Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1911-07-27
Holds Himself Accountable in
Controller Bay" Affair
Nails "Dick" Lie.
TALE WICKED FABR : ; TIoN"
Resources of Alaska ST ID Not
Be Turned over to saedy,
Absorbing Corpora
tions.

Washington. July 25.-President Taft
sent a special message to the Senate
to-day shouldering full responsibility
for opening for settlement and de-
velopment 12,SOO acres of the ChugaCh
national forest reserve in Alaska-an
incident which has become to be known
as the "Cntroller bay affair" In con-
cludng he brands the now famous
"Dick to Dick" postscript as a "wIcked
fabrication" and says that Charles i.
Taft whose name appeared in the al
legged postscript, has no interest in
Alaska, never had. and knows nothing
OF the circumstances connected with
this transaction" Moreover. the Pres
ident adds, hrs brother does not even
remember that he ever met Richard S.
Ryan. representing the Controller Rail-
way & Navigation company.
AS for eliminating the land in ques
tion from the reserve, the President
says that there is no danger of the
Controller Railway e Navigation COM
pany or any other interests monopoliz-
ing the field, and nothing to show that
this company Is in any way connected
with the Guggenheim inter-
ests. Hence, he believes that in elm
mating the land he has acted for the
best interests of the nation
II wish 10 be specific as possible up
Oil this point" says the President In his
messare. "and to say that / alone am
responsible for the enlargement of the
proposed elimination from 800 acres to
800 acres. and that | proposed the
change and stated my reasons therefor
The thing which the Territory of Alaska
needs is development, and where rights
and franchises can he properly granted to
encourage investment and construct
railroad without comforting exclusive
privileges. l believe II to he in accord
ance with good policy to grant them
Accompanying the Presidents message
are documents, reports and maps bearing
on the case. as requested from him by a
Senate resolution of June 27th, last. II
deem it wise" says the message. ito
accompany the submission of these
documents with a statement in narrative
form of the action of the administration
with the reasons therefor" Here follows
a description of Controller bay and en-
vrons and map showing the effect of
Withdrawing the much mooted 70, 500 acres
from the reserve. The President then
takes up the thread of his narrative as
concerns the events that precipitated the
controversy
NAVY DEPARTMENT OBJECTED.
He relates how Ryan, representing
the Controller Railway and Navigation
company, applied in 1909 for the elm
ination of a tract to enable this COM
pany to secure railroad terminals, etc.
n
Forestry Bureau and then to the navy
department with view that perhaps
the navy desired to use Controller Bay
as a reservation. The forestry inter-
ests found no objection to the elmina-
tion of the tract indicated. cor indeed"
as the President writes. 'to the elimi-
nation of $4,000 acres In the northwest
shore Of Controller Bay"
The navy departments answer was
"negative" says the President. and
after the matter had been considered
by tho secretary of agriculture, by the
secretary of the interior. and the gem
eral land office, recommendation was
made to him that 32O acres with a
frontage of 100 rods on the northw est
shore of Controller Bay be thrown
open. formal order to this effect
tober. 1910, but when the matter came
before the cabinet late in that month h
he found objection to 1t. His reasons
FOR taking this stand he explains In
his message in part as follows:
II expressed dissatisfaction with the
order because It purported on its face to
make the elimination for the benefit of
n railroad company Of a tract of land
entry secure, for It was a tract 800 acres
in one body when only 1GO acres could
thus he acquired In the second place, I
preferred to make a much larger elimina-
ton of a tract facing the entire channel
and with sufficient room for terminal
railway town. was willing to do this
because found the restrictions in the law
sufficient to prevent the possibility of
any monopoly of either the upland or the
harbor or channel by the Controller Rail-
way & Navigation company or any other
persons or company, Because OF n lack of
time sufficient to draft a memorandum
myself, requested the secretary of the
INTERIOR who. with the secretary OF agri-
culture, after fun discussion, had agreed
In my conclusion. to prepare letter set
ting forth the reasons for making the
larger eliminat tion SO that it might be-
come a part Of the record.
II wish to be as specific possible up
on this point, and to say that l alone am
responsible for the enlargement of the
proposed elimination from 800 acres to
500 acres, and that ! proposed the
change and stated my reasons therefor,
and while both secretaries cordially con-
CURED in It the suggestion was mine"
ACTING IN GOOD FAITH.
The President says he had every assur-
Rnce at the time that the Controller Rail
way & Navigation company was an In
dependent enterprise working In all good
faith. and that no evidence TO the con-
trary has since been brought to his at
tention. "Of course 1t was possible he
continues, that tho owners of the Cop
Ter River Railway company" (Messrs'
Morgan and Guggenheim) might at