The independent-reporter. [volume] (Skowhegan, Me.) 1909-1955, 1910-01-13

report 10 him. yoa succeeded IN faak
Ing public. by having !, read In the
seBste. D letter frem yeu stating iha,
YOU had sufficiently dlscipiired
aessrs Price and Shaw ny npri
manding them and that yoyr recon
nendation would be that no further
punishment was required and thiH
before tina, recommendation wpH sub
mltted 10 the Sec retnry md me
whose power and dsty Il Vas 10 do.
termine. upon Prices sdmiss on ss 10
his COMP iicity what action shosld be
taken with respect 10 HIS resignation
In order TO understand the full
purport OF your letter In which YOU
admit the completely OF Price and
Shaw In the publications OF the
press, II should be said that the
giavamen OF the CLAWS charges was
that Secretary BaTIinger and the
others were all affected by a corrupt
wish to patent thirty-three so-callcd
Cunningham claims upon coal lands
in Alaska: that the question whether
these claims were fraudulent or not
remained to be decided upon the evil
=
and the claimants had been heard .
that every patent as an executive act
Is completely within the Jurisdiction
of the President to direct the with
holding OF It in order that he himself
may examine the evidence as to the
validity of the claim.
These facts understood. the plain
intimations In your letter are, first.
that | had reached a wrong conclu-
SIGN as to the good faith of Secretary
Ballinger and the officers of the LAM
Office, although you and your sub
ordinates had only seen the evidence
of CLAWS, the eccuser and had new
er seen or read the evidence of those
accused. or the records that they dis
closed which were submitted to me
and. second. that under the circum-
stances, without the exploitation OF
Messrs. Shaw and Price, in the daily
weekly and monthly press of the
charges of CLAWS, the administration
| including the President and tie Off
GERS of the Interior Department and
Land Office would have allowed GER
tain fraudulent claims to be patented
on coal lands in Alaska. although she
matter had been specifically brought
to the attention of the Pres dent by
the GloNis charges.
You solicited the opportunity TO
make such declaration in Congress
for the purpose of offsetting. If posi-
BILE, in the public mind, the Presidents
decision in th' CLAWS case supported
by the opinion of the Attorney Cen
eral, after a full examination by
both of the evidence adduced by the
accuser and the evidence of the ac-
cused, while the latter evidence you
and your subordinates had never
seen.
You did this against the advice OF
the Secretary of Agriculture, with
out notifying him that you intended tC
do so and without comforting with me
at all Your letter was in effect an
improper appeal to Congress and the
public to excuse in advance the guilt
of your subordinate before ! could
act and against my decision in the
lGavis charge before the whole evil
dence on which it was based could
be considered.
MORE THAN A Personal RE
Election.
| should be glad to regard what has
happened only as personal rehec'
ton, so that | could pass 1t over anC
take no official cognizance of it. Blu
other and higher consideration mus
govern me. When the people of the
United States elected me President
they placed me in an office of the
highest dignity and charged me witt
the duty of maintaining that dignity
and proper respect for the office oI
the part OF my subordinates. More
over, if | were to pass over this
matter in silence, 1t would be mos
demoralzing to the discipline of the
executive branch OF the government.
By your own conduct you have de
stroyed your usefulness as helpful
subordinate of the government and il
therefore now becomes my duty to di
rect the Secretary of Agriculture tC
relieve you from your office as the
forester.
Very sincerely yours.
WILLIAM II. TAFT"
Hon. Clifford Pinchot
"E0raStpr"