The Montgomery advertiser., 1906-12-10

connection with any affair of the Cath ollie Church and yourself. not to take action of any kind which will give ground for the belief that you, as an American Ambassador. are striving to interfere in the affairs of the Church. with love to Maria,
 "Faithfully Yours,
 Theodore Roosevelt"
 Tn response to this MT. Storer wrot@ me letter rendering his resignation not, as he asserts. because of anything in connection with his visit to the vat ican. but solely because of his conduct in the Hurst matter.
 In this letter in answer to mine of December 30 he makes absolutely no aI- fusion whatever to what I snid in thai letter as to his call at the vatican; thlts letter of mine shows that I had then never heard from him that he called at the vatican and his absolute silence at the time shows Hhat what he sage on the subject is a pure afterthought.
 Did Not Dissent.
 He never in any way dissented from the statements I made in these three leters of December 10, 27 and 90. and in his letter of January 16 in which he rendered his resignation, his whole concern was over his conduct tn the Hearst affair. Hts letter runs in part as follows:
 CAll the omitted parts referring also exclusively to the Hurst matter:
 January {, 1904.
 My dear Theodore:
 find in answering your letter of DeA cember that made an error of date The letter l wrote Hanna. as also the writing to yourself on the consul gen. eral matter was after 22nd February. 1903, instead of in January as inad- vertently stated. Since then I have re- ceived your second letter of 30th De- cembeT.
 My writing any letter .n the terms did was inexcusabfe and that I admit feelingly and with the deepest regret. s" If in your judgment 1t would clear me in Mfr. Hays eyes. will you hand him the nclosed note of personal apology? But I beg you will do thls or not as you think wise. as I must not appear to try to escape official censure by personal repentance.
 Therefore. give or burn this note as you deem best. Not to justify my writing at all. or In using the language I did, but to explain the affair, must call attention to the difference of procedure in this consular case ss te what I had supposed was precedent. ." All this is no excuse for a public officer writing as I did outside of the department
 If in weighing the matter 1t seems As confidence of the Secretary of State. you must. without regard to mo. treat me as you would any other public Of- fcer for the good of the service. With. out the confidence of the department the work cannot go on.
 For your own sake I should wish that my leaving the service might be made to appear voluntary one. in. the spring or eahly s@:nmer As also think it would be better to have ie known after June It spite of every thing. I might make political gossip which l should wish to postponed un- tll the dine of the campaign is on. think you, my dear Theodore. loyalty and sincerely. for your letter. never doubt your absolute loyalty in friend ship to me and mino.
 Faithfully yours.
 Bellamy Storer.
 4 Full Confession.
 There could be no fuller confession of wrong doing or more absolute superior. It was this letter which am swered, saying, as he has himself quot ed, that l would treat the incident as closed and would not accept his reslg- nation. and that l was sure that Jonn Hay felt as l aid.
 With peculiar perfidity Mir. Storor now seeks to turn this act of cordial and I think l may add, generous friend- ship on my part, into an attack upon me by treating my refusal to accept his resignation as an indorsement of his position in the matter of the vati- can, to which there was absolutely no allusion whatever of any kind or sort in his letter Ot resign .tion.
 This bare recital q facts is initself the severest possible condemnation or MT Storar's disingeru ssness.
 Very turly yo, 8.
 Theod 'e Roosevelt Hon. Elihu Root.
 Sacretarv of State