The Washington herald., 1907-01-12
DRAKE TELLS ABOUT LETTER
No Secrecy IN Presidents Communi
cation to Him, He Declares.
SALARY Limit Resolution Was Adopted
When Only seven Of Committee
OF Fifteen Were Present.

/ Mr Thomas Z. Drake. superintendent
/ Of Insurance Of the District Of Columbia.
insists that there was no impropriety and
no thought Of Executive interference with
/ the rights OF States tn the letter which
was written TO him by President Roose-
Welt on the subject Of the proposed lin
I iting Of salaries paid officials Of life in
/ surance companies.
Il think a brief statement Of the facts
I in the case is due said Mr. Drake yes
/ terday.~ The President was deeply in
/ terested in having suitable uniform insur-
/ |ance legislation enacted. To that end, he
: requested me to call and arrange for a
conference OF as many Of the governors.
/ attorneys general and insurance commits
/ Isiouers Of the States and Territories as
could be gotten together TO consider the
whole subject This I did. and the con-
|vention met in Chicago. February / and
I 2. 1906 Il appointed "a committee of hf-
/ teen TO prepare and report TO Gov. John
son. Of Minnesota, president Of the con
vention. a life Insurance code which, II
was thought, might be adopted by the
States. and by Congress for the Terri
tories and the District of Columbia.
/ This committee held four sessions. the
/ last one in Chicago November u to IL
/ inclusive. At this meeting the final re-
/ port Of the committee was in substance
Iagreed upon. and a subcommittee was
appointed to put it In final shape as to
order, style. &c; have It printed, and re-
/ port to Gov. johnson.
About midnight of the last Of these
meetings. when but seven OF the commit
/ tee were present, a resolution limiting
the salaries of presidents Of life insur-
ance companies was introduced and
adopted. I was the only one that voted
against It.
knowledge of this came 10 the Presi-
dent He did not believe that the States
/ or Congress could thus restrict the power
/ of corporations to make contracts. and
thought that even IL they had such power.
/ its exercise at this time was uutimely and
unwise. He had followed with deep in
terest the doings of the convention and
the committee of fifteen. and was anxious
that something Ike that which had been
proposed should be enacted into law, but
he was fully convinced that. besides the
other objection 10 il. the salary provision
would meet with such opposition as TO
endanger the whole bill. Hence his letter
to me. From the first he had authorized
me TO represent him in all these matters.
where his views might with propriety.
be expressed, and it was known 10 this
convention and this committee that he
was deeply interested In all that they
were doing.
There was no mystery, secrecy. or
cOncealment about this letter To me. He
hoped that, in thus writing me and point
ing out some Of the objections to this
measure, IL might be eliminated from the
final report
AT that time he had no thought that
his letter would be sent to the other in
surance commissioners. This idea was
wholly my own, but he consented to its
being sent out If 1 deemed It best TO
do so.
In this convention, and in the meet
ings Of the committee Of fifteen. / had
openly expressed the views of the Presi-
dent upon various. matters, and every. one
was glad to have. me do SO, and there was
no thought Of undue Executive mterfer-
enCe
1t is due the President" concluded Mr..
Drake, Ito say that, in sending his letter
to me. he had no thought of its going
beyond me, and consented TO its being
sent with its Enclosures TO the commits
siOners because I thought that thus call
ing attention 10 some Of the objections
to the salary measure might result in its
elimination