WHY PINCHOT DISTRUSTED BALLINGER
Why Pinchot Distrusted Ballinger POINTS THUS PAR ESTABLISHED BY THE INVESTIGATION THAT BALLINGER, as commissioner of the land office, had an intimate and thorough knowledge of the Alaska coal...
...Caucus or no caucus, he remains a Republican so long as his Republican constituents say he is, with their ballots at the polls, whatever the Speaker says upon his throne...
...That Forester Pinchot wrote the President last fall that ho would not be silent over frauds on the government even If it involved his official positon...
...Then," swore Mr...
...An attempt by Mr...
...It was a day of sensations...
...Pinchot Gives Reasons MR...
...I don't know whether or not I induced him to," said Mr...
...That Ballinger misinformed the President as to a decision of the comptroller of the currency relative to the Forest Service administering operations on forests In Indian reservations...
...The issue was between holding these claims until a proper, examination could be made or letting them pass to patent without proper examination...
...But Mr...
...Pinchot, "within four or five days after the Pierce decision we find Secretary Ballinger writing to Miles C. Moore, one of the Cunningham claimants, indicating to him how he could get patent under the law, which he had said to the President the claimant had definitely decided not to take advantage of...
...That, while commissioner, Ballinger had opposed Roosevelt, Garfield and Pinchot in the creation of the Chugach national forest, covering a part of the Cunningham claims in Alaska, and soon afterward Ballinger resigned as commissioner...
...Pinchot declined to answer the question until such request was made unanimous by the committee...
...That immediately on becoming secretary of the interior, Ballinger ordered the restoration to entry of many waterpower sites on western rivers that Secretary Garfield had withdrawn...
...It conceals an inference that I re-solved to attack him...
...That Ballinger ignored the unfavorable report of Special Agent Jones and ordered the elearlisting of the Cunningham claims on the Love report which Love also declared did not justify or recommend elearlisting...
...Pinchot said the details of this matter would be fully set forth by Director Newell and Chief Engineer Davis of the Reclamation Service...
...Pinchot had the permission of his superior, Secretary of Agriculture Wilson, to write to Senator Dolliver the letter for which he was removed at the order of the President, and that A. C. Shaw, dismissed assistant law officer of the Forest Service has been disbarred from practicing before the land office in the Interior Department, by order of the President...
...Strong pressure has since been brought to bear on the President—it having been shown that a man can be disbarred only when not a lawyer in good standing, or an unfit person—and it is believed the President will eventually yield his point...
...The public interests required that a full examination of the coal cases should be made...
...That as counsel he attempted to get patents for the claims, although admitting to Glavis, in consultation, that he had doubts about their validity...
...Another conservation issue arose in the coal land situation, and in that case Mr...
...The Cannon people make an even more ridiculous threat when they promise to go into the districts of the Insurgents and defeat them there for re-election...
...Bollinger restored them...
...Remarking that the witness was not required to answer, Chair-man Nelson asked: "Did you induce President Roosevelt to veto those western f dam bills...
...Ballinger himself advocated claims which he understood to be outside of the law...
...Pinchot and Secretary of Agriculture Wilson would be raised, the committee summoned Mr...
...The power interests required the restoration of the land...
...Former Secretary of the Interior James R. Garfield, whom Mr...
...pursued the chair...
...That the main objection to the Pinchot letter appears to have been that it gave to the country a conservation message in advance of that of the President...
...As to Ballinger's knowledge of the situation, Mr...
...also Congressmen McLachlan of California and Kinkaid of Nebraska...
...If I could have had ten minutes with the President_if I had been accorded a hearing—it would have been easy for me to have convinced him that I had been neither disrespectful cor insubordinate, and thus I could have relieved him of the necessity which he felt of dismissing me from the service...
...Saturday afternoon the committee took the examination of the witness out of the hands of the attorney and listened for hours to the interesting story told by Mr...
...Pinchot, "so far transcends any individual interest, as to make any consideration of injustice infinitesimal...
...That as such counsel he profited by government secrets, yet as secretary, and with the same information, put the responsibility and interpretation of the law upon subordinates...
...That about this time the Guggenheim-Morgan syndicate secured, through dummy entries and otherwise, options on the Cunningham and other properties which, with its railroads, would have given it control of resources worth a billion...
...Pinchot could not see that he had been insubordinate...
...That when in December, 1907, Glavis was sent west to make a thoreugh Investigation, Miles C. Moore turned up in Washington and immediately the writing of patents was begun...
...That soon thereafter the executive order went forth that no more information was to be given out by government subordinates without permission...
...but I strongly advised him to...
...However, before leaving the stand Saturday, Pinchot, in response to questions from his attorney, practically swore to such statement...
...Ballinger had secured when he was in the government service, as to both what the government knew and did not know, should not be put in the hands of the Cunningham claimants, but he put it there...
