206 DOCUMENTARY HISTORY OF THE FLORIDA CANAL

 Secretary loxzs. That is right. Just as I said in reply to a pre-
 vious question, those matters did not concern us at all.
 Senator VAINDKzw~N. Then you were fundamentally concerned,
 were you not, in the economic justification for proceeding with this
 project under your P. W. A. responsibility?
 Secretary IcxS. Yes; because we were to be repaid any loan that
 we might make out of tolls. So naturally we had to go into that
 question.
 Senator VANDEN mo. And it was on the basis of your general
 survey of these factors that you declined to reopen it, letting stand
 your disapproval of January 29,1935.
 Secretary Icxzs. That is right.
 Senator VmANDEN O. That completes the record of that portion
 of the procedure, Mr. Chairman. I want to ask just one thing
 further.
 Who is Mr. Harry Slattery I
 Secretary Icxzs. My personal assistant.
 Senator VANDENBEaG. Did Mr. Harry Slattery make a report to
 you respecting the geological involvements of this undertaking?
 Mrs. GaHaxM. He may have transmitted one, made initially by
 the Geological Survey.
 Senator VANDEmNBi. This is a letter from Slattery to Peterson.
 Mrs. GRAHAM. It was prepared by Dr. Mendenhall for Mr. Slat-
 teecretary Icxs Congressman Peterson had made an inquiry,
 and in cases of that kind I always referred it to an appropriate
 department. In that instance it went to the Geological Survey. That
 letter was drafted in the Geological Survey and signed by Mr.
 Slattery.
 Senator VANDmNBaRG. And the Geological Survey is in your
 Department ?
 Secretary Icxs. Yes. Those facts are not within the knowledge
 of Mr. Slattery.
 Senator VArNDNBaRO. I want to read one sentence from Mr. Slat-
 tery's letter for the record.
 Senator FLzromm. Of course, I am not going to make objection,
 Mr. Chairman. I am perfectly willing everything should go in.
 But just to preserve the record it is not competent testimony to put
 in the statement of one man what another man said. If you have
 that report, that report is the best evidence, and not what he says
 rewarding it, or all those extracts from that report.
 The CH AN. Hasn't Mr. Ickes already said that this letter was
formulated by the Geological group
 Senator FLuzrHER. No; by Mr. Slattery from the reports of the
Geological Survey.
 Secretary Icxzs. No; it was written in the Geological Survey for
Mr. Slattery's signature-to sign.
 Senator VANDENmERO. And the paragraph I am about to quote is
from the report of the Geological Survey quoted by Mr. Slattery.
 Senator FLznrta. What report and what date, do you know
Of course, that report is the best evidence, there is no doubt about
that. A statement of one man what a report contains is not the best
evidence. The best evidence is the report.