate this institution, with its magnetic OBJ
servatories. at any place except some spot il
the mountains remote from railroads or trole,
cars and where il is improbable that such dis
turbing influences would ever come in for the
purpose of escaping the charge that has beer
made. namely, that il was a summer resort fo
Washington officials And the height Of ridic
ulousness seems TO have been reached when the
men was made the basis for a further attack
upon the bureau.
The great maritime, commercial and agricul
tural interests and reputa BILE newspapers be.
Heve that the Weather Bureau is sound cIaa
and impartially administered If any responsi.
bic person will point the contrary and
be specific in his statements l shall be glad IL
meet him and give him full opportunity II
prove his statements or retract them.