Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1913-08-27
No Mystery About Apartment
Adjoining Representative
MCDerm0tt's Office.
EXPLAINED BY H. S. SHAW
AT THE LOBBY HEARING
Former Secretary to Illinois Member
Discusses Latter's Financial Diff
ficulties- -McMichael on Stand.

| Humphrey s. Shaw. former secretary
| to Representative McDermott of Illinois,
| took the secret out of the famous "se-
cret room in the Capitol building to-
! day, when he appeared as witness in
| the House lobby investigation Under
| the examination by James s. Easily
| Smith, counsel for McDermott Shaw said
| the congressman had given him a key
/, to room No. % in the Capitol, and that
| he, Shaw. bad studied law in that Sc
| cret room for several months following
August. 1911.
| He said he had never seen Col. Null
| hall nor l. II. McMichael in or about that
room. Shaw explained that McDermott
was broke" frequently because he INC
| DermotU was putting much money into
an aeroplane venture.
| Peevish Under Cross-Examination.
| Isaac H. McMichael, former witness,
| wha was again on the stand, grew peeyish
| early In his cross-examination, when
James Easily Smith questioned him about
| a memorandum concerning the Hughes
| eight-hour amendment to the sundry civil
| bill of 1912. McMichael said he had
| written one memorandum telling Nc
| Dermott that Mulhall wanted him to be
| Ion the floor" to oppose the proposition
| to have all work on government con-
| tracts done on an eight-hour-a-day basis.
| McMichael said that a portion Of one
memorandum In the testimony had been
| written by Mulhall.
On what / myself wrote l have testi-
| fed. but as for what Mulhall wrote. I
don't give DAMN. the witness declared.
! He started upon an explanation. and
Chairman Garrett raped several times
for order. The chairman warned Nc
1{nIo nJ net nf
plosions.
McMichael denied that he had told q
| DR.. Smith that 'he was getting his out
Of McMichaers portion of the Mulhall
Reilly of Connecticut had said to him
once: Why. McMichael. l thought you
were in jail
He had a right to think that from
| the newspaper statement by McDermott,
| he continued.
Declares Statement Is False.
McMichaeI also grew angry when he
was asked whether he and newspaper
man named Merriweather had worked al
night on an article concerning the present
| testimony.
"It is absolutely false" he cried land
If he says SO he will have to answer to
| me-
| The witness also said that Mr. Gold
berg of the New York American had
| tried to buy d statement from him on
the contingency that it should be dam
aging to the Wilson administration.
Many questions were asked McMichael
| about telephone calls from McDermott
Il don't remember all of these" said
the witness. Sometimes he asked me to
step out in the hall Sometimes he would
| telephone to George D. Horning, the
Washington pawnbroker. and 1 was asked
| to go outside.
He said that all phone calls to Mulhall
concerned money for campaign expenses.
McDermott's Finances Discussed.
Humphrey S. Shaw, formerly House
page and for time Representative Nc
Dermotts secretary. testified that the
representative was in the hole all the
time because of drafts on him while he
was interested in an aeroplane venture
| Mr. Shaw characterized Col. Mulhall as
IAN old guy who had all kinds of cush.
using words OF McMichael to describe the
first meeting Of Mulhall and McDermott
inquired OF McMichaeL Why, Col Null
hail. said McMichael. Oh said McDer-
mott. 1 don't want to know him. He
tried to tell me something once"
/ The word 'cuSh had to be explained
to Attorney Easby-Smlth. He learned II
meant money"
/ Shaw said McDermott had given him
the key to the so-called secret room in
the Capitol in August, 1911 at the end
of the extra session in order that he
might study law during the summer.
McMichael Carried Office Keys.
| Witness said he saw neither McMichael el
nor Mulhall ine that room. but that Nc
| Michael got into the room at some time
and looked for some of Mr. McDermott.s 5
papers. McMfchael. he said, had KEYS
/ to room .. the ''secret room" and also
| to McDermOtt's room in the House Office
building
| Shaw denied that the weekly letters of
Samuel Gompers. president Of the Ameri
can Federation of Labor. which were re-
ceived by McDermott. were turned over
| to Mulhall. The letters nimeographed or
printed, were filed by Shaw and not
handed out. The former page said he had
seen George Horning in McDermott's 8
| room once or twice. but he did not re-
member any loan shark bill discussion.
Smarts Under Criticism.
Col. Martin Mulhall. former official
of the n. A. NJ. smarted under the
suave cross-examination of James s.
Easily Smith. counsel for Representa-
tive McDermott for several hours yes
terday afternoon. Col. Mulhall was
jcndIleHScu pS Tic dllOTHcy Id present
documents or specific information of
any kind as to single instance when
McDermott gave him any inside" in
| formation 1t seemed probable that
the cross examination of Col. Mulhall
| Yesterday would end his appearance
on the witness stand at this investi-
cation.
Opposed Buchanan.
| At the afternoon session of the Senate
lobby investigating committee yesterday
James A. Emery, counsel for the National
Association of Manufacturers, said that
he had opposed the election of Represen-
tative Buchanan of Illinois because he
| considered that the latter. as president of
| the Structural Iron Workers Union, had
sanctioned violence at Toledo which diff
| fered only in degree from the dynamiting
| of the Los Angeles Times building.
well, the people Of Chicago elected
| the bad man, Buchanan, didn't they 2"
| suggested Senator Reed.
Yes. and they elected Lorimer.' re-
piled the witness
| And Edward Hines, one OF your men,
| bers assisted to elect him. Did you ever
assist In trying to defeat a crook?" asked
Senator Reed.
"Yes, and this is good illustration
"You mean to characterize Buchanan rs
q crook?'
u think that is good description"