Evening Star Newspaper, July 6, 1926, Page 1

WEATHER. (U. 8. Weather Bureau Forecast.) - Partly “cloudy with “local, thunder: showers this aft: ernoon or tonight; to- morrew generally fair; little change in temperature, hest, 86, at day; lowest, 'l!}.u-‘x 6 a.m. e today. | Sarlon, e S An o Closing N. Y. Stocks and Bonds, Page 26 ‘No. 30,016, Entered as second cla post office, Washington, D, C. matter FENNING TO RETIRE, |[ONNOR “BRIBE” PRESIDENT INDICATES; : COMMISSIONER SILENT Officials Speculating As to Whether He Will Resign Or Be Forced Out. . “NOTHING TO SAY,” OFFICIAL’S . * COMMENT ON COOLIDGE STAND City Head Declared After Exonera- tion With Criticism by Committee That He Would Not Quit. \ The President expects Fredetick A, Fenning to retire as Com- missioner of “the District of Columbia, it was plainly indicated at the White House today. President Coolidge, it was learned, has not received any fur- ther report from the Department of Justice concerning: the status of the Commissioner, but White House officials expect that some one will be appointed to take his place. Commissioner Fenning’s only comnient on the White House statement was: “I have nothing to say.” He added that he had heard nothing from the White House. This development brought to a climax today the long-drawn- out battle over the right, of Commissioner Fenning to”hold his position in_the District government while acting as committee , or guardian for mentally incompetent veterans of the World War. Follows Report of Committee. * It follows also the report by the House judiciary committee submitted just before the adjournment of Congress last week, in which the majority of. the committee found that Commissioner Fenning had violated no law in his guardumshlg practice, but e severely criticized and condemned the methods ctice. used in the Whether the White House statement today meant that Com- missioner Fenning will retire voluntarily or under. pressure was not made clear, bt there is no doubt” that President Coolidge expects him to leave his post and The. Department of Justice was asked by the President some time ago for a report upon the Fenning tase with a view to advising the Executive both as_to the right of the Commis- sloner tmf “the law and other lerations which the Department of Justics'might con- gfl« pertinent. - Evidently. President ‘oolidge has not as yet received the formal report from the Department of Justice. Had Planned to Stay. The statement made on the Fen- ning matter from the White House today, however, follows by three days Commissioner Fenning's ‘declaration ‘that he had “no intention of resign- Eommmunner Fenning at that time stated that he had been fighting “with his back to the wall” during ithe long attack on him during the flast session of Congress, and now that he had been exonerated on the charges of impeachment preferred @gainst him by Mr. Blanton he saw M0 occasion for him to step out. Status in Doubt. The quaestion that arose immediate- 1y, therefore, in the minds of those who have been following the Fenning case was whether the Commissioner ‘would resign voluntarily, as the state- ment from the White House today indicates the President expected him 1o do, or whether he would require formal action in the way of a request from the President that he take this ep. A m(;’ne of the legal questions involved In connection with this situation was that the judiciary committee has ruled a District Commissioner is not a Fed: eral officer and thefefore unimpeac! able by Congress. If this interpret tion of his status is correct, the ques. tion was whether he ‘occupies office under-the “tenure of office”. provision, which makes his removal, except for misconduct, impossible. The allega- tions of misconduct have evidently failed to hold up under the rigid in- vestigation by the judiclary commit. tee. ‘The only statement ever made co! cerning the Department of Justice r.rt in the case was when a Whi ouse spokesman declared that the President had asked the department to keep an eye on the legal aspects of the case and to’ inform him of any de- jopments of importance. wAt the same time, when the judi- clary committee made its report last week it stated that the report had n given to the Department of Justice immediately and that Attorney General Sargent taken it to the ‘White Hou ‘This wak denied at the White House at.that time, however, and