The sun., 1912-07-04
UNDER
FIRE MAY RESIGN


official Of the Treasury. but also to tho
many thousands throughout the country
, who have business to conduct with this
department
For a long fine the transaction of much
of the Trcasury's business has been at a
Istandstill. and an outbreak Of some sort
| has been imminent Many able and
energetic Treasury officials have had to
bear the brunt of harsh criticism from
! people outside who have suffered inter
minable delays in their business with the
Treasury. for which the Secretary alone
was responsible. and at the same time they
have had to submit to criticism even more
| harsh and more undeserved from Mr.. Mac
Veagh himself whenever he discovered that
| they had vcntured to act upon some matter
Of minor importance without awaiting his
decision
Time and again heads Of the great
divisions of the Treasury have found them
selves unable TO carry on the business
entrusted to them and have been discour
aged to the verge of resigning their posi-
tiOns. because they were unable TO obtain
any opinion or decision from Mr.. Mae
Vcagh upon urgent questions which had
been before him for many months. At the
| same time they have invariably been re-
proaChed by him for such limited action as
they may have been compelled to take on
their own responsibility
Mr.. acNeagh's mental attitude IL DIM
cult to realize by those who have not had
intimate every day experience with it.
Toward many of the higher Treasury
officials he has from time to tim" displayed
an aversion. suspicion and distrust which
in view OF the fact that these officials were
men of his own choice, would seem inc ~
plicable. For many months at "a time he
has refused even to speak to those Official
of his Department with whom he should
naturally have been in constant personal
| communication.
When Mr.. llilles was Assistant Secretary
of the Treasury there was a least one period
amounting to several weeks during which
Mr.. MacNeagh refused to have any rela ion
with him. | know that there were several
longer periods of curiously suspended re-
lationa with Assistant Secretary Norton
Mr.. McClung. the Treasurer OF the I nited
Sta ties. affirms that he has only been allowed
one short interview with the Secretary
during period covering more than year
Mr. Ralph. the director of the bureau of
cngravi ing and printing. has repeatedly
complained Of similar treat ment Of himself.
and many other instances could be cited.
In my own case with an ofilcc ad Joining
and communicating with that of the Sec
retary. the situation has been similar.
Although | have supposedly been the
representative OF the Secretary in his deal
ings with nineteen different bureaus and
divisions of the Treasury dncludinc the
offices OF the Director of the Mint. the Comp
trollcr of the Currency the bureau of en-
Gravi ing and printing. the Treasurer of the
United States. the assistant treasurers,
the six auditors. the secret service, &c
! have not been allowed in the aggregate
Il total of more than ones hour conversa-
tion with him. including private interv Jews
and conferences in the presence of others.
during the entire past year. Meanwhile
l have sent him hundreds of letters and
memoranda asking decision in regard
10 matters urgently pending.
The conduct oil business in a depart
ment Under such conditions is of oou. sa
impossible The energetic young men
whom Mr.. Mac\eagh was wise enough to
select as heads of the various divisions
have been hampered and discouraged at
every turn by his idiosyncrasies. his as
founding capacity for procrast mat ion his
incapacity for decision and ;he peculiar
moods Of Suspicion and aversion to which
Ne Is constantly subject.
There has never been a tire since 7
have been In the Treasury when he has
not iahored under The dclusion that some
of those who were working Loyalty and CON
scicntiously for him were in a caba con-
spring against him. his has led him To
treat some Oi his most efficient aides with
harsh ingratitude and with a lack of con-
sideration that was little short of brutal
My experience in these matters is only
the familiar experience of the majority
of Treasury officials Mr. Me, lung. tho
Treasurer of the United States. in April of
the present year found the delays. inde-
cisions. district and complaints OF Mrs,
Macveagh so intolcrablo that he brought
the matter to Mr.. iiilles's attention in the
hope that you might offer some method of
relief MIR. Ralph ..the Director of the Bu-
reau of Engraving aud Printing. and MIR
Murray. the comptroller OF The urrcncy
have ON several occasions with difficulty
been dssuaded from an intention to resign.
due To no other reason than thcir iamcntahly
unsatisfactory relations with Mr. Mac
Neagh. II was only on account of their
devotion to their work ana . constant hope
that change in conditions was pending
that they have not left the public service.
| am told that the same is true of Mr.. Cabell.
the Commissioner of Internal Revenue and
II is doubtless true of others.
| recall instances of great discourage
ment on the part of Mr.. kram. the very
efficient auditor for the Post ONCE Depart
ment. and before that on the part of his
equally efficient predecessor. Mr.. Chance.
who is now a member of your Committee
oH EtOHoIiE anu uOt Only ne
cause of lack of support and cncoura cement
on the part of Mr.. MarVeagh in their eff orts
toward increasing tho efficiency of the
service. but because OF his continual post
ponement Of decisions about recommenda-
tions which they had made and his unJusti-
fed complaints about any actual procedure
even in small matters without authori,ati on
Charles p. Montgomery. the former
efficient chief of the division of customs
who left the Treasury to take position
of much larger reward in private business.
could likewise bear strong witness to sihe
temperamcntal peculiarities of Mr.. Mac
Veagh And many others could be cited.
II you wish for further evidence as to
the peculiar difficulties which surround
the handling of business in the Treasury
! venture to suggest that you ask Lawrence
q. Murray. the Comptroller of the Cur
rency: or Joseph T.. Ralph. the director of
the bureau of engraving and printing.
or Mr., McCmng. the Treasurer OF the United
States; or Charles A Kram. the auditor
for the Post ONCE Department; or Royal
T.. Cabell. the Commissioner of Internal
Revenue: or James Knox Taylor, the super
vising architect; or my distinguished pred
ecessor in ofice Charles ID, Norton.
For the foregoing reasons. whereby the
transaction of all business pertaining to
my ONCE has become practically impossible.
1 hau "a IL h intipitA at IN ~,