Part 11
The amendments suggested by this Commission were to carry into effect the law as we understand it, and what we have been assured was so understood by your company, to wit: That the awards, before becoming final, should be approved by the National Commission. We infer from what was said by you to Mr. Scott, a member of this Commission, and what was said by Judge Boyle to the Commission, that the position of your company is that the approval of the National Commission only refers to the system of making the awards, and not to the awards of the juries. While we do not agree to this contention, we desire to call your attention to what we consider a number of violations of the rules and regulations governing the system of awards, as agreed upon by the local company and the National Commission. In the first place, in paragraph 3 of the special rules and regulations providing for the appointment of jurors and governing the system of making awards, it is set forth "that the nominations for group jurors shall be made not later than August 1, 1904, except that nominations made to fill vacancies may be made at any subsequent time." It is also provided "that nominations of group jurors and alternates, when approved by the president of the Exposition Company, shall be transmitted to the National Commission for the approval of that body." "These nominations, having been considered and confirmed by the authority provided by section 6 of the act of Congress, relating to the approval of the awarding of premiums, the appointment to the international jury shall be made in accordance with section 6 of article 22 of the official rules and regulations of the Louisiana Purchase Exposition Company."
You will remember that the nominations of group jurors were not made until long after the time specified in the rules and regulations, which left but a brief time to notify the jurors and allow them time to get here to begin the performance of their duties by the 1st of September.
You will doubtless remember that the writer, Mr. Allen, had an interview with you and Mr. Skiff, in which he protested on behalf of the National Commission that no time was given the Commission to investigate the character of qualifications of the jurors thus nominated, and that it was placing in the hands of the chiefs of the different departments the power to fix up juries and make the awards conform to their own wishes, if they desired to do so.
You will also doubtless remember that Mr. Skiff, in your presence, said to Mr. Allen, as he has said to the Commission frequently before and as he assured us he had said to hundreds of exhibitors, that after the action of the group juries these awards would have to pass the department juries, then the superior jury, then the local company, and finally be approved by the National Commission, and that if anything wrong was done by the group juries thus selected ample opportunity would be had to right such wrong. Acting on this assurance the National Commission went ahead and approved such jurors as were sent them for their approval.
Paragraph 4 of said rules and regulations provides that each group jury shall choose its own officers, consisting of a chairman, vice-chairman, and secretary. It came to the knowledge of the Commission that when the group juries were being organized this rule was being violated, and in most, if not all instances, the officers of the group juries were being selected by the chiefs of the departments. We went to see the secretary of the exhibit department, who had charge of the matter of juries in that department, and informed him of this violation of the rules. We were informed by him that he did not know the chiefs had gone to the extent of informing the juries who their officers should be, but that they had been instructed to make suggestions that they might keep the chairmanship of the juries in the hands of the Americans.
We find that a large number of group jurors have been appointed, have participated in making awards, have been paid off, and have gone home without their names ever having been submitted to the National Commission for approval.
We are informed that the course adopted by the chiefs in the organization of the group juries was pursued when it came to the organization of the department juries, and in this way the chiefs, in violation of the rules, have selected the main body of the superior jury. We were also informed that the department juries were instructed to pass the matters that we think would properly belong to that body up to the superior jury; consequently the principal duty performed by the department jury was to enable the chiefs to select two members for the superior jury. We have been informed that the chiefs in some departments have taken it upon themselves to forbid the jurors from considering certain matters that were proper subjects for their consideration.
In paragraph 15 of said rules and regulations it is provided that if for any reason an award is not satisfactory to an exhibitor he may file notice to that effect with the president of the superior jury within three days after the official notification of the award; this notice shall be followed within seven days by a written statement setting forth at length his views as to wherein the award is unjust. We see now that the superior jury has been disbanded within three or four days after most of the exhibitors received their official notification, thus cutting off the opportunity of exhibitors who were dissatisfied with the awards to present their cases as provided for by the rules.
We are also informed that instead of the superior jury hearing any protests or complaints of the awards, these were referred to subboards or subjuries made up in the main of jurors who had been brought up by the chiefs from the various group juries to the superior jury by the methods heretofore described.
