Letter from President Theodore Roosevelt to Secretary of the Interior E. A. Hitchcock

WHITE HOUSE, WASHINGTON. Oyster Bay, N. Y., August 29, 1903. My dear Mr. Secretary: I return herewith the papers in reference to the investigation into the affairs of the Moqui and Navajo Indian Reservations. I have looked through some of the evidence. I agree entirely with you that on the showing made the Sequoya League should make full retraction of their charges, and Mr. Lummis should do the same. It should be pointed out to both of them that it is impossible to ask them to render assistance save on condition that they show themselves sincerely desirous of getting at the facts. If they are willing in advance to make reckless charges onon and are determined upon insisting their truthfulness, no atter ulnah the widend shows, then their usefulness in co-operationg with the Department is at an end. Mrs. Bates' testimony shows the preposterous unfitness of certain types of sensational though well meaning people for the work of investigation. The conduct of Moody was of course in the highest degree discreditable. If I were you I should be careful, in whatever was made public about the matter, to emphasize the fact of Moody's assent to Jenkins' findings in the first place, and his subsequent retraction when he got home, quoting three or four sentences from his letter in which he admits this absolute 4 change of mind on his part when not a new fact had been produced, but had simply thought over the testimony upon which he had made his first finding. I would thorofore point out that of course such conduct rendered his judg- ment absolutely worthless and called for his prompt repudiation by all those connected with him.