again today. Nothing has ever been said at - the Department of ‘Justice to indicate the nature of the yeport or the progress made in draw- Ang it up. 13 Months ot Rough Road. Commissioner Fenning has been in ‘office a little more than 13 months, ‘but during that time he has had @ rough road to travel. Seldom has a District Commissioner been the target of so much. criticism as has marked the administration of Mr. Fenning. Mr. Fenning was sworn into office s Commissioner by Chifil.lumee o'cltfik one nw:fl and asked il& ‘would accept t! ce. £0! e and the next day mn!g:!d mhar with the President before his ap- pointment was definitely announced. Mr. Fenning's appointment and advent into office \was hailed with reloicing by many’ prominent indi- viduals and organizations throughout the District, largely on the grou that he was a native Wash! and had been interested in Jocal affairs throughout his life-long resi- @ence here. & ttitude toward the Dis- trict was volced in these words at the nd ingtonian to: appoint a successor. people of the country will be-proud. ‘When citizens visit' their Capital City it is my hope that they will find 1. kept. streef safe to pedestrians and to vehicles; parks in which the beauties of nature can ;.8 police and he! and every attention 3 ‘to the preservation of “the publis health and .the protection of prop- A short time after he taok over the affairs of a- Commissioner. Mr. Fenning presented to the Board -of Commissioners an .order for the re- moval of Inspector Albert J. Head- ley, chief of the Traffic Bureau, and the recommendation that ‘Capt. E. ‘W. Brown, cemmanding the first precinct, be appointed his successor. The -board acted . tnanimously and immediately a storm of disapproval arose from many quarters. The Dis trict Byilding was silent on the re; son’ for the change other than to say it was in the interest of good police administration. Subsequently the Col loner . revealed. before congressional investigations that In- spector Headley was ‘not the man for the detail” and that Traffic Di- rector M. O. Eldridge had complained there was a lack of co-operation be- tween the two offices. Appointment Was Confirmed. . Mr. Fenning then left the city for a vacation in Maine, and when he re- turned the Headley incident had be- come more or less dormant. As he 'was appointed to Capt. James F. Oyster, deceased, and his selection made during the recess, Mr. Fenning had to be confirmed by the Senate. n - While serving as Commissioner Mr. Fenning also continued his legal du- tles, for which he maintained an office in the Evans Building. His law. prac- tice consisted almost entirely of act- ing as committee or guardian for the person ‘and estate of mentally incom- petent individuals, of whom _more than 50 were veterans of the World ‘War. The total number of wards he possessed in. his closing days as Com- missioner was upward of 120. Although appointed by the Supreme Court to act in this fiduclary capacity, and although he was grant. the incomes of tribunal, this’ practice. became the subject of congressional criticlsm ~_and later brought condemnation from Jority repovt- of the House judiciary committee, which investigated im- peachment. charges brought against him by Representative Blanton, Dem. ocrat, Texas: . In this investigation he was exonerated of any legal gullt, al- though the committee emphasized the finding of Justice Frederick L. Sid- dons of the , Di Supreme “Court that a self-bonding practice was con- trary to law. In this, practice Mr. Fenning as agent for a bondis pany recelved 25 per cent premiums paid for his bond ‘wards’ estates. Since the opin Justice Siddons, Mr. Fenning taken steps to refund: to the wards these commissions. 2 Was Educated Here. Mr. Fenning was born October 23, TESTINONY GVEN TOILS,ATTORKEY Committee Decides to Put ‘Campaign Case in-Hands of Peyton. Gordon. ROCKEFELLERS HEAD DRY LEAGUE DONORS Names of Wet Dmnintfin Con- tributors Presented by As- sociation's Head. By the Assoclated Press. The Senate campaign funds com- mittee today decided to turn over to United States Attorney Peyton Gors don the record of the testimany in the case of F. X. O’Connor, South Philadelphia magistrate, for such ac- tion as he might deem advisable. O’Connor recently denied before the committee the testimony of Senator Pepper and three Philadelphia men that he had told them the Willlam 