Republican farmer., 1919-10-03
GIVES
 IDEA HOUSE IS KANGAROO COURT
Has Caused Much Feeling on Oregon Spruce
 Junket.

Washington, Sept. 30 According to newspaper comments the path of the sub-"sm melling'' committee of the House of Representatives select com mittee to investigate war expenditures is far from being of roseate nature during it's junket to the Pacific coast. It appears that James A. Frear, the Republican chairman of the sub smellers," is adopting the same methods in Investigating the spruce tndustry's part in the aviation pro- gram as he showed in washington when he attempted to frighten Chair man Homer s, Cummings of the Dem ocratic National Committee. That tiasco caused many laughs in many newspapers.
 The Republican majority of the spruce "smellers" have given out sev- eral statements attacking various per- sons and corporations, all Of which 1 have been denied and disproved. It is charged that if witness does not testify in the manner. desired by l Chairman Frear-that is, relate tales | Of vast unnecessary expenditures-he 1 is immediately squelched. That seems l to be the view of the Portland Jour | paper of Oregon's largest city, as ex- pressed recently in an editorial term | ed, "Is This a Sample of Congress 9" | This comment on the Frear methods | begins:
 1 ''Is this really a part of Congress? Is all Congress in all it's parts the empty, unfair, hypocriticaI sham that Chairman Frear's stellar perform ances in the spruce inquiry are?
 That is the thought in the minds l of many who look on at Chairman Frear's treatment of witnesses His manner is that of thicknecked po-
 lice court lawyer. He brings the American House Of Representative down to the level of kangaroo 1 court. Innuendo and insinuatfon are i sumption that the chairman and just a. few other persons are honest, and that all those who struggled out here l in the West to get out spruce are crooks"
 The Journal then refers to the Frear methods when a witness hap
 pens to testify favorably to the lum- 1 bermen, saying that '"The chairman
 bullied, badgered and insulted Gen
 eraI Disque because of the latter's ac-
 tivity In establishing the eight-hour
 day in the camps and mills," and
 added, The chairman's efforts to smear mems reputatious and taint their good names in a mad desire to
 get something on the government,
 are so obvious as to be perfectly transparent and perfectly understood.
 It is making the investigation ridicu-
 lous It is reducing 1t to a farce"
 Further commenting upon the Frear methods in connection with
 what is a really important investiga-
 tions, the Journal editorial says:
 There should be an honest probe.
 Crooked transactions, if there were such, should be brought to light. The people are entitled to know It
 should be done for the protection of
 the government and the public ser
 vice. It should also be done for the
 sake of General Disque, Northwest , 1 lum bermen and all in the spruce di- vision. A great trust was committed
 to General Disque. It was no less
 task than to supply most Of the air
 plane material for an unparalleled , war, war in which 56,ooo.0 .000 men } were under arms. The fate of the
 world hung upon the endeavors here in the Northwest. The cry was for speed, speed, speed. The expectation i was that the war would last five
 years. not that 1t would end in l9 months. To meet this tremendous re-
 sponsibiIity was the part committed
 to General Disque, and in the light ; of the fact that he raised the pro
 duction of atrplane material from less than 100000 to 1S,00o,ooo feet l a month, he is entitled to fairness,
 and all the lumbermen and 1oggers
 are likewise entitled to an honest, un- biased and dignif1ed inquiry"
 As to the political aspect of the : Frear methods, the Journal concludes:
 "If the chairman could hear the l remarks of his own party about what
 they term the prosecution and the | persecution he would realize that he Is making a farce of what ought to
 be a patient, purposeful, dignifed in- ; vestigation."
 Members of the House of Repre-
 sentatives are hearing of the details
 of the spruce investigation on the
 Pacific Coast, and when Chairman Frear makes his report he is likely , to encounter a merry heclxling, ac-
 cording to all predictions