Pine Bluff daily graphic. (Pine Bluff, Ark.) 1893-1942, 1919-12-19
FIND HUNDREDS
<>QUANlE;: RED ON
HOUSING PLANS
Senate Committee Declares
Government Should Fake
Steps to Recover Money
EXTRAS ALSO MADE
THE COST ENORNI0I =
'Ovorhead' and ~ub-letting Charges
to- be I'robaa-Buiiding4 not
Completed Until After
the Armjsiice

Washington, Dee. 18.-lneffi=
cheney, carelessness and a disrc-
gard of the provisions of the act
under which it operated were
charged against the United States
Housing corporation by the sem
ate public buildings and grounds
investigating subcommittee today
in report recommending that
steps be taken to recover many
thousands Of dollars alleged by
the subcommittee to have been
expanded improperly by the cor
poration.
Mismanagcment by the corpo-
ration, the report, as submitted to
the senate charged, resulted in its
failure to have ready for occupan-
cy a single building until almost
two months after the armistice
was signed, or eight months after
the passage of the appropriation
act.
Altho citing specific cXpendi-
lures sufficiently grave to war
rant the government in entering
civil suits for restitution, the re
port expresses the opinion that ir
most of these cases the persons
who profited will restore volun-
tarily the alleged unearncd por-
ton.
Other recommendation made
by the subcommittee provide that
architects who, it is charged, were
paid excessively for "overhead
expenses, be called on to give the
committee an exact statement OF
the amount of their overhead eX-
penditures. These employees OF
the corporation, the committed
believes were not parties to in.
.tpntional violation of the law
and off they are actuated by the
patriotic principles attributed tc
them, they will refund the sums
paid them in excess of the exact
cost Of the overhead" The amount
the committee considers recover
able from this source is placed at
$4,000.
Made Loans Also.
Civil suit to recover $4,000
spent for extras" and $4,000
charged to sub-letting of labor by
q contracting firm was also rec
commended by the committee in
the event of failure to return
the money voluntarily. The Eek
tras" were charged as incident to
the construction Of the dormitories
in Washington for women way
workers, in connection with which
it was alleged original estimates
were radically altered indicating a
willingness to "substitute the con-
tractors demands for the esti-
mating division Judgment"
Regularity of a loan for a half
million dollars made to the Spring
field Consolidated Water company
Of Philadelphia also was question
ed in the company's report, togeth-
er with ether "loans to railroads
street railways and utility compa-
MES"
The latter concerns were not
identified.
Chage of inefficiency and bad
management were more prominent
in its report than references to
overpayments. While attention
is called to the denials of the of
ficials of the corporation that
they intended to let contracts for
more than the appropriation act
provided, the report declares the
officials had planned, according
to the records secured by the
committee, the expenditure of
$145 IT'S sos, altho the amount Of
the appropriation was 100000
600.
Practically all buildings erected
by the corporation were OF a
permanent character, the commit
tee reported, Notwithstanding the
provision that they be of a tenn