The Birmingham age-herald., 1910-03-02

I objected to- I am not going to con
 tradict Mr. Pinehot any more than 1 have to- But the truth is the truth l
 have the same painful sentiment that he experienced about this controversy. Attorney Pepper: But how could a letter dealing with simple departmental matters blanket the Presidents mes sage"
 Secretary Wilson T don't know how.
 That was his proposition.' Secretary Wilson was here excused and the cross examination of MT. Pin chot was begun by Attorney Nertrees. How old are you? "Forty-four or fortyfiv replied
 Mr. Pinchot.
 Pinchot Not Insubordinate MT. vertrees sought to develop the inference that MT. Pinchot felt az grieved at his dismissal from the gov
 ernment service. Mir. Pinchot object ed to this line of questioning. He said he was not insubordinate. however, and he felt that to that extent an injus- tice had been done him. Mr Nertrees then sought to ques-
 tion as to his motives for not swear
 ing to his preliminary statement to the committee in which he charged MT. Ballinger with falsehood. The entire eoramittee then got into a controversy over dn ODJectlOn io tue uucstioh III . terposed by Attorney Pepper. During the discussion, MT. Vertrees accused MT. Pinchot of having entered the field of malicious accusa tion." The question was not pressed, however. MT. Pinchot said that while he believed his
 dismissal was not justified 1t left him
 with no bitterness. He declared great
 national question was now at stake
 and 1t has transcended any question
 ~eR i,,i, txrifn in
 sisted that he did not blame Secretary
 Rallinger in the slightest degree for
 his dismissal although naturally the
 controversy with MT. Ballinger had led
 to it.
 Mir Vertrees read three statements
 from a letter addressed by MT. Pinch ot to President Taft at the time that Gla-
 wis was seeking an interview with the
 President.
 You state tn at by official action your office stopped the issuance of patents to the Cunningham claimants" said MT. Vertrees. "Is that true?' That was a mistake" said MT. Pin chot
 "Secondly," said MT. Vertrees, you stated to the President that as re- suit of MT. Ballingers action in re- storing water power sites withdrawn by Secretary Garfield, valuable lands
 containing power sites had passed from the government. Questions By vertrees "Is that true?' That was a mistake" answered MT,
 Pinchot.
 Lastly" said Mr. vertrees, you told the President that you had known Glavis for several years. That also was a mistake, was not it?" T thought I had before seeing him at Spokane last August. I knew of him."
 Asked If the whole framework of his letter to the President was not inaccurate. MT. Pinchot replied The question whether made mis- takes or not. is not essential. The President would have seen Glavis any way
 MT. Vertrees sought to draw out from the witness the fact that there was a general movement on foot to discredit Secretary Ballinger. T don't recognize movement against MT. Ballinger," said he. Are you not with others in a move ment to cause the removal of Mr Bal llinger and bring about his official de- struction with Price, Shaw and Gar field?"
 "If you ask me if We are all in a movement to conserve the natural re- sources, no matter who the movement hurts, I will reply yes" And you say you regard MT. Bal finger as one of the chief obstacles to the conservation movement and you are trying to remove him?' We started in to reform him." re-