Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-06-06
SECRECY OBSERVED IN CoMPII
ING THE TOTALS
Care Taken to Prevent Premature Pub.
LEGATION Of Reports-Sending Out
the Bulletin.

Secretary Wilson, ''are forwarded to the
department sealed and go to John Hyde,
chief stattstician. He places them in his
safe, and on the Sd of each month the
various envelopes are brought into my Of
flee. where the totals are compiled. Neither
Mr. Hyde nor any other man has the least
Idea of what the totals will be- 1 have no
idea myself, as the envelopes are first
opened and the totals footed up right there
1t is impossible for these envelopes to be
opened by anyone and inserted in other en-
velopes, as that would be detected quickly
l cannot help believe that our plan is per-
rect in guarding against leaks, but we will
be glad to receive any information Of a ma
ture that can be investigated If we find
that there is anything wrong we will quick
~ punish those who are guilty. 1t is no.
tlceable that the charges that are now
talked about exonerate Mr.. Hyde, while, as
matter Of fact, he is the only man who
could possibly have advance information.
and we are fully satisfied that he does not
make any use of the sealed figures and in
formation that comes to him When we
assemble to make up the totals the doors
are locked, and nobody goes out or comes in
until the total is publicly announced, news
paper men being in waiting for the an
nOuncement,"
Secretary Wilson talked over the matter
with the President at the cabinet meeting,
which was short one, those present being
Secretaries Wilson, Hitchcock, Morton,
Metcalf and Attorney General Moody.
Mr.. Cheatham's Charges Challenged.
Officials of the Department of Agriculture
are apparently not very much concerned
over the charges brought by Richard Cheat
ham Of Atlanta Ga, secretary of the
Southern Cotton Growers Association, al
leging gross irregularities in the prepara=
ton and publication of the government
COTTON report issued last. Friday Similar
charges have been brought in the past
against both the census Office and the bu-
reau or statistics of the Agricultural De-
partment and in every case investigators
mas proven the charges to be groundless
according to officials Of the Agricultural
department, that is what will happen in
Cheatham to produce the documentary owl
dence which he is said to possess and thew
JOIN In the demand for the most rigid in
vestigation
Agricultural Department, expected To sail
from New York this morning for a Euro
pean trip. 1t was thought that Mr. HYDE
ousnt TO postpone his departure until the
charges brought by Mr.. Cheatham had been
investigated, but up to a late hour this
afternoon no Information had been re-
celVed at the Agricultural Department that
he had done SO.
Opening Reports.
An official Of the bureau of statistics OF
the department Informed Star reporter
this afternoon that 1t was absolutely i'm
possible for irregularities to have occurred
IN the preparation Of the cotton report OF
last Friday, and that 1t was likewise i'm
possible for leak to have occurred prior
10 the official transmission of the report
Last Friday, at o'clock in the morning
according to this official, the doors of
suite OF rooms In the statistical division
were locked and guards stationed outside
Ihen the sealed envelopes containing the
reports of the various correspondents of
the department stationed throughout the
cotton belt. which had been carefully pre-
served under lock and key were opened
and the preparation of the totals was be-
gur The work was under the direction of
Assistant Secretary Hays of the depart
ment. who was assisted by Mr. Hyde and
trusted employees of the department. Dur
ing the time that the preparation of the
tables was In progress no one entered or
LEFT the locked rooms and there was not
even word Of communication between
those engaged In the work and any one
outside in the corridors.
1t is the usual custom for Secretary
Wilson of the Department of Agriculture
to be present when the preparation Of the
cotton report from the data supplied by
correspondents is undertaken, but last
Friday the Secretary was In attendance
at the Cabinet meeting and Assistant Sec
rotary Hays was designated in his place
The report was finally completed a few
minutes before noon and precisely on the
hour 1t was flashed, in bulletin form, to
the various cities Of the country. The
method employed by the bureau of statis-
tics OF the department to ensure secrecy
is that in use by the census bureau and
it is claimed that the possibility of irreg-
ularities, a leak, has been reduced to a
minimum.
Cotton Growers Association.
The Southern Cotton Growers Associa-
ton is an organization of planters and
southern brokers whose object it is to
regulate as far possible, the acreage
of cotton and to protect the planters and
other southern cotton interests from ma
nipulation of the market tending to bear
the price of the staple. The association
says 1t has as many experts as the De-
partment of Agriculture has and that it
makes every effort to procure the most
trustworthy information regarding the
condition of the crop The confidence of
the association in itself is illustrated by
the fact that about a month ago the asso-
citation, through its secretary, Mr. Cheat
ham, suggested to Statistician Hyde that
the government cooperate with it in is
suing the COTTON crop reports
Mr.. Hyde replied, in substance that as
the association was an interested party
and the government was not, he did not
think that under the circumstances. CO.
operation would be right and proper. Now,
according to Mr. Cheatham. it will be
shown that the government reports are un-
trustworthy and unreliable and that the
information they contain is impaired to the
favored few ahead of time.
The Department Sustained.
Officials of the Agricultural Department
call attention to the fact that when the cot
ton report of December 1904. was issued
charges similar to those made by Mr..
Cheatham were made. That report esti-
mated the probable amount of the crop at
about twelve and a half million bales
From all over the country the cry went up
from cotton men that the report was alb
surd, and that the estimate was more than
a million bales too high. 1t took long
time for this sort of talk to quiet down.
and, in fact mutterings were heard until
the report of the census bureau, showing
the actual count of bales ginned, revealed
that not only was the Agricultural Denart-
ments report not too optimistic, but that
on the other hand. 1t had been extremely
conservative, as the number of bales ex-
ceeded thirteen millions
One of the chief causes of differences be-
tween the report of the department. and
the report of the association is in the de-
crease in acreage The association report
ed the decrease at more than IS per cent
over last year. According to the depart
ment report the decrease is only a. fraction
over per cent.
Officials of the department DENY emnhat-