The Bridgeport evening farmer. [volume] (Bridgeport, Conn.) 1866-1917, 1916-01-20
SLEEPS AT HOME
And STATE PAYS
HIS HOTEL BILLS
New York Legislature In
quiry Reveals Number of
False Entries.


Investigating Committee, approved by
Chairman Thompson and already paid
by the state contained false entries,
were made yesterday to Comptroller
Travis by Assem- lyman R. Hunter
NcQuinstion. of Kings with. a request
for Immediate action to. recover the
amount alleged to have been wrong
fully paid
The Hotel Bi1tmore submitted a
bill 10 the State Comptroller for
$3.50. So for expenses of the Thomp-
son committee. This was fled in the
once of the Comptroller June 10,
1918, stamped Paid, May 5, 1915"
and it's correctness was sworn to May
s. by Eugene d. Miller. auditor of the
1t contains the item: Ian. 22-
March O.. McQuistion, Assembly,
man, rs days at $500 Room $3.50
Rest. $19s-41s Total, $28O.91-"
Never Spent Night In Hotel
AssernbIyrnan McQuistion. q mem
Der Of the committee. asserts that he
has never spent a night at the Bilt-
more and his only restaurant charges
there are four checks which he signed
Tor meals. Whieh aggregate 81 or less
The Assem- lyman does not charge
that the total of the bill is more than
IS due from the Senate Committee,
prove corrects but he was prepared
and intended to prove the item re-
earding him was false and that the
Miller afldav1t attesting the correct
ness of each item was therefore false.
Senator Thompson last night dis
cnssed the charges with reporter.
Public service corporations in this
city, he angrily exclaimed, are at
tempting to use members of the AS
senbly TO discredit my committee
Later the Senator said. with even
more emphasis.
ion re
A1cQu1stion Is kicking mp is that
Speaker Sweet If the Assembly tried
- get me to take my ccmmittee to
another New York hotel and for par
tiesaiar reasons Of my own would
TT may be that the McQuistion
item IS wrong don't know and I
don't care L am surprised you ask
about it tt is a fool question
know the total of the bill is right and
Worth What difference does it make
how the bin was made out? The ser
geanf-at-arnz probably apportfoned
~ giving each member about what
was coming to him
TO Finish, 2 1EcQnistfon Says.
have been advised by some that
7 VIII nal1ek enemies by taking this
GEietdcn1 at his Office, 55 Liberty
street
That is true. But I have no alter
native cannot have this false bill
80 pa my reeord- have to 90 to the
bat to = finish What would my com
e1itMents think, what would any one
think of me. If they were told that. L
living at LA Montague street, Brook
1yns less than rs minutes ride from 4
the Bi1tmore. charged the state for a
So 9sroozn saIts. 1hat hotel and more
than 81 20 FOR I71ezal Is d51 ring rs DAYS
room at the Biltmore Hotel and never
slept there, and that during the en-
tire Investigation Ishave had meals at
the BfItmore only about seven times.
On two or three OF these occasions
signed individual walters, checks fort
my own meals: one one occasion 1
signed a walters check for myself
and Adeasrs- Burr and Donah1e mem
beers of the committee, and on the
other three or four occasions I ate
with other members Of the committee.
and the waiter check was presume
bly, signed by the ergeant-at-ar1ns
The total restaurant charges on ac-
count of all checks signed by me
Should approximate $1o.'y
Could any. member of the COM
anfttee 20 into the Bi1tmore and order
any kind of a meal he wanted and
charge the state for ~ asked the re-
porter.
We could was the reply
Could Charge for Party.
Assuming that a committeeman
felt like giving a party to his friends
at the Biltmore, could he do SO and
have the entire bill charged to the
c0rnrnfttee2ss
UNFORTUNATELY. replied the assem-
blyrnan. that is literally true He
could give a party at the states ex-
pense-
Mfr, McQu1stfon said that in Albany
O.. j
ness with which accounts of legisIa- !
tive committees were kept.
As a result he continued ct de-
c1ded to visit the ComptroIIer's Office |
and ind what had been charged to /
me. I had some difficuIty in obtain
ing any vouchers. I said finally 7 am
going out to lunch now and if upon |
my return i am not shown those
vouchers Will take action necessary
to see them When got back was
handed the receipted bill Of the BiIt- |
more and learned to my anna cement |
what was charged to me.
Il have sent statement to Comp
trolIeF Travis, Senator Thompson and |
the Hotel Biltmore, demanding that
a true bill be rendered and my ac-
count correeted.,'
These three letters were mailed
here yesterday afternoon They were
signed by Edwin ]. Dryer of No. SIS
liberty street. Mr.. AfcQuiston's eoun- |
sci, and the Assem- bIynlarE. The let
ter to the Comptroller reads in part. |
My client was yesterday informed |
by your Office that no other bills have |
been fled therein for charges made
by the Hotel Bi1tmore on account /
OF the Public Service Investigating +
Conn ttes- IF this Information, up
on further Investigation, proves to be +
incorrect and other and similar bills
have been fled on which my clients I
namesappeaTs, request that like ac-
ton be taken in respect to Them
further request that payment be re-
fused OF any and all bills of the Hotel +
Biltmore on which my clients name
appears,
Demands Hotel CoETec4ion
The letter to the Biltmore concludes
with this paragraph: Unless the