The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1916-08-11
SECRETARY REDFIEI,D INSISTS THAT HUGHES
 IS MISTAKEN IN STATEMENT ABOUT DURAND

knowledge of the devoted and un- selfish service you have ably rendered through many years to your coun- try.
 The controversy between Hughes and Secretary Redfield regarding the Durand resignation was the occasion for lively discussion in the Senate yesterday. The denial of Secretary Redfield that MT. Durand had been re- moved for political reasons was characterized by Senator Townsend of Michigan as statement "unfaithful to facts..''
 Townsend Assails RedfeId.
 The Senator, who was largely in- strumental in holding up the con- firmation of w. J. Harris as the suc- cessor to Durand. declared that Sec 'retary Redf1eld called Durand to his office and informed him he was to be deposed, and that Durand had asked to be allowed to continue in office un- til he could finish some important work he had undertaken. But the appointment of Harris was sent to the Senate the next day, asserted Senator Townsend.
 'It is well for the country to have the facts,' he said. Unfortunately l cannot tell what went on in executive session of the Senate. The fact Is that Durand resigned under pressure and after he had personally requested to be permitted to remain in office hntil he could complete his work.
 "I would have a great deal more respect for the Secretary of Com L. t,o Fl dvvoif the Democrats wants the office and that Durand was deposed to make place for a Democrat"
 Senator Stone of Missouri and Smith of Georgia interrupted the Michigan Senator to congratulate him upon the fact that his candidate for President had at last found an issue.
 Says c. o. P. Has Issue at Last.
 s'I extend my heartiest congratula- tions to the Republicans that, after looking over all material" said Sena- tor Smith, they have at last succeed ed in finding what appears to them an issue My only criticism of the President and Secretary Redfield is that they should have removed MT. Durand sooner. He was inefficient, utterly without executive capacity, careless manager and wasted money in the most inexcusable manner"
 Senator Penrose of Pennsylvania declared Durand is not the issue.
 .'The issue is," he said, "that the Secretary of Commerce deliberately and publicly stated that Durand re- signed and was not removed, and it !, and the Secretary, to put it mildly, is detected in deliberately misrepre- senting the facts to the American people,"
 Replying to the reference of Can- didate Hughes to President Wilson s phrase 'too proud to fight" Senator Lewis of Illinois said today he had hoped the Republican Presidential candidate might be saved from the exhibition of ignorance" which had been displayed by many lesser as- sailants of things they did not un- derstand He said the expression '-too proud to fight used at Philadel- phia by the President was the adap- tation of an old quotation from the classics ancient as the Scriptures.
 'Its meaning is known to be-" said the Senator, that brave people. filled with the consciousness of their right and conscious of their superior strength, were too proud to fight where a concession of what was right would bring justice to all.
 "As the present campaign pro- crosses let us hope that out of re- spect for the dignity of the contest there may be an end to the display of frenzy or foolishness, indefen- sible malice and further unneces- sary ignorance"