The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1909-02-22
HEMENWAY OF
INDIANA GETS
LAMBASTING
President Roosevelt Writes a
Letter Regarding the
Secret Service.
H00SIER STATESMAN'S
REPORT MISLEADING
DOCUMENT ADDRESSED TO SEN
AToR HALE, ACTING CHAIRMAN
APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE.

Washington, Feb. 81. - President
Roosevelt today added another stir
ring chapter to the secret service con-
troversy in vigorous and lengthy re-
ply to the attacks made on this branch
of the government i'm report made re-
Gently by Senator Hemenway of the
senate committee on appropriations.
Senator Hemenway, in this report, up
holding the limitation in the scope of
the secret service, asserted that 1t
never had been the intention of con-
gTess to build up a spy" system. and
with evident reference to this part of
the report, the president declared that
If the limitation of the use of the Sc
cret service had been ia force when
the sensational land frauds were un-
eaTthed a few years ago, a senator,
representative and various men OF
wealth and political influence, who
at that time were convicted, would all
have escaped punishment. The presi-
dents letter is addressed to Acting
Chairman Hale of the senate -appro-
priatiOns committee
Characterizing as Inaccurate and
misleading in various important re-
spects" both Senator Hemenway's re-
port and debate which it aroused in
mass of facts and figures in defense of
the secret service during the seven
years of his administration. Some of
the presidents data is based upon in
formation supplied by Attorney Cen
eral Bonaparte and Secretary of the
Interior Garfield in support of the eff
ficiency of the secret service in the
detection of crime.
The Presidents Letter.
The presidents letter, dated Feb. 10,
follows:
Il have seen the report presented
BY Senator Hemenway on behalf of
your committee in reference to the Sc
cret service. The report is inaccurate
End misleading in various important
ASPECTS, and 1 desire to make certain
corrections in reference to statements
which appear there and in the subse-
quent debate.
Until last year the secret service,
small body of sixty or seventy men in
the treasury department, under Chief
Wilkie. was practically the only body
of public servants engaged almost
purely in cTimina. investigation The
secret service men were assigned at
different times to different depart
ments to investigate crime and GRIM
inals They We're thus assigned on diff
,ferent occasions. for instance, TO the
NS3ate and navy departments; but above
all to the interior department and to
the department of justice. During the
seven years of my administration they
were instrumental in bringing TO JUS
tice a great number of criminals.
Action Entirely Proper.
I append herewith the occasions on
which they were sent to the depart
ment of justice during the year 1907,
and the first SIX months of 1908. They
rendered invaluable assistance in Sc
curing the conviction of many GRIM
inals of desperate character and of
many other offenders of great wealth
and of social and political prominence.
In not one single instance during these
seven years has it been shown that
their action jeopardized any man who
was not connected with illegal trans
actions. In not single instance has
1t been shown that they took any but
proper steps against a criminal. No
nretense has been made that they did
not do their work against criminals eff
hciently / desire to put on record my
emphatic belief that the secret ser
vice under Chief Wilkie has been COM
posed Of men of an exceptionally high
grade of character and capacity, and
who have rendered exceptional service
To the public, and that Chief Wilkie
HE uositiOn, has shown qualities of the
highest kind, and has been one of the
main standsbys of the government NO
other man in the government employ
IS so dreaded and hated by lawbreak-
ers and those who especially desire TO
see his activities and those of the men
under him restricted in every way
Cause of Justice Hampered.
..congrass last year forbade by law
1.-THE use of the secret service men to
nut A stop to crime aside from counter
feiting. and thereby not only hampered
Justice in other departments, but de-
prived the secretary of the treasury, the
official guardian of a billion and a half
of the nations actual money, OF the
mower effectively to exercise that
guardianship. Moreover, the congress
provided no substitute whatever for the
Ascret service. In consequence the de-
paftment of justice was obliged to de-
velop as speedily as possible its corps
Continued on Page 5.