The Evening statesman. [volume] (Walla Walla, Wash.) 1903-1910, 1909-01-04
WASHINGTON,

vacation
The presidents special message
on the secret service was sent to the
housa today. 1t denies the statment
made in the house resolution OF IN
quiry that he had charged any mann
ber of the present congress with cor
ruption or that the majority of con-
gresSmen WNre in fear of investigation
by detectives. He gives the names OF
former senators and Representatives IN
Victed in connection with land frauds
and reiterates the declaration made in
his annual message that the limitation
placed by congress on the operations
of the secret service could be Of ben
eft only to thP criminal class.
OF the work done by the secret SER
vice, the president refers to the land,
naturalization, lottery, silk, opium,
ink and other frauds. He recommends
that all the government detective Ser
vices be consolidated into a single bu-
reau to be attached to the department
OF justice and that Chief Wilkes sal
airy be increased from $4,000 to $4,000
a year
He denies strenuously the all cation
made in certain quarters that he ever
uS6O the secret service III purely pTl-
vate or political matters.
incidentally, he charges that agita-
ton against the secret service was
begun with an article written by L. w
BUEbey, private secretary to Speaker
Cannon, for a Chicago newspaper.
Altogether the president presents
strong though calm argument that ha
was right in making the criticisms
that enlivened his message at the open
ing OF the session.
II am wholly at a loss,'' he says, "to
understand the concluding portion of
the house resolutions I have made no
charges against congress nor against
any member of the present house. If
had proof of such corruption affecting
any member of the house in any mat
ter as to which the federal government
has jurisdiction, action would at once
be brought, as was done in the case of
Senators Mitchell and Burton, and
Representatives Williamson, Hermann
have been president
"A careful reading of my message
will show that I said nothing to war
rant the statement in the house RESP
lutiOns that the majority of the con-
gressmen We're in fear of being inves-
tgated by the secret service men,. or
that congress as a whole was actuated
by that motive"
In support of his statement that the
chief argument in favor of the move
Tent 10 restrict the secret service was
alleged fear OF some members that
they might be investigated, the presi-
dent refers th2 house to the report of
the debatH last May on that subject,
as given in the Congressional Record.
Ha says responsibility for the action
taken by the house rested on the COM
mittee on appropriations, under the
leadership of Chairman Tawney, rep
sentative Smith, of Iowa, Sherley,
democrat of Kentucky, and Fitzgerald,
democrat, New York.
Tha beginning of this agitation. the
president says, was a 5000 word let
ter sent to the Chicago Inter- Ocean in
1894 by L. w. Busbey, private secre-
tary to Speaker Cannon. At the time
this Litter assafling the secret ser
vice was published, President Roose-
welt points out these government de-
tectives were working on the gr5 at
land frauds in the west and aiding in
the beef trust investigation.
But all of this" continues the
PRESIDENT S message, is OF lHSlSHiH-
cant Importance compared with the
main. the real issue. This issue Is
simply. does congress desire that the
government shall have at its disposal
the most efficient instrument for the
detection of criminals and the preven-
ton and punishment of crime, or does
il not? The action of the house last
Nav was emphatically an action
against the interest of justice and
against the interest of law-abiding
people, and in it's effect of benefit only
to lawbr -akers. Is the house now will
ing to remedy the wrong?"
The president quotes from a letter
he sent to Speaker Cannon, April 30,
protesting against interference with
the secret service, in which he said:
There is no more foolish outcry than
this against spies; only criminals
need fear our detectives"
The message reviews the operations
Of the secret service men since 1901.
They uncovered a system for the
fraudulent ocQursition and fenecing of
Iublic lands. In this work one of the
detectives was assaSsinated. In Ne
braska 60 men were indicted for land
frauds. and of 80 so far tried, 2S have
been convicted The government has
secured the return Of 100000 acres Of
grazing land and of 1000 acres of min
eral land in Colorado. 1t is suing for
10000 additional acres.
OF the land frauds, the president
saws: No more striking instance can
ha imagined of the desirability of hav-
ing central corps of skilled investi-
eating agents who can at any time be
assigned. if necessary in large num-
bers. to investigate some violation OF
the federal statutes, cn no matter
what branch of the public service
The secret service men obtained
hundreds of convictions of conspirators
who sold fraudulent naturalization pa
pers They located in Canada, Greene
and Gaynor. who were implicated In
ths big government contract frauds
and arrested them. They secured many
convictions in peonage cases and IN
silk and opium customs frauds. They
assisted in the beef trust 1nvest1ga-
II in, + h<