The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1907-06-04
BONAPARTE MAY
SOON BE RETIRED
lMan speelnl 70 lhe AdverlIserl

tMan Special 10 the AdvertiserJ
WASHINGTON. y. c., May IL
Three members Of the Presidents cab
met have been depicted recently as
preparing TO retire from the comforts
and conyeniences Of high office to the
| cold cold world. Postmaster General
George Won l.. Meyer OF Massachusetts
would resign. It was said. because he
| did not like Secretary OF the Treasury
mess; Secretary Of state Root would
get out soon, according TO a like re-
port. because his dld not fancy the
| Presidents preference for Secretary
| Taft. and. finally. Attorney General
| Bonapnrte was going to relinquish his
duties as the governments leading law
officer because his health was bad
The stories about the first two cab
met officers rested apparently on very
slender foundation; probably had no
foundation at all. 1t has been taken
around the State Department as set
tied that Secretary Root intends re-
naming because he has recently order
ed a years supply of coal for his large
and pretentious Rhode Island avenue
residence. However, there was proba-
bly, considerable foundation for the
newspaper articles about Attorney
General Bonaparte, and number of
Washington people, who think they
know the inside of the situation, are
laughing at the expense Of the descend
ant of the mighty soldier who once had
all Europe at his feet.
BoNAPARTE AN ABSENTEE.
According to the best information
obtainable a "tip" went out of the
White House offices by authority that
Attorney General Bonaparte was too
i'll to continue his duties long in the
cabinet. 1t is known that the Presi-
dent did not take at all kindly to the
practice Attorney General Bonaparte
has adopted of conducting most of his
departmental business in Baltimore.
Many people come to Washington on
errands before the Department of JUS
tice and often have to consult with the
Attorney General. Since he assumed
that office. it has been increasingly
difficult to see Mr.. Bonaparte, because
inquirers generally have found that he
was absent. Cabinet meets, as a rule,
twice week. and Mr.. Bonaparte has
been sufficiently punctual at those
gatherings. But he often went straight
from the railroad station to the White
no idea of resignng. Again those who
claim TO have had a straight tip from
President Roosevelt reiterated the re-
port that he was about to resign, and
with the reiteratlon came reports of the
Attorney Generals derelictions., Those
things made the Attorney General ex-
ceedingly angry and he issued formal
statement. I'm so far as the, publi-
cations in question reflect on me per-
sonally," the Attorney General began,
Il do not care to say anything at all
about them; but they reflect by impli-
cation upon my subordinates as well,
since they allege in substance that
the work of the entire department is
| languid and Ineffective; and 1t is my
duty, as its head, to pronounce this
statement a bald falsehood, originating
either in malice or else in gross and
wilful ignorance of the facts
There were more in like vein. but, in
some way or another, Attorney General
Bonaparte seems to have ''tumbled' to
the situation. He surprised official
| House offices and returned straight
| from the White House offices to the
station, looking over mail that had ac-
| cumulated during his ride back and
| forth, his secretary being in attendance
TO present matters of pressing import
ance.
A dozen instances are told to prove
the Attorney Generals absenteeism,
and. apparently. many of them are
true. One account is that he came
straight from Baltimore to the United
States Supreme Court room two or
three weeks ago to argue the important
| case involving the constitutionality of
| the Eight Hour Law. The Attorney
| Generals critics say he had not been
| at the department then for several days
and had not properly prepared himself
| to argue that case.
When these accounts of his alleged
| Illness, said to have originated with
| President Roosevelt, came forth, Mr..
Bonaparte issued a prompt denial. He
said he was not i'll and that he had
Washington by coming to the city the
morning after these stories were atioat
at 8 a. m. and remained in town till
$3.50 p. m, looking after business in his
department. Then he came the follow
ing day early in the morning and has
been keeping this up. He continues to
refer sarcastically to the enterprising
newspaper correspondents who ar
ranged his retirement TO private life,
but, nevertheless. is making business
hum around the Department of Justice
in manner unknown heretofore,
AFTER THE TRUSTS.
1t seemed as though the activities in
| prosecuting trusts had ceased alto
gether, but when Mr. Bonaparte began
TO wake up his department he soon an
| nounced that he had decided to begin
suit against the Harvester trust He
reviewed the evidence in this case, as
secured from the Department OF Com
merce and Labor and II win virtually
be his undertaking. The powder trust
is To he assailed In the near future
There have also been other activities in
| trust-busting within few days. Peo-
! lle who come from afar with business
before the Attorney General are now