Arizona republican., 1918-07-23
ARMY OFFICERS
 ARESUSPECTED
 IN GRAF I DEAL
Extensive Conspiracies In volving Bribery and Fraud
 In Raincoat Contracts Dis closed. Many Are Arrested
IRepubIican A.P, Leased Wlre1

NEW YORK, July 22-Extensive conspiracies involving bribery and graft in connection with army con- tracts for rubber rancoats sent to sol diers in France. were disclosed to- night by department of justice officials, simultaneously with the arrest of IT officers and employees of 15 manufac- turing companies in New York and Brooklyn on charges of bribery, fraud and conspiracy.
 Officers of the corporations involved are under surveillance and probably will be arrested soon in Washington or other cities
 Hundreds of thousands of dollars of raincoat contracts are tainted with fraud already uncovered by department of justice agents and other disclo- sures affecting army orders for cloth ing, soldiers equipment. machinery and supplies and involving arrests on similar charges may be made soon, it was learned.
 Officers Are Suspected
 Most army officers at whom the finger of suspicion points are of the lower ranks but a few of the ranks of ! major and colonel are said to be under investigation.
 | Direct bribery of unnamed army of ! ficers who had charge of letting con- 1 tracts or inspecting goods is charged against d number of those arrested 1 tonight.
 | It was announced that in some cases | manufacturers intimidated military or civilian inspectors of raincoats by threatening to use influence in Wash ington to obtain their dismissal if they did not approve the coats manufac- tured. Others practiced fraud by. see- retly shifting rejected goods to other plants to which inexperienced in | spectors or those who would play the game" were assigned.
 Those Already Arrested
 Those arrested were: Felix Gouled. a wealthy clothing manufacturer, who | is charged with acting as "go be- tween for other contractors and with seeking to solicit contracts under the illegal contingent fee system; Joseph Sydeman. William Sydeman and Joseph Wood of the Sydeman Rubber company; Ralph Cohen of the York 1 shire Manufacturing company; Ralph Rosenthal of Haneuer and Rosenthal: : Alfred Zittel of the Automobile Rain coat company, Inc; Louis Fried $. Halpern of the Interborough Raincoat company; Polly Clamons of the Man chester Waterproof Coat company; L
 NJ. Halpern of the National Cement company; Simon Harris of the Harris Raincoat house: Morris Lesser of Les
 ser and Stenge: Joseph Pines of the
 Pines Rubber company, and L. I. H.
 Yellim of the Eureka Rubber Manu-
 featuring company.
 Roundup Consumed Weeks
 The roundup follows weeks of inves
 tigation of agents of tke department
 of justice and war and navy depart
 ments
 The arrests are an outgroWth of the
 governments campaign against the il-
 legal system by which scores of agents
 have obtained army contracts on z ' contingent fee basis.
 ! Significance is attached to the simi- larity of stories told contracto bN several contingent fee agents operat.
 ing independently inasmuch as eaci named the same officer or officers il ' Washington as being susceptible t, money gifts. Quite uniformly, it wa. the experience of a group of contract { ors acting in good faith, to fail to ob ; tain raincoat contracts. which went |, higher bidders, and later to receiv, l. telephone calls from men who guar anteed to obtaln contracts on paymen of retainer fees.
 Coats Fell to Pieces
 In running down evidence the gov ernment agents found the trail led t I Boston and Philadelphia where con tingent fee agents operated extensive ly by the telephone conversation method. It is understood a number O !, persons in these cities are under sur veillance.
 = Department of justice officials to | night declared that many of the rub 5 Der coats furnished by contractor
 charged with fraud were reported un ' satisfactory by General Pershing. In :, vestigation developed. it was said tha !. through bribery of inspectors, rotte i, cloth and rubber was used for tn !. coats. dimensions were scantier tha Il specifications, and seams were not ce
 mented properly. A few rain storm
 were sufficient, it was said, to mak these coats fall to pieces. | --O--