New-York tribune., 1919-07-10
Evidence i'm Film
Graft Case Ready
For U. S. Officials
Assistant District Attorney
to Present the Result of
Inquiry to the Govern
ment Authorities Soon

Assistant District Attorney Tallev
declared yesterday that he would soon
present to the Federal authorities evil
dence concerning the actions of for
mer government officials who are said
to have collected graft through the
sale of government-owned films.
Mr.. Tal]ey said he might present his
report, based on his investigation of
the pictures, Cit to Win" and "The
End of the Road" to Secretary Of the
Treasury Glass. He believes that his
findings will ultimately be placed be-
fore the House Committee on War Ex-
penditures, which recently sent out a
questionable to all government de-
partments regarding motion picture
films that had been made for the gov
ernment.
~ have declined to 20 into the de-
tails of this investigation" said Mr..
Talley, "because 1 think l should first
place those details in the hands of the
government" In his statement Mr..
Talley says:
my information is that these pict-
ures we're first projected with the idea
that they would be used only for gov
eminent purposes and without any
thought that they would be turned over
tor commercial purposes. There is no
doubt that they are government prop
erty, and government employees and vol
unteers who thought they were doing a
patriotic service were utilized in max
ing these pictures.
"a director Of a leading motion pict-
ure studio informed me that an army
officer came to him and represented d
that the studio was desired by the War
department for making one Of the pict-
ures-'Fit to Win-that the army Off
Ger was told that if it was understood
that the picture was not for commercial
purposes, but strictly for camps ard
cantonments, the studio, with its elab-
crate facilities, would make no charge
except for actual disbursements the
studio people regarding it as a patri-
Otto duty to aid the government. On
this understanding the studio was used
to produce Fit to VIM
My information is that a man to
whom the commercial rights to Fit to
VIM We're given was during the max
ing of the picture a $1-a-year man en-
gagged in shipping pictures to canton
ments for the government. Although
$l-a-year man. he was living at the
New Willard Hotel, in Washington, and
his expenses, paid by the government
were $4,000 year.
"Accordng to my information, his
previous experience was as proprietor
of a small movie in a PENNSYLVANIA
town. Since his resignation, which was
coincident with getting the rights to
Fit to VIM he has developed into a
large distributor, apparently control
ling and selling the rights to Fit to
Win for every state in the Union.
Moving picture men generally are
incensed over the action of the gov
ernment in releasing this picture for
commercial purposes, in view of the
large cost of production which was
sustained by the government with
volunteer aid of moving picture
studios, and with the consequent large
increase of profits to the exploiter of
the picture.
""l am informed that an army officer
and a naval officer, both of whom had
come from civil life, and who were in
terested in producing some of these
pictures, under the direction of the
government, have since resigned and
have become connected with the ex-
ploiterS of this film