We have also been informed by a gentleman who attempted to make a protest and get a hearing before these subcommittees so organized with the superior jury that he was informed he could only make his complaint to the chief of the department from which the exhibit referred to came, and when one chief was approached he said he would not permit the matter complained of to be investigated by the superior jury. He then appealed to the full superior jury to hear him, and he was informed that they had agreed that no one should be heard. So that it occurs to us that the thing we sought to warn you against has been practically accomplished, and the assurance given us that the method by which these things might be corrected has been denied, so that if we understand your contention that we were only to approve the system of making awards instead of the awards we claim the system that we approved has been violated from start to finish.
We also find that some jurors who were appointed and approved for certain departments had been transferred to other groups and departments without the knowledge or approval of the National Commission.
We are not thoroughly familiar with the character of all your chiefs for integrity or impartiality, but from some things that we have heard we are unwilling for some of them to make up a list of awards without the National Commission's performance of the duty that devolves on us by the act of Congress and by section 6 of article 22 of the rules and regulations of the Louisiana Purchase Exposition, adopted in pursuance of an act of Congress of the United States, and we again wish to protest as we have had occasion to do several times before, against the apparent disposition on the part of the local company to ignore the National Commission, and disregard the powers vested in this body by the act of Congress, under which this exposition is held.
We see from the papers that your company, without any reference to the National Commission, is proceeding to publish the list of awards made as heretofore described in this communication. We wish to enter a protest against this being done, and to inform you that under section 4 of the act of Congress a board of arbitration is provided for, "to whom all matters of difference arising between the Commission and said company concerning the administration, management, and general supervision of said exposition, including all matters of difference arising out of the power given by this act to the said company, or to the said National Commission to modify or approve any act of the other of the two bodies, shall be referred for determination," and to notify you that we insist upon such arbitration if your company insists upon its refusal to submit these awards to the National Commission for approval.
The matters to be submitted to said arbitration board are as follows:
First. The right of the National Commission to have submitted for its approval the awards found under the jury system and ready to be promulgated by the superior jury.
Second. If our contention as to our rights in this matter be found by said board of arbitration against us, then as to whether or not the rules and regulations adopted by the local company and the National Commission governing the system of awards have been so complied with as to bind the National Commission to any approval of the system by which the awards have been made.
Third. Whether or not, under the rules and regulations, it is necessary for the president of the National Commission to sign the diplomas or certificate of awards; and if so, can his name be put on such diplomas or certificates without his consent.
We trust any further announcement of the awards of the superior jury may be withheld until this matter shall have been arbitrated.
Respectfully,
THE LOUISIANA PURCHASE EXPOSITION COMMISSION, JOHN M. ALLEN, _Acting President_.
Hon. D.R. FRANCIS, _President Exposition Company, Building_.
A formal acknowledgment of this letter was received from Secretary Stevens, with the advice that the same had been placed before the executive committee for consideration.
At about this time there appeared in several St. Louis newspapers advertisements of prominent firms of St. Louis, setting forth the alleged fact that they had been awarded grand prizes on their exhibits, and in connection with such advertisements was displayed a cut of an official award ribbon, bearing the facsimile signature of the president, the director of exhibits, the secretary of the Exposition Company, and the chief of the department in which the exhibit was made.
The fact that the awards were being advertised broadcast in this manner before they had been approved by the Commission was called to the attention of President Francis by Mr. Allen, acting president, by a letter under date of November 4, as follows:
NOVEMBER 4, 1904.
SIR: If the inclosed advertisement is published by authority of the Louisiana Purchase Exposition Company, it seems to be directly in conflict with the understanding had with the National Commission that before awards be announced officially they were to be submitted to the National Commission for approval. This advertisement purports to be by authority of the Louisiana Purchase Exposition Company, signed by David R. Francis, president, and F.J.V. Skiff, director of exhibits. No final action on awards by the superior jury have been submitted to the National Commission, but nearly all the exhibitors in the exhibit buildings are advertising what purports to be the official awards.
