Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1909-01-13

ister Of police to be used by the ex.
ecutive departments against the legis.
lative branch of the government. Il
has been so used, and it is suspected
that it. has been SO used recently.
s. The legislative branch of the
government will not tolerate the med.
ding of detectives, whether they
represent the President, Cabinet Of.
ficers, or only themselves -
Congressman resented the secret in.
reference of the secret srvice men
who for weeks shadowed some of the
most respected members of the House
and Senate. When it wa,
discovered that secret service men
mere shadowing Congressman there
was a storm Of Indignation at the
capitol 5nd the bureau came near
being abolished and the appropriation
cut off. ss AT another time
the chief Of the secret service had his
men shadow Congressman with view
to involving them in scandals that
would enable the bureau to dictate to
them as to the price Of silence
rne secret service men nave
shown an inclination again TO shad
ow members of Congress, knowing
them to be law-makers, and this is
no joke. Several of the departments
have asked Congress for secret fund:
for investigation, and the Treasury
Department wants the limitation re-
moved from the appropriation FOR sup.
pressing counterfeiting. This. shows
a tendency toward Foucheism and
a secret watch or other officials than
| themselves.
This the President considers an
index to what seems an enimus OF
Congress to the secret service.
He then says: "In connection with
the Nebraska prosecution the gov
ernment has by decree secured the
return to the government Of over 8
million acres of grazing land; in Col
orado of more than 1000 acres Of
mineral land, and suits are now pen.
! ding involving 100000 acres more. y
The President follows with long
list Of crimes against the government
brought out, in his administration
through the secret service detectives
in which even wealthy men have been
punished with fine and Imprisonment.
He then specifies a number of con-
victions by the secret service such as
the selling of fraudulent naturaiiza-
ton papers, (Which congress has
since remidied except that the appro-
priations are 9till too low for full
effectiveness. Green and Gaynor
have been brought to justice and are
in prison. In the State Of Nebraska
alone sixty defendants were indicted;
and of the thirry-two cases thus for
brought to trial twenty-eight have
resulted in conviction.
The secret service was used to as
sist in the investigation of crimes
under the peonage laws, and owing
partly thereto numerous convictions
were secured and the Objectionable
practice was practically stamped out,
at least in many districts. The most
| extensive smuggling Of silk and
opium in the history Of the Treasury
Department was investigated by
agents of the secret service in New
York and Seattle and a successful
prosecution of the offenders urder-
taken. Assistance Of the utmost val
ue was rendered to the Department of
Justice in the beef trust investiga-
ton at Chicago, prosecutions were
followed up and fines inflicted. The
cotton-leak scandal in the Agricul,
tural Department was investigated
and the responsible parties located.
The destruction of the Honduras
Lottery Company, the successor to
the Louisiana Lottery was affected
a1d 100000 fines collected. The ink
fraud contract in the Bureau of Print
ing was discovered and 100000 a
year was saved, while the total ex-
penses for the official and field force
Of the secret service last year was
$135, 900.
The President says: Such a body
as the secret service, such body of
trained investigating agents, occupy
ling a permanent position in the gov
ernment service, and separate from
local Investigating forces in different
Department, is an absolute necessity
t:f the hest work is to be done against
criminals. It is. by far the most eff
cient instrument possible to use
against crime" He AYERS that Con.
gress should hold itselfypreadiness to
investigate the executive department
at any time, and adds that any abuse
| Of the service employees themselves
,should be vigorously prosecuted, ,e...
He says: "To use the secret service
in the investigation of purely private
or political matters would be gross
abuse. BIT there has been no single
instance of such abuse during my term
las President.
In conclusion, he says, "I most ear