New-York tribune., 1918-09-16
Childs Turns On
Prose cutors of
Fusion Managers
Freed by Court, He Calls
Charges Attempt to Scare
Independents
Py BRIGGS

William Hamlin Childs, chairman of
the executive committee of the Fusion
committee Of 1917, charged yesterday
that the indictments against members
OF the committee, just quashed, con-
stltuted "a sinister political prop
aganda in the personal interest Of the
Hearst-Swann combination,' prepara-
tory to the governorship election this
fall.
Following the decision handed down
on Friday by Supreme Court Justice
Finch, MIR. Childs yesterday sent this
letter TO the members of the COM
mittec:
AS your committee knows, some
months ago special grand jury pre-
sented indictments against Messrs.
Sulzer, Newcomb and myself, from
which the public and the newspapers
might have assumed that we had been
guilty of misreporting the expenditure
Oh moneys collected by your committee
IN the Fusion campaign to reelect
Mayor Mitchell.
Did Nothing Indictable
"Thr Supreme Court on Friday last
annuiled the indictments. The decision
was rendered by Supreme Court Jus
tlce Fitch. who said:
He (Childs) had done nothing for
which he is indictable, even assuming
that the facts are true, and the grand
jury was without jurisdiction.'
Nr. SuIZor was Daiu 81 OOO for
speeches. Mr.. Mischa Applebaum, Of
the Humanitarian Society, was paid
So,o00 Tor speeches, concerts and plan
OF campaign. Both these items an
peared IN the report of the City Public
lty Committee under the head of
speakers. meetings, etc. as one item
Oh 81 ,ooo. The indictments were based
soiely upon the contention Of the Dis
trlct Attorney that the names of
Messrs. Sulzer and Applebaum should
nave been mentioned in connection
with this item. There was no charge Of
hlsapproprlation of money or of I'M
proper expenditure of funds.
personally, was not a member Of
inc City Publicity Committee. did
rot sign the report and have never
seen 1t. | made no suggestion as 70
Ife manner IN which the report should
be made up. | gave only one instruc-
'ioh @po"I IL, ana that was that if
should receive the approval of legal
counsel before filing and should be
accofdlng to law IN every detail. It was
50 sunni sted 10 our counsel. and he
.ohtehdS mat 1T fully complies with
the law. There was no possible object
IN attempting 10 conceal the names of
Sulzer and Applebaum. and tbeir &C.
fIvltles IN the campaign were known
70 the press and the general public
after al! the months of effort and OK
iehse oy the District Attorneys office
'he result is a vindication by the Sn-
preme Court
Sinister Political Propaganda"
1T is apparent that the whole in
Vestigatlon has from the first been
sinister political propaganda in the
personal interest of the Hearst-Swann
com blnatlon, as groundwork for this
rams state election. For when the in
vestlgation was started the state had
not yet escaped the menace of Hearst's
candidacy. The Hearst press has CON
tinuously misrepresented the Fusion
Committee OF 1917 by almost daily ref
erences to its expenditures of a .Slush
fund. There was no 'Slush Fund as
the grand jury investigation has
proved
- convincing evidence of the polit-
cal object of this investigation is the
attitude of the District Attorney re-
gardlng the Democratic records If it
was the disinterested desire of the
District Attorney to protect the com
munity from the evils forbidden by
the corrupt practices act, it was his
duty to investigate the Dem oc ratir roe