Evening Star Newspaper, September 23, 1929, Page 2

2 -¥ww MKELLAR FAVORS ABROGATING PACT Battleships Limitation Only] Limits U. S., Declares Senator on Floor. By the Associated Press. | Senator McKellar, Democrat, Ten- nessee, said in the Senate today the | United States should abrogate the Washington armament treaty placing & | limit on battleships when it expires in : 1936 and “for the present make no other agreement.” 8o far as the present cruiser limita- tion negotiations are concerned, the Senator said, “its really material fea- | ture” is to limit the United States so that this country will be unable to build & Navy as great as that of Great Britain. “Sound naval policy for this coun- try,” he added, “is to build a Navy as large as our needs call for—unfettered and unhampered by any agreement.” The Senator said he would vote to ratify a naval tréaty, however, if the | agreement provided for an absolute parity between the United States and Great Britain. Draft as Supplemental. Acceptance by the principal naval| powers of the American proposals (orj an extension of the 10 years' holiday in the construction of capital ships to 15 years would make necessary the negotiation of a supplemental draft to | the first naval limitation treaty signed here eight years ago. The expectation here is- that the | Amcrican proposition will be agreed m;r by Great Britian, Japan. France and Italy at the projected limitation con- ference in London next January, with a saving of millions to each nation be- | tween 1931 and 1936, since many of the ; present ships would be replaced during | that time. Whatever agreement is reached is re- garded as more than likely to contain a provision under which Great Britian and the United States would reduce their capital ship fleets to 15 craft, as provided for in the 1921 pact. ‘Whether the retirement of existing craft would be on the schedule laid down in the original treaty is a matter for determi- nation by the conference. Britain Would Scrap Five. Under the Washington agreement, Great Britain would retire five of its present 20 capital ships, while the United States would place three out of commission by 1936, the date of the expiration of the agreement. This would bring each fleet_ down to the ulti- mate treaty total of 15 for each nation. { The three ships now constituting the | backbone of the scouting fleet, which is based on the Atlantic, probably would be the craft this Nation would place out of commission They are the Utah, which carried President Hoover on the last lap of his good will tour to Latin America: the Florida and the Wyoming. The Utah and Florida will reach the age limit of 20 vears in 1931 and the Wyoming in 1932. ‘Should | these three battleships be decommissioned at that time, millions in maintenance cost would be saved to the Goverrment and the crews would be available for manning some of the new 10,000-ton cruisers as they are completed and take their places with the battle. fleet. Remaining Craft Classified. With these ships retired. the United States would have left only 1 12-inch | gun warcraft, 11 mounting 14-inch guns | { | | ! shipbuilding industry «nd adequate sea BAD MOVE, W tion, I am devoting considerable extra time and endeavor to the merchant marine program as laid down and ap- proved by the members of your group. Considering the extra work assigned me and the expense involved, I believe a part of my bonus should be paid me March 5, 1928, Also I feel that the time has arrived for me to come out in the open, as suggested by Mr. Palen and Mr. Wilder, in the inierests of all who are seriously interested in power. Very truly yours, (8igned) W. B. SHEARER. At arother point in the hearing Mr. Wakeman safd: “This man,” referring to Shearer, “was hired to do certain work. When his reports showed something else they were dluumnf. L should have done something, but Ididn’t. I thought maybe we would get something when he came back. I hated to think I had been quite so much of a flop in his em- ployment.” The committee concluded its hearing of Mr. Wakeman at noon. Homer L./ Perguson, president and general man- | ager of the Newport News Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Corporation, was siated to appear before the committee when it resumed its sitting at 2 o'clock. Wakeman Tells of His Work, Mr. Wakeman told the committee he was vice president of the Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corporation and wi in charge of the East Coast pl at Quincy, Boston, and at Baltimore. He said that he had full charge of all the | activities relating to these plants and of sales offices in Boston and Baltimore He was appointed vice president No- vemt'r 1, 1926. He said that he had power to make contracts of any kind and does make them. Senator Shortridge, chairman of the committee, in a series of questions, | brought out the fact that Mr. Wake- | man knew of the coming Geneva Con- | ference on Limitation of Naval Arma- | ment. “Did you talk to your associates about | the conference?” asked Senator Short- | recall that he hadediscussed it with any ! one of his people or with his counsel. Geneva Question Discussed. The witness told the committee that | he had had a meeting with Mr. Bardo. | president of the New York Shipbuilding | Corporatign; Mr. Palen, vice president | of the Newport News Shipbuilding & | Drydock Corporation, and Mr. Hunter, | counsel for the shipbuilding companies | on the East and West Coasts in New | held in Hunter's office and at that| meeting discussed the question of send- | ing William B. Shearer to the Geneva conference for the purpose of reporting | the events that happened there. | “Was Mr. Shearer there?” asked Sen- | or Shortridge. | “Yes, but