Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1909-02-22

rial detectives to take the place OF
the secret service agents, which it had
previously used and the nucleus OF
this force was made upj Of Officers
formerly connected with the secret
service and trained in such methods
call your especial attention to the
fact that if the department of JUS
ticc had not taken this action there
would have been 4 complete fallufe
To enforce the law against many
tvpes of criminals and as il was, in
thc early months Of the fiscal year
during the Morse prosecution in New
York and in connection with certain
limportant cases. serious Inconvenience
/ and anxiety were caused to the pros
ecuting officers by this action OF con
eress in dcpriving them Of the aid OF
the experienced operatives of the Sc
crct service on whom thy had been
accustomd to rely ! call your atten-
ton to the further fact that he de-
partment of justice had never taken
any steps to organize this force so
! long as il could get men detailed 70
do the work from the secret service.
In other words the action OF the con-
aross 2u nepaM, e. tie secret service
/ would have caused a gross miscar-
lriage of Justice had it not bern in
large part nullified by the prompt ac-
! ton of the department OF justice, ON
| its own initiative and without any
I further legislation Of any kind by the
congress, in providing IA species Of Sc
! cret service within the department OF
justice itself
Your committee in its report states
lthat il has never been the intention
of the congress to build up a SPY
/ system Tho next sentence, however
advocates the building UP of precise
/ lv this spy system in the department
Of Justice Not only have again and
again requested that the secret service
be placed under the department OF
Justice but the chief of the service has
himself requested specifically on an
fercnt occasions that the same course
be followed AS regards the general
policy which should be followed.
therefore. your committee has declar-
ed for the policy, the adoption OF
which | have urged and all difficult
ties would be met by providing speci-
fically and amply for carrying out
! that policy. Chief Wilkic should be
transferred to the department OF lus-
tcc and put at the head of the force
therein organized.
"But in your report and the subsc-
quent debate. direct and Indirect at
tacks are made upon the secret serN-
ice with a curious persistcney, and =
curious Indifference to the fact that
Your committee recommends that a
precisely similar secret scrvlc" 10 the
one attacked be now established IN
the department Of justice and be 1t
observed that no limitation is propos-
ed for the now secret service; that
the limitation is only imposed on the
secret service which has already
shown its efficiency and has already
become an object of terror to crlm-
inals Senator Hemcnway states thal
there are more than 5000 men now
in the secret service and Inspection
work of the government ana that IN
the last few years the number has
uoblcd and that if they were to march
through the streets of Washington
lthev would make an army while II
was also stated in the same debate
THAT at the close Of President McKin-
ley's administration there were only
IG7 such men on the pay rolls, where
as it was alleged that we now have
over three thousand and that the ap-
preparations on that account 70. las
wear amounted to about sl0.0Oo.OoO.
These statements are not in accord
ance with the facts.
IL submit to YOU herewith a sub
. stantially, although not entirely aecu
rate. statement of the number of mef
employed on secret service work ol
criminal Investigation work durini
the year that has just passed. as com
parcd with the years l9oi-O2- OWNS
to the very brief period which haN'
had 10 get these figures 1t was impos
isjblc 20 get them with entire aceu
racy. hut they are not out of the wal
more than score or so In either az
rection. According to these figures.
lappears that in the nciehborhood o
200 men Of this type were employed
/, seven years ago and somewhat Owe
500 now: that is instead of havih'
ltreblea in number as said in one -
- the statements made above. instead
of having increased nearly twenty
rold in accordance with the otae
statement. they have increased but
= little over onc-half. little over MT
nor cent Moreover OF this Increase
considerable over half was in th