The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1910-05-06
Secretary Says That Former
Secretary Was Neither True
Nor Fair.
DEFENDANT" FACING
FIRE OF PROSECUTION"
Declares Policy of Forestry Bu-
reau Reversed Since PinchOt
Was Dismissed.

WASHINGTON. May SIT was not
a fair or truthful statement" exclaimed
Secretary Ballinger during the Ballinger-
Pinchot investigation today referring TO a
sentence in former Secretary Garfield's
letter to the president last November.
which read:
HE (Balinger) directed the reclama-
tion service 10 prepare lists for restoring
the withdrawn lands, but to do so slowly
in order not TO attract public attention" :"
Mr.. BalIineer said that while he had
no desire TO reflect on the previous ad-
minlstration. which had withdrawn the
lands-unlawfuly. he beieved-he had
issued no such order and that all the
lands actually had been restored within
period Of three weeks.
Another statement in the same letter
was disputed by Mr.. Ballinger. Near the
end of his letter Mr.. Garfield said the
plan OF the reclamation service for the
issuance of cooperative certificates had
been approved by the senate committee
on irrigation Mr.. Ballinger read an af-
fdavIt from the secretary of that COM
mittee to the effect that he had failed 10
find any such approval In tho records OF
the committee for the last seven years
AS the reason for his having withdrawn
power sites he had previously restored
Mr.. Ballinger said he feared they might
be taken up pending action by congress
giving the president the power to again
withdraw them III admitted he had no
more legal authority for his action than
had Mr. Garfield,
Under Gross Fire,
Secretary Ballinger took the stand to.
10 lyf. }, ,i. rf-t,-
inquiry has now reached its most inter-
esting stage-thc crcss examination of
Mr. Ballinger by the attorneys for the
prosecution. Lewis Brandeis attorney
for CLAWS. will be the first to take the
witness in hand. He Will question Mr.
Baninger about his connection with the
Cunningham coal claims and his profess
sional and official relations with the
claimants. AT least three days are eX-
pected TO be occupied I'm cross examina-
Hon OF tho secretary and he may not be
week.
For more than an hour the committee
questioned Mr.. Balinger this morning
about the method pursued I'm entering on
ont that many of the states had not had |
their equitable share of these projects.
Senator Flint sought TO ascertain who |
was responsible for this condition The |
witness admitted that probably former |
Secretary Hitchcock. under whose admin |
istratio nmost Of the existing projects |
Director Newell OF the reclamation serv-
Ice, Mr., Davis was Mt that time chief !
engineer OF the service.
\ long discussion among members, of
the committee onsued as TO the feasibility
Of various reclamation projects, Mr..
Flint wanted 10 know II II were not a
fact that great many OF the projects
had been Initiated without regard to
their feasibility, but In order to give va
rlouS states their proportion OF the
money they paid into the reclamation
fund through tho sale of public lands
Mr. Ballnger was not able to give a |
direct answer but said In answer to n
question by Attorney Vortrces that he
bad not been able 10 get either OF the
officials of the reclamation service TO ex-
Continued on Page Two, 4