outside in another office,” answered the witness. | “Who initiated this meeting?" asked Senator Shortridge. | “I think Mr. Hunter called the meet- ing.” was the reply. “’As to who initiated it T am not clea I think it was discussed informally & then a letter was sent out by Mr. Hun- lelr{ua Mr. Bardo, Mr. Palen and my- | self.” . | The letter written by Mr. Hunter was | submitted. It stated that Mr. Palen had arranged for Mr. Wakeman to at- tend a meeting on Magch 17, 1927, and at | this conference.” | Mr. Wakeman testified that he had | met Shearer in his office in New York | prior to this March, 1927, meeting. He said that his first meeting with Shearer s the last of November, 1926. He said that Mr. Palen had suggested that | he see Shearer. Impressed With Shearer. “Shearer wanted to go to Washington | to help out in connection with mer- chant marine affairs then being con: | and 3 equipped with 16-inch rifies, the said Mr. Wakeman. “I largest naval weapon in the world today. | sidered here,” ! " it ith Shearer's knowl- | THE EVENING STAR. 'WASHINGTON, D. C. MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 23, 1929.° DECISION TO EMPLOY SHEARER AKEMAN ADMITS Some- ile the latter was at Geneva. wh! e e "‘.-1 Y time within the last two weel Wakeman said other repdits made by Shearer_had been found in the New York office. He submitted coples of all these rerom to the committee. Under questioning by Senator Shortridge the witness testified that his company had contracts to bulld ships for the Gov-| ernment in March, 1937, but had no contracts to_build for other powers at that time. He sald that he had taken an interest in the outcome of the con- ference and added: “I hoped the powers would make an agreement which would preclude this try's ever being at war again. 1 not personally interested in the en- largement or reduction of our naval forces. , That was a matter to be taken care of by our Government.” | The witness said that in a business | haps he could get something worth- way he thought the company was in- terested in the outcome of the confer- ence. ’ Asks About Shearer's Duties. Senator Shortridge asked if it were part of Shearer's duties to assist in bringing about an agreement at the Geneva conference? No,” sald the witness, “Or was it Shearer'’s duty to break up. the conference?” asked Senator !:ormdle. ~ “Absolutely mot—such a thing was never discussed,” sald Mr. Wakeman. ““Was he to play the part of spy ung get information he was not entitled to?" ked the chairman. ‘The witness sald no. Senator Shortridge wanted to know .hen what Shearer was expected to get that the newspaper reporters could not get_at the conference. i “He impressed me with his ability, said Mr. Wakeman, “to report from the conference a different int of view than would be given by the papers. “Did he show you that he represented any newspapers?” Sepator Shortridge asked. “He made no such claim,” sald the witness, | “How did he put it over on you?"| asked the Senator. And then some | laughter in the committee room. i “I don't know,” replied Mr. Wake- man, somewhat ruefully. “Supersalesmanship, 1 expect” "I don't like to make that acknowledge- ment that he put it over on us, but he certainly did.” “pid you think that $25000 was a fair and reasonable sum to pay Shearer for this work,” asked Senator Short- ridge. '841 that time, yes,” said the witness. T must have done so or I would not have agreed to it." Did it occur to you that there were newspaper men who might have been you?" asked Senator Shortridge. “No.’ Describes Meeting With Shearer. ‘Wakeman described to the committee his meeting with Shearer in the New | York offices of the Bethlehem company after the Geneva conference. He said that, acting on the suggestion of the other parties interested in hiring Shearer, he decided he had better see him and have a talk. “Shearer was anxious to go to Wash- ington and represent us there” the witness stated. “I told him I wouldn't agree to that.” “Why did you tell him that?” the chairman asked. “Because 1 had read some of the re- ports sent back by him and written to him in the interview and I reached the conclusion he was not the type | that it was “important' that you attend | of man we should have representing us in Washington. We didn’t need any rep- resentative in WashMmgton. He talked with me for 10 or 15 minutes and made some rather wild statements. I got rather fed up on the whole thing and told him no. I never saw him after that.” Wakeman said that after this inter- view with Shearer he told h's associates of the two other shipbulding ('omx:?flfl that so far as he was concerned’ he was through with Shearer. The New York interview with Shearer took place | 1ate in October of 1927. Senator Robinson took up the ques- | cut short by Senator Robinson, who | | P | him when he came back. about him.” ' and doesn't wh; didn’t “Jook him up.” “Idf it a .custom of your company to empiby ‘some ane for” impartant, wer without knowing who he is?” Robin- son "demanded. ‘ Wakeman = sald, with flu: face, “It is not our custom and it is'not my custom as a rule. I don't know why I overlooked it in_this case. I guess I was just jazzed off my feet. I don't like to make the acknowledge- ment, but that is the fact. Twelve Reports Receive " Referring to the 12 reports received by Wakeman's company from Shearer during the Geneva conference, Senator Robinson asked how, many of them Wakeman had read. The latter de- clared he had seen only two or three of them and explained that some of them aparently had gone to the New York office instead of to his own of- fice at Quincy, Mass. He said he thought he had discussed some of these reports “with some one" when he