Rocky Ford enterprise., 1910-03-04
P|NCHOT GOES
FOR BALL|NCER
oEPoSED CHIEF FORESTER OUT.
LINES CHARGES HE WILL
TRY TO PROVE.
NOT FAITHFUL TO TAFT
CALLS BALLINGER ENEMY OF
CONSERVATION AND SAYS HE
HAS MIsREPREsENTED.

Washington.-With Clifford Pinchot
on the witness stand. the Ballinger-
Pinchot inquiry entered its second
phase. Saturday.
The dismissed chief of the forestry
bureau. before being sworn. made the
investigating committee this state
ment of his charges against Secretary
Ballinger:
What l desire to lay before the
committee is consecutive story of
my experience with Mr. Ballinger in
relation to the conservation of nat
ural resources. Among several other
matters there are three of principal
Importance to be called to your atten-
ton
The first OF these concerns the pol
icy deviced and inaugurated by the
last administration of protecting
against monopolistic control of the wa
ter power sites owned by the people.
Il shall show you that Secretary
Ba1linger entered his office with the
clear determination to make short
work of that policy: that he reversed
1t so far as he was allowed to do SO:
that he restored the power sites to
entry without the remotest idea of re-
Withdrawing them and that finally,
when | charged him last autumn to the
President with being an enemy of the
policy of conservation. he capped the
climax by giving the president him
self an explanation of his conduct that
was essentially false.
The second has to do with my con
-E.t-
the Cunningham coal cases and with
the CLAWS charges. shall show you
how the forest service became in.
yolved in these cases and how CLAWS
submitted his facts to me. | believed
then, as l believe now, that he told
the truth. / am convinced now. as I
was when he came to me. that CLAWS
was a faithful public servant and that
the facts which he presented prove
that Mr.. Ballinger had been unfaith-
full to his trust as a servant OF the
people. and as the guardian OF public
property of enormous value.
Il shall show that since | learned
the facts you have heard from CLAWS
and others which | am about to lay
before you. have acted steadily in the
light OF them. as 1t was my duty. both
as public officer and as a citizen TO
do. shall show you that in pursu-
ance OF that duty I laid before the
President. both by word OF mouth and
in n letter of November 4th a state
ment of my conviction that Secretary
Ballinger has been a dangerous en-
emy TO conservation.
Il shall show you that this letter
was submitted by the President TO
Mr.. Ballinger and that rs part OF his
reply he laid before the President a
statement concerning the Cunningham
coal cases. which statement is shown
by indisputed documentary evidence
to be absolutely false in three essen
tial particulars.
"It will then appear that Mr.. Bal
linger wilfully deceived the President
and was disloyal to him. The third
principal matter is concerned with
the attitude OF this government in law
and administrative practice toward the
conservation of the natural resources
belonging to the people.
Il desire to show you that the story
Of CLAWS courageous and successful
fight to protect the property of the
people. which ended in his dismissal
without a hearing is but a single chap
ter in the history Of the public lands.
l shall show you that under our pres
ent law and practice the more diff
cult task falls on those who would pro-
tect the public property and not on
those who would despoil It; and that
under the present system the betrayal
into monopolistic control OF what be-
longs to all of us is made easy and,
often in practice. inevitable.
THE imperative duty before this
country is not merely to get rid of an
unfaithful public servant. \ far more
important duty is to bring about fun.
damental change in the law and the
practice toward conservation.
when this story has been told and
the witnesses whom l shall ask you
to call nave been heard. you will real.
ize that the interests of the country
are not safe in MIR. Ballingcr's hands
and the public demand of this com
mittee a verdict in harmony with the
general conviction that the secretary
of the interior has been unfaithfui
both to the public whose property
he has endangered and to the
President whom he has deceived"