8. Vare organization had offered to pur- chase his support ‘in the . recent Pennsylvania senatorial primary. The decision of the committep was unanimous; Senator King, the acting chairman, announced after an ex- ecutive. session. United States Attorney Gordon was not in town today, but his office sug- gested that the information. on the O‘Connor case in all probability would first be sent to ‘the Department of Justice and then turned over to Mr., Gordon, this being the routine course in such matters. Morin to be Called. Senator King also sald that the sergeant-at-arms had been directed to require the presence before the com- mittee of Representative Morin of Pittsburgh, who was western cam- paign manager for Vare. Morin fail- ed to appear today after being sum- moned. “If necessary the sergeant-atarms will go to Representative Morin's At- lantic City home and subpoena him and bring him here,” said Senator Kij . e committee made public a lst of contributers . to Athcpmtwn Against. the Prohibition Amendment, but publication of a list of Anti-Saloon feller and his son, Joha D., Ir., have .l;o;;tir}guud $20,000 since-Jast January "The committee refused, by & vole.of three to two, to make public contribu- tions prior to that date. b % ‘The Rockefeller ‘contributiuns were T etsolt Was the next larpest conerin 6 nexi con utor, with a -total of $11,000. The North Woodward Avenue M z‘s. 8. Kresge, the 10-cent store mag- P 5 4 other contributions were: H. H, addréss, 00; Harry G. Ciacinnati, $1,500; the Lake Forest, II, $1,000; G Long. (American Bond), no address, 600; J. ‘H. Baker, Frederick, Md., 00; Charles M. Cox, Dedham, $500; Weymouth 'Co; tional Church, $1,000. I‘muc& M_cl(Balo. Muscatine, Towa, Charles 1. Huston, Pa., $500; E. C. Jameson, New , $500; Clarence H. Hi L St. Louis, $500; Hugh Strange, Menosha, Wis., $500; Paul Strange, Menosha, Wis., - $500. Wanted All Published. Senator Reed, Democrat, Missouri, the chairman, and Senator La Fol- lette, Republican, Wisconsin, were re- corded as voting to makeall the names public, ywith Senator” and ot | Goff, Republican, West Virginis, and B h.-Mubum. Oregon, other way, Mrs. Ba vai ot rs. rend van Gerbig * Canaan, Conn., was largest contributor to the headquar- ters of Assoclation Against hibition Amendment, with o of New York City New A FFECT OF STRK ON SUBHAY SHALL Trains -Run by New Men . Transport Millions With But Little Delay. By the Associated Press. ° NEW YORK, July 6.—~Trains still were rolling today in the subways of New York. Despite a wage 'strike of under- ground : motormen . and - switchmen who seceded from the union recos- hised: by ' the ' Interborough Rapid Transit Co., operators of New York's principal subways, the cil ‘were ‘transported to their offices with only small delay. President May Find Comfortin Top Coat At Summer Camp PAUL SMITHS, N. Y., July 6.— The = weather on Osgood President Coolidge’s home, is decidedly eool. Sunday night a heavy fog hung over the Adirondacks highways in the vicinity of the camp, and the air was so biting that overcoats were none too warm. Tourists who were camping out bullt fires. PRESIDENT LEAVES - CITY LATE TODAY : | RAISED $.51 ONWAY TOBROOKLYN DocK Convoy Expects to Arrive Tomorrow—Bodies Then Will-Be Sought. By the Associsted Press. ABOARD U. 8. 8. VESTAL, OFF FISHER'S 'ISLAND, N. Y., July 6 (by wireless).—All is going well with the .convoy that is escorting the sub- marine S-51 on the trip. from Bloek Island to Broeklyn navy. yard, where naval officers expect ‘to dock -her to- morrew ‘morning. Buoyed by the huge pontoons ‘that i Pl;m cgqqpleted After Final partly to rain and returning vaca- tionists,: but after that underground passengers were -taken care of ade- quately. Men Stick to Posts. The strikérs claimed recruits from Gmappmiomiteryes today-for their vacation:in the Adiron- 2565 X y Having met with "his cabinet for the last time prior to departure, Presi- dent Coolidge saw a few official call- ers, ‘greeted a large number -of ‘per- ban- | sons who called to shake hands' and stead of the usual 3-minute headway. The “local” service, where stops were made at every station, was faster ‘Weymouth, 2 i the task of the subway system. Big Stations Flooded. The stations _where the . most P ‘were at the Pro- | the (Continued on Page 3, Column 3.) | PASSING AUTO KILLS - There were 15 contributars on the | national list for ‘a total of '$16,700. 