New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1911-07-12
CONTROLLER BAY FAKE
USED TO HARM Mr.. TAFT
Facsimile of ''0iCk to Dick
Letter Sent Out by Ia Fol-
Iette Press Agents.
INTENDED TO DECEIVE
President Has Nothing TO Con-
ceal, and Will Soon Send All
Facts TO Congress-State-
ments Being Prepared.
rFrom The Tribune bureau J

Washington, July Undetermined TO
make the most OF the Controller Bay fake
before II is finally punctured by an eX-
position Of the facts. the La Toilette press
agents are sending out to-day q facsimile
OF the notes OF Miss NJ F. Abbott. who IS
alleged 70 have found the letter and post
script which, Il is charged, were written
by Richard s. Ryan 10 eX-Secretary Bal
nnger. and which have been referred 10
as the Dick to Dick letter" The fae-
smile Of the notes OF what purports TO be
the postscript OF this letter is as follows;
the other day. He asked me who II was
i represented. ] told him, ACCORDING 70
our agreement, that l represented myse.I
But that didn't seem 10 satisfy him, 80
! sent for Charlie Taft and asked him 70
tell his brother. the President, who 1t was
] really represented. The President made
no further objection 10 my claim. Yours
The obvious purpose in sending out this
facsimile IS TO deceive the man who merely
scans his newspaper into the belief that II
is q facsimile Of the postscript itself, al
though the text Of the reading matter
which accompanies 1t, and which, if the
example Of the irst publication is followed,
will be In very small type. will explain that
Il IS merely facsimile Of the notes Of the
former employee OF the National Conser-
walton Association.
Further to facilitate the probability Of
The casual readers being deceived, the
notes are made on a letterhead Of the
Department OF the Interior. OF course,
the casual reader Will not know that for
many days Miss Abbott received every
facility for gathering information in the
Department OF the Interior, and that II
would have been as easy TO produce
notes" on such q letterhead Of a letter
from Senator Guggenheim 10 the Presl-
dent addressing the Chief Executive as
Dear Bill" as 10 have made these. II IS
TOO. wholly improbable that any one max
ing notes for his own use would have
chosen department letterheads, which are
embossed on heavy writing paper, Wnen
there was an abundance of soft paper or
the type which best lends itself to making
notes at hand. But that, also. is TACT
which would hardly impress itself on the
casual reader.
Neither is It probable that the casual
reader will know that Miss Abbott Is re
oeiving the sage counsel and advice OF one
Frederick Kerby, former confidential ste
nographer OF seo&tsry Garfield and Secre-
tary Bsllinger, WHO achieved fame by MAX
ing transcrstions of such confidential
papers and ers of Judge Baninger as he
could lay Ms hands on. and then sub
rnittcd them 70 Louis p. Brandeis, ex-Sec-
rotary Garfield and eX-Forester Pinchot at
q midnight conference in The Washington
home of the ex-Forester. although that fact
might be regarded as having some bearing
on the trustworthiness Of Miss Abbott s
notes
There is one decidedly interesting poini
brought out by the facsimile, and that is
that Miss Abbott, if il proves TO be her
writing. heads the postscript important
postscript" and this despite the fact that
she explains her failure TO embody this
important postscript in the article she sub
mitted 70 Golfers" on the ground that
she did not know It was important. Her
article was written. according to the rep
reservations of those who are exploiting
the story, from those notes. and yet &C
cording 70 her, she did not know that the
text which she headed important post
script" was important when she wrote her
article. never referred 10 IT in her article,
nor in her conversation with Secretary
Fisher ana, apparently, only discovered its
importance W.lep she IIcQt THESE ilDiFo
or when some one else made them
Altogether. the facsimile furnishes ar
Interesting sidelight on the methods Of GER
tain political press agents.
Letter Cannot Be Found.
Secretary Fisher has said that thor.
ough search Of the department r1le'
failed 70 reveal such q letter. Pres
ss.n. Tat, bos saf6 thai he MAYER "a lke1
with his brother about Ryan or Con-
troller Bay. and II is announced that
neither the hles az the White House nor
those in the once OF Charles P. Taft show
any correspondence on the subject.
Ashmun Brown formerly secretary 70 Mr.
Balnnger, from whom Miss Abbott says she
obtained the letter, has denied any knowl-
edge Of II. The administration has de-
ctded 70 let Congress reach its own con-
ctys!ons IN regard 10 Controller Bay, and
every scrap Of information relating 70 the
matter will be sent to the Senate as soon
a. possible.
While President Taft and the members
Of the Cabinet have expressed the opinion
that Investigation will show nothing even
remotely resembling an attempt TO favo,
the Guggenheirn interests, in which the
names Of c. P. Taft and ex-Secretary Bal
lipser have been used. they have deter
mined that every effort should be made &c
clear the situation.
At the Cabinet meeting to-day the Con
tro!ler Bay affair was discussed at length
II was decided that all the department!
interested--War. Agriculture, Interior and
Commerce and Labor-should be urged e
rnaks their reports on the case as soon q: