The Montgomery advertiser., 1908-05-01
WHITNEY CONFESSES
SAYS HE WROTE THE ANONYMOUS LETTERS.
The Closing Hours Of open Session. Of The Submarine Investigstion Were Very Dramatic--Mr.
 Loud Exoncrafed.

Loud Exonersted.
 Washington. April 3o.--The investi- gation into the legislative methods em- ployed by the Electric Boat Company. directed by the House of Representa- tives under a resolution introduced February 20 last. by Representative George L.. Lilley, of Connecticut. is ended as far as open sessions of the special House committee. which has been conducting it, are concerned.
 The closing hours of the case were dramatic. Frederick Brown Whitney. an attorney at law. admitted that he was the author of anonymous letters of February i3 and February IS to the representative of The Detroit Free Press and State Senator Frank Edin- borough. of Michigan. The admission of Mr. Whitney was made in the form of an affidavit which was read by his counsel. former Senator Thurston, of Nebraska. MT. Thurston stated that Mir. Whitney is i'll in the Garfield Hos pitai. this city. and that it would be impossible for him to appear before the committee.
 In the affidavit, MT. Whitney stated that from 1901 to 1eQ4 he was clerk to the Committee on Naval Affairs of the House of Representatives.. that shortly thereafter he became second vice president. of the Lake Boat Com pany. which position he retained until May IS. 1906; that he is now vice pres ident of the Lake Submarine Company, an independent organization. The req sons for writing the anonymous let ters were given by Mir. Whitney as follows
 That of his own initiation. he un- dertook what appeared to him at the time to be not improper methods to have brought to the attention of Con- gress the methods which he had be- lieved had been pursued by the Electric Boat Company in their endeavor to se- cure thorough Congressional action, what might be termed exclusive legis- lation which would shut out comped- tion and prevent the Lake Torpedo Boat Company from competing in the United States for submarine tropedo boat construction"
 Reference is made to anonymous communications sent by MT. whitney to New York newspaper and the af- fidavit continued:
 'said deponent sent said communi- cations and said statements to news papers, believing that Representative Loud had voted for an exclusive ap- propriatfon for submarines of certain type. but that he subsequently learned that MT. Loud voted for submarines without condition. and he deeply regrets the wrong and Injustice so done by him to Representative Loud, who was innocent of suspicious enter tained by deponeft concerning him. . Mir. whitney. in his affidavit. says that when he sent these anonymous communications. he had good reason to believe that resolution would be introduced fin the House of Rspresen- tatives for an investigation Into the Electric Boat Company and It's prede- cessor the Holland Boat Company. He further says that he sent newspaper clippings to sorue members Of the Naval Committed and may have sent to Representative Lilley before Feb. ruary 20, is0S--tile date of the Intro duction of MT. LiIley's resolution of in- quiry-newspaper clippings including figures of alleged excessive cost Of submarines, namely q. 47s.2s6se0, which he attempted to compile from the statement. of General Rowles. given before the Naval Committee of the House in 1902. In conclusion, the af- fidavit states that Mir. Whitney has no personal knowledge from which ne would give any evidence to sustain any of the charges of Representative Lil- ley. VT
 In announcing the closing of the open session, Chairman Boutell said that the question of the production or letters of Representative Lilley ana the books of the two submarine boat companies will be determined by the committee after a careful examination and analysis upon which the demand for these documents was based. He also stated that all the witnesses whose names were suggested to the committee by MT. Lilley had been ex- amined and that the committee had also called on its own account, all witnesses who 1t thought could cast any light whatever upon the issues raised by Mir Lilley's charges and also point out if possible the motives lying behind the unsustained charges"
 There still remain" continued MT. Boutell. "a few fictitiously signed let ters handed in by MT. Lilley. few anonymous letters, and one or two af- fidavits which have not been made the basis of any evidence taken by this committee. On careful examination, 1t appears that these suggestions re- late either to dead members of the House of Representatives. who died In full honor and respect of their fellow men, or else these matters relate en- tirely to remote Congresses and raise questions with which this committee has no power to deal"
 The report of the committee prob- ably will not be presented to the House for some time. It is the inten- tion of the members to make an eX- tensive examination Of all evidence and documents submitted and should they decide to demand the production of report will be much delayed.