...non House machine to hurl the Insurgents out of the Republican party by the terrific catapult of a refusal to invito them to caucuses...
...Pinchot and the President...
...said the witness, as the crowd laughed...
...Ballinger's incumbency as Secretary of the Interior," said Mr...
...He testified that all his inferences were drawn from documents or statements of witnesses produced or to be produced before the committee, with a single exception...
...Yet Pinchot was allowed to say: "Since it tremendously affected my department, I would be apt to attach more weight to it than the President and therefore my memory would be the better...
...Silly Cannon Threats NOTHING could be more absurd than the threat of the Can...
...that in 1907 Ballinger advised Glavis to go slow on investigations and "muckraking...
...Pinchot cited the circumstaKces leading up to the writing of the letter to Senator Dolliver which brought about his dismissal as Chief Forester...
...A Representative is not a Republican because he wears the Cannon tag...
...Did you write the messages...
...Pinchot cited many instances from hearsay of Ballinger's hostility to the conservation policy, and one in particular relating to the Alaska cases,—the opposition of Ballinger to the creation of the Chugach reserve on land included in the Cunningham Claims...
...To a question by Attorney Pepper, Mr...
...That Commissioner Dennett stated he knew of no frauds, yet affidavit showed such admissions had been made to him...
...Pinchot testified that Secretary Ballinger first undertook to deceive the President, in connection with this controversy, in respect to the withdrawal of water power sites...
...Vertrees...
...Pinchot's understanding is that Ballinger gave President Taft the impression that at the time he made the restorations he intended to make the rewithdrawals—which was not the truth...
...The interests of the Cunningham claimants required that the examination should be as brief as possible...
...That Ballinger ordered verbally (refusing to make the order in writing) that the reclamation service recommend restoration of the lands withdrawn by Garfield to protect power sites...
...That his attitude has been one of assumed indifference, if not hostility, toward investigation and the protection of the government, on the plea of former connection with the coal cases as counsel...
...Asked pointedly by the chairman if he had consulted with Secretary Wilson in the writing of it, Mr...
...public interests required that they should be held, Mr...
...Ballinger stated to the President that the Act of May 28, 1908, could have no reference to the Cunningham claims, because the claimants had at that time decided to act under the old law...
...Is the committee willing to take an oath that it will do that...
...That while the Roosevelt and Garfield view and policv had been that the government could withdraw public lands in the absence of specific law to the contrary, Ballinger*s view has been that it cannot without a specific law...
...Pinchot of the development and present status of the Forest Service...
...At our first meeting," declared Representative James, "the chair made a statement of what the committee was expected to do...
...the witness was clever enough to see the trap...
...Ballinger Always With Special Interests "DURING Mr...
...That Glavis was told not to investigate members of Congress interested in Alaska...
...The water power situation," continued Mr...
...That Senator Heyburn of Idaho, who, with Senator Carter of Montana, is the most outspoken foe in congress of conservation, had an interest in Alaska claims...
...Vertrees, attorney for Ballinger, to make Mr...
...PINCHOT brought out the points which he believes show conclusively that Secretary Ballinger was not working for the public welfare...
...He said it had already appeared fully from evidence that Mr...
...Why Pinchot Distrusted Ballinger POINTS THUS PAR ESTABLISHED BY THE INVESTIGATION THAT BALLINGER, as commissioner of the land office, had an intimate and thorough knowledge of the Alaska coal cases, gained through numerous conferences with Special Agents Jones and Love and Glavis and through frequent reports made by them to him...
...He is a Republican so long as he carries out the policies which his Republican constituents elect him to carry out...
...However willing they might be to break up their party in this way, where, in a district which has commissioned its Representative to fight the Cannon absolutism, would the Cannon people get the votes to defeat an Insurgent fulfilling the will of his constituents...
...that several Alaska claimants in particular objected to contributing without some favorable action on claims...
...Ballinger ordered the clearlisting...
...That Glavis, Jones, Love and Sheridan were practically agreed as to the necessity for more investigations...
...Pinchot testified that the misrepresentations made in Ballinger's letter of September 4 to the President were repeated in the letter written by Ballinger's former law partner, Judge Ronald, and submitted as an exhibit to the President by Ballinger in November...
...Pinchot replied that in the second place the inference he desired the committee to draw was that Ballinger had conveyed to the President a mistaken idea of facts in connection with the Cunningham coal cases...
...He cited the numerous conferences of Secretary Ballinger with Special Agent Jones, and the knowledge of the Alaska coal situation he gained, while Commissioner of the General Land Office, from both Jones and Glavis...
...That the testimony, motives and high patriotism of Glavis have been sustained at every point by witnesses, including Pinchot, and a mass of documentary evidence...
...Cannon or no Cannon, he can vote his Republican principles and policies in the House...
...Reference was also made to Ballinger's appearance before a Congressional committee in advocacy of the bill the day before resigning as commissioner...
...The cause is so great," said Mr...
