The citizen-Republican. (Scotland, Bon Homme County, S.D.) 1???-19??, 1917-02-01
New Yorker Named by Lawson.
Testifies He Knows Moth
ing Of Any Cabinet Off
icer-Senator Deal.
DENIES LAWsoN's CHARGE
Reserve Bank Rents Offices in
Building Owned by His Firm
After Suggestion to
Cabinet Member.

1
New York. Jan. s0-Pliny Fisk. q New
York banker named by Thomas w.
Lawson as the banker in the mysterious
cabinet OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES In
yestigation. today denied that he had
ever been interested with Secretary Nc
Adoo or a senator in any joint stock
After denying thai his firm had ever
received from the treasury department.
ANY advices which any Wall
street firm might not have received"
Pliny Fisk admitted that the federal
reserve bank had leased Offices in Q
building owned by his firm after he had
suggested to Secretary McAdoO that the
offices were "the best adapted OF any
in the street."
No Securities Bought.
"Have you ever purchased or caused
to be purchased in the last four years
any securities in which Secretary Nc
Adoo was interested?" Sherman M.
Whipple, counsel for the investigating
COMMITTEES, asked.
Il nave not Fisk replied with great
emphasis.
AS one Of the bankers for h Hudson
& Manhattan terminals, of which Mr.
McAdoo was president, Fisk said he
came in contact with McAdoo and Har-
yey Fisk & Sons, Of which Fisk is y
member, also closed up some ef h
secretary's business when he entered
the cabinet, but since that time he
has had virtually no business relations
with him.
In the last four years." whipple
asked, have you made any requests OF
the secretary"
IT have not" Fisk said. ITO use q
homely expression, 1 have leaned back
wards In that respect"
Doesn't Save Letters.
Fisk said hat he had personal cor
! Y~asnNn1anca with tho cacroforu hY1f
had preserved none Of it.
Fisk was brought into the inquiry by
Thomas w. Lawson, declaring at the
hearings in Washington hat Archbold!
White told him Fisk had boasted to him
that he controlled Secretary McAdoo
and had offered late one night to sum-
mon McAdoo from his bed by telephone.
Lawson also said he heard Fisk was
connected with the peace note Teak"
Fisk denied that he ever had a con-
Nersation with White as described in
the lawson testimony.
Closed Up Business.
The banker said he knew White only
slightly" Asked if he had anything
to do with closing up McAdoo's busi-
ness affairs after he entered the treas
ury, Fisk replied ALTERNATELY. Upon en-
tering the cabinet Fisk said, McAdoo
turned over all CT his securities largely
bank and trust company stock, to
FisSs firm and on them obtained n
1 wal VI l. ISyoOVs III !, L
Fisk said. all of the securities having
been disposed of, the debt was liquid
ated and a surplus was turned over to
McAdoo.
Firms Building Leased.
Have your firm" asked Whipple,"
ever enjoyed advantages in regard to,
the transactions with the treasury de-
partment?"
Never advantages which any other
Wall street firm might not have re-
ceived." replied the banker.
II want to ask you a question:, which
1t was decided by the committee in
executive session to put to, you. Is it a
fact that the federal reserve bank oc-
cupied a building belonging to your
firm"
Yes, during the first year and a
half of it's existence"
Thought 1t Proper.
did you talk TO the secretary Of the
treasury about the matter?" pursued
the attorney.
II think 1 did. I told him that our
offices were best adapted to The bank
of any in the street at that time. i said.
| would be very glad to have the fed
eral reserve bank take a lease of our
offices. 1t was just after the outbreak
of the war. Wall street was closed up
and very few offices were available"
Did you ask it as a %favor?"
81 did not ask it as a favor. I thought
we had a right. however, to use any
proper influence we could Use"
McAdoo Refused to Talk.
Mr.. Fisk could not recall the price
charged. Mr.. Whipple placed before
the committee the accounts of the mar
ket dealings of the Fisk firm during
the leak" period and asked if they
contained the names Of any public Of
ficials. The witness replied in the
negative.
Fisk said that since the Teak in
curry started Mr.. McAdoo once de-
cllned to converse with him over a tele-
phone, and again, in a Washington
hotel, said publicly that until the in
vestigation was at an end they would
nave no communication with each
other.
lie added. however, that recently he
mad members of his firm call Mr.. Nc
AdOo by telephone and request him TO
grant an audience to an unnamed man,
VINO was on his way to Serbia in the
interest OF a relief fund.
Denies Peace Note.
FISK said his firm retains in Wash
tngton a newspaper man whose name
he could not recall. to keep it. informed
regarding governmental activities in
which 1t is interested.
He promised to furnish the represent
tatlve,s name later. He denied spe-
c1lcally, however, that his firm had
received any communication from its
Washington representative between
December 10 and December 70. relative
to the peace note.
. In response to questions from Repre-
sentative Bennett the banker said that
IT was his Judgment that the market
! prior to the publication of the presi-
! dents note was in an 'overbought con-
dltlon and ready for a violent drop. All
1T wanted was an
! never" he declared. talked
/, dreamed OF or imagined q pool for stock
! market speculation with Mr.. McAdOo Oh
: any other government official. Oul
business is not stock gambling"
8 The streets OF one English city are
watered entirely by electric npffnkiinG