Norwich bulletin., 1911-06-03
$500 Mystery
 Investigation
PROBING COMMITTEE NOT AL
 LOWED TO SEE RECORDS.
HEATED c0LL0QuY RESULTS
Portrait Painter Received se50 for His Work, While Voucher Shows He Was Paid $2,45c-Money Paid from Secret Fund.

Washington, June 2.-A lively con- troversy over the executives right 70 withhold confidential papers from a congressional probing committee WAS preclpitated at the capitol today by 2. flat refusal by Secretary of Stats Knox. on the instruction of President Taft, To lay before the house committee on ex- penditures in the state department books showing the record of the pay ment for the portrait of ex-Secretary of State Day.
 What Became of That $1 500?
 The committee is seeking to dis cover what became of the $f,s00 bal- ance on the $2,450 voucher drawn for the payment of the portrait. Artist Rosenthal received only $s50 for bis work. and the s1,60o is yet unaccounted for.
 Paid from Emergency Fund.
 The president held that the s2455 was paid out of the emergency fund for unforeseen emergencies in tho diplomatic and consular service and for extending diplomatic intercourse with foreign nations, which congress provided, need not be accounted for fl
 the president certified that an item be
 paid from this fund. President Roose- welt made a cert1icatfon and Presi-
 dent Taft hesitated to go back of that certification.
 improper to Produce Books. o6CTctdTY KNOX eI plained to the committee that it wes improper to produce the books, be-
 cause thereby other uIldisclosed items of expenditure would be revealed. Sec
 retary Knox said he was directed to
 complete his investigation into what became of the money and to report the facts to the president.
 Chairman HanoIin Aroused. Chairman Ham1in of Missouri took issue with the secretary's asserted right to refuse to produce the record of the expenditure.
 Do you mean to say that S2.450 may be spent for a portrait and con gress may be refused all information in regard to dt?" he asked. Secretary Knox replied that it vss proper when @ former president certi- | fled to the expenditure from the ener- | gency fund
 Chairman May Take Peep. Mir. Hamlin threatened to take the 1 matter to the floor of the house. 4 l colloquy between chairman and the 1 secretary finally resulted fin the sug- | gestion that the chairman be allowed + spefsonallyS to Inspect that particular l record. That course will probably be
 followed. MT. Knox said that the books | showed no further information than 1 the committee was in possession Of. Justification for Secret Fund. 1 Mir Hamlin questioned Secretary Knox closely as to what justification | there was for paying for a portrait out | of secret fund set aside for unfore-
 seen emergencies and extending dfplo- ! natic intercourse.
 | Voucher Not Yet Found. Mir Knox said it had been the prac- 1 tice since 1890. He informed the com | mittea that no trace had yet been | found of the $2,450 voucher which MT. 1 Rosenthal said he signed in blank af- l ter receiving q personal check for ss56 1 from Chief Clerk Michael now con- | sul general at Calcutta. He conceded | 1t was very irregular for a voucher to | be made out for more than the signer received and that suc,4 action placed a i burden on the person who made 1t out 1 to explain the circumstances. l if Pitched, Knox Wants Offender Pun l ished.
 f1 surmise-it is just my impression. " | said the secretary, that if we find that | this S1600 was 1egitimately expended.
 notwithstanding the irregularity of the i record, that will end 1t; but if it has l been filched, the greater the punish nent of the offender, the greater will 1 be our pleasure"