The Lee County journal. (Leesburg, Ga.) 1904-19??, 1905-06-30
BOWEN FIRED
BY PRESIDENT
While Lcomis Is Acquitted Ct
Charges Brought Against Him.
MOST SCATHING VERDICT
Conduct Of Erstwhile Minister to Vene-
zueIY Declared to Be ''Espec-
tally Reprehensible."

The dismissal OF Herbert w. Bowen,
for some years United States minister
to Venezuela, and the exoneration OF
Assistant Secretary of State Francis R.
LOOMS of the allegations brought
against him by Bowen, are the out
come of the Bowen-Loomis contro-
versy, which has attracted wide at
tention for many months past. This
disposition of the case is made by
President Roosevelt, in a letter ad-
dressed to Secretary Taft, made public
Tuesday, approving Mr. Taft's report
on his findings and conclusions in taI
case.
The president scathingly arraigns
Minister Bowen, declaring that his
conduct sis especially reprehensible, .
that Mr.. Bowen asked one of his
witnesses to enter the employ Of a
certain company for the purpose, Gin
plain words, of stealing documents
which, he hoped, might incriminate
Mr.. LOOMS, and that Mr. Bowen has
evidently, for many months, indeeo
for the last two years, devoted his
time to hunting UP scandal and Cos
sip until it became a monomania and
caused him to show complete disloy-
atty to the country he represented"
The president says he had hoped
to promote Mr. Bowen, as during much
of his service he had done good work,
but that his usefulness in the depart
ment is now at an end
The president says he would direct
that Mr.. Bowen's resignation be re-
Quested but for the fact that he
would consider a resignation an ad,
mission of misconduct, and, therefore,
his dismissal is ordered.
The president states that it appears
Mr.. Bowen, while minister, secured
the publication of attacks on Mr..
LOOMS and furnished to the press
documents pending before the state
department for approval and that his
explanation is inexcusable and shows
his centre unfftness" for the service.
Even if Mr.. Loomis had been guilty,
says the president, Mr.. Bowens con-
duct would be objectionable The lat.
ter quotes certain correspondence and
testimony. The report of Secretary
Taft on the case on which the pres
ident's action is based, is a volumi-
nous document, reviewing the evil
dence taken.
In his report Secretary Taft says
that there was nothing in the trans
actions in which Mr.. LOOMS had fig
ured, but he was net discreet. The
report says that Mr.. LOOMS was not
justified in becoming personally in
terested in any of the schemes either
with mere nominal interest or a
substantial interest. He holds, how
ever, that Mr.. Loomis has been most
cruelty slandered," commends him for
the self-restraint with which he met
the charges and points out that Mr..
LOOMS bitter experience in this case
makes it unnecessary to point out
the moral that minister cannot af-
ford, in the country to which he is
located, to make personal investments.
President Roosevelt, in his letter to
Secretary Taft, quotes at length from
the testimony to show that Bowen
was responsible for the charges
against LOOMS; that he instigated and
secured the publication of the attacks
on LOOMS by furnishing to the press
copies of documents believed to reflect
on the assistant secretary.
Spanish Cabinet Goes to Pieces.