THE ROLL CALL
The Roll Call ON MEN AND MEASURES A Contrast IN THE SENATE at Washington there was delivered a few days ago a speech that was unusual. It was unusual for the painstaking care and labor with which...
...2) At the time in question I was advised by Mr...
...It was intended for the relief of people who had found themselves 'in a position where they could not by virtue of circumstances accomodate themselves to the law,' in the language of Mr...
...Gliavis on the witness stand for A Standard of Official Conduct FROM SPEECH OF SENATOR FLETCHER BETWEEN vulgar graft and criminal guilt on one side and perfection on the other is a broad field...
...Of Pinchot and Glavis Senator Fletcher declared: "That Mr...
...It will not be said that he was prejudiced or partial in the slightest degree against Secretary Ballinger—before the investigation...
...This bill made it immaterial whether the Cunningham claimants had made their locations in good faith or not...
...that his administration of that office has been marked by a lack of fidelity to the public interests...
...It was largely by your report of facts that this office was enabled to prove by the record what are the necessities of the Alaska coal fields and what were the various efforts to unlawfully acquire title to such lands.'" Fletcher's Tribute to Glavis TO THIS he added other testimonials of Glavis' character, devotion to duty and high ability—testimonials from the lecord by those who came afterwards under the spell of Bal-lingerism and sought to discredit and destroy Glavis...
...Ballinger can be found in the conduct of these men as suggested, and the theory falls to pieces whenever and wherever it comes in contact with stubborn facts...
...Up in the Air" THESE ARE but illustrative of the manner and results of Senator Fletcher's masterly analysis of the case against Ballinger— an analysis which abundantly justifies the Senator's conclusions: "Studying the Secretary's own testimony we are pressed to the conclusion that: The responsible functions, the chief powers as well as the work—other than detail, such as seeing callers, and signing letters which were not read—seem to have been delegated to and placed upon subordinates and employees...
...that he is not deserving of public confidence, and should not longer be retained in that office...
...A young man, 26 years of age, he writes and speaks as one trained and equipped by a lifetime of study and experience...
...The speech then proceeds with an analysis of that letter, statement by statement, and sets opposite each specious claim of the Secretary's defense the proven facts, citing the record page by page...
...A Speech That Carries Conviction THIS SPEECH, analytical, profound, its every statement of fact supported by citation to the record of sworn, conclusive testimony, will not be discredited or rejected as a declaration inspired by political partisanship...
...L. R. Glavis were faithful and efficient agents of the Government and the people...
...Then followed the Senator's delineation from the record of Glavis' achievements in saving the Alaskan coal lands to the people—in preventing, by his diligence and persistence even against the pressure of powerful interests aided and abetted by his superiors in office, the patenting of those lands to the claimants of the Morgan-Guggenheim syndicate...
...Glavis in the performance of his work...
...Then the Senator follows with the facts, as proved, setting out, item ty item, the conclusive evidence of Ballinger's knowledge of the questionable character of the Cunningham claims at the time he ordered them clear-listed, conclading: "December 23 Miles C. Moore (representing the claimants) arrived in Washington and saw Commissioner Ballinger...
...It was drafted," says Senator Fletcher, speaking from the record, "in conjunction with an Alaskan, lobbyist...
...PiNCHor, Glavis, Jones, Price, Shaw, Kerby, and possibly Hoyt, are claimed to be 'snakes' and have met the fate decreed...
...It is a discussion dealing with a subject which transcends political partisanship, with a subject upon which all decent, patriotic citizens will agree regardless of party allegiance—the duty of a high official of the Government to serve and not betray the public interest...
...These are the facts and circumstances in connection with that clear-listing order and I submit they fully substantiate the conclusions of the committee set forth in this report...
...He possessed a high sense of public duty, and he was true to himself, and therefore not "false to any man...
...Prompted simply by the highest sense of duty, he went about his work and pursued it conscientiously and industriously to the end...
...President Taft wrote him September 17, 1909: " 'I wish you to know that I have the utmost confidence in your conscientious desire to serve the Government and the public, in the intensity of your purpose to achieve success in the matter of conservation of national resources, and on the immense value of what you have done and what you propose to do with reference to forestry and kindred methods of conservation.' " "Regarding Mr...
...They demand that he shall be honest...
...Mr...
...His communications are always respectful, considerate of others, and to the point...
...L. R. Glavis and his course, no one can fail of admiration for him...
