The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1918-07-13
HUGHES REPORT
Will SHOW BIG
AIRCRAFT WASTE
Investigation at Big Plants at
Dayton Has Assumed Seri-
Gus Aspect.

WASHINGTON, D. c., July 13.-In-
vestigation of the aircraft situation by
former Justice Charles E. Hughes Il
known to be assuming a serious as
pect and developments Of an import
ant nature are expected following Mr..
Hughes report to the president.
1t Is known that tremendous waste
Of money. Of time. and Of manufactur-
ing resources has Deen disclosed, and
there are intimations that proflteering
Of q character which cannot be salts
factorily explained is included in the
list Of charges against some Of the
men formerly identified with aircraft
production.
Mr.. Hughes has been conducting an
investigation at Dayton. O.. the home
of the Dayton Wright Airplane COM
pany, and was Joined there recently
by the attorney general. They are in
Quiring into the relations existing be-
tween Col. Deeds. recently relieved Of
aircraft construction duties, and the
heads Of the Dayton-Wright company
and other contractors in the Dayton
district.
Col. Deeds Varied Interests.
Col. Deeds, before entering the air
plane production service Of the gov
ernent, had been one Of the chief
owners OF the company which manu-
factured the Delco ignition and light
ing systems for automobiles. Ar
rangements to place the Delco system
in all government airplanes was &C
counted for by the declaration that It
wns the best ignition system. The con-
trolling heads Of the Dayton-Wright
Airplane company are Talbot and
Kettering. Col. Deeds and Mr.. Ket-
terfng were formerly with the United
Cash Register company at Dayton.
They left that company to form the
Dayton Engineering Laboratories COM
pany, from which title is derived the
trade name Delco.
Following this successful business
venture they formed the Domestic En-
gineering company Of Dayton. Next
they organized the Dayton Metal Prod
ucts company, and in this they in
cluded Mr.. Talbot and his son. Then
Talbot, Deeds and Kettering organ
ized the Dayton Wright Airplane COM
pany.
Contracts Focus at Dayton.
Soon after the United States en-
tered the war. Col. Deeds went to
Washington and became identified
with the aircraft construction plans
Of the government. Col. Deeds said
he had withdrawn entirely from the
Wright Airplane company. He
had sold his interest in the Dayton
Metal Products company to Messrs.
Talbot and Kettering for nearly half
a million dollars. For the Delco COM
pany sold to the United Motors cor
poration, Ketterings and Deeds re-
ceiyed stock and notes. The Domes-
tic Engineering company organized by
Deeds and Kettering was taken over
ny the Dayton-Wright company. The
latter concern consisted at the begin
ming Of the war Of little more than a
laboratory for experiments with air
craft. But the company soon was as
sured Of contracts amounting to be-
tween s26.o00.0oo and $2S.ooo,oo0.
The Dayton Metals Products COM
pany, which had been filling contracts
for Great Britain and Russia. was also
given ontricts by the American gov
errment and the Domestic Engineer
ing company as part Of the Dayton
Wright company. was included to the
plans for aircraft construction.
In on AIrraft Field.
The government wanted an aircraft
field near Dayton. Control of 1000
acres Of land had been acquired by
Col. Deeds in connection with a con-
servation enterprise, and this was
transferred to the Dayton Metal Prod
uts company, which in turn leased It
to the government For the construc-
tion OF the aviation field buildings and
for supplies Of lumber Col. Deeds and
Mr. Talbot Of the Dayton-Wright
company recommended that contracts
be awarded to the Dayton Lumber
company and to a contractor named
King. 1t later developed that both
were financed by the Dayton Metal
Products company.