The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1918-03-09
Promoters Lawyer Sues for
Papers Seized by Attorney
General Lewis
AMOUNT INVOLVED
ABOUT S6,OOO,OOO
Has Hundreds Of Thousands of Dollars
in Banks and Hosts of Friends
Called Upon for Statement.

NEW YORK, March 9-Frank j.
Godsol, the former secretary
of the French purchasing mission, who
is alleged to have taken $6,0000O0 il
legally in commissions for distribut-
ing war contracts among automobile
manufacturers here, began an effort
yesterday to defeat the attempt of the
French government to extradite him.
| Godsol, who was SO aggrieved when
| Attorney General Lewis refused to let
him tell his story to Gov. Whitman
| that he went to Palm Beach, leaving
the attorney general s inquiry fiat on
its back, has no intention of telling
his story to the French authorities if
he can help it.
Siegfried Hartman, one of Godsol s
attorneys, secured an order to show
cause why the attorney general should
not be restrained from further examin-
alton of the papers seized in the raid
on Godsol 5 office at S West Fortieth
street Tuesday. Justice McAvoy
signed the order and made it return
able for argument III the supreme court
next Monday. In the meantime the
seized papers remain ut the office OF
the attorney general, 299 Broadway
Alfred l.. Becker, deputy attorney
general, said that 80 per cent Of the
papers had been examined before the
order TO show cause was served. Tie
said that while much information haC
been obtained relating TO Godsol s wa
contracts, nothing had been found t,
connect him with Germans or German
propaganda.
"Godsol operated seven theatres il
Germany prior to the war said Nj
!, Becker. When war broke out he re
turned TO France and lost his theatres
There were some lawsuits pending an,
, he got one Blumenthal, an American
citizen, to 90 to Germany for him an,
get information. When Blumenthal re
turned to France, Godsol presented hin
to French general, who was anxiou
2 TO talk with. man who had ihst re
/ turned from Germany.
= " Among the filing cases seized at
Q West Fortieth street we found a mum
y Der bearing the name of the German
Q official war films. There were n
Y papers in these eases. We have foun
n Abraham Goldberg, president Of tn
Alliance Motors corporation, whic
! Godsol organized, was interested
/, these films, which were purely Germa
d propaganda designed to influence Anne
: lean sentiment There is nothing to il
q dicate that Godsol had anything to d
e with these films.
p Mr.. Becker said he would like vel
= much to have q talk with Godsol 5 a
sociates in the Alliance Motors eorpo
e alton, but doubted if it would be 20
ID sible He said that Goldberg, the pre-
lie ident, is in Mount Clemens. Mich, al
Ii. Louis }. Rosett, the secretary, is
ea Chicago.
u Godsol s lawyers issued statemel
III III which they said that his arrest W
ramitcation of a French polite
tempest revolving around Abe
Thomas. formerly minister of nun
tions, who caused Godsol to be appoir
,e ed as secretarytreasurer of the pu
chasing mission.
The papers seized by the deputy {
sh tornev general east light on Godsol
an activities as Il dealer in imitati
he iewelry, in the theatrical business a
n as a wartime automobile broker
it He made good deal of money
C. each line of business said Mr. Bee
IS er, but he made the most in the Ii
about which he knew the least-au
mobiles.
In the theatrical business God
was associated with A. H. Woods a
oy the Shuberts. Mr. Becker said he h
- heard that Godsol negotiated the I
deal that allied Woods and the 81
in. berts.
,as Godsol 5 bank books were interest
as exhibits seized in the raid. He had
he posts running into the hundreds
ess thousands in dozen local banks S
gle deposits ranged as high as $1,000