The daily sentinel., 1909-01-04

gressmen on public questions of note,
| have frequently discussed this par
ticular matter with members of con-
gress; and on such occasions the rea-
sons alleged to me for the hostility of
congress to the secret service, both by
those who did and by those who did
not share this hostility, We're almost
Invariably the same as those set forth
in Mr.. Busbey's article. / MAY ADD,
BY THE WAY, THAT THESE ALLIE
CATIONS AS TO THE SECRET SER
VICE ARE WHOLLY WITHOUT
FOUNDATION IN FACT.
But, all of this is of insignificant
Importance compared with the main
the real issue. This issue is sim
ply, Does congress desire that the
government shall have at its disposal
the most efficient instrument for the
detection of criminals and the pre-
vention and punishment of crime, or
does it not?
''The action of the house last May
was emphatically an action against
the interest of justice and against
the interest of law-abiding people,
and it's effect of benefit only to law
breakers. | am not now dealing with
motives: whatever may have been the
motive that induced the action of
which | speak, this was beyond all
question the effect of that action. Is
the house now willing to remedy the
wrong?"
The president then declares that
for a long time he endeavored to per
suade the house not to commit the
wrong. He tells of writing a letter
to Speaker Cannon about the matter
and gives the letter in full. He de-
l,.In
availing; that Messrs. Tawney, Smith
and other members of the committee
on appropriations paid no heed to thS
protests, and says: AS LIE 4'Dhu>I,t.
provision was Incorporated !. i:e ri'
! il sundry bill, it was impossible for
me to discuss it on its merits"
"THEREFORE, HAVE NOW
TAKEN THE ONLY METHOD
| AVAILABLE, THAT OF DISCUSS
GRESS; AND, AS ALL EFFORTS TO
SECURE WHAT | REGARD AS
PROPER TREATMENT OF THE
SUBJECT WITHOUT RECOURSE TO
PLAIN SPEAKING HAD FAILED, l
HAVE SPOK EN- PLAINLY AND Dl-
RECTLY, AND HAVE SET FORTH
THE FACTS IN EXPLICIT TERMS, ="
The president then proceeds to
show what has been accomplished
I
ber of offenders against the govern
ment's laws that it has run down.
and it's effective work in protecting
I many branches of the government
/ He cites a great number of individual
cases, and refers to the unearthing OF
scandals concerning the special
agents division or corps of detectives
of the land office. He points out the
| celebrated Oregon land frauds and
| the charges against Senator Mitchell
and others: tells of the recovery of
land fraudulently taken from the
government, which recovery was
/ brought about by the secret service,
and then declares that, If the present
law, for which Messrs. Tawney,
Smith and others are responsible, had
| been in effect these results and dis
closures would have been impossible.
He refers to the secret services
work in connection with the natural
ization department. He has much
to say regarding the lottery scandals.
The president declares that what
he has written in his message con-
cerning the obnoxious provisions"
is true, and ''state the facts exactly
as they are. The obnoxious provision
is of benefit only to the criminal
class and can be of benefit only to the
criminal class"
In conclusion, he says, in part:
81 most earnestly ask, in the name
of good government and decent ad-
ministration, in the name of honesty
) and for the purpose of bringing to
: Justice violators of the federal laws
wherever they may be found, wheth-
er in public or private life, that the
/ action taken by the house last year
: be reversed.
1.-The chief of the secret service is
paid a salary utterly inadequate tc
: the Importance of his functions and
to the admirable way in which he
2 has performed them. l earnestly urge
that it be increased to $4,000 per an
5 mum. ! also urge that the secret
service be placed where it properly
l belongs, and made bureau in the
1 department of justice, as the chief oi
S the secret service has repeatedly re-
quested; but. whether this is don'
a or not, it should be explicitly provid
ed that the secret service can be uset
, to detect and punish crime wherevei
4 it is found"