Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1918-01-24
Chamberlain Stands by Text
Of Speech As Printed In
New York Newspaper
CLAIMS CONCLUSIONS
BASED ON EVIDENCE
And Asserts That He Has
Taken Stand Only For Good
Of American Nation /.
BY L. 9. Martin

I
Washington, Jan. 24.-President Will
son is resting in ignorance of the truth
about his war department., wnffe ''ter.
rible calamity faces not only America,
but the whole world.''
This was the answer sent back to the
White House by Senator Chamberlain
on the floor of the. senate today in a
dramatic reply to President Wilson who
had charged the senator with "distor-
tion of truth in criticising the war
department work.
The president, he said, ''does not
know the truth. From the lips Of those
nearest he cannot learn it--because the
men are too busy to get it, or remem-
Der it if they got it,"
He charged that Baker did not tell
the whole truth before the military com
mittee. N w
Declaring that emo man on God IS
green footstool can keep me from tell
ing the truth, according to the die
tates of my conscience" Chamberlain
demanded that America retire to Gin
ltary establishment who have failed to
CulHb up w lltt H6cuS O1 bnt
Six thousand people clamored for ad-
mittance to senate galleries which hold
fewer than one thousand. Not since the
president IS war declaration message has
there been such excitement at the cap
itol as developed today.
Senator Chamberlain took the floor on
a question Of personal privilege. He de-
cided on this course because of repeat
ed threats of administration leaders to
Iprevent his speech.
"For 25 years. Chamberlain said,
lfI have served my state in various
capacities. In all that time, have never
had my veracity questioned or my in
tegrity impeached and I have been
through as bitter campaigns as have
fallen to the lot of men.
Therefore, it is with some feeling of
humiliation and sadness that I rise
when my veracity has been questioned,
not by an ordinary citizen, nor by one
of my colleagues, but by the very dis
| tinguished gentleman who has the love
and respect of the American people and
who by their suffrance holds the high
Jest office in the land and, / may say,
1.-THE place in the world.
/ I" 1t is, therefore, with peculiar feel
ing that l address myself to the attack
on me. The personal differences between
the president and myself do not matter
to the great mass of the American peo-
lple. But great policies are at issue be-
tween the president and me, which in
volve the well-being of the nation.
ga few days ago l was invited by
the National Security League to de-
liver an address in New York. Among
| the distinguished men there were Elihu
Root, Judge Alton B. Parker, ex-Presi-
dent Roosevelt and man who, though
born in land now at war with us, is
a foremost patriot-Julius Palm, of Cal
ifornia.
He shouted. to packed galleries the
charge that the lives Of young men who
have died of disease in camps and can
tonments were sacrificed to war depart
ment inefficiency.:
81 want the people to see whether
| a mdistorting the truth, " cried Cham
berlain. Sim going to relieve myself
of responsibility, so that if the worst
comes, can go home and say that L
tried to call the eountry's attention to
the facts but that it lisened hose
higher in authority, while L was but a
voice crying in the wilderness.
"You can't get the truth out Of
swivel chair artists; the senate military
committee got it from men on the
ground and proved that when Secretary
Baker, that able and intellectual man,
said over his signature to the American
people that conditions were all right in
the camps that he was mistaken.
"God grant that every man in camp
will write home to his mother, telling
her the truth about conditions, not to
slacken patriotic ardor, but to speed up
those in power to correct wrongs.
AS Chamberlain continued to quote
from sworn testimony of witnesses be-
fore the senate military committee, the
senate appeared profoundly impressed.
Several times he was asked for further
information on certain points. He had
mountainous piles of data from which
he quoted freely to prove that his
charge of departmental inefficieDcy was
fully sustained by the testimony Of
men who knew.
Crowd Is Great.
f'The 1000 people represented every
walk Of life and was a body that for