The Washington herald., 1913-12-21

officials whom we thought we could
convict; and the public complained Bit
terly that we did not bring further
suits We secured several convictions,
including convictions OF the most nOta-
BILE offenders. The trials consumed 4
good deal of time. Public attention
was attracted to something else. In
difference succeeded TO excitement. and
in some subtle way the Juries seemed
to respond to the indifference. One OF
the worst offenders was acquitted by
a jury: whereupOn not a few OF the
same men had insisted that the gov
crnmeRt was derelict in not criminally
prosecuting every man whose miscon-
duct was established so as to make II
necessary to turn him out of ONCE,
now turned round and, inasmuch as the
jury had not found this man guilty OF
crime. demanded that he should be re-
! instated in office! 1t is needless to say
that the demand was not granted.
There were two or three other ac-
quittals. Of prominent outsiders. Never
| theless the net result was that the
majority of the worst offenders were
sent to prison. and the remainder dis
missed from the government service If
they were public officials, and, IL they
were not public officials, at least so
advertised as to render it impossible
that they should ever again have deal
ings with the government
The department was absolutely
cleaned, and became one of the very
best in the government Several Sem
ators came to me-Mr. Garfield was
present on the occasion-and said that
they were glad l was putting a stop
to corruption. but they hoped | would
avoid all scandal; that il would make
an example OF some one man and then
let the others quietly resign, IT would
avoid a disturbance which might hurt
the party. They were advising me in
good faith, and ! was as courteous as
possible in my answer, but explained
that l would have to act with the ut
most r1gor against the offenders, no
matter what the effect on the party,
and, moreover, that I did not believe
1t would hurt the party. 1t did not
hurt the party. 1t helped the party.
A favorite war-cry in American polit-
ical life has always been, Turn the
rascals out" We made IL evident that,
as far as we were concerned, this war
cry was pointless; for we turned our
| own rascals out.
The Land Frauds.
There were important and successful
land fraud prosecutions in several West
ern States: Probably the most impor-
tant were the cases prosecuted in Oregon
by Francis ]. Henry, with the assist
ance of William J. Burns. a Secret Ser
vice agent who at that time began his
career as a great detective. II would be
impossible to overstate the services rem
dered to the cause OF decency and homes
ty by Messrs. Heney and Burns. Mr..
Heney was my close and intimate Rd-
wiser professionally and nonprofession-
ally, not only as regards putting a stop
to frauds In the public lands, but in
many other matters of vital interest to
the republic. No man in the country
has waged the battle for national homes
ty with greater courage and success,
with more whole-hearted devotion to the
public good; and no man has been more
traduced and maligned by the wrong
doing agents and representatives OF the
great sinister forces Of evil. He secured
the conviction of various men OF high
political and financial standing in eonnec-
ton with the Oregon prosecutions; he
and Burns behaved with scrupulous fair
ness and propriety: but their services
to the public caused them to incur the
bitter hatred of those who had wronged
the public, and after 1 left ONCE the
national administration turned against
them.
One OF the most conspicuous Of the
men whom they had succeeded In con-
victing was pardoned by former Presi-
dent Taft-in spite Of the fact that the
presiding Judge. Judge Hunt. had held
that the evidence amply warranted the
conviction, and had sentenced the man
to imprisonment, As was natural, the
i46 land fraud defendants In Oregon, who
included the foremost machine political
leaders In the State, furnished the back
bone Of the opposition to me In the
Presidential contest Of 1917 The oppcsi-
ton rallied behind Messrs, Taft and La
Toilette: and, although carried the
primaries Handsomely, half Of the dele
gates elected from Oregon under IN
structions to vote for me, sided with my
opponents In tho national conveution-
and as regardS aorne Of them ] became