Republican farmer., 1918-05-17


The president informed Senator
Martin that he had no objection to
the most searching inquiry into the
aircraft situation, but that he deemed
inadvisAble at this time any investi-
CATION of the conduct of the war At
the last session of congress his OPP
position to such investigation put an
end to proposals that it be made.
1t was believed that the presidents
attitude was due to the forms in
which Senator Chamberlain of Ore
gon, chairman of the senate military
committee, introduced the resolution.
The resolution authorized and d.
rected'' the committee 'tto inquire in
to and report to the senate the pro-
gress of aircraft production in the
United States, or into any other mat
tiers relating to the conduct of the
war, by or through the war depart
ment."
Objection to the wording of the re-
solution was made yesterday by sew
eral administration senators and by
| Senator Thompson of Kansas, chair
man of the senate expenditure COM
mittee, to which it was referred and
who conferred with the president late
yesterday Senator Thompson has
/ insisted and members of the senate
military committee have agreed to
redraft the resolution to authorize
the committee to inquire merely into
army activities and not into general
conduct of the war or military
strategy.
The text of the presidents letter tc
Senator Martin was not made public
The expenditure committee met
today to re-draft the resolution. Sen
ator Chamberlain and others of the
military committee have declared
there was no objection to limiting the
scope of the resolution to army oper.
ations and have disclaimed any in
tention of planning any general in
quiry into the conduct of the war
The only investigation planned by
the committee which met today tt
appoint subcommittee to take charge
are into aviation, aircraft, patent IL
censing, ordnance production and the
quartermaster generals bureau. These
inquiries are regarded by the com
mittee as combinations. divided int
separate branches, of it's recent in
Iquiry.
II deem it my duty to say" the
Presidents letter said, that 1 should
regard the passage of this resolution
as direct vote of want of confidence
in the administration. The purpost
which it undoubtedly expresses ha!
been expressed again and again il
various forms during the present ses
! sion and has always seemed to origin
ate in a rooted distrust of those wht
are at present in charge of the execu
tive functions of the government
Those executive functions are yer,
clearly understood. They have beel
defined both by the constitution an
by long experience, and no one cal
doubt where the responsibility 70
them lies or what the methods are, b,
which those who are responsible cal
be held to their duty
Such activities on the part of
particular committee of the Senate a
this resolution would look forward t
would constitute nothing less than a
attempt to take over the conduct o
the war, or at the least to superinten
and direct and participate in the exec
> utive conduct of it as to interfere i
the most serious way with the actio
of the constituted executive. I pro
; test most earnestly against the adop
ton of any such action and shall hop
that every Senator who intends t
support the present administrator
in the conduct of the war will vot
: against it. These are serious time
and it is absolutely necessary that tn
I lines shall be clearly drawn betwee
8 friends and opponents"