found out they were “not valuable.” He was of the opinfon at the time tha‘ pgr- know now while from Shearer orally later. He sald that he had learned of the full extent of Shearer’s reports only within the last few weeks when they were found in the New York files. Senator Robinson read the captio: of & number of the reports, including the last, which was headed, “Was the Geneva Conference a Failure?” e Calling attention of the witness to the titles of the reports, Senator Robin- son pointed out that the whole subject matter seemed to relate to the mer- chant marine or naval armament. “Do not these rts contain violent dnd aggiessive alleged arguments against limitation of armaments by the govern- ments?" asked the Senator. The witness' reply was evasive. He explained he hadn't read all of them, bul said that from those he has seen he agreed with the characterization ot them as “bunk.” ‘Was not the. principal, apparently the only subject matter of these re- ports the policies of the Geneva con- ference, the probability of its failure! and the alleged foolishness and absurd- | ity the conference Weing held?” asked Robinson. ‘Wakeman replied, “Yes, to explain his_respon: and started but he was | announced he didn't wish to enter into | y argument. “Disgusted With Reports.” “If the purpose of sending Shearer | to Geneva was to report and mot in-| fluence the proceedings,” persisted Rob- | inson, “why didn't some one call a halt on the gentleman's activities since he | was violating your instructions and| policy?™” ' . | “I don't think there is anything to prove he was doing what he indicated in the report,” Wakeman said. “Frankly | 1 was disgusted with the reports.” “Then why.” demanded the Arkansas York. He said that the meeting was employed for much less to report to| Senator, “if you were disgusted, as you say you were, why didn’t you let him ' know? He was your man.” i “Well, T hoped he would give us | something better before the thing was | | over.” “And you were willing to let him go| on with™ his disapproved activities in ( the hope that you might get something | | else later? I can't understand it. And | | afterwards you, or your legal repre- | sentative, wrote a letter to him ap- | roving of his services!” “This man was hired to do certain | | work,” Wakeman replied. “When the | reports came in they showed something | else. They were disgusting to me. We i should have—TI should have done some- thing about it, but I didn't. I thought maybe we would get something from | Frankly, 1| had sent him there, and 1 hated 1o think my judgment had been so much | ot a flop” Falled to Inform Grace. ‘Wakeman told the committee he did | not inform President Grace about | Shearer's employment or subsequent activities because he “saw no reason to.” He sald he was after a “certain plece {of information,” and if he got it. he | would be in a position to tell the com- pany_either that it should get out of the shipbuilding business or go ahead. “You don't keep things secret from Mr. Grace?” Senator Robinson asked. !Only 65 of 435 Members Are Left to right: Florence Trumbull, Rev. Kenneth Welles, chosen to perform the marriage, and John Coolidge. | The Congregational Church at Plainville, ‘| PRINCIPALS IN COOLIDGE—TRUMBULL WEDDING TODAY l = h Conn., scene of the ceremony. Lower: SINCLAIR AND DAY FLAY “INJUSTIGE" Former Charges Executive Clemency Denied Because of Prejudice. Harry F. Sinclair, the oil magnate, and Henry Mason Day, his business as- sociate, both resigned to serve out their terms as prisoners in the District Jail, broke their silence yesterday to reassert their opinion that their imprisonment is unjust. In a statement commenting on the announcement, that President Hoover | would not intervene in his case, Sinclatr declared he applied for executive clem- ency not because of ill health or “busi- j ness interests,” but because he had been “imprisoned for doing something that had not theretofore been prohibited by statute or rule of court.” “Observation of aejury only became contempt of court when I engaged in it,” he declared. “I am not discouraged.” he commented, “because I am confident of final vindication.” His health, he added, “Is as good as could be expected under the circumstances.” In a separate statement, Day said the | basis for his petition for clemency was that “what I did had never been con- strued to be contempt of court. I i considered,” he said, “that my further incarceration was not necessary to make a mnew rule—first established in my case—more binding. and that my past life was proof that I was a decent and | useful citizen who had at every oppor- | tunity served his country well.” } Filed With Affidavits. | Sinclair and Day disclosed that along ! with their applications for clemency | had been filed affidavits of “numerous former employes of the intelligence service of the United States, including !'a former chief of that service,” showing | “conclusively that the practice of jury surveillance was a usual practice by | the United States district attorneys | throughout the country, with the ap- Left to right: Stephan Brown, best man; Philip Morehou se, John Hills and Richard Brown, ushers. HOUSE HOLDS NINE MINUTES SESSION | | Present, Simmons Presid- 1 ing for Longworth. ‘ With 65 of the 435 members of the House present the House was in ses- sion for 9 minutes today and adjourned | until Wednesday, thus inaugurating the | empty formality of meeting and ad- journing twice a week for almost .a month. Only a few of the leaders of the House were present, nor will they be until A Poem By Mrs. Grace Coolidge By the Assoclated Press. NEW YORK, September 23.