Pullman herald. [volume] (Pullman, W.T. [Wash.]) 1888-1989, 1919-04-11

dragging in the name of John ID
Rockefeller. He asserts that, in tht
early part of the Secretary's admins
: tration, there was circulated through
the Department by a member of the
General Education Board a typewut.
ten sheet outlining the duties of the
Department, said to represent Mr.
Rookefeller's views, in which Secre-
tary Houston concurred. 1t is repre-
sented that this sheet indicated that
there we're 20 be no cost of produc-
ton studies. The Secretary has never
seen such a sheet and knows moth
ing about it.
Z, An effort is made to convey
the impression that Mr.. Rockefeller,
through the General Education
Board, has some influence in the De-
partment of Agriculture. 1t is diff
cult to believe that Mr.. Spillman ac-
tually believes that statement to be
true. No officer of the Department
has any connection with MIR. Rookie
| Teller and Mr.. Rockefeller has no in
fluence of any kind over the Depart
ment of Agriculture.
Mr.. Spillman, for selfish and par
tisan purposes, cheaply and unworth-
lily attempts at this time to arouse
suspicion and gain support for his
assertions by referring to relation
which the Secretarys predecessor es-
tablished with the General Education
Board in 1905. The simple fact Is
that the General Education Board,
holding a charter from congress I'M
| der an act approved by President
Roosevelt, having among its mem
bers at the time some of the most In
dependent and outstanding men In the
nation, like DR.. Charles w. Eliot,
formerly president of Harvard; the
late ambassador to England, Walter
Hines Page; President Alderman of
the University of Virginia; President
Judson of the University of Chicago,
and the late H. B. Frissell, president
Of Hampton misunderstanding to be
of assistance to the South, which was
suffering from the ravages of the
boil weevil, in 1906 placed at the dis
posal of the Department of Agricul-
ture a sum Of money to pay demon
stration workers. These workers
were to be controlled fully and COM
pletely by the Department. Their
work in supplement of that done by
agents paid from federal and local
funds resulted in great and lasting
good to the farmers Of the South
The agreement, copy of which is
attached hereto, was made in 1906
by the Hon. James Wilson, for 16
years Secretary of Agriculture. 1t
had been in operation for seven years
when Secretary Houston came to the
Department. Shortly after he as
sumed his duties, small additional
sum of money was made available for
beginning studies in rural co-opera-
ton. This arrangement proved un-
satisfactory, and in December of the
same year it was agreed to discon-
time it at the close of the fiscal
year.
The arrangement with the General
Education Board was we'll known to
congress, and the operations under it
were reported in committee hearings
at each session, On April 8, 1914, in
response to senate resolution, the
entire matter was fully set forth by
the Secretary in a letter to the SEN
ate This letter was printed in SEN
ate Document No. 59S, dated April
IA, 1914. The question of the fed
eral government taking over the en-
tire work and supporting it came up
and was affirmatiyely acted upon.
The Secretary fully approved the poll
icy. He believed then, as he believes
now, that the federal government is
able to support any work which it
does or should undertake.
&. Mr.. Spillman says that in order
ito force the Secretary to change his
mind" he resolved to leave the De-
partment. This seems to be at Yari-
ance with his letter of resignation,
dated June 6, 1918, in which he stat
ed that, during the war he deemed
it to be the duty of every citizen to
render the greatest service of which
he is capable; that he had discovered
that the editorship of a farm paper
in Philadelphia offered him greater
opportunity for service than the po-
sition he held; and that, for this rea-
son, he rendered his resignation. The
Secretary accepted his resignation as
rendered, effective, as requested,
three months from date. Obviously,
the Secretary was overgenerous in