Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1913-07-10
Colonel First Witness Be-
fore House Committee
Next Monday.
ALL FACTS ARE WANTED
New Inquiry, Which Is to Be
Thorough, Will Be Open
to the Public.

Washington. D. c., July 10.-The
house lobby committee today met and
prepared to begin hearings next Mon
day. Colonel Mulhall probably will be
the first witness.
A sweeping lobby investigation by a
special committee has been ordered by
the house. The committee which will
conduct the inquiry, appointed by the
speaker, consists of Representative
Garrett of Tennessee, chairman; Cline
of Indiana, Russell of Missouri and
Roddenbery of Georgia, democrats, and
! Stafford of Wisconsin, Willis of Ohio
and Knowland of California, repubh-
cans.
No limitation has been placed upon
| the scope of the investigation and the
committee is to have the assistance of
| counsel. 1t is expected that the COM
mittee will organize quickly and be-
gin hearings, the Mulhall charges be-
/ ing only a part of the field it will
/ cover.
COincident with the action of the
| house in ordering the inquiry, j. H.
/ McMiChaels, charged by Mulhall with
| being a spy at the capitol in the en-
/ ploy of the National Association of
/ Manufacturers, was removed from the
| government rolls. McMichaels was
| formerly chief of pages in the house,
| later a messenger acting as a door
keeper, and. several months ago wasl
appointed an elevator conductor in the
house office building upon the recon-
mendation of Representative McDer-
mott of Illinois.
The appointment of the house COM
mittee was authorized after a long
fight.
The real contest was over the ques-
tion of the employment of counsel, the
house being nearly evenly divided.
! The first vote was 104 to 102 in favor
of employing counsel
Representative Mann criticized the
Mulhall charges, expressing the opin-
ion that upon analysis many of them
would be found TO be lies. He took
up the charge that former Representa-
tive Watson of Indiana had been in
strumental in having the judiciary
committee packed so that the National
Association of Manufacturers domina-
ted it.
In the Mulhall charges former Rep
resentatives Vreeland of New York
and Bannon of Ohio are named as two
Of three members placed upon the
committee at the dictation of the as
sociation. Mr. Mann, by reference to
the official records of the house. show
ed that Mr. Vreeland had never been
a member of the committee and that
Mr.. Bannon was not placed upon it
until long after the time it is asserted
the committee was packed.
HEARINGS TO BE OPEN.
Representative Cooper of Wiscon-
sin offered an amendment providing
that the sessions of the committee for
examination of witnesses and taking
of testimony should be open and it
was adopted.
After the passage of the resolution
Representative McDermott OF Chicago
obtained recognition to make the fol
lowing statement:
On Sunday, June %, an article ap-
peared in the press of the country in
which NJ. NJ Mulhall accused me OF
being in the pay of the National Asso-
oiation of Manufacturers. This is an
unjust and outrageous falsehood
never received a cent from anybody
belonging to this association. | have
always cast my vote on the side OF
labor and my votes will show the fact
and l am willing TO let my record
speak for itself with my people.
81 am ready to go before any com.
mittee at any time and trust this in.
vestigation will be most thorough
The result in my case will show deer
laid conspiracy against me by Mulhall
and others
y. A. VI. LISTS WITNESSES.
Counsel for the National Association
OF Manufacturers submitted to Chair
I man Overman of the senate investiga
ting committee a list OF witnesses
:. which the association desires TO have
summoned 10 appear before that com
: mittee. among them former Speaker
= Cannon, former Senator Aldrich anC
former Representative Watson of In
diana
In letter written 10 a friend here
former Speaker Cannon stated that ht
expected 10 be called as a witness il
= the investigation, and declared thai
: he was more than willing to take tbs
e stand and tell a whole lot about tbs
: Mulhalls, the Anti-Saloon league anc
!, the entire fake trust"
The senate currency committee met