Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-10-28
ERDENOUNCES
KELLEY OIL STORY
AS WITHOUT FACT
Says Charges Were Attempt
to FaSten Spurious Scandal
Upon Administration.
QUESTIONS JOURNALISM
OF EXLOITiNG ATTACK
Holds Such Baseless Action Can
Only Damage Public Service
as a Whole.

President Hoover today denounced as
an attempt to fasten spurious oil
scandal upon his administration the
charges by Ralph S. Kelley, former head
of the Denver field force of the Depart
ment OF Interior, that oil companies
were obtaining illegally valuable Oil
silale lands from the Government.
President Hoover added that after
painstaking investigation by the Attor-
ney Generals. Office of every statement
and implied accusation by Kelley, every
one of the latter's charges was proved
without fact and showed that the Gov
ernment's interest in these lands has
been vigorously protected. He said also
that no single inquiry was made by
Kelley or the agencies through which
his charges were made public, to de-
termine the facts before their publi-
, cation. A New York newspaper carried
Ke1ley's own story of the case.
las piece of journalism, it may well
be that the newspaper involved was
mislead," the President stated. 1T
certainly does not represent the prac-
tice of better Journalism. AS a piece
of politics it is certainly far below the
ideals of political partisanship held by
men in that party"
Defends Men in Service.
Mr.. Hoover then went on to defend
the men in public service in the hope,
as he feelingly expressed it. that the
American people realize that when
reckless, baseless and infamous charges
= in the face of responsible denial, with
no attempted verif1cation, are sup
ported by political agencies, and are
broadcast, rejecting upon the proprlety
: of public men, such as Secretary VIII
bur, the ultimate result can only be
damage to public service as whole.
Such things, the President declared
damage the whole faith OF the people
in men in public Office.
"The facts are" Mr.. Hoover went on
70 explain, that out of 100000
acres of Government holdings OF
such land the whole matter Doils down
to the item that this administration had
approved old title claims for some Az
600 acres, arising under the mineral
law prior to 1920. Under my orders, no
leases or titles have been passed under
the new law. Of these old claims, KEEL
ley himself approved about 10000 acres.
The courts ordered about 10000 acres,
and about 1000 acres came up on
appeal to the heads of the department
for decision, only part of which Kelley
opposed on technical grounds Further
more, these oil shale lands have little
present value and instead OF being
worth billions can be bought from
private owners for a few dollars per
acre.
Immediately Denied.
"There are some phases of this Incl
dent" the President continued, on
which it is desirable in public interest
that I should comment may say at
f,r ortiz
cisrn by the press is safeguard o.
good government But this lnvesflga-
ton shows more than this. Kelley mad
been called to washington last Sum-
mer to discuss with his immediate SUI
psriors questions of organization In the
Office of which he had charge.
He made no suggestion OF these
charges to his superior officers during
a period of over six weeks IN Wasning-
ton, but during this time was in nego-
tiation for a sale of his fabrications to
a journal identified with the opposition
political party and they were launched
in the midst of a political campaign.
No single inquiry had been or was made
by the agencies behind Kelley at the
Department Of the Interior or any other
Government department as TO the facts
before their publication. The charges,
when first published. were in general
QSItldEO1iS va LlIS DtI NSAC IloOcAiSAJ
denied by Secretary Wilbur and proof
offered which would indicate their
falsity.
Kelley was. asked and refused to
place any particulars before his supe-
rior officers and refused even to CO.
operate with the Department of JUS
tice for an independent investigation.
Furthermore, Kelley himself could, by
the merest inquiry In his own depart
ment, have determined the falsity o.
his own statements, as Witnessed his
assertions of titles granted, which were
never granted, OF hundreds of thou
sands Of acres of land alienated, which
never were alienated OF papers de-
stroyed. which never were destroyed, of
millions Of dollars which never existed,
and scores of other reckless statements
''Yet despite all these opportunities to
test the truth, these agencies have per-
sisted in broadcasting them for the
past six weeks by every device of pub
licity, and Kelley has received pay
ment for them. Such inquiry by him
or by the broadcasters Of these state
Continued on Page 2. Column IL