Evening star., 1915-02-26

he wanted to do tho best hs ccnld e
protect ht0 interests.
Senator Jones suggestDd that e19
was small matter when the ooJece -
be attained was at stake. and the VIZ
ness admitted that to be q fa6t.
At this point the committee too048
recess until ESQ O'Clock
Peyser's Declaration. e
Juiius Z psyser. who sctsd - aeasss
renswA Of his license for 1905 D st5oge
northwest told the committee that ~
had read IN the newspapers bow ca
Smith had told tbs committee ths boaS9
was Influenced to renew tho license a
Engel was financially embarrassed. Nj
Peyser said that the board had refused
to consider such . reason tor granting
o renewal to other applicants for NcensA
appeared before the excise board on
behalf of the East Washington CIVIC
Association. told the committee that
Cotter T. Bride had said to him that
he (Mr. Brlde) was only nonenity.
and that tho other two members were
running It. Mr.. 0Brien said that Mn
Bride had called him in to ten hind
about the action OF the board on the
renewal Of q license to Patrick J. Mo-
Donald, near Wallach School
Warned Others on Board
"He told me-" said Mr.. o'Bnen. '-hsf
unless we did something the. board
would drive roughshod over all our
protests. He told mo that he had
warned other members Of the boasd
they would all be called erafters If
they kept on the Same course"
Senator Jones asked Mr.. OBrien what
Mr.. Bride had meant by saying that
Mr.. OBrien must do something.
Mr.. OBrien replied that Mr.. Bride
had told him:
II don't think anything will stop
them unless you can get a congress
sional investigation.
Cotter T. Bride. a member of tho
board, took the stand and denied that
he had ever in conversation with AL
bert E. Shoemaker. attorney for the
Anti-Saloon League, stated that Ex-
Sise Baks1s stternsS s9n and
ticing before the board. had acted as
collectors for Mr.. Baker Mr.. Shoe
maker Wednesday had testified that
Mt. Bride had made such a remark
to him. though Mr.. Shoemaker added
that he did not say for what the COL
lections were made.
Mr.. Bride and Mr.. Baker both de-
Tended the course of the excise board
and declared that it had enforced tho
law.
When Mr.. Bride was called to the
stand he said that he agreed with
everything Gen. Smith. chairman of
the board. had said earlier in the day,
with the exception that, as far as he
knew. no members of Congress or
other governmental officials had ap-
preached the board in any way to in
fiuence the granting of licenses.
Mr.. Bride said that he had visited
all OF the places referred to in Gen.
Smiths testimony. but found no con-
ditions surrounding them that would
justify the revoking of their licenses.
Senator Jones asked Mr.. Baker why
the board had not enforced the law
as it was laid down by Congress in
stead of making its own rules regard
ing the Interpretation of certain sec
tions. The witness replied that tho
board had always done the best it
knew how.
John H. Trant. who conducted q
saloon at 629 AZ street southwest,
testified that his license had been re-
fused by the board in the face Of very
little protest from citizens.
William T. Burdine told the COM
mtttee that he was refused license at
709 D street northwest in spite of the
fact that there had been no protests.
He said he had a clean record during
the forty-efght years that he had been
in the saloon business in this city.