OCR Text |
Show M'CABE IS SCARED BY PINCHOT New York, Feb. 9. Oifford Pincnot, deposed chief forester of the United States, but still loyal to his policies j as president of the National Conserva- ; tlon committee, defended rangers-of the forest service in a speech before the National Arts club in New York tonight. Mr. Plnchot bitterly assailed the action of Georgo P. McCabe, solicitor so-licitor of the department, who, as temporary' chief, after Plnchot's dismissal, dis-missal, took action to abolish the collegiate col-legiate training of foresters at government govern-ment expense. He said in part: "I am as proud of the forest service and Its men as 1 ever was, and I venture to think that It has saved the value of its Ideal by Its achievements and the enemies ' It has made. "Now !et me give you the best Illustration Illus-tration I have seen In recent years of how a public officer, under pretext of obedience to the law, may traffic" with It and abuse it to the public Injury. "Upon my dismissal the solicitor of the department of agriculture (George P. McCabe), pending the arrival of another officer from the field, was made acting forester for three or four days. It appears that be learned then of the ranger schools at the four state universities and sent telegTams (o the ' disbursing officers in the field to pay no expense connected with them. ' These telegTams were kept secret j from every member of the service in Washington except tho stenographer who wrote thorn. "VTIth equal concealment from all the men In the forest service, a letter was prepared and sent to tho comp troller asking for a Bpeedy advance decision as to the legality of the ranker ran-ker schoole. This letter was clearly Intended and wss so framed as to ecure a decision against the schools ind it was successful In doing so. Trained Rangers Necessary. "This letter is a misrepresentation, because it omits to state tho central, essential and incontrovertible facts. "First, that the forest service must hae trained rangers. Secondthat it can get them only by training them a they enter the service "It follows that the training of the rangers by the service is necessary, c learly and' undeniably for the administration, admin-istration, protection and improvement nf the. national forests. Being necessary neces-sary for that purpose, It falls well and within, the terms of the agricultural bill and is therefore awful. McCabe Violated Honor. Consider now the situation under which this derision of. the controller was obtained:" . "Tbe solicitor of the department of agriculture is the officer charged w-ith prompting the welfare of the department depart-ment and all its bureaus on the legal side. Both as solicitor and acting for-eBter for-eBter ho w-as in honor and In duty bound to forward the work of the forest for-est service by very lawful means at his command. By his official position be wb Its counsel and advocate. Yet, ho made no attempt to assist the service ser-vice In -this' matter. "Qn the contrary, ho led tho secret attack upon It. The menof the forest for-est service were first informed that the legality of their work was in question ques-tion only after adverse judgment had been rendered without giving them any-hearing whatsoever. - , "I am not concerned with the motive mo-tive behind this Indefensible sacrifice of the public welfare It Is a typical Illustration of a certain way to obey the law. Of course. It Is not obedience to the law at all, but tho prostitution of the law. Cruel and Needless. "The wholo proceeding is not seen In Its true light until we realize its effect on nearly 200 of the best young men in the forest service, who were officially-ordered to those schools for instruction These jangrs are poor men, working for from ?500 to ?1,300 n year, and they need their pay. Yet they will not lose only their, pay for the time they attended the schools, hut tho money- already advanced out of their own pockets for traveling and other expenses. "It is a cruel and needless loss. If the spirit of the forest service, and especially tho -rangers, wero less ad- mlrable, the harm done to the national na-tional forests by the decision so obtained ob-tained would be incalculable. The fine loyalty of these rangers to their work is shown by the fact that about half of them have stayed on at the ranger schools at their own expense, ex-pense, the better to learn their public duties. Their devotion In doing so is worthy of all praise, but I do not believe the people of the United States can afTord to that devotion stand. unropald by anything more than the promotion of these men who have already earned by the qualitv of their work'. "It would be bad Indeed if this gratltntloua check to the Improvement of the public service were nothing more than a. rebuke to the higher officers offi-cers of the service who were responsible respon-sible for the ranger - schools'. They wero doing their duty as they saw It. But when ihe hardship of It falls, as It does, upon tho -men who can least afford to carry It, who simply obeyed orders, its ruthless disregard of ordinary or-dinary humanity becomes Its most striking characteristic "It would be.hard lo find, a better or a more bitter illustration of the use of the law as a cover for not doing what public officer has a right to do and what the public interests demand that he shall do. I submit the two points of view to your Judgment and abide, by yo-ir decision." McCabe Enters Denial. ' Washington, Feb. 3. "Absolutely untrue," is the answer In which George P McCabe, solicitor for the department of agriculture, character Izod the charge made by Mr. Plnchot that McCabe had shut ofT the Instruction Instruc-tion of foret rangers without consulting consult-ing anyone In the forest service. Believing that such expenditure was not legally permissible, Mr. McCabe said he brought the matter to the attention at-tention of the chief, of the various divisions of the service They declared de-clared the practice was being followed |