—The following poem by Mrs. Grace Coolidge. | inspired by the fifth anniversary of the death of her son, Calvin Coolidge, jr., appears in the current issue of Good Housekeeping: You, my son, Have shown me God. Your kiss upon my cheek Has made me feel the gentle touch Of him who leads us on. The memory of your young; Reveals His face, smile, when And when you went before, You left the gates of Heaven ajar That T might glimpse, Approaching from afar, | October 14. -In the absence of Speake: | The glories of His grace. 'WASHINGTON BLDG. | SALE IS CONFIRMED 'Justice Gordon Overrules Objec- tions—Trustees Asked for $4,100,000 Bond. Justice Peyton Gordon today over- 1uled objections to the confirmation of the recent sale of the Washington Building at Fifteenth and G streets for 4.005,000 and directed the trustees to execute a deed to Hooper, Kimball & Williams, Inc., 35 Congress street, Bos- | ton, whose representative had bid in the property at auction sale. The trus- tees, Harold E. Doyle and Andrew B. Duvall, éxplained §o the court that the | terms of the sale required the paymen! | As mellowing years come on apace. of one-third of the purchase price i | cash and the balance to be | two notes of similar amount | in one and two years. Justice Gordon directed the trustees to give & bond of $6100,000 for the faithful performance of their duties. red by ayable proval of the Attorney General and the 'knnwledge of the judges. “I purpose.” said Sinclair in his state- | ment, “to secure the publication of these affidavits.” “The rules in reference to applica- tions for executive clemency require | that the application be submitted to the President when accompanied by the recommendation for clemency by the judge who heard the case and the dis- trict attorney who prosecuted it.” Sin- clair said. “As the application did go | to the President, it is evident that the recommendations from some of the of- ficials of the court wherein the alleged contempt was committed were favor- able. The Attorney General has seen fit to make public his recommendations. Welcomes Full Publicity. “In all fairness,” Sinclair asked. “why should not all the recommendations and reports be made public? I should welcome the publication of the entire record.” Statements made by Attorney Gen- eral Mitchell in his report to the Pres- ident against clemency drew a vigorous retort from Sinclair. Reiterating his ; denial of any sinister or corrupt motive | in employing detectives to shadow the | Fall-Sinclair conspiracy trial, the 1Dll magnate declared that “in effect the statement of the Attorney General can | be summed up to mean that I should { remain in jail because I was acquitted | of an alleged offense for which he feels I should bave been convicted.” Sinclair and Day expressed gratitude to “countless friends” who interested | themselves in their applications for |clemency. “I am certain,” said Sin- | clair, “that they will join with me :n the feeling I have that vindication will come with time and a realization of {all the facts. Malice, prejudice and | vindictiveness apparently must be al- {lowed to exhaust themseives before truth can secure an impartial hearing.” | The bond is said ‘to be the largest ever given by court trustees in this district.| Day expressed the same sentiment. The objectors to the confirmation of | The faith of his friends “and my own the sale noted objection to the order consciousness or innocence of wrong- After Great Britain retired its five | was impressed wi | ships, its battle fleet would comprise ! edge and thought he had ability to do | tioning and brought out that Wakeman 13 craft mounting 15-inch rifies and | what he had to do—write articles for had been in the shipbuilding busindys “You didn't tell him that the reports were bunk?” “1 never informed him about it at Longworth, Representative Simmons of | Hold. son, my hand. Nebraska presided. In the absence of | Guide me along the path, That. coming. two. the great Rodney and Nelson, dresses. He was | Since 1899, first with the Newport News carrying 9 16-inch guns each. In the 15 would be several battle cruisers, ships of high speed, but light armor protecticn. None of the British ships reaches the 20 years' age limit until 1934. Then five would be in that class, the battle cruiser Tiger and the battleships Ben- bow, Iron Duke, Marlborough and Em- press of India. would be selected for decommissionin, as she carries 13.5-inch guns and h retirement along with the four battle- ships named would leave the smallest main gun in the British navy a 15-inch rifle. MESSENGER’S REPORT OF LOSS QUESTIONED Boy's Story in $512,000 Securities Theft Declared “Tissue of Lies By the Associated Press. NEW YORK, September 23.--Milton Alter, youthful broker's messenger, who has confessed to participating in the theft of $512,000 worth of securities from his employers, appeared in the police line-up today for further ques- tioning by detectives. FEdward P. Mulrooney, deputy chief inspector, said Alter has given de- tectives nothing but “blind leads” con- cerning the theft and he believes the youth's stories were a “tissuc of les” to give his confederates, if he had any, time to escape. Alter, sent to the bank last Friday to get the half-million dollars’ worth of securities, disappeared. Several hours later he called his office and said he had been kidnaped and robbed. Later the messenger, who is 17 and had been employed by the brokers, R. V. Hiscoe & Co., for less than a month, told police he had given the securities to a man, who was to pay $50,000 to his father. Police believe Alter is a graduate of & crime school, directed by some older criminal, who trains roungsters in nefarious ways and then sends them down into Wall Street to put their ac- quired knowledge into effect. FREIGHTER AFIRE AT SEA, SHIP SPEEDS TO RESCUE Steamer Receives Call for Help From Boat 390 Miles Away in Indian Ocean. By the Associated Press, LONDON, September 23.—A fire aboard the British freighter Siltonhall. in the Southern Indian Ocean, has been reported by the steamship Anthea, which radioed that she was proceeding at full steam to the rescue. The Perth Radlo Station received a message from Capt. Tulloch of the An- thea, dated September 21, reading as follows: “Present position of ship, 37.32 south, 81.58 east, driving all speed. Every e fort being made to rescue those oni board the Siltonhall, which is on fire 7 miles southeast from us.” (The Siltonhall is 4,495 tons. She left Immingham on July 27 and Port Nata! on September 5 for Adelaide.) 4 —. ssenger service is be- Speed t o on the River Foyle, Ire- ng inauguraf Jand ‘The Tiger probably | | the press and deliver ad: ! anxious to do this work for us.” | “For compensation?” asked Senator | | Shortridge. “Yes." The witness said that his next meet- 1ing in this connection was in Decem- ‘ber, 1926, in Hunter's office, with | Bardo, Palen, Hunter and himself pres- | ient. It was agreed at that time, he said, to employ Shearer to go to Washington to supplement the work of the Shipping Board looking to the development of | the_merchant marine. | “We three agreed to pay $2,500 euh‘ | —$7,500 in all for this work,” said Mr. | Wakeman. He sald that he drew the cash and sent iteto Hunter to pay| Shearer and he presumed the other| *complmes did likewise. | Mr. Wakeman’s next meeting with | | Shearer was on March 17, 1927. On| ! that date a contract was entered into | | with Shearer to attend the Geneva conference. | “Just what was that cogtract?” asked | ' Senator Shortridge. Was it in writ- | | ing? | ‘No.” “Why not?” | “The question did not come up,” said | | Mr. Wakem: ““You are a business man," said Sen- | | ator Shortridge. “Is it your practice to enter into contracts for the payment of f services { money and the performance | without a written contract Agreement Was Oral. “Not in general, no,” said Mr. Wake- I man. “But you do enter into contracts | without having them written sometimes. It is a matter of good faith.” “This was an oral agreement,” said | Senator Shortridge. es." ! “You made some memorandum or no- tatios t?” n of i “Didn’'t you ever think it would be prudent to do s0?” asked Senator Shortridge. 7 “No.” Mr. Wakeman again stated the sub- {ject of the contract with Shearer | saying that Shearer would go to Geneva {and report back to the group employ- {ing him through Hunter his observa- tions of the conference. Mr. Wakeman sald they got the cash to pay Hunter at that time from the assistant.treas- urer in the New York office, W. J. Brown. and 4hat when he returned to Quincy he sent Brown a chéck to cover the payment. He said the money was turned over to Hunter to pay Shearer because it seemed more convenient to have Hunter act as agent. Three other checks were drawn by Wakeman to pay Shearer, He said that there wis no memorandum to show who was ever to get the money in reply to questions by Senator Shortridge. “Why was that so?” asked Senator Shortridge. Personal Transaction. “It was a personal transaction of my own on behalf of my company.” said the witness. “I gave it no thought at the time.” The witness insisted that all Shearer was to do was to go to Geneva and report back his observa- tions. 5 “For which you agreed to pay $25,000,” said Senator Shortridge. “Our share was one-third,” said the witness. “Shearer was to look on and write you some letters,” said Senator Short- ridge. “Right.” “Did this contract. with Shearer have any time limit?” asked Senator Short- | idge. My understanding was that Shearer was to go to Geneva and stay until the end of the conference,” said the witness. “This money was to pay his expenses and his compensation. No time limit was set.” Mr. Wakeman said he did not see Sirearer in until he came back from Geneva. He said that he had received lly from five reports all. He found it out fram reporters. He called me in, and I told him the ! whole story.” ‘Wakeman said he first told Mr. Grace Shipbuilding & Dry Dock, Co., later with the New York Shipbuilding Co. l(ndhflmllymw;llh msemr‘oulul’uvzghm of the Bethlehem Shipbullding Corpo- | ration. As vice president s|:ce lggs bout the employment of Shearer to of the Bethlehem Co, he has had full | Pfomote the merchant marine at the charge of all operations on the East|time he was called in to tell about House Leader Tillson, Representative | Hadley of Washington was in charge of | the program. Minority Leader Garner of Texas wagrin charge of the Demo- | cratic side. . | After the reading of the journal of | I may stumble not, Nor roam, Nor fail to show the way Which leads us home. (Copyright, 1929. by Good Magazine.) Housekerp Coast, he said. Shearer's work at Geneva. ‘The witness told the committee that before Attorney Hunter sent the letter inviting the shipbuilders to the New York conference with Shearer a discus- sion of the matter had taken place among Mr. Bardo. Mr. Palen, possibly Mr. Hunter and Wakeman. Going back to the employment of Shearer in 1926 in connection with merchant marine publicity, Wakemah admitted to the committee that Shearer had performed that service satifactorily, | but was not clear as to just what the scope of Shearer's activities was. He | said the Bethlehem company contri~ buted $2,500 to Shearer for his mer- chant marine promotion work. Wakeman said that Shearer's later engagement in cornection with the four-day transatlantic liner project of | the Trans-Oceanic Co. was noi handled by himself, but that he understands the Bethlehem company contsibuted $10,000 toward a fund raised by ship- builders to further the project. The ‘Trans-Oceanic plans were formulated after the Geneva conference. Senate Robinson manifested great curlosity as to just how Shearer pre- vailed upon the three ship companies to send him to Geneva, and wanted to know exactly what Shearer talked about the New York conference which re- sulted in his employment. Discussed Sea Power. Wakeman said that Shearer discussed sea power in' a general way and went over the general situation regarding the merchant marine and the Navy. Shearer's apparent knowledge of these subjects deeply impressed him, the wit- ness explained. “Didn’t Shearer at that conlerence talk about the need for a greater naval establishment?” asked Senator Robinson. “Oh, I don't think that was gone into,” replied the shipbuilder. ‘How did he impress you that he would be of value to your company at Geneva? Just how did he make such an impression upon you?” ‘Wakeman .could not explain how the impression was created, but sald he “thought it would be a good thing” to employ Shearer and agreed with the others to do so. “I thought I tain information witness said. “You see, our company was building a battleship and had the' airplane carrier Lexington under con- struction. I just want to explain the situation leading up to - Shearer's em- ployment. W had started the Lexing- ton as a battle cruiser. Then it was changed to an airplame carrier, and we had to stop work and begin all over again, B “It whs a very difficult situation in shipbuilding that had confronted us since 1922, It was difficult to get and keep workmen. When work would halt, for some reason or other they would leave and get other jobs, and when we asked them to come back later, they would laugh at us.” Sought Slant on Cruisers. Senator Robinson asked what “the certain information” constituted ths lmpbulldlnal company wanted. Wake- n_explained there was,nothing un- usual about the type of information— that he merely hoped to get some in- formation about cruisers. The cruiser contracts with the Government, he said, had provisos authorizing the President to discontinue construction time. “I thought it would be a good -thing to get some kind of slant on the cruiser e il declared. situation,’ "Wlkemm e th much cg\;ld get hold of cer- hot in the press,” the Ali,kled mhe keM= l‘;fl‘ trouble to inqui b& witness admitted he “ at any | ds Senator Allen asked the witness why no one ever read Shearer's reports, if the whole purpose of employing him to represent the company ‘at Geneva was to get reports. Wakeman explained he was after definite information, and Shearer was not supplying it. Considered Claims Absurd. Under examination by Senator Allen. Wakeman testified that he considered the claims ma by Shearer that he had been responsible for breaking down the conference at Geneva and for causing the United States to go ahead with the cruiser building program “ab- surd " Geneva representing a New York tabloid?” asked Senator Allen. “No." How did you expect Shearer to get in to the inner circles at the conference?” asked Senator Allen. ““I didn't give it a thought.” replied the witness. Senator Allen suggested that none of Shearer’s claims as to what he had done were more absurd than his em- rlflyment for $25,000 by the shipbuild- ng companies “to do what you said he was employed for.” “I'll agree to that,” sid the witness shortly. Mr.” Wakeman denied that his com- pany had agreed to employ Shearer after he had returned from Geneva for any work at all. Senator Allen wanted to know whether the company had been inter- ested in the yment of $1,000 to Shearer “to induce Willlam Randolph Hearst to become interested in Shearer’s trip to Geneva.,” Mr. Wakeman said no. Asked About Manner of Payment. Senator Allen suggested that Shearer kad been sent to the conference as # “plain observer, not a plain and fancy observer.” To that Wakeman agreed. Senator Allen asked why the paymert to Shearer had been made in a “clan- destine manner.” was no secrecy, that it was a matter in which he alone was concerned so far as his company was concerned. He in- sisted there had been no conspiracy. “Perhaps my mind is an insular mind,” said Senator Allen, “but $25,000 seems & lot of money to me. Didnit you_spend it rather carelessly?” “Possibly we did,” replied Mr. Wake- man, calling attention, however, to the fact that his company was putting up only one-third of that amount. “Who suggested this rather beauti- ful term ‘observer’?” asked Senator Allen. N “I don't know,” said the witness. WOMAN HURT IN CRASH. Walter J. Donahoe, 2701 Twelfth street northeast, and Kenneth Sterner, 709 Fifth street northeast, were drivers of automobiles that collided at Temth and Irving streets northeast this morn- ing and were da L ‘Donohoe was driving east on Irving street, while the Sterner car was going north on Twelfth street. The Sterner car was overturned, resulting in injury to Mrs. Marghret Day, one of its occu- pants, residing at the Fifth street ad- iress. Grace Day. 15 years old, another oc- cupant of the overturned - car, escaped lnjurir. ‘Mrs. Day was treated at Sibley Hospital by Dr. M. E. Flohr for shock and injuries to her right hand and right hip, having been taken to the hospital in & passing automobile. the last session the only business trans- | 1 Jetter to the editor of the maga- acted was to receive a message from the | sine Mrs, Coolidge disclosed that she Senate announcing the passage of the | yqq'sending to her son John the check resolution regarding the death of Sen- | 1o §250 sent her by the magazine for ator Tyson. No mention was made of | ¢, poem, “and asking him to use it the recent tragic death of Representa- | for something