...He heard and observed the witnesses...
...Furthermore, that would mean the last of Glavis...
...said Senator Fletcher, "I fully believe all these are deserved...
...In other words, there were people who had violated the law in connection with coal entries and locations, but only from 'circumstances' and not wickedly and with malice aforethought, who ought to be relieved and their diligence and enterprise ought to be rewarded...
...Investigation Proves Truth of Charges "THIS INVESTIGATION has established the truth of every material statement he made in his letter or report to the President...
...There is not a substantial thing in the entire record which points to neglect, incompetence, or wrongful conduct on the part of Mr...
...The fidelity they have a right to insist on is of that positive, aggressive, vigilant kind, whch means something more than complacently moving along lines of least resis-tanca...
...The speech was not an effort at forensics or rhetoric...
...On the demand of Ballinger, the investigation was extended to reach the alleged conspirators, ex-Secretary Garfield, Forester Pinchot, Chief Newell of the Reclamation Service and field-agent Glavis, the "snake" whose heinous conduct consisted of disclosing to the President and the country the attempt with the aid of Secretary Balliner to turn over, out of the public domain, $25,-000,000 worth of Alaska coal lands to the MoRGANHEIms...
...This was not a defensible position to take concerning the Government property and interests...
...Referring to the Glavis charge that Ballinger, while Commissioner of the Land Office, improperly ordered the Cunningham clams clear-listed for patent, the Secretary's letter to the President is quoted: "'In answer to this statement of Glavis', I beg to say: (1) That as Commissioner of the General Land Office I had no knowledge of the specific facts or any facts contained in the records and files of the General Land Office further than what was contained in Special Agent Love's report The files were not laid before me nor examined by me at any time nor were their contents made known to me...
...that he shall serve to the best of his ability and in the utmost good faith...
...Of Ballinger the Senator declared: "That in his statement of September 13, 1909, to the President and in other correspondence and communications with the President, Mr...
...He was present through the long, labored hearings...
...This record is full of his work...
...It has shown, to our minds, conclusively, that his apprehensions and impressions of official delinquencies were soundly warranted by the facts...
...Pinchot's work speaks his commendation...
...There were also on file the Fimple-Cunningham correspondence and Glavis' letters of November 5 and 12, 1907, in which he urged early and thorough investigation...
...Gifted with keen perception, he saw the right and shaped his course by that star...
...It was noteworthy, moreover, as a speech by one of the newer type of live, industrious, progressive Democrats of the South— by Senator Duncan U. Fletcher, of Florida...
...The public desire and have a right to require that the official, holding its power of attorney, shall stand steadfastly for the welfare of the people, yield to no pressure, whether of particular friends or powerful politcal or financial influences, that would jeopardize or endanger the rights or interests of the whole people...
...His perfect truthfulness and honesty speak out unmistakably...
...And the Senator continues: "But Glavis was a more or less obscure young man, with no influence of consequence, no means or resources with which to make any trouble, and the simple and easy way to be relieved of his persistent bother about the Alaska coal claims, which he seems to have had on the brain, would be to dismiss him and send him adrift in disgrace...
...He felt under obligation to see the laws executed as he found them...
...On the other hand, they are not satisfied to have him simply keep on the windy side of the law and pursue a course which is neglectful of and unfaithful to their interests to the point just inside the line of criminal guilt...
...Senator Fletcher was a member of the Pin.;hot-Ballinger investigating committee...
...The action of the commissioner is simply inexplicable and can not be accounted for on any hypothesis that would excuse him...
...The Government was "of the people and for the people" as he saw it, and he felt constrained to stand by the rights of the Government as an agent of the people...
...He studied the case...
...On the contrary, the record is crowded with the overwhelming evidence of his sincerity, ability, industry, integrity, and devotion to duty...
...Ballinger...
...They do not require that an official shall be infallible...
...Demolished, his story crushed, the man discredited, any statement he might make as originating in a diseased brain, he would disappear, taking his story with him into obscurity, and the Department of the Interior would pursue the even tenor of its way as if nothing had happened...
...The law was in need of revision, but not along the lilies of the Cale bill...
...It followed in due course that Glavis was denounced, dismissed, and disgraced as far as it lay in the power of the mighty to do—scourged and sent forth in such sort that no one would hear of him again...
...Within it lies the standard of official conduct the people have a right to exact...
