The times and democrat. [volume] (Orangeburg, S.C.) 1881-current, 1908-12-11
Teddy Brands Two Prominet Ed
lsos as Mendaclous Liars.
PANAMA CANAL DEAL
Makes Roosevelt Very Mad, and He
Hands Around the Lie Right and
Left But He Does Not Throw ANY
Light on the Matter Under Dis
cussion!
White House,
cuSSionl
Washington, Dec. 1, 1908.


washington, Dec. /, 1908.
My Dear Mr.. Foulke: have re-
ceiYed your letter Of the 29th ultimo
and have read it in connection with,
your previous letters enclosing
quotations from the Indianapolis
News, paper edited by Mr.. Delavan
Smith. The News states in one OF
its issues that probably some of the
documents dealing with the matter
have been destroyed. This is false.
Not one has been destroyed. It
states that the last documents were
sent over in June of this year, the
object Of this particular falsehood
being, apparently, to connect the
matter in some way with the nomi-
nation Of Mr.. Taft. AS matter Of
fact, the last papers that we have
received of any kind were sent over
to us in May Of 1904, and they have
been accessible to every human be-
ing who cared to look at them ever
since, and are accessib now. '
- You quote the News as stating
that "the people have no official
knowledge concerning the Panama
Canal DEAL" The fact is that the
people have had the most minute
official knowledge; that every i'm
portant step IN the transaction and
every important document have been
made public in communications to
Congress and through the daily
press, and the whole matter has been
threshed over in all its details again
and again and again. =
The fact has been officially pub
lished again and again that the
Government paid $40,000.0OO.0oO,
and that it paid this $40,000,000 di-
rect to the French Government, get
ting the receipts OF the liQuidator
appointed by the French Government
to receive the same. The United
States Government has not the
slightest knowledge as to the partic-
ular individuals among whom the
French Government distributed the
sum. This was the business of the
French Government. The mere SUP
position that any American received
from the French Government a
"rake of" is too. absurd to be dis
cussed. =.
1t is an abominable falsehood, and
it is SANDER, not against the Amer
lean Government, but against the
French Government.
The Presidents brother-in-law was
involved in no scandal. Mr. Dell-
van Smith and the other people who
repeated this falsehood lied about
the Presidents brother-in-law; but
why the fact that Mr. Smith lied
should be held to involve Mr.. Robin
son in scandal" is difficult to
understand. The scandal affects no
one but Mr.. Smith; and his conduct
has been not merely scandalous, but
Infamous. Mr.. Robinson had not the
slightest connection Of any kind, sort
or description at any time or under
any circumstances with the Panama
matter. Neither did Charles Taft.
o .
So far as I know there was no
syndicate; there certainly was no
syndicate in the United States that
to my knowledge had any dealings
with the Government directly or
indirectly; and, inlsmuch as there
was no syndicate, Mr.. Taft naturall"
could not belong to it. The News
demands that Mr.. TAFT appeal to
the evijence BY which it means
what it calls "the records"
All Of these documents that pos
sessed any Importance AS illustrat-
ing any feature of the transactions
have already been made public
There remains a great mass Of docu-
ments Of little or no Importance
which the Administration is entire
ly willing to have published. but
which because of their mass and
pointlessness, nobody has oyer cared
to publish. Any reputable man can
have full access to these docu-
ments.
Mr. Delavan Smith Is a conspicu.
Gus offender against the laws Of
honesty and trutofuln"cs, brt he
does not stand alone He occupies.
for instance. the same evil emine1ce
with such men as Mr.. Laffan. Of the
New York Sun, editorials Of whose
paper you or others have from time
to time called to my attention, just
as you have called to my attention
these editorials Of the Indianapolis
News. OF the editorials thus sent
me there is hardly one which does
not contain some wilful perversion
Of the truth.
.Mr. Roosevelt quotes for an ex-
ample his re :ent Statement. in reply
to a New York Sun story. eatitlrd
Roosevelt and Prarie OIL" and tnen
continues:)
The fact is that these particular
newspapers habitua'ly and continu-
ally and as matter OF business
praDtice every form of mendaci.y
known to man from the suppression
Of the truth and the suggestion of
the false to the lie direct. Those
who write or procure others to write
L. In.