We most earnestly submit that this action on the part of the exhibitors is in direct conflict with the law and with the agreement had with you by the National Commission, and if it is being done with the approval of your company, we desire again to protest against it. We understood after our demand for arbitration on the construction of the law as to the right of the National Commission to approve or disapprove of awards, that your company agreed to our contention, and that these awards were to be submitted to us before being published. If your understanding does not accord with ours, we again ask for arbitration. If it does accord with ours, we insist that the spirit of this agreement be adhered to.
Very respectfully,
JOHN M. ALLEN, _Acting President_.
Hon. D.R. FRANCIS, _President Louisiana Purchase Exposition Company, Administration Building_.
The following communication was received from President Francis, in reply to Mr. Allen's letter:
NOVEMBER 4, 1904.
DEAR SIR: I am in receipt of contents of your letter of this date concerning the advertisement of the Brown Shoe Company of their awards. It surprised me as much as it did you. I have instituted inquiries, and as soon as I ascertain by whose authority the announcement was put in the papers, I shall advise you. Of course you know that the exposition authorities had no knowledge of such an advertisement until it was given to the public. These ribbons are sold by a concessionaire, who was instructed weeks ago to sell none of them until the awards are officially announced.
Very truly, yours,
D.R. FRANCIS, _President_.
Hon. J.M. ALLEN, _Acting President National Commission, St. Louis, Mo_.
Shortly after the receipt of the foregoing letter from President Francis another letter bearing the same matter was delivered to the Commission, as follows:
NOVEMBER 4, 1904.
DEAR SIR: Since writing you a hurried note this morning, I have read your letter more carefully, and desire to state in addition that, referring to that portion of your letter relating to what you term an "agreement" between this company and the National Commission that no award can be made without being approved by the Commission, I beg to say I am not advised of such an agreement or understanding having been made. It was our understanding that, before official notification to exhibitors, a list of the awards made by the superior jury would be furnished by the secretary of said jury to the Commission and also to this company for their information and for the purpose of giving to the Commission and to this company an opportunity to call the attention of the jury (or the committee of five now acting as such) to any errors which the Commission or this company might discover, so that the same might be considered and corrected before giving official notification to the exhibitors. My understanding is that the committee of five are sending these lists as fast as its clerical force can make them out.
Yours, truly,
D.R. FRANCIS, _President_.
Hon. JOHN M. ALLEN, _Acting President National Commission_.
On November 5, Mr. Allen addressed another communication to President Francis, as follows:
NOVEMBER 5, 1904.
SIR: The National Commission is in receipt of your two letters of the 4th instant, in reply to one of same date sent to you. The first of the two letters recognizes our contention. Your second letter is one of the most surprising communications we have ever had from the local company. You seem to have mended your hold after your first letter of the 4th instant and for some reason repudiated what Mr. Miller, Mr. Betts, and the writer clearly understood to be an acquiescence in and an agreement to the contentions as to the rights of the National Commission contained in our letter to you of October 18. We inclose herewith a copy of said letter of the 18th instant for the purpose of refreshing your memory without the necessity of looking it up.
You will see that in that letter we defined the contention of the National Commission as to its right to approve or disapprove of the awards of the juries, and it concludes with a demand for arbitration unless this right is conceded by your company.
You will remember that instead of answering this letter you invited Mr. Betts and the writer into your office, where we sent for Mr. Miller, to discuss this question. You should remember that when you broached this subject the writer said to you, "We are not looking for work, nor are we looking for trouble, but we think Congress has imposed this duty of approving and disapproving these awards on us, and we will not shirk it." There was considerable discussion in your office that day, but no intimation from you or anyone else that there was still opposition to our contention. You went on to say that the lists that you were getting out were not official in any sense and would not be until we said so.
