Highland recorder. (Monterey, Highland County, Va.) 1877-1972, 1913-07-04
PALMER'S CHARGE
STIRS PRObERS
VIII Subpoena Witnesses TO
Tell Of New Plot,
POSED As CONGRESSMAN
Use of Representatives Names In
fIuence Legislation Stirs Senate
Lobby Probers.


fIuence Legislation Stirs Senate
Lobby Probers.
Subpoenas will be issued by the SEN
ate lobby investigating committee 1or
Lewis Cass Ledyard and Paul ID. Cra-
vath, New York attorneys, and Tor
David Lamar, Wall street man, to
Lppear next week in connection with
its investigation of the charge that the
names of congressman are being used
to secure influence with financial men.
Ledyard and Cravath are understood
to have additional information that
they are willing to give the commit
tee. Both" were referred to by Robert
S. Lovett, chairman Of the board or
the Union Pacific, as having been re-
cipients of mysterious telephone calls
that purported to come from congress
men,
The story told the lobby committee
by Representative A Mitchell Palmer,
of Pennsylvania, has astonished con-
gressional circles, and resulted in
demand from many quarters that the
senate committee use every effort to
find the men responsible.
Palmer testified that Lewis Cass
Ledyard had been called repeatedly by
a man who represented himself as
Palmer. The attorney took the pre-
caution to learn that Palmer was not
in New York, however, and kept the
congressman informed of develop
ments until evidence had been secured
strongly indicating whom the calls
came from.
1--WE will go to the bottom of this
thing" said Chairman Overman, OF
the senate committee. "Mr. Ledyard,
Mr.. Crayath and Mr.. Lamar will be
first asked to appear, and others may
be called later
The committee will resume. its hear
ings next week after the senate Demo-
cratic caucus has finished with the
tariff bill.
Speaker Clark, Representative Un-
derwood, of Alabama; Representative
Henry, of Texas, and others whose
names were used by the persons in
conversation with financial men, are
urging the committee to push its
inquiry.
Representative Palmer and Riordan
are the only congressman whose
names have thus far been given as
having been impersonated over the
telephone.
The story of an effort to sell a gold
brick to Wall street and how it was
foiled, as told before the committee,
caused sensation. 1t was a tale OF
how influence was to be exerted in the
seats of the mighty in Washington to
prevent unfayorable investigation into
the doings of the street, of how law
suits that the financial interests of
New York would not like were to be
prevented and of how the gold brick
seller was generally to protect the in
terests of the clients he sought in the
political game in the capital.
According to Representative Pal
mer Lewis Cass Ledyard, New York
lawyer, was the man who was largely
instrumental in foiling the plot. The
name of the man who proposed to do
all these things in Washington was
not given TO the committee, although
Representative Palmer acknowledged
that he had strong suspicious of his
identity.
Palmer told the committee that the
representations of influence in Wash
ington had gone so far as to bring III
the names of the speaker, the major
ity leader in the house and of at least
two other prominent members whose
names he did not give. He said that
after Ledyard had engaged in many
telephone conversations with the man
who had all these goods for sale i'll
washington, he had met Edward Lau'
terbach, a New York attorney, under
the supposition that Lauterbach was
representing the user of the tele'
phone.
I.auterbach was in the committee
room and listened to all the testimony
of Palmer He denied later that he
had tried to secure employment with
big interests in New York on the
strength of supposed power in the
capital. He swore that his only effort
was to restore the entente cordiale"
he hal previously enjoyed with Nor
gan & Co.. and which he thought had
been broken because of his friendly
relations with David Lamar, whom he
described as a Wall street operator
who usually operated on the bear side
OF the street."