...It was simply a demonstration of ascertained facts, and a reduction of those facts to their logical and inevitable conclusion— "That Mr...
...His marvelous memory and clear expression are shown by his testimony...
...Glavis and Ballinger: A Contrast CONTRAST THIS RECORD of Glavis with that made against Ballinger by the overwhelming, sworn evidence-including his damning letter of defense to the President...
...Of this bill and its effect if enacted as drawn and advocated by Ballinger, the Senator declared: "About March 3, 1908, Commissioner Ballinger urged the passage of the Cale bill...
...The public expect and have a right to demand that the official shall fully realize the large responsibilities of his position, be ever mindful of the trust reposed in him, and faithful and diligent in the performance of his duties...
...If the record had been studied closer, it might have occurred to some gentlemen while pronouncing against Glavis that the man who could condense a statement within 20 pages with such clearness and force as exhibited in his report of August 11, 1909, to the President, which called for replies covering nearly 800 pages, would not likely pass out of sight and hearing in a free country with a free press...
...It was unusual for the painstaking care and labor with which it had been prepared and the able manner in which it was presented...
...Honesty, courage, and ability, in the order named, are the qualities demanded in high official position...
...December 13 Glavis had been ordered to proceed with the investigation by the commissioner himself, and, confirmatory, written instructions followed, dated September 28...
...There is no ambiguity, no concealing, no doubt about his meaning...
...December 26, 1907, Commissioner Ballinger ordered the claims clear-listed on the Love report (Comp., p. 205), although investigation as to their validity was then under way, and although the three reports of Special Agent Jones were on file, dated, respectively, August 10, August 13, and November 1, 1907, recommending further investigation and indicating the claims were not regular...
...If citation from this record is called for to sustain the above finding, the report sufficiently gives them, and I shall only refer to them...
...that he has, on a number of occasions, been guilty of duplicity, and that his conduct in the premises was intended to and did have the effect of deceiving the President...
...From a close observation of Mr...
...His life, his character, his public service, are as open and conspicuous as if blazoned on the sky...
...If it had passed, the Cunningham claimants could have obtained patents...
...It will be remembered that when public opinion, aroused by the disclosures of Pinchot and Glavis, made inevitable an investigation of Ballinger and his associates, the cry went up from the Ballinger camp that the whole case against the Secretary was a conspiracy inspired by personal animosity to ruin and discredit him and drive him from office...
...There has been lacking the constant presence of a guiding, directing, forceful head, fully meeting and appreciating the larger responsibilities of the office...
...The honesty they have a right to demand is of that broad nature which means something more than keeping out of jail...
...His correspondence with various officials, from the President down, is of the most serious, dignified, and forceful character...
...Gifford Pinchot and Mr...
...Schwartz that the files of the General Land Office showed only the entries and Agent Love's report, together with a general report on Alaska coal entries by Agent Jones...
...They do not expect him to commit no error of head or heart...
...This bill was introduced in the House by Thomas Cale, Territorial Delegate from Alaska...
...They are not without appreciation by the country, it is hoped and believed...
...Ballinger's Scheme PLAINLY REALIZING the illegality of these claims and appreciating the difficulty of forcing them to patent, with men like Jones and Glavis aware of their character, Ballinger sought to have them granted by act of Congress...
...Dennett, Commissioner of the General Land Office, wrote him June 3 1908: " 'The General Land Office and the department appreciate the very thorough and efficient manner in which you conducted your investigations in reference to the real situation in the Alaska coal matters...
...That their protests and actions restrained the officers of the Interior Department and prevented a great public wrong and their conduct was wholly in the interest of the people...
...Conspiracy" Plea Falls to Pieces SENATOR FLETCHER puts against this ridiculous defense of conspiracy the facts of the record, and summarizes: "No elements of a conspiracy against Mr...
...As a member of that committee he was industrious and attentive...
...He prepared a bill...
...Record, p. 1248...
...To charge Glavis with being oversuspicious and attribute afflictions to him like 'megalomania' would effectually dispose of him and his statements forever...
...Ballinger has been frequently uncandid...
...His conclusions carry conviction...
...You will find no petty jealousy or malice cropping out in what he said and did...
...Mr...
...He violated a sacred rule of discipline by going over the heads of his superiors...
...Richard A. Ballinger, Secretary of the Interior, has not been true to the trust reposed in him as such Secretary...
Vol. 3 • February 1911 • No. 5
