The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1917-07-25
CREEL CENSUREO
 IN SENATE FOR HIS CENSORSHIP
Penrose, Moving for Inquiry, Calls Bureau One of
 "Misinformation"

Calls Bureau One of
 "Misinformation''
 Washington, July 25-Senators Lodge and Penrose were charged with .ex- .hibiting a. spirit of "Copperheadism by Senator James of Kentucky yes- terday in the debate on the Pennsyl- yanda,s resolution to investigate the Committee of Public Information. Bit ter personal retorts and angry refer ences to George Creel, chairman or the committee, marked the session. I q want to deny first and 1ast,' said IS5entor Penrose, replying to the taunt of Senator James, that I am attack ing anybody. But do say that In my opinion the administration of both the Navy aid War Departments is mark ed by ialdecision and inefficiency, which rapidly will fbecorne, at the present rate a public scandal, and I propose to investigate it at the earliest possi- b1e moment.''
 | And you probably have as much basis for your statement as you have | for ,your resolution" Senator James hotly retorted. "Is that ,cupperhead- ism? Is that sniping? No, rising to the dignity of neither, it is merely Penroseing Such an attempt to make peanut politics as has been made by 1.-the senator from Pennsylvania, MT. l Penrose, will not affect the public in the slightest degree
 The Penrose resolution directed the Secretary of the Navy to send to the Senate copies of the official despatches lrelating to the encounter of the Amer icam feet with submarines, as de- scrIbed in a statement issued July 5 over the signature of Secretary Dam tiels by Mr. Creel At the close of the morning hour the resolution went to the calendar, from which 1t will re- qutre a majority vote to recall it.
 The contrih1tion of Senator Stone to the debate was a question as to what good would come of the investigation proposed and the statement that MT. ICreel had the right to exaggerate if he desired to do so.
 'fHe is employed by the government, and if he perpetrated fraud should be called to account said MT. Pen rose.
 In reply to the criticism levelled by Senator Penrose at the Secretary of the Navy and the assertion of Senator Lodge that Congress was Justified in watching the expenditure of the $1OO,- GOO voted to the President as an emergency war fund at the beginning of the present session, Senator James :. said:
 The senator from Massachusetts says we have a perfect right to inves- tigate the s10O. .00o.000 fund being used by the President. Of course Congress
 has. but I do not believe the country
 shares with the senator from Massa. chusetts, or any other senator, in g |, spirit of a lack of confidence in the
 President of the United States. I dc not believe this early in the war this . spirit Of apprehension, this spirit O.
 attack upon men who are bearing the multiplicity of duties and hard bur
 dens must be had in order to make
 their work more onerous"
 Does the Senator mean to sugges that the President is not spendin, this money properly?" demande. Senator James, with anger. at anothe
 point.
 l, "I never implied any such thing. s returned the Massachusetts Senator I But the President is not sacred, an,
 we have the right to inquire abou
 public expenditures.''
 Senator Swanson charged that tn
 resolution of Senator Penrose wa
 directed at the navy and not at tn iI 'ConmftSee pf Public Information
 He declared Mr. Penrose had becom
 indignant because efforts were bein
 made to force the coal operators t
 fix a reasonable price for the nav ]. and for the public. MT. Swanson als e said that no peace was possible unt
 Germany gave up her present pur poses and that the German Chancel q 1or's speech was a challenge.
 In opening, Senator Penrose ha i. said there was dissatisfaction wit fna office of P11h1io Jnforr, a v,
 that it should be called "Commit
 tee on Misinformation." MT. Cree
 he declared, had "trified aeriousl
 with information the people are CT f titled to have in correct form" whil .o Secretary Daniels had made the o1 IS fense worse by giving as the only @ " cuse his own and MT. Creers exubel J ance.
 O Senator Lodge said he agreed wit c Senator Swanson in what he latte
 said of peace talk at present. He il
 sisted that there was no better frien
 of the American navy than he, ar
 that he was criticising only MT. Cree
 land thank Go, MT. Creel is not u
 American navy After detailir lo what had happened on the voyage the American expeditionary force ar 0 saying thas spies in the departmel 10 knew of the sailing plans, Senat. 4 Lodge went on: ., "The objection is made that the ot simple facts, greatly to the credit f the American navy, were treated o' Mr. Greet with a large and bombast " account A despatch came to tn
 country showing that part of o1
 troops had arrived. It ought not m have been published. The news b ,e reaus had that information but d :, not publish it. It got out throus J. the commission of MT. Creel, and tn ss disturbed the Secretary of War al
 justly when the news got out.
 "Congress refused to give MT. Gre