...Pepper, attorney for Pinchot, said he would not press his point relative to a conversation between Mr...
...That as commissioner, private citizen, and as secretary of the interior he personally directed operations relating to these cases, assuming authority in Instances where subordinates had hitherto acted alone...
...I agree with the witness," added Representative Graham...
...Pinchot swear to his preliminary statement as to what he expected to show brought forth spirited opposition from Mr...
...that the latter had given his consent to the writing of the letter, and had said in effect, "We'll have no trouble about that order" (the President's) . Taking the stand, Secretary Wilson vehemently denied that he had given the former Forester permission "to write that letter...
...Ballinger was found on the side that would permit these lands to go from the people into private ownership, under circumstances very unfavorable to the public interests...
...That after telling his conspiracy story to the President, Glavis heard nothing more of it until given his discharge from the service...
...He admitted having given him leave to write of "departmental affairs...
...Pinchot, "was the issue between the freedom of entry and the holding of the land for the government until Congress could act...
...That he requested suspension of examinations that he might urge remedial legislation, favorable to the claimants, upon congress...
...Wilton Makes Denial AT Tuesday's session of the committee, Mr...
...Wilson from the cabinet meeting he was attending...
...In the light of the facts stated, Mr...
...The interests of the people required that fraudulent entries should not go to patent for the price of $10 an acre...
...It is perfectly obvious that the public interest required that the information Mr...
...The Cannon machine, fighting for its life, will not put tk« Insurgents out of their party...
...Anticipating that a question of veracity between Mr...
...Ballinger has always been found on the side of special interests and against the public interests...
...Now that's one of those questions that I can't answer di-rectly," said the witness...
...but not to blanket the country with a conservation message in advance of that of the President...
...The idea will be to show that a definite policy along this line had been worked out by the Roosevelt administration before it went out of power and that such policy has not been observed since...
...Attempts to Trap Pinchot VARIOUS attempts were made to trap Pinchot by the wrapping up of inferences in questions...
...A mass of valuable information was graphically presented by the former forester...
...suddenly asked Mr...
...He then declared that he had twice taken up the Dolliver request with Secretary Wilson...
...Ballinger succeeded, was then called to the stand and questioned with reference to the policy of the withdrawal of coal lands and water power sites...
...That after leaving the office of commissioner he became counsel for the Green and Cunningham claimants, contrary to federal law on that point...
...as it was interfering with the raising of campaign funds for next year's election...
...That Pinchot had the permission of Secretary Wilson to write the letter to Senator Dolliver which brought about his dismissal...
...It will srren-der or it will perish.—New York Press...
...He denied also that he had been disrespectful toward the President in his letter, saying: "I cannot see how the expression of an honest opinion reflects on the dignity of the President's office...
...Of Ballinger's order to clearlist the Cunningham claims on the Love report, which Love declared was simply explanatory and not recommendatory, Pinchot said: "If anyone in the for-estry department had done such a thing I should have discharged him at once for corruption or incompetency, and I shouldn't have cared much which...
...Pinchot under oath, "there have come up repeatedly difficulties between the interests of conservation and private interests, in each of which cases Mr...
...That Ballinger ordered Schwartz to consult Postmaster General Hitchcock as well as the President in appointing Alaska agents...
...The exception was when he learned directly from Ballinger of his opposition to the leasing of coal lands, when he became Commissioner...
...When did you first form your intention of attacking Secre-tary Ballinger...
...The President's grievance seems to be that Shaw assisted Glavis in the preparation of the latter's complaint against the Interior Department...
...That would be violating confidences with a President, would it not...
...it will not prevent their re-election...
...Cauie Greater than any Individual"—Pinchot ASKED if he believed injustice had been done him by his dismissal, Pinchot reluctantly admitted such belief, but said he had given no particular thought to that aspect of the case, nor did he wish the committee to...
...AMONG the interesting developments of the week in the Bailinger-Pinchot inquiry were the facts that Mr...
...Reverting to the troubles with Secretary Ballinger, Mr...
...Conservation principles required that the government's interests should be protected, and the interests of the claimants that they should be patented...
...That Ballinger sent a young, inexperienced lawyer to supercede Glavis in defending the government's rights In these gigantic Interests...
...Ballinger decided for the brief examination...
...That Ballinger promised to ask Attorney General Wickersham for an opinion on the legality of the Cunningham claims, but failed to do so until forced to such action by Glavis and Henry M. Hoyt, then assistant attorney general...
...Pepper, counsel for Pinchot, and from various members of the committee...
...it will not destroy the Republican party...
...Pinchot referred the committee to the bill introduced by Delegate Cale, of Alaska, but drafted by Ballinger...
...The President had made public a letter to Pinchot in which he said he differed with the Forester as to the nature of such conversation...
...Ballinger in this respect again took the position against the public interests...
Vol. 2 • March 1910 • No. 10
