EDITORIAL 539 



"/ think that the organization of the corporation and the execution of 

 the bill of sale to it were SHAM PAPER TRANSACTIONS DONE 

 IN ORDER TO MAKE IT POSSIBLE TO CLAIM THAT ALL 

 LIABILITIESOFTHE BUSINESS WERE THE CORPORATION'S, 

 WHILE SHIELDS RET A IN ED ALL THE ASSETS AND PROFITS. 

 The business was never, in fact, transferred to or carried on by the corpora- 

 tion. If Shields or his counsel thought that as a matter of law the property 

 belonged to the corporation, it was sufficiently doubtful to make it necessary 

 to put the facts in the schedules. THE OMISSION TO DO SO WAS 

 MERELY CARRYING OUT THE FRAUDULENT SCHEME 

 WHICH LED TO THE FILING THE CERTIFICATE. Referee's 

 report confirmed and discharge refused'' 



The New York Times of March 30, 1906, printed the following letter 

 from President Roosevelt to Mr. Shields: 



"White House, February 19, 1906. 



"Sir: TV appears that you have purported to give an extended interview 

 with me in quotation marks, putting my expressions in the first person, so 

 as to make me responsible for both thought and language. This is inex- 

 cusable on your part. At the time you called upon me and I talked over 

 informally with you the question of the preservation of game and of wild 

 life generally in its various aspects, I told you explicitly that while you could 

 state that I was in hearty accord with your efforts, you were not to try to quote 

 my language, and subsequently I vjrote to you repeating this. As a matter 

 of fact, in what appears to be these quotations you in no case gave the exact 

 language that I used. But pretending thus to give it, and by what you omit 

 as well as what you insert which I had not said, you convey on certain points 

 an entirely false impression, and you leave me no alternative but to explicitly 

 repudiate your statement, which I hereby do. Had you been content to say 

 that you gave the general sense of what I said, you would have done what 

 you were authorized to do. 



"But when you attempt to give my exact words, you not only do what I 

 explicitly told you you should not do, but you used language which I explicitly 

 told you was in no case accurate. Not one single sentence you quote is as I 

 said it. Some of the sentences are sheer inventions, others are inventions in 

 part, and some of the things I said are omitted. 



"It is unnecessary to characterize such conduct on your part. 



"Yours, etc., THEODORE ROOSEVELT." 



Investigation of the causes which brought forth this stinging rebuke 

 by the President shows that Mr. Shields, in his efforts to obtain the passage 

 of certain legislation, furnished the press with an alleged interview, which 

 conveyed an entirely false impression of the President's statements. 



As President Roosevelt and Judge Holt, of the District Court, concur 

 in their opinions of Mr. Shields and his conduct, Recreation deems further 

 comment on this man, his statements and his methods unnecessary. 