1874, and is 51 years of age. He re.| 3 ceived his education in the publie schools of the District & "(’ksfld uated in law at the National ver- 4 lm.putm the LL. D. degree - “The year he was given the degree of At the time of his attendance at the law school he was employed in the Pension and in 1902 (Continued on.Page 2, Column 2,) - M. 2o that % is expectea th was ready to leave for the delightful 10-acre’ reservation known as White Pines, the picturesque but thoroughly equipped camp on Lake Osgood, in New York State. Office Staff Going Along. With the President and Mrs. Cool- idge, the personnel of the party was expected to include part of his execu- ve office staff and household group. usual number of newspaper men and photographers were also making ready to go on the special train, - . Some surrounds the exact said to abound. game are ul , however, that any it Brooklyn, but beth seon rine . was i RAISED SUCCESSFULLY, CN——— Buoyancy ‘of Pontoons Lifted 851 to -Surface. 2 NEW_YORK, July ¢ (#).—Bearing the bodles of some of its crew, the United States submarine 8-51 is on its final journey today. The 'y | operating “From Press to Home Within the Hour” The Star’s carrier system covers every city block and the regular edi- tion is delivered to Washington homes as fast as the papers are printed. P Means Associated Press. Believed to Have Been Carried Off by Condor By the Associated Press. MENDOZA, Argentina, July 6.~A condor, ene of the huge birds of prey common to this region, Is h‘oved to have been ible for the death '::‘; old boy; whose Fe found in-{he Toothills near Bones of Baby Found, l month mtl'y was estab- lished b‘y”‘nmllnu of clothing. ANDREWS 10 STICK PRESIDENT LEARNS Mellon Tells Executive Dry . Administrator Will Finish Reorganization, By the Associated Press. Assistant Secretary Andrews, chief of the prohibition enforcement service, promised ‘the administration today he ‘would stick to his post until he has finished reorganization of the dry forces. After two conferences today with Secretary Mellon Gen. Andrews an- nounced he would not resign, as he had thought of doing, because of the failure of Congress to pass the admin- istration prohibition bills. Becretary Mellon told President Coolidge at the cabinet meeting to- day that he expected Gen. Andrews would remain in his present office. It was added that the President felt sure, on the basis of the inférmation given him by Mr. Mellon, thatthe As- sistant Secretary would not resign. < In the meantime Gen. Andrews, who left today on his official mission o London, indicated that he was not s0_discouraged over the outlook as he had béen last week, when he was seri- ously considering giving up his job. Two Positions Filled. Prior to his departure, the dry chief announced two important appoint- ments in the service, Vincent de P. Simonton of Washington being named Gen, Andrews said today, conference with Secretary Mellon, that it ‘seems reasonable to believe that at its next session Congress will be able to complete its consideration of iy peseio . S Temasury’ Depart *Most of these proposals have been tavorably reported by their respective committees,” he added, “and ‘given place on the calendar. Meantime, our ad interim study and experience may ‘well result in improving the proposed measures before . their final enact- ment.” He wili sall from New York tomor- rowat the head of a mission to confer with British cflicials on closer co-oper- ation in the anti-smuggling treaty. Other Members of Party. Other members of the mission in- clude A. W. Henderson of the De- B&rtmm of Justice; Rear Admiral illard, commandant of the Coast Guard, and R. W. Vallance of the State Department. Gen. Andre does not expect to return to this cou try untll earl¥ in August and in the meantime may visit some of the Euro- n capitals in the same connection, m in an unofficial capacity. * Mr. Simonton, succeeding Mr. Green, goes to a position created a year ago last April, when Gen. An- drews took over command of forces L in enforeing prohibition. ‘The position was designed to develop . | cases against the large operators of 6 iron coffin is torn off no one knows. It is hoped that the - | bodies"of 25 of the. crew will be found. = 'When the submarine went to the botton of the Atlantic Ocean, off Block Island last September after a collision with the steamer City of Rome . there were 33 men aboard. Divers recovered some of the hodies. Officers - who directed the ‘salvage work believe others will be found, but whether all they cannot say. ~+Two submarines: the base at New London, Conn., which stood by during the salvage operations, ic- companied-the S-51 for a short dis- 4 ‘when the ‘mr‘t‘od for The convoy of the two mmwmm and four tugs was regarded nm“ {then the water in gbwn out. by .compressed uoyancy. of the toons n o '-W«umu‘&f:‘i rum rings and conspiracies through- out the country. With a force of picked men the chief prohibition i vestigator was operating under Ge Andrews without to any. dis- trict lines or State boundaries. Mr. Simonton, who is 43 years of age, is a gradumte of Georgetown Uni- versity Law School in 1901 and a memberof the District bar. He has been in the Government service since | ! 1908, Prior to coming to the Treas- nt in 1920, Mr. Simonton | of public ser: ‘butlding (Continued on Page 2, Column TWO CENTS. TAXRATEOFS180 15 FIXED TO RAISE SUN OF §18.752.000 U. S. Contribution and Other Levies to Bring $15,700,000 of Total Budget. TAXABLE REAL ESTATE VALUED AT $940,000,000 Assessment of Tangible Personal Property at $102,000,000 Puts Total Above Billion. ' A tax of $1.80 on taxable real es- tate and tangible personal property on each $100 of assessed valuation was fixéed by the District Commis- sloners today as the rate for the cur- rent fiscal year, upon the recommen- dation of Auditor Daniel J. Donovan. This represents an increase of 10 cents over the levy for the fiscal year Just closed. The new schedule, according to the auditor’s calculations, will yleld an estimated revenue of $18,752,000, as against the required sum of $18,- 645,277.25, The necessity of a higher schedule, it was pointed out, is due to the fact that the estimated charge against the revenues of the Federal and District governments for the current fiscal year amounts to $34,345,277.25, and that only $15,700,000 of this amount will be produced through the Federal ‘;poo"::'m.. contribution of $9,000,- ) the tax on intangible - sonal property, the tax on plflrllc ::: ice corporatio; banks, building asso- d miscellaneous as- sessments. Fiscal Report Made. Auditor - Donovan's _recommenda- tions for a higher tax rate formed a portion of a comprehensive 18-page report on the District’s financial con- dition. The report described the oper- ation of the tax rate of $1.70 in the last fiscal year, and gave a compara- tive analysis of the appropriation needs nded th recomme y the depart- ment heads for the 1927.1928° fiscal year, as well as lo tax rates for budget totals during that period. The section devoted to the, Current $1.80 tax schedule follows: % , the total amount app: - ated by the District a act for which. ‘to the 294,19, oline tax 100, and {tems | plus ‘revenue o sgo the e amounting to o A ), leayl 0 to be paid from the vei amount to of the United States and the of Columbia $30,241,280. amount must be added $600,000, rep- Mnds{ the fifth of the cash fund of $3,000,000 to' be raised by July 1, 1927; the estimated expenditure for refunding h,rmm\:lly paid taxes, $75,000; theé estimated expenditure for e:l‘:lf‘v.‘:fi‘ I’-‘n 't"”tth-o in aecord‘ ance plan for the permanen system of Righways, $200,000; - theé estimated exPenditure . from . District revenues for the payment sions to Police and ts, $450.- 000, and estimated supplemental deficiency appropriations in the fiscal year 1927, including additional ap- propriations school ' bufldings under the five-year bullding plan, $1,000,000. Deficiencies Are Added. “There is also added dgainst the tax rate for propriations carried by appropriation act 1926, chargeable to general of the District. amounting to $1,150,- 340.38, and similar appropriations car- ried in ‘the deflelency act July 3, 1926, amounting to $628,656.87. to the sur- District, as a charge 1927 the ap- - 30, 1927, $34,345,277.25. 3 . “The ectf&l(nd’nw:“ ’tlo; the fis- cal year ending June 30, , are as follows: Tax on intangible personal $2,150,000; tax on earnings associations, etc., $2.080,000; eh d&n: m“m licenses, U . fees, fines, eto. $2,500,000; contribu- tion by the United States, $9.000,000. ‘This makes a total of $15,700,000 leaves $18,645,277.25 to be the application of a tax rate i " | assessment of real estate and tangible BORAH TO STUMP U, 8. |5en” IN ANTI-GOURT FIGHT|_ sziels i