in the new home, which “Did you know that Shearer went to | Mr, Wakeman declared that “there | ¥ tive Kvale of Minnesota. The mesting of the House today was in obedience to the mandate of a resolu- tion under which Congress quit work in June for ity next Summer recess. Members have been notified hy William Tyler Page, clerk of the House, by direction fo Speaker Longworth, that| the House will not undertake transac- | tion of any business before Octobr 14. LIFE INSURANCE DELEGATES MEET| Executive Committee of National Association Board First at Session. The executive meeting of the board | f trustees of the National Association | of Life Underwriters in the Hotel May- | flower today featured a pre-convention | program of the fortieth annual conven- tion of that organization in the May- flower Wednesday morning. The con- | vention proper will run through Friday, when election of officers and adoption of resolutions will take place. Approximately 1,500 delegates are ex- pected to attend the convention. An advance guard began arriving today. ‘The convention program will include many addresses on the general theme of selling the second $1,000,000,000 of insurance. There also will be a $1,000- 000 round table” as a special feature, only those individuals who sold in- surance amounting to that in the past ear being eligible to attend the latter. ‘The District of Columbia Life Under- writers’ Association, host to the con- vention, has high expectations that (wo of its members may be eligible to sit at the round table. Tonight at 7 o'clock the board of irustees of the American College of Life Underwriters, an auxiliary body of the national association, will hold an executive session in the Mayflower, while a meeting of the executive com- mittee of the National Association of Life Underwriters is scheduled to be | held in the Mayflower tomorrow morn- | ing. Additional plans for the conven- | tion beginning Wednesday are expected | to be discussed at the latter meeting. The delegates will be welcomed at | the opening of the convention Wednesday morning by Harold D. xnm,’ president of the Life Under- writers’ Association of the District of Columbia, and by Commissioner Sid- ney F. Taliaferro.” Invocation will be g:ll\g:lu at the mn 3 leman Ne 8. J.,, president of Georgetown University. Lo ‘Quakes Felt in Kansas, JUNCTION CITY, Kans., September 23 (#).—Earth tremors of sufficient in- tensity to shake buildings were felt in Junction City and nearBy cities in | North Central Kansas early today. No damage was reported. Many persons were awakened here ‘n‘::t -.ni_.mby ?Mh-ee{ned to be a dis- earthquake shock. Win d e | dows an | |COOLIDGE ing session by Rev. | ca I hope he may soon establish, in some way that his brother might have chosen were he here, . WEDDING TO BE LATE TODAY IN PLAINVICLE, CONN. (Continued From First Page.) Vlrfim- Rogers of Pittsburgh and Mrs. Philip Morehouse of Brooklyn. Stephen Brown of Northampton. will aect as John Coolidge's best man. The ushers are Pierce Clark of Plainville and Richard Brown. John Hills, North- ampton, and Philip Morehouse of Brookiyn. . ‘The church itself was transformed today into a bower of yellow beauty. Hundreds of giant chrysanthemums have been transported from Cllilnrnlai for use, together with yellow pompons, smilax and palms, in the decoration of the church. . ‘Tall bronze receptacles holding sheaves of the chrysanthemums will be placed along the aisles and scores of | the great blooms will be banked in the chancel and along the balcony. Masses of pompons, roses, palms and ferns will screen the organ and decorate the chancel. A reception after the ceremony will be held on the lawn of the Trumbull home unless the weather prevents. Tents have been erected on the grounds where delicacies will be served {0 400 guests. The bride and groom will receive them in the sunken garden at the rear of the house. Planes Top Wedding Cake. ‘The wedding cake is a 36-inch square, tiered creation, coated with ing. It is topped by six silvered air- planes, a token of the interest of the bride and her father in aviation. Oc- cupying the center of the bridal table, it will rest in a circle of lilies of the valley and bravardia. All the police of this little New Eng- land village, assisted by State trooperg—half Connecticut's force— hgve been marshaled to handle the crowds of curious about the church and [rumbull home. Foremost among the guests bidden to the wedding ceremony is Mrs. Rich- ard Usher, 86, of Plainville, grand- mother of the bride. She will wear the same lavender wedding ga®n in which she was married in the same church, 59 years ago. Another guest is E. G. Stevens, Maine woodsman, Rockford, Me, who has m] with the governor and his fam- ily for 20 years. eH is flying from Bos- ton—his first flight—to attend the cere- mony. Others present will include Mr. and Mrs. Calvin Coolidge, Senator and Mrs. Hiram Bingham, Senator and Mrs. Frederick C. Walcott, and former Sena- tor George P. McLean. No plans for the honeymoon have been announced. It is reported that it will be spent in a tour of New England and will include a visit to the Plymouth, Vt., homestead of the Coolidges. After October 7 the bridal pair wil be at home in their $78-a-month, four-room apart- | ment in New Haven. ‘white frost- | of confirmation and will prosecute their appeals now pending from the order of the court awarding priority to the “olders of the two deeds of trust over the tenants having leases and the lien- rs who built the bullding. AGITATION FOR DRY ACT FOR CAPITA. | REVIVED BY CHARGE ed From First Page.) | | | since he regarded the situation he was | discussing as one with which every ore in Washington ought to be familiar. He