The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-05-23
ALLEGED CRE0SOTE
 SPINDLE PRObED Claimed MacVeagh Said He Was Protecting Railroads STUART TESTIFIES
STUART
TESTIFIES
MacVeagh Alleged to Have Said That Ruling Was Made in Order to Aid Preservation of Tim
 Der in Fk;s. Country

Washington, May 22.-Testifying before the House committee on expenditures in
 the treasury department today, J. E. B. Stuart, former collector of customs at Newport News, said Secretary of the Treasury Macveagh had told him the de- partment reversed a ruling calling for collection of 20 per cent duty on creo- sote importations because the railroads
 could not afford to pay duty on that com modity
 Another witness testified that Secretary self in the matter.
 MT. Stuart, who instigated an investiga- tion into creosote imports at New Orleans last fall, charging the government was losing millions In revenue because creo- sote, dutiable at 20 per cent ad valorem, was being admitted as creosote oil free of
 duty, was summoned before the commit tee as the result of testimony given pre- viously in executive session by Allan L.
 Benson.
 Stuart related how he found that no duty was being collected at New Orleans from foreign ships whose manifests | showed their cargoes to be creosote, the cargoes being received as creosote oil,
 which is on the free list He told how last September Assistant Secretary of the Treasury A. Piatt Andrew had ordered that duty be collected on such imports | and that subsequently, Assistant Secretary | of the Treasury Curtis had reversed tho
 order, claiming the goods were not sub | ject to revenue because they did not con | tain as much as per cent of chlorine gas and could not be classed as refined creo- sote. He said he had called on MT. Cur | tis and was informed of the decision and | then had visited Secretary MacVeagh who explained the decision
 l Did MT. MacVeagh give any reason | for the order?" Chairman Cox of the committee asked.
 Railroads Could Not Afford Duty "Yes," Stuart replied; The said the rail roads could not afford to pay duty on it. '' Was that the only reason he gave?" asked the chairman.
 That Is the only one I recall" was | the reply.
 Previously Allan L. Benson had told | the committee in executive session that Stuart had told him of the remark Secretary MacVeagh is alleged to have made Benson also visited the Secre-
 tary of the Treasury to inquire about the creosote ruling. He told the com mittee MT MacVeagh had informed l him that my instinct told me my as sistant Mir Curtis, had done right in
 reversing the department in favor of
 the representative" When the com mittee asked If MT. MacVeagh gave any reason, MT. Benson replied:
 | MT. MacVeagh said timber was be- coming very scarce in this country
 and that everybody should do what he l could to preserve and conserve what l timber we have. He said 1t made a very serious difference with the rail- roads whether they paid the duty or not tried to get him to repeat the statement MT. Stuart had made to me, | that Secretary MacVeagh had once told him the railroads could not afford to pay duty on creosote. 1 did not want | to ask him outright whether he made | that statement, so I asked questions I that would give him an opportunity to
 make the statement if he desired. He did not say it to me in so many words, but he did broach that question by say ing the railroads ought to be en- couraged to use that preservative.
 He also said his brother, Wayne
 had called on him to inquire what the department was going to do in the | creosote matter, and he said he told him they were going to admit it free,
 and that his brother then said that was right"
 Assistant Secretary of the Treasury Curtis was present at the hearing to- day and turned over to the committee some correspondence relating to the creosote controversy He will be called as witness before the committee later l in the week. Chairman Cox said the
 inquiry would be prolonged.