The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1919-06-23
PALMER HEARING BEGINS
AND ENDS IN DISORDER
Former Alien Property Custodian
Turns on Accusers and Declares
They Favored Germans.

Washington, June 2O.-Attorney-
General Palmer, at the first public
hearing in the fight to prevent confir-
nation by the Senate of his appoint
ment, turned sharply today upon his
accusers and boldly charged that
they were aligned with German inter-
ests in CONCERTED attempt to dis
credit his administration as alien
property custodian.
During the year and half he was
in charge of the Office Mr.. Palmer de
clared he had been denounced by
every alien and every friend and at
torney of every alien in this country,
and that in Berlin he was characteriz-
ed as the Official American pick
pocket" Every friend of the 10000
aliens whose property had been
seized, was attacking him, he said,
because his organization had seized
enemy property and captured the Ger
man Industrial army in the United
States. 1t would be shown, he told
the & Committee, that the particular
charges lodged against him were not
based on the ground that he had sold
enemy plants at too low a price, but
that he had sold them to Americans
who had turned them TO profitable &C
count.
For nearly five hours the Senate
! judiciary subcommittee conducting
an open inquiry at the request of the
attorney-general, was in continual
snarl. For two hours crowd that
was kept on edge by the tense feeling
breaking out at intervals, witnessed
the remarkable spectacle of an attor
ney-general OF the United States de
Tending his record and slashing at his
enemies before a Senate committee
meeting sitting on his fitness FOL
place in the cabinet.
The bitter feeling that broke out al
the beginning remained to the end
the meeting closing and In disorder
with the announcement by Chairman
Dillingham; that another session
would be held tomorrow to deter
mine future procedure and summon
witnesses, asked for by the complain
ants. There was a strong belief a.
the capitol tonight that no further
hearings of consequence would b,
held and that the committee would
recommend confirmation of Mr.. Pal
mer's nomination.
The first evidence CT bitterness wa.
displayed at the very outset wheI
Senator Walsh, democrat OF Montana
charged Merton L. Lewis. formerl,
attorney general of New York, Will
deceiving the committee last weel
through failure to quote al of tn,
sections Of the law barring on The
right of the alien property custodian
TO seize enemy property Mr.. Levi
who is counsel for Harvey T. An
drews, the principal complainant
frankly stated that he had been Il
error and that he had come pre-
pared to offer his apologies Senate
Walsh retorted that while he accept
} ed the statement without reservation
Mr.. Lewis should realize that tn
committee thereafter could not rel,
on anything he said.
Frequently during the presentation
by Mr.. Lewis Of documentary ev
dence. he FLASHED with Mr.. Palmer
and no effort apparently was mad
by either to conceal his feeling @
hostility During his long and a
times dramatic recital the attorney
! general stood with hair dshevelet
while his voice, thrown to high pitcl
reached far down the corridors.