The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1908-02-10
HIS DEFENSE OF HIMSELF is CONTAINED IN A LETTER
JUST FORWARDED TO WILLIAM DUDLEY FOULKE OF
THIS CITY, WHICH IS A VERY STRONG AND FORCE
Full DOCUMENT.
ill soon be actively at work.

forth the presidents denial. quotes
newspaper articles accusing the presi-
dent of using federal patronage to Sc
cure the nomination of Secretary
Taft, particular stress being laid on
the appointments of pOstmastors in
Ohio. and tells of his demanding that
the newspapers which published the
charges name some particular instanc-
es of the alleged misuse OF patronage
The Foulke letter concludes:
In view Of these reiterated com
plants. would not a detailed statement
of your recent appointments. the men
by whom they were recommended.
your reasons and the principles upon
which you have acted in making
them, as we'll as a statement in regard
to the alleged coercion. be the best
method of exhibiting the facts?"
The correspondence in full follows:
Feb ;, 1908.
The President: Sir-On Jan. Is I
laid before you an article in the In
dianapolis .Iews IA paper supporting
the candidacy of Mr.. Fairbanks accus-
ing you of using the federal patronage
to secure the nomination of Mr.. Taft
and naming the postoffices in particu-
lar. | spoke of the fact that certain
Taft men had been nominated in Ohio
and you answered it was true: that
you would be very weak if you allowed
the power of appointment in that state
to be used only as a means of attack
upon the administration. On my re-
turn home | observed other articles
making similar charges in various pa
pers: for instance the following in the
New York Evening Post of Jan IL:
We are now getting daily lessons in
civil service reform from the white
house. which ought to attract national
attention. The appointment of Taft
workers to pOstoffic IS i'll Ohio, and OF
the totally unfit George W. Wana-
maker as appraiser of this port is nov
followed by the presidents refusal to
Irappoint good Hughes man as col
lector of customs at Plattsburg.'
On Jan. II, an article charging you
with a similar abuse of the patronage
appeared in The indianapolis Star
paper also supporting Mr.. Fairbanks
and reputed to be owned principally
by Daniel G. Reid a gentleman repre-
senting important Wall street inter
ests. This article | inclosed in let
ter to you in which I said:
NO man can be more unqualified
supporter of Mr.. Taft than |. yet
realize that any use Of the patronage
= ,;J l.;
be implied is likely to injure you very
seriously. " The use of any pub
lie office for this purpose is fraught
with great danger and subject to un-
answerable criticism"
To this you answered. Jan. 10:
will you produce the name of a sin
gle man whom | have coerccd or in
fluenced: Will YOU give me the
name of any official who has been
controlled by the threat or implied
threat of dismissal or from whom |
have demanded support for Taft: In
fact, will you give me one particle of
justification for the fears you express
ed: Name the man whom | have re-
moved because he was not for Taft or
not for Taft? You can not do So
and as You cannot. why do you not re-
peat this challenge TO the newspaper
in question: assert that their words
are absolutely false and challenge
them 10 make good"
| accordingly wrote to the Star. ask
ing it to name a single case of coer-
cion referred TO in its previous is
sues. Il published an answer to my
letter, but failed TO name any instance
of the kind. then wrote again. call
ing attention to this failure and asking
if | were not forced to conclude from
its own SiIapce that its own charges
were absolutely without foundation
This second letter. however. it would
not publish. though it still continues
TO repeat its general charges of abuse
of the patronage.
These charges also continue TO be
circulated by other newspapers in all
parts of the country. Thus the Bos-
ton Herald of Jan - says:
Federal officeholders may be CON-
manded to use their influence and
their authority IN behalf of a candi-
date. Such a command has been is
sued and the president should know
it. Somebody has Instructed
postmasters that they must obtain
from their subordiuates either their
designations or their pledges of sup
port for Taft delegates TO the couven-
ton. Even in Massachusetts
efforts of this kind have been made
recently. but happily they have been
stopped, partly because the postmast-
ers on whom the attempts were made
have the courage & o resist and partly
from other causes
In view OF these reiterated COM
plants. would not detailed state
ment of your recent appointments. the
men by whom they were recommend
ed. your reasons and the principles
upon which YOU have acted in making
them. as we'll as statement in re