The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1913-07-29
Sen tor Lodge Tells
Committee He Never
Knew Lobbyist.
MORE LETTERS IN
BOASTFUL STRAIN
Epistles Read Into Record Tell
of Interviews With Men in
High Places and Ease With
Which Powerful Com
mittees Can Be
Controlled.

Washington. July 2s.-Martin NJ
1ulhall sat on the witness stand before
the Senate lobby committee o-day and
listened to another Senator deny his
statements. Senator Lodge. mentioned
as one of many witnesses with whom
the former lobbyist" for the National
Association Of Manufacturers had held
political conferences. declared he did
not know the witness, and never had
heard Of him until the present inves-
tgation began.
Mulhalls correspondence. read to-
day, brought him into the year 1911
when the House became Democratic
In many of his letters that year he
spoke Of interviews with Majority
Leader Underwood. William r. Wilson
Secretary Of Labor In President VII
sons Cabinet. then chairman OF the
House Labor Committee. James r
Lloyd, OF the First Missouri District
chairman OF the Democratic congress
s!onal committee, and other prominent
men. He wrote in the strain he used
all through his letters 10 j p. Bird
the general manager of the association.
and other officials. OF having men ap-
pointed to committees, OF preventing
Legislation. and Of generally having
much 10 do with the operations Of gov
ernmcnt in Washington. He mentioned
In several letters that he hoped TO have
even greater success with the Demo
cratic House than he had boasted he
had in the days of Republican rule.
but. questioned b. the committee, said
he had been too optimistic in his
prophecy.
Mulhall took UP his relations with
Representative J. 7 McDermott of III
nois, and ! II McMichael. time
chief page OF the House and coniiden-
tial secretary OF the representative.
He identifed what he swore was a re-
ccipt for 500 given him by McMichac cl
for service in September and October.
1911, and reiterated that McDerm Oft
borrowed money from him. which he
never paid back
Tells Of Secret Room.
Senator Reed became deeply interest
cd in talk about a secret room" which
Mulhal said McDermott secured for
his use on the lower floor OF the west
front of the Capitol on the House side.
He described that as quite Il mYstcri-
Gus place. and the committee Will in
spcct IL later. Muihall went TO the
length OF making arrangements TO hire
stcnographcr whom he intended TO
place in this room. He wrote 10 Bird
about the room and the stcnoGraphcr
All through to-day's letters Mulhal APP
peared in opposition TO legislation ia
vorine labor. He swore that there was
n labor lobby in Washington then in
which Samuel Gompcrs Frank Morr
son and other officials OF the Amcri-
can Federation OF Labor were conspicu-
Gus lighters.
The committee made little progress
to-day. Senator Reed read extracts
from dozens OF letters referring TO the
franking OF books and seeds bulbs and
other things through the mails TO
friends OF the association.
One of the last to go in was dated
October %. 1911 from Mulhall TO Cen
cral Manager Bird. Offering his resigna
ton. The committee did not finish It's
examination OF Mulhall on the subject,
but he declared that he got into diih
Guilty with the executive board of the
organization after he made a campaign
trip to Maine. He will tell the whole
story Of his separation from the ser
vice tomorrow. Robert McCarter,
counsel for the National Association of
lCnntinInd Third EaGcl