Waterbury evening Democrat., 1906-01-19
ROOT IS OUTSPOKEN
Tells the House Appropriations Committee About the Con
 sular Service.

appropriations committee in relation to the expenses of the state depart ment, spoke frankly concerning the shortcomings of the American cOnsu- lar service The statements of MT Root, which have just been made pub lie, show that in response to questions by Representative Livingstone, the secretary said:
 There are great many consulates that have been in that condition and there are some that are still in that condition, and the fact arises from several causes, One cause is that con sulates are used and regarded here not as places in which active and suf- ficient work is to be done, but are used as places in which to shelve estimable and elderly gentlemen whose friends find 1t necessary to take care of them in some way. Uaughter).
 Now, have got old enough to be able to say that sort of thing withOu'C anybody being offended. I do not think that when a man has lived out the activity of his life and passed be- yond his ambition and his energy and his desire to make career for him self do not think that then is the time to start him out in a new place where he has got to learn a new busl- ness and push the commerce of the country"
 The following statements were then made by Mir Root in reply 10 questions of members of the committee: Mir Brundige: T quite agree with you. MT Secretary, as to that, but upon whom rests the blame for that condi- tion?'' Secretary Root: 'It rests upon a long standing custom, whereby the executive is expected to appoint to important consulates important men from the different states"
 Mir Graf: But you have system of examination
 Secretary Root: "Yes, so far as the young fellows go You can put the screws on them and make them come up for examination. But when an em- inent citizen
 Mir Livingston: "An eminent ex- senator or member of congress"
 Secretary Root (continuing): "Yes. When an eminent citizen comes around, you cannot examine him in geography and arithmetic He resents it. and there is the dickens to pay ali along. I.aughter.) It Is a custom that has grown up-just like this deficiency custom. When you step in to change a custom you cannot change it by piecemeal: you have to jar something. Take this consular bill which is now pending. When it was introduced 1t contained a series of provisions un der which the consulates were to he graded. The original appointments made were 10 sbe only to the lower grades. and the upper grades were to be filled by promotion, so that Vt could catch fellows young while they still had some motive power left ill them. These provisions have been stricken out and the bill reported without them Still. the bill makes a great advance over the present sys- tem. It grades the consulates and pro. yides for the abolition of fees, and il provides against the employment of any clerks, except those of the very lowest grades. who are not American citizens: provides against what l think is a very great abuse. namely. the fact that great number of American consulates are run by clerks of the country in which they are situated. IL also does various other things. I don't know whether it will pass or not"
 Mir Livingston: That is now in the senate?"
 Mir Root: "Yes. in the senate. Ii has been favorably reported"
 The approaching end of the active work of the reciprocity bureau was sounded in NIT Roots statements about the expense for its maintenance Representative I.ittauer asked Mir Root if the bureau would be permanent and Mir Root provoked laugh witl the following reply: "The indications are that it will not be. The making of a system of reeiDrocity treaties does not appear to have the element. of eternal life"
 In discussing trade conditions n China and the necessity for gathering information concerning commercial troubles there, MT Root said: "Thert is no occasion for sending cOmI1is sion to China. Our ministers and con suls at the treaty ports of China art commissioned now. If these gentle men will come up here I will bury them fin papers so that they could noi dig ont for a week. We have bushels and bushels of reports from perfectly trustworthy American witnesses as tt what has been happening in China and as to the cause thereof. We have had special investigations made as ts the causes. Investigations made by competent Americans who have lived fin China and understand tfle language and know the Chinese people. and th, trouble now is not ignorance as ts what the conditions are: fl is in apply ing the quite plain and simple rem etv. There have been two troubles One arising from the fact that fil. law. the Chinese exclusion act. con fains some provisions which exrer1 rure has shown to be i'll advised. and the other Iz that that law has beeT administered fn a harsh and inconsid crate war.
 The president has rsmeiied the ad nfnisfrnfion, think. just as far a' the law permits him to do. and ths thing to be done now is for you ts change tie law in some respects. Doi so zs to permit the Chinese Iaforer ts cone fn. but % that the Chinese Ia hrpr csn I,e kept out without insult snf fnsIEgnffy and hardship to th,