Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1912-04-26

nitude and difficulty such as those
of lumber, steel etc, and the bureau
had to give SO much time to the pros
ecution of the Standard Oil case that
the International Harvester Co. inves-
LEGATION got side tracked behind those
OF the other ones. We simply have
done the best we could with the small
force at our disposal"
Mr.. Smith in q subsequent letter
says:
No report of any sort on the In
ternational Harvester Co. was prepar-
ed by this bureau during your admin
istraticn. At the time yon went out of
office the bureau had done less than
10 per cent. of the work necessary TO
make even a partial report on this
subject. Consequently, of course, no
report or any part thereof on harVes-
ter had been written or drafted at
that time by The bureau of corpora
tons. rnever received from You any
Instructions in regard to any such re-
port except orders intended to facili-
tate its preparation and publication
"Mr Perkins ana Commissioner
Smith called upon me in reference to
the Harvester Trust matter at about
the same time.
'I submitted all the papers handed to
me by Mr.. Perkins TO the attorney gem
eral and asked Commissioner Smith to
see the attorney general himself, and
asked the attorney general not to take
up the case until he had seen him. Tits
was the request l invariably made in
every case of the kind. While I was
here I expected each of my cabinet off,
portant matter in his office. and I as
slrned full responsibility for what was
DONE In many scores Of cases men of
every description-trust magnates, labor
leaders, public officials, private citizens
came TO me when action either had
been taken or the possibility Of taking It
was pending, in cases in which they
we're interested and asked that I look
into the case personally before permit
ting the action to go on. In all such
cases, unless / was already thoroughly
familiar with the facts, i wrote to what
ever department was concerned, or YER
bal1y notified its head, to bring the case
before me. and not to cause decision
upon the matter until after consultation
with me- Dozens of letters to this effect
from me must be on file in the various
departments. and in addition to these
dozens OIL letters there must have been
scores of other eases in which I made
the request orally often by telephone,
where no written record exists. Among
other cases, for instance, ] remember
thus seeing Mr.. Pierpont Morgan at the
time that we were beginning the North
ern Securities suit against him, and Mr..
Hill and others. and / saw number of
representatives of the Standard Oil peo-
pie on several difference occasions at the
time that we began the suit against the
Standard Oil Co. I saw various labor
leaders at the time OF the proceedings
against Meyer and Haywood again and
again / saw men in eases that were
pending or that were about to be begun
in the department OF the interior, In the
treasury department and in the attorney
generals office In this Harvester Trust
case I acted precisely as I acted in all
the other cases and as, under like cir
cumstances, I should always act, and
any other action would have been gross
ly improper.
IN this case the attorney general
brought the papers out for discussion
and final settlement at cabinet meet
of the cabinet present on the occasion.
The letter of Mr.. Smith and a letter OF
letters indicating the approval of Mr..
Smiths position by Secretary Straus and
Mr.. Lawrence Murray were put before
the cabinet and Mr.. Bonaparte stated
what had been done in the attorney gem
erals office. There was full discussion
of the matter in which every member OF
the cabinet who was lawyer took part
and one or two members who were not
lawyers 1t was unanimously agreed that
as the investigation was being conducted
by the commissioner of corporations I'M
der resolution of the Senate, the ques-
ton of bringing q suit should not be
decided until the investigation was fin
ished. l assume full responsibility for
this decision, but the entire cabinet, In
Guiding Mr. Taft. heartily concurred in
it,
1.-The talk about the suppression of
the report is nonsense. The bureau of
corporations has never made q report
on the subject. The letter of Commits
sioner Smith to me. protesting against
action by the department of justice
followed exactly the same course as
was followed with all such letters that
] received Ii went TO the department
of justice, a copy, / presume. being
retained in the bureau Of corporations.
] had no idea, and as a matter of
fact, never gave thought to wheth-
er either or both departments would
or would not at any time, publish il,
and until this matter came up was
ignorant whether or not it had ever
been published. / presume the usual
custom was observed in each depart
ment.
Let me sum up;
DBL took precisely the action in |
the Harvester Trust case that | took
in all similar cases.
"(2)-I am entirely responsible for
the action taken but it was taken |
with the full approval of the entire
cabiiiet, including Mr.. Taft who was
then a member of the cabinet.
"(3)-There remained at the time
less than year and half of my ad-
ministration During this time, for the
reasons given by Mr.. Smith, he was
not able to finish the report ordered |
by the Senate. During this period, as
Mr.. Smith writes me the only instruc-
lions | gave him in regard to the re-