Norwich bulletin., 1919-04-16
SENSATION IN NEW YORK
 "SLUSH FUND" HEARING

of a sensation was sprung at the close of today's hearing before the senate . judiciary committee into the half mill | lion dollar 'slush fund allegations of | Senator George r. Thompson when Richard H. Burke. the man Thompson 1 said suggested the money. charged the Niagara senator with having admitted | he had been short S15,000 in some Lockport school or church funds" ! Senator Thompson later said he had no knowledge of what Burke was talking about and that the whole af fair was one of "Burke's ina gination."
 This development followed denials by former Governor Whitman and President Theodore r, Shonts and General Attorney James l.. Quacken- bush of the Interborough Rapid Tran sit company of Thompson's testimony
 duplicating them in the slush fund story.
 Former Governor Whitman categor- ically denied that he, as Thompson had testified, had asked the senator on behalf of President Shonts to with draw his opposition to the Carson Martin trolley rate bill. He denied that he had mentioned the governor ship, except incidentally while they were discussing the political situation. He admitted having had luncheon with Thompson at the St Regis hotel on,
 MdGGn LJ anu JIIl | lAOl1DSOB WdS HIS guest. He said, however, that Thomp-
 son had come to the hotel on his own initiative that he had called at the Whitman apartments seeking an inter- view and that the luncheon ensued
 The former executive was careful to emphasize that many others were in
 the dining room and that the Conver-
 sation between the two. was net se i cretive except when Senator Thomp- ! son lowered his voice.
 ! The witness declared Thompson i finally said: There is an awful pres sure and 1 am being pounded to vote for this Martin bill" MT Whitman i said he told the senator he thought the ! Martin bill was good legislation, that ! il he were d senator he would vote for
 it and that if he were governor he ! would sign it.
 1 Thompson asserted that the traction
 interests paid former Governor Charles ] F.. Hughes S50.000 to appear at com
 Inittee hearing ill favor of the measure, ! Mir. Whitman testified.
 l T laughed at this" he continued, 1 and said, Senator, that is the usual talk about lawyers fees. I happen to know that in at least one law office i fees of that kind don't come. 1 don't believe they gave him $50,00O or any thing like it.
 But Thompson insisted they gave him the money because they thought
 he could influence Senator Frederick M. Davenport Davenport likes ued. They gave Charles the Baptist the money because they believed he lcould influence Davenport. They are both pious men, you know, l said knew nothing about that
 There were other things said which I don't recall" the former governor
 continued. There was not a word
 said about any $500,o00 offer
 Lodz the Manchester of Poland
 The Polish textile industry in the
 main is concentrated in three goverTi- mental PiotrlIow, Warsaw
 and Kaiisz. I4Sdz, the Polish Man chester must be regarded as the cen ter of this industry. Textile workers have been settled ill the Lodz dis trict since the hfreen century and al the beginning of the world war i rad $50 ,000 inhabitants The city
 owes it's rapid growth solely to the
 cotton and wool industry in all the phrases Of fabrication. The textile
 factories of Warsaw are concernet only with speciality fabrications, sucf as the manufacture of curtains. laces , carpets, ribbons, cords, etc, Tht !, wool spinning mills are to be founC : mostly at Sosnowice, the linen ant /, flax industry at Zyradow; the grea dressing works at Tomascow; anC f the seat of the embroidery industry a : KaIisz. Sixty per cent of Russian
 production in curtains and 65 pc 7 cent in laces were manufactured il 2 Poland. The country has grea
 number of small embroidery work
 winch almost without exception ar
 controlled by Polish Jews. Tht
 value of Polish embroidery has beei ' estimated at S1250N00o, but this fig - ure is only approximate In the pas S the completed article in the Polis1 % textile industry has been 15 per cent = higher than in Germany. Two req | sons are given for this larger cost 0 the Russian import duty and a highe $ rate of interest charged on bushes = and working capital
 n The second Polish democratic con = gress. sitting in Petrograd at which 50
 delegates were present, resolved { e adopt a Polish policy aiming at tn h restoration of a united, independen = and democratic Poland