You will recall that this interview between us was at your suggestion and intended, we supposed, as an answer to our communication of the 18th of October, in which we had demanded arbitration on this very question. You say in your second letter of the 4th instant that "It was our understanding that before official notification to exhibitors a list of awards of the superior jury would be furnished by the secretary of said jury to the Commission and also to this company for their information and for the purpose of giving the Commission and this company an opportunity to call the attention of the jury, or the committee of five now acting as such, to any errors which the Commission or this company might discover, so that the same might be considered and corrected before giving official notification to the exhibitors." We can not understand where you could have gotten that understanding. I know that there was nothing said about the National Commission having a list submitted to it for any other purpose than the purpose of approval or disapproval. We never asked for a list for information, nor was anything ever said about referring anything back to the committee of five. What was ever said by the members of the National Commission then present to indicate to you that we withdrew or abandoned our demand for arbitration if the right of approval or disapproval was not accorded the National Commission? And if nothing was said by us evidencing such an abandonment of the demand, what answer have you ever made to such a demand? If your conversation with the members of the National Commission in your office that day was not intended to make the impression on them that you assented to sending the awards to the National Commission for approval or disapproval, it was as misleading a conversation as I ever listened to, and both the other gentlemen of the National Commission who were present agree with me in this view.
Right here let me suggest that in the future our written communications be answered in writing. We will then at least have a record in writing.
We reiterate that we are not looking for trouble or work, but as the representatives of the Federal Government we do not propose, if we can prevent it, to acquiesce in having the awards of this exposition promulgated without our approval when we think the law devolves this duty upon us. If your second letter of the 4th instant, in which you state your understanding, is the course your company proposes to take about this matter, we reiterate our demand for arbitration as contained in our letter of October 18. We suppose it will not be contended that we have lost the right of arbitration. We insist that there be no official promulgation of the action of the superior jury until such arbitration shall have been concluded.
Awaiting your early reply, Very respectfully,
JOHN M. ALLEN, _Acting President_.
Hon. D.R. FRANCIS, _President Louisiana Purchase Exposition Company, Administration Building_.
Under date of November 8, President Francis replied to the foregoing letter as follows:
NOVEMBER 8, 1904.
DEAR SIR: Your communication of Saturday, November 5, was not read by me until yesterday, Monday, November 7, and was submitted to the executive committee to-day. I can not say whether the tone and spirit of the letter, or the statement that you misunderstood the position of the Exposition Company, was the more surprising. I desire to state emphatically that at no time have I ever told you or said anything that would justify you in believing that the Exposition Company accepted the contention that the National Commission has the right to approve or disapprove the awards of the superior jury before they are final. It is true I did invite you into my office after the receipt of your letter of October 18, and also true that I stated to you I regretted the view taken by the National Commission of its prerogatives or its duty, but none the less true that I also said that, inasmuch as the rules governing the system of awards had been promulgated and acted upon after approval by the Exhibition Company and the National Commission, that neither the Exposition Company nor the National Commission has the right to review the awards or overturn them. I did state that no official announcement of awards would be made until the Exposition Company and the National Commission should be advised of what they were, to the end that, if there had been any irregularity in the awarding, any errors or omissions, or any fraud, the same might be corrected; but at no time have I ever said anything that would justify you or anyone else in the conclusion that either the Exposition Company or the National Commission had the right to review the action of the superior jury with the power to overturn the awards on the ground that they were not justly made on the merits of the exhibits. It was certainly my understanding when we parted after the conference in my office that the situation was clear to you, and I have a distinct recollection, as does Judge Ferriss, who was present at the conference, that Mr. Betts accepted the situation. You offered no definite objection, but did state in an interrogatory tone that you were not yet ready to relinquish the right of the National Commission to approve the awards. I have had no conversation with you since that date on the subject, but Judge Boyle tells me that in conversation with Mr. Betts on the subject, after the interview in my office, he told Mr. Betts that the superior jury was progressing with its work and had no objection to any member or members of the National Commission being present at its sessions; and further, that as fast as the work progressed the results would be informally communicated to the National Commission, so that if the Commission should find any errors it could call the committee's attention to same, so that corrections could be made before an official announcement of awards. His impression, from the conversation with Mr. Betts, was that this arrangement was entirely satisfactory to the Commission, and would obviate any further controversy as to the right of the Commission to approve or disapprove the awards before they became final.
I therefore not only deny any intention to mislead you or the National Commission concerning the position of the superior jury and the Exposition Company, but state emphatically that I have said nothing that justifies any belief or impression on the part of anyone that either the superior jury or the Exposition Company admitted the contention of the National Commission that it had the right to approve or disapprove awards finally made by the superior jury in pursuance of the rules and regulations adopted by this company and approved by the Commission.