112 



THE IRRIGATION AGE. 



PINCHOT OPENS FIGHT TO RESTORE NEWELL 



THERE is evidence that 

 friends of F. H. Newell, 

 deposed Director of the 

 Reclamation Service, are en- 

 deavoring, through the press, 

 to .start another Ballinger- 

 Pinchot affair, with Secre- 

 tary of the Interior Lane 

 and Newell as the leading 

 lights. 



No other than Gifford 

 Pinchot, himself, seems to 

 be the leader of this move- 

 ment, and he has succeeded 

 in getting the aid of Col. 

 Theodore Roosevelt to touch 

 off the first blast of pub- 

 licity in a campaign, de- 

 signed either to restore 

 Newell, or to make a politi- 

 cal issue out of his removal. 

 The New York Herald, 

 under a Washington, D. C., 

 date, and several other 

 eastern papers have printed 

 stories around letters, com- 

 menting on Newell's re- 

 moval, which were written 

 by Col. Roosevelt and Pin- 

 chot. Here is the Herald 

 story : 



Franklin K. Lane, Secre- 

 tary of the Interior, has 



braved the criticism of Gifford Pinchot and the 

 other conservation enthusiasts who first came into 

 prominence during the Roosevelt administration, 

 by the removal of Frederick Haynes Newell from 

 the office of Director of the Reclamation Service, to 

 which Theodore Roosevelt appointed him thirteen 

 years ago. 



Mr. Newell is known as the "Father of the 

 Reclamation Service." He and Mr. Pinchot were 

 prime movers in inducing Congress to pass the 

 Reclamation act, which has resulted in the expendi- 

 ture of $90,000,000 under Mr. Newell's direction. 



Mr. Pinchot, also an appointee of Mr. Roose- 

 velt, was removed as Chief Forester of the United 

 States by Mr. Taft for alleged insubordination after 

 a sensational public controversy concerning the 

 conservation policies of the two administrations. 

 The famous Ballinger-Pinchot investigation re- 

 sulted. Mr. Newell has, however, never taken an 

 active part in politics and has remained in his posi- 

 tion as Director ever since the organization of the 

 service. 



The Herald is unable to find that the removal 

 of Mr. Newell is in any way connected with politics. 

 Mr. Lane has not made public any explanation of 

 his act, but there was apparently no open rupture 

 between the two men. Mr. Newell has made no 



Irrigating Tomatoes on Dr. L. D. Ewing's Farm at Terral, 

 Okla. Courtesy of the Rock Island Railway. 



statement for publication. It 

 seems probable, however, 

 that friends of Mr. Newell 

 in the Progressive party will 

 make a political issue of his 

 removal. 



Theodore Roosevelt and 

 Mr. Pinchot have written 

 letters to Mr. Edward Breck, 

 an intimate friend and dis- 

 tant relative of Mr. Newell, 

 in which they speak of Mr. 

 Newell in the highest pos- 

 sible terms. The Herald has 

 received copies of these let- 

 ters. Mr. Pinchot makes 

 this strong statement: 



"Mr. Newell's removal is 

 a blow not only to the 

 efficiency of the reclamation 

 service but to good adminis- 

 tration throughout the gov- 

 ernment service, and espe- 

 cially to the morale of the 

 government servants them- 

 selves." 



He adds that his removal, 

 "however concealed under 

 the name of administration 

 changes, is inexcusable." 



Mr. Roosevelt compares 

 his service to that of Colonel 

 George W. Goethals, builder 

 of the Panama Canal. 



If Messrs. Roosevelt and Pinchot make an issue 

 of the removal of Mr. Newell, as seems likely, they 

 may stir up some trouble for the administration. 



Secretary Lane, however, has forestalled criti- 

 cism to a large extent by appointing in Mr. Newell's 

 place as Director of the Service Arthur P. Davis, 

 recognized throughout the world as one of the fore- 

 most engineers, a close friend of Mr. Newell and a 

 co-worker with him in the Reclamation Service 

 during the entire period of his incumbency. 



Secretary Lane has curtailed the authority of 

 the Director, however, and appointed a commission 

 to take over much of his work. This commission is 

 composed of two officials of the service, including 

 the Director, and three outsiders, all Democrats, 

 appointed by Mr. Lane at large salaries. 



Theoretically Mr. Newell is not dismissed en- 

 tirely from the Service, but merely demoted. He 

 will be a consulting engineer one of four who are 

 called upon to give advice on problems of construc- 

 tion that are arising constantly. But to those who 

 are familiar with the workings of the Service he is 

 as good as out entirely. As a consulting engineer 

 he will be paid by the day for the work he does. 

 Last year the four consulting engineers had work 

 about half the time. One of these engineers has 



