Abbeville progress. (Abbeville, Vermilion Parish, La.) 1913-1944, 1913-07-12
THE LOBBY INVESTIGATION ON
WITNESS lAUTEReACH SAYS HE
HAD BEEN "VICARIOUS
SACRtFfCE."
Lobby investigators Listened TO Stories
Told of Founding of Vast Fortunes;
a Se0,000,C90 Deal, ETC.

the senate lobby committee last week
by David Lamar had another chapter
added Monday when Edward liter
bach, Lamar's associate i'm many un-
dertakinGs, pleaded that he had been
the innocent victim and the "'. 1rious
sacrifice in negotiations that have
involved the Morgan firm. the steel
interests. New York attorneys. mem
bers of congress and men o. lesser
prominence.
Lauterbach had already testified be-
fore the committee. But since his
former appearance Lamar had told
his unexpected story involving him
self and Lautorbach in the prelimi-
naries of the steel trust Investigation
in an extraordinary effort to restore
Lauterbach to the good graccs Of the
Morgan firm, and Lewis Cass Ledyard
had added his sworn statement that
Lauterbach had represented himself
as the emissary of Speaker Clark, Sen
ator Stone and democratic leaders in
an effort to effect reconciliation
with the Morgan-Steel interests and
shut off investigation or opposition
in congress.
Lauterbach. long prominent in
legal circles in New York. admitted
most of the facts alleged by Ledyard.
The witness admitted his long asso-
citation with Lamar, and said it had
been an honorable and profitable
one for him He told of talking over
with Lamar the trust investigation
and of seeing the proposed resolution
and admitted urging Lamar to with
hold it until he could see j. u. Nor
gan and others and urge them to au-
thorize him to prevent its introduce
ton.
Throughout the entire proceeding
he declared there was no thought of
reward on his part. He raised him
self in the witness chair and shouted
mo" with vehement emphasis when
Senator Reed suggested that there
had been an effort to shake down"
the Morgan and steel trust interests.
THAT insinuation is an insult and
an outrage" he exclaimed.
Lauterbach admitted he had told
Ledyard that he had the authority of
Speaker Clark, transmitted through
Senator Stone, to make certain pro
posals for peace" to the Morgan inter
ests, but said this authority came
from Lamar. He declared he had
never seen Clark or Stone.
Washington-A story of misrepre-
sentation, impersonation of public men
and an organized effort to influence
Wall street financiers, probably with
out parallel in the history of congress
sional investigation, was unfolded
Thursday before the senate lobby
committee.
A prosperous looking individual,
calling himself Lamar, self-described
as an operator in Stocks" and admit
tedly the bearer of several assumed
names, was the principal in the re-
markable session. With entire aban-
don, arousing the committee to laugh
ter at times by his naive admissions,
he told of his representations, his par
ticipation in attempts to influence
Wall street operations and his asso-
citation with a New York lawyer, in
efforts to have the lawyer retained by
the Morgan firm, the Union Pacific
and other great interests to head off
congressional activity in Washington.
He telephoned to financial men and
lawyers in the names of Representa-
tive Palmer and Representative Rior-
dan. He assumed the guise of Chair
man McCombs of the democratic ma
tional committee to telephone 10
Chairman Hilles of the republican ma
tional committee. Lewis Cass Led
yard of New York, counsel for the
Morgan firm, was one of his attempted
victims. Mr.. Ledyard came to the
witness stand Wednesday armed with
almost verbatim account of all the
conversations held with Lamar, who
had represented himself as Congress
man Palmer. AS he read the record OF
the conversations, in themselves I'M
usual in their tone. Lamar, sitting near
by, laughed and nodded, saying,
That's right"
Paul Cravath, one Of the attorneys
for the Union Pacific, and Maxwell
Evarts, counsel for the Southern Pa
cific, testified briefly as to their ex-
periences with the telephone imper-
senator. During his testimony early
in the day Lamar interjected an at
tack upon the Union Pacific, claiming
there had been a Justification in the
books of the company in 1901 by which
about $50, 900, 900 had disappeared from
its surplus.
While Lamar was on the stand
Chairman Overman endeavored to
make him give his real name, but the
witness refused. He admitted under
Overman's questioning that he had
been in Denver under the name of
David H. Lewis, but denied he had
used the name of Simon Wolf. He
said Lamar was not his name, but de-
clined to give the committee further
information.
He described a double entry" of
$50, 000,0 900, representing securities the
Union Pacific assumed in taking over
the Oregon Short Line and the Oregon
Railway and Navigation Company.
The items, he said, were carried on
"the consolidated balance sheet" Of
the Union Pacific June 80, 1900, but
hot