Audubon Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Iowa) 1894-1925, 1909-01-07

other than those intended putting his
statement in the form of a question, and
In the same form further stated that the
private conduct OF members of congress
senator's. and others ought not to be i'm
vestlgated by the secret service. and that
they should not investigate member OF
congress who had been accused of con-
duct unbecoming a gentleman and a
member of congress- In addition to these
assertions couched as questions he made
one positive declaration. that This secret
service at one time vas used for the pur-
pose of looking nito the personal con-
duct of member of congress-, This ar
guinent or Mr.. Sherey. the only real ar
gument as to the merits OF the question
made on behalf of the committee on ap-
preparations. will be found in columns |
and OF page ss56, and column / OF page
5S57 of the Congressional Record In col
umn OF page 1855 Mr. Sherley refers To
the improperly OF permitting the secret
service men to investigate men in the
departments. officers OF the army and
navy and members of congress; in col
umn l. page 5557. he refers only TO men,
bers of congress. His speech puts most
weight on the investigation Of members
of congress
What appears in the record Is filled
out and explained by an article which an
peared in the Chicago Inter-Ocean OF
January 8, 1904, under Washington
headhne, and which marked the Begin
ning OF this agitation against the secret
service. 1t was a special article of about
o.Voo words, written, as ] was then In
FORMED and now understand by Mr. T.
w. Busbey. at that time private secretary
TO the speaker of the house II con-
famed an utterly unwarranted attack on
the secret service division Of the treas-
ury department and it's chief
AT the time OF this publication IN.
work OF the secret service, which was
thus assailed. included especially the in
vesugation OF great land frauds In the
west, and the securing of evidence TO
help the department OF Justice in the
beef-trust investigations at Chicago
"hich resulted In successful prosecutions
Efforts 10 Kin Move
Found to Be UnavaiIino.
These methods proved unayailing 10
prevent the wrong. Messrs, Tawiey and
smith, and their fellow members on thu
appropriations committee paid no heed 10
the protests; and as The obnoxious pro-
! VISION was Incorporated in the sundry
civiI bill, II was impossible for me to CON
sider or discuss it on it's merits. as
should have done had il been in sep
arate niii. Therefore | have now taken
| the only method available that of dis
| cusslng 1t in my message to congress: and
| as all efforts to secure what | regard as
proper treatment of the subject without
recourse to plain speaking had failed, /
nave spoken plainly and directly. and
nave set forth the facts in explicit terms
Since 1901 the Investigations covered
! by the secret service divislon.-under the
| pfactlce which had been for many years
recognized as proper and legitimate, and
which, had received the sanction OF the
hishest law officers of the government
nave covered wide range of offenses
| against the federal law. BY far the most
important of these related to the public
domain, as to which there was I'M
covered far-reaching and widespread
| system OF fraudulent transactions invoIy
| ing both the Illegal acquisition and the
| Illegal fencing of government land; and.
| in connection with both these offenses
| the crimes of perjury and subornation of
| perjury. Some Of the persons involved
| in these violations were of great wealth
! ana or wide political and social influence
| Both their corporate associations and
| their political affiliations, and the lawless
character of some of their employees
made the investigations not only difficult
! but dangerous. In Colorado one of the
secret service men was assassinated.
Instances in Which
| Secret Service Starred.
I'm connection with the Nebraska prose-
| cution the government has by decree Sc
| cured the return to the government OF
! over million acres of grazing land
| In Colorado Of more than 1000 acres OF
| mineral land, and suits are now pending
| involving 10000 acres more
"All these Investigations In the land
| cases were undertaken in consequence
| of Mr. Hitchcock, the then secretary
| of the interior, becoming convinced that
| there were extensive frauds committed
| in his department; and the ramhcations
| of the frauds were so far-reaching that
| he was afraid to trust his own officials
| to deal in thoroughgoing fashion with
| them. One of the secret service men ac-
| cordingly resigned and was appointed
| in the interior department to carry on
| this work. The first thing he discovered
! was that the special agents division or
| corps of detectives of the land Office of
! the interior department was largely UNI
| der the control of the land thieves; and
| in consequence the investigations above
! referred to had to be made by secret
! service men.
| "If the present law, for which Messrs
| Tawney, Smith, and the other gentle
| men / have above mentioned are respon-
| sible, had then been in effect, this ac-
! ton would have been impossible, and
I most of the criminals would unquestion-
| ably have escaped. No more striking in
| stance can be Imagined of the desirable
| ity of having a central corps OF skilled
| investigating agents who can at any time
| be assigned, IL necessary in large num-
| bers, to Investigate some violation of the
| federal statutes, in no matter what
| branch Of the public service. In this par
/ ticular case most of the men Investigated
| who were public servants were in the
! executive branch of the government. But
! in Oregon, where an enormous acreage
| OF fraudulentiy alienated public land was
E.x. IT,ats
| States senator, Mr.. Mitchell, and a mem
Der of the lower house. Mr.. Williamson,
/ were convicted on evidence obtained by
| men transferred from the secret service,
| and another member of congress was in
dicted."
| Chief Asks for Reversal
of Action Of Solons.
| The president then gave a number OF
\ other instances all OF which tend to
! point out the efficiency of the secret
! service, and he concludes:
| I'm conclusion. / most earnestly ask, in
| the name of good government and de-
| cent administration. In the name of hon
| esty and for the purpose OF bringing
| to justice violators of the federal laws
| wherever they may be found. whether in
| public OF private life. that the action
| taken by the house last year be reversed.
| When this action was taken. the senate
! committee, under the lead of the late
! Senator Allison, having before II a
| strongly-worded protest from Secretary
| Cortelyou like that lie had sent to Mr.
| Tawney, accepted the secretary's views;
! and the senate passed the bill in the
shape presented by Senator Allison. In
! the conference, however the house con-
| ferees Insisted ON the reteNion Of the
| provision they had inserted, and the
| senate yielded.
| '"rhe chief OF the secret service Is