emphasized, however, that he had intended to cast no personal reflection on any Government official. | The whole purpose of his remarks in | the Senate, he said, was to call atten- | tion that prohibition could be enforced : | more easily here than elsewhere, since the city is governed by Congress and | the laws enforced by the President, | the District officials being responsible to the will of the Chief Executive. Commissioner Doran said that, pro- hibition agents here were doing as good work as in any place in the country. In referring to testimony he gave be- fore the Gibson subcommittee of the | House District committee in January when the committee investigated Dis- trict affairs, Dr. Doran pointed out that co-operation between the police and | Federal enforcement agencies is not at | fault. | "One of the chict arguments advanced for an enforcement law for the District was that such a law would clothe every policeman with authority to make ar- rests for violations, whereas under existing practice only 38 policemen have this authority, two in each precinct, and the members of two special “dry squads.” Not only would such a law lengthen the enforcement arm, Doran said, so far as arrests are concerned, but it should provide that search warrants might be issued from the office of cor- | poration counsel instead of restricted to | the approval of United States commis- | sioners. | Blanford's Work Praised. William Blanford, deputy prohibition | administrator, whose good faith and capacity, the White House statement said, were impugned by Senator How: ell's statement, “is doing first rate, Commissioner Doran asserted. The proposal of a separate enforce- | ment law for the District was made by | Dr. Doran before Mr. Hoover became | President, but it is understood that the latter was responsible for Commission- | er Doran's testimony before the Gibson | committee, and other data the latter | had on the subject being sent to the Law Enforcement Commission to study. | “President Hoover is understood not | | to have formed any definite conclusions. | He is not likely to do so either until he has received the recommendations of the National Commission on Law Observance, which he appointed last Spring, to study the whole subject of law enforcement in this country. It is known that the ques| of a special enforcement law for the Dis- | trict of Columbia has been referred to that commission to study and to re- port upon. Senator Howell emphasized the ques- tion of importation of liquor for em- bassies, which was not mentioned by the White House. He was-prepared, he - said, to submit a statement showing a violation of the dry law in that con- nection, giving the names of a shipping company, packing firms and other | l,enclzs concerned 1n the transportation | of embassy liquor. While the embassies have a legal right to possess liquor in the Capital, he said. its transportation is a violation . of the law from the time it comes within 12 miles of r.h': coast until it is delivered, . | S doing enable me to endure wh believe to be unjust imprisonment with the courage of a clear conscience.” With allowances for time off for good behavior, and Maj. William L. Peake, superintendent of the District Jail, says |both are “model prisoners,” Sinclair | will be released on November 22, and Day, who was sentenced to serve four months for employing the detectives in behalf of his chief, will be released s:veral weeks earlie WILBUR PLANNING FOR BOULDER DAM Secretary Says Reclamation Burean Will Study Design Which Adds 25 Feet to Height. By the Associated Press. Secretary Wilbur said today the Reclamation Bureau had been in- structed to study plans of Boulder Dam with a view to building the dam 25 feet higher than was first planned. Commissioner Mead of the reclama- tion service, has been instructed to give careful consideration to the factors of safety, power, additional flood control, and the possibility of prolonging the life of the project if the structure is given the additional height. If the dam is built 25 feet higher. it will be 725 feet from the bottom of the foundation to the top and 550 feet above the present water level of the Colorado River. For eich additional foot on the height of the dam, Commissioner Mead sald there would be made available a minimum increase of 150,000 acre feet in storage space and a decided gain in power capacity. Mead expressed his belief that the proposal is feasible and practical, rev- enue returns from the additional po- tential power taking ample care of the increased cost construction. 0ld Town to Change Name. ‘Trondhjem, an ancient Norwegian town, which is known principally in the public mind as the most northerly town of any considerable size, will change its name after the first of next year. It will return to the original name by which it was known up to the middle of the sixteenth century and that is Nidaros. The town is sit- uated but a short distance below the Arctic Circle. ¢“3d Degree” Quiz For ‘Parliament Aspirants Urged By the Associated Press. LONDON, September 23.— Something like a “third-degree” examination for those aspiring to parflamentary honors was lu‘fumd today by Rev. William Temple, Archbishop of ‘York, addressing a co-operative soclety meeting at Huddersfield. “Before a candidate is elected he should be cross-examined on his speeches by a competent bar- rister. The examination should take place in a small room, be- fore people who are smoking pipes while the process is going on, and where everything that makes for passion is damped, and everything arousing the criti- cal faculties is encouraged,” “he said. ‘The archbishop deplored the fact that methods of democracy led to “herd mentality.”