The morning journal-courier., 1908-09-26
Produces Many Letters to Prove
Relations With Oil Trust
Were Entirely
Proper,
DECLINED RETAINER in 1905
Says Presidents Actions Indi'
cate a Guilty Conscience and
That Taft is consorting
With Oil Magnates.


Cincinnati, O., Sept Ex-senator
Foraker made public a statement To-
night replying to the recent charges
made by w r. Hearst and President
Roosevelt. In addition he assails
Hearst, Taft and the president
charging Taft with consorting with
Standard OIL magnates himself and
declaring that President Roosevelt's
actions indicate guilty conscience. IN
the opening paragraph Mr. Foraker de-
clares that the president showed bias
In accepting as true all the charges.
He denies that he acted improperly IN
accepting employment from the Stand
ard OIL company, says that there was
no secret about It and produces let-
ters to prove that after the government
began Its attack upon the Standard
OIL, he declined to accept a retainer
from them. He charged that MT
Hearst had other letters In addition to
those which he gave out, and that
these other letters If made public at
the same time would have showed how
harmless was his connection with the
Standard OIL people.
The statement is as follows:
The President commences his state
ment connected with the publication
OF Judge Tafts letter with a bitter
arraignment of me because of Mr..
Hearst's charges, which he appears to
have accepted as fully proven as soon
as made. He does not wait for proof
or explanation. nor accept the same
when offered.
Mr. Hearst's charges are not simply
that / was In the employment OF the
Standard OH company and that was
paid for my services. but that I was
secretly In that employment for IL
legitimate purposes, and that the
money received was paid as com
pensation for improperly influencing
legislation by congress In conflict with
and In violation of my official duties.
He read number of letters and
made certain comments calculated. IL
unanswered or unexplained, to create
the belief that his charges were true.
That l was employed by the oom-
pany was never concealed or denied.
On the contrary, such employment
was we'll known at the time to all
concerned. Only a few days ago ex-
Attorney General Monnett. who was
prosecuting the proceedings against
the Standard OIL company at the time
stated In public interview that told
him at the time that l had been re-
tanned by the company.
If employed and rendering services,
presumably ! was compensated.
In announcing, therefore, the mere
fact that was employed by the com
pany and showing that / received
payments on that account no infor-
nation was impaired by Mr. Hearst
and no offense was established. for It
remained that such employment and
payment might be entirely proper and
legitimate.
Foraker's Defense.
Under all the circumstances, an ex-
PLANTATION was required, and In former
statements / made such explanation
by showing that my employment was
confined to the affairs Of the company
In Ohio and Its reorganization after
the trust was dissolved by order of our
supreme court, and that my employ
ment had no relation In the slightest
degree to anything in which the fed
eral government was then interested,
or with respect to which the congress
was then legislating or at that time
proposing to legislate. and that the
employment was ended long before
the company was made subject Of
any special attention In congress and
longer still before It was attacked In
the federal courts or proceeded
against in any way by the federal gov
ernment. and further that the EN-
ployment was not to defend the COM
pany agains charges Of violation of
the laws Of Ohio or the United States
Of the orders Of any of the courts,
but only to assist In executing the
orders of the courts and so reorgan-
1zing as to conform to all laws. state
and national, and to fully comply with
oil the orders Of the courts that had
been made against It.
true, they make complete defense
against Mr. Hearst's charges and all
deductions therefrom of improper
conduct unless the ethics involved
have been radically changed from
what they have always heretofore
been supposed to be. From the begin
ming of our government senators and
congressman who were lawyers have
been regarded as free to continue the
practice Of their profession If they SO
desired, during their terms Of office
insofar as they might be able to do so
without interfering with their public
duties; and in such practice free to
take any kind of employment that
was offered which did not in any way
conflict with their duties as members
of the congress Nobody has ever
A i