The San Francisco call., 1908-03-15

! one year, with the stipulation that he
should run no editorial until it h, d been
submitted and approved by the San
Francisco Office. When Emerson got
back to Fresno the enormity Of his SUI
preme court editorial had been revealed
to Calkins and Emerson was severely
reprimanded by telegraph. He was told
that he had gone to the extreme limit
and that IL Celkins had appreciated
how bad the editorial was instead Of
promising contract he would have de-
maEded the editors resignation. Emer-
son says the resignation was not de-
manded, but, realizing that the policy
of the paper was to be, prograft, pro-
railroad and anti-Rooseyelt he re-
signed and made public his reasons for
giving up the berth he had held for
about five weeks
RESIGNATION A BOMB
The announcement of Emerson's res
ignation, accompanied by a statement
of his reasons for quitting, was a bomb
in the syndicate camp, and both Calkins
and Irvine furnished The Call yesterday
with CAREFUL prepared denials of all
Emerson's charges. vigorously denounc-
Ing the editor who refused to stand for
their policies. The statements of CAL
kins and Irvine do not jibe exactly in
all particulars, but they are agreed in
lAACAA PCA oOI4dA OplLiOnS Ol ElucISOu
Emerson said last night: Just be-
fore leaving for Fresno told Willard
P. CalkIns that would not accept a
position which involved opposition to
President Roosevelt or the graft prose-
cution- I had. of course. heard the re-
ports that were rife then and my sus-
picions were aroused. Calkins assured
me that any stories about their being
mixed UP with the grafters were un-
true. / was convinced and went to
Fresno. 1 began to have misgivings in
about a week and those mfsgivings
grew rapidly. They sent down an edi-
torial expression of deepest sympathy
for Louis Glass. This was followed by
an attack on the president / declined
to publish il and called their attention
to the talk 1 had had with Calkins /
was ordered to write an article giving
my personal opinion OF the president.
This was to be printed In Fresno for
the purpose, so they said, of clearing
my skirts and absolving me of personal
responsibility for any subsequent at
: tacks on the president.
ATTACKS SPRECKELS
Then they sent me an editorial max
ing charges against Rudolph Spreckels,
which I knew to be untrue and which
refused to publish. They were sore
over the publication of an article signed
Dy me, which was an appreciation of
William ]. Burns and his work The
prograft stuff kept coming along and
/ was ordered not to run any editorial
matter before submitting 1t to the San
Francisco office for approval Then
came the supreme court decision. ]
wired Irvine that unless ordered other
wise I should deprecate the decision.
! When / was in San Francisco on last
Thursday the enormity of my sin had
not been fully appreciated by CaIkins,
/ who was very complimentary and who
promised me a contract for one year.
/ He was enlightened by the time 1 got
j back to Fresno and Irvine wired me
that L had gone TO the extreme limit.
Then saw that all my fears were real
lied I knew then that / was expected
to stand up for the railroad and the
grafters. 1 cleaned up my desk and re-
! signed that night.
'Calkins, in his statement for publi-
cation. says that / attacked The Call
and Bulletin in an asinine article. /
did not write the article 1t was not
printed in the Fresno paper and 1t was
printed in all the other Calkins papers.
The files of the papers will speak for
themselves and may. serve to show
where the attack on the San Francisco
newspaper supporters of the graft pros
ecution came FROM
w. P. Calkins. head of the syndicate,
gave out the following. statement yes
terday:
The statement of Edwin Emerson
that he was ordered to write and pub
! lish arguments in favor of Schmitz.
Ruef, Glass, Herrin. Hartman and the
San Francisco boodlers is a lie.
His statement that he resigned be-
4 c2nca he unfinished On a5i oI
eating the supreme court decision, or
that he resigned for any other reason
is also a lie-