Show LIMITATION IS NOT INJURIOUS House Committee Hears Evi Evidence Evidence I dence in Opposition to the Presidents Statement SECRET SERVICE INQUIRY TREASURY DEPARTMENT OPERA OPERATORS OPERATORS OP ERA TORS NO GOOD ELSEWHERE Washington Feb 15 Responsible officials officials elate connected with the detection of crime In four different branches of the govern government ment merit have Just testified in substance that the thc limitation on the use of the secret ser seT service serIce vice Ice operators of the treasury department has not been injurious to their respective ve services They are Chairman Knapp of ot the interstate commerce commission Wil William Wilham fl liam ham Ik L 1 disbursing clerk of the de department department department of commerce and labor G 0 W Trowbridge chief of revenue agents and Assistant Secretary James B Reynolds of the treasury department In charge of the customs service Their testimony taken during hearings bearings on the sundry civil appropriation bill was made public today toda by the house committee on appropriations With the tho testimony of Secretary Garfield of the interior I depart department department department ment and of Attorney General Bonaparte it is relied upon by b the committee to refute refute re xe fute lute the claim that the limitation placed last year ear on the secret service of the treas tress treasury treasury ury department has worked to the interest of the criminal classes Central Bureau Not Needed All Ahl who were examined on the subject disapproved of the suggestion of a central detective bureau and all expressed satis satisfaction satisfaction satisfaction faction with existing conditions None could recall a demand for a secret service operative of the treasury department dur during durIng durIng ing the past year ear Mr explained that In the depart department department department ment of commerce and labor are Immigration tion inspectors and special agents engaged I In investigating questions of violations of the law So closely allied with the admin are the services of ot these incesti investigators gators that he tie doubted very much if the I work could be done so eo efficiently by b a cen central central bureau controlled by b some one inde independent Independent independent pendent of the department He spoke of an imaginary violation of the Chinese ex exclusion elusion act Would Cripple Service It seems to me that it would cripple the service to throw that case into an inde independent Independent pendent bureau he said when we al at already already ready have men on the ground who are able to take up these cases and who know what to do with them on account of their familiarity with Chinese exclusion matters I 1 think It can be fairly said continued Mr r that wherever we have hae had hada a man separated from some service where he was an expert in doing that kind of work we take him in fairly under the law Jaw and when whatever little work he was doing was accomplished he resigned from us and went back to the place where he was before We know very well we that the law does not permit the detail from one department to another and as the fiscal and financial agent of the depart department ment I can say without fear of ot anybody I contradicting it ft that accounts do not pass my office in contravention of the law If the overcoat Is In there somebody so I successfully did it that my experts can cannot cannot cannot not find it and it passes I 1 hope Mr Tawney that our service will not be in included Included eluded in a proposition like that because it would make lots of trouble Chairman Knapp explained that In the interstate commerce commission tire re a few men employed to get Information about possible pos infractions of ot the law la Ho He added that the commission had never used a treasury department secret service man manfor manfor manfor for any purpose Revenue Agents Assistant Secretary Secreta Reynolds described the tho force of special agents and confidential agents engaged d In Ia detecting fraud upon the customs revenues Since he came into office in 1905 1005 he said there had only been two or three Instances where the secret service division had been called upon for assistance We e used a secret service man once to I watch a man who had been convicted of or assisting In silk frauds in New York while his case was being taken up to tl the circuit court but unfortunately the man got awa away Mr Reynolds told the committee During last year ear he said his department had no reason to desire the detail of any an secret service men Mr Trowbridge be expressed little faith alth in operatives from the secret service division of ot the treasury department for the sup suppression suppression suppression of illicit distilling or ferreting out violations of or the oleomargarine act They are a failure so far as our bureau is concerned declared the chief of the revenue agents I have tried them I gave them a fair test two bright fellows fello s sat at 10 per day each and expenses for two months and they the did not meet with any successes I |