The Birmingham age-herald., 1919-06-12
Senate Is Told How
 Treaty Text Reached New York Interests
Lodge Says Copy He Saw Was Held by Elihu Root, Who Secured It From Henry P. Davison, Head of the Red Cross
By Associated Pros,


 Washington, June 11.-How the peace treaty reached pri- vate hands in New York and thus stirred up a sensation in the Senate was established to- day at a two-hour hearing be- fore the foreign relations com- mittee.
 Senator Lodge revealed that the copy he saw was shown him by Elihu Root, former secretary of state MT. Root told the committee he got 1t from Henry P Davison. member of the Morgan bank l ing house and head of the Red Cross and Mir. Davison in turn testified it was given him in Paris by Thomas w. La | mont another Morgan partner attached to the American peace mission.
 | J. P. Morgan and Frank A. Wander ] lip, retiring president of the National l City bank. also before the committee said they never had seen copy. With that the committee adjourned without setting a date to continue the hearing and with members on both sides of the treaty controversy saying privately that the investigation apparently was over. l Mir Davison said he had secured the | copy to clear up the status of the Red Cross under the league of nations and never had used it in financial way. He | had shown it to no one except Mir. Root | he continued, and had sent it to him. Mir. Root gave as his opinion that there was nothing improper in the way the treaty reached him and that he was free to use it as he chose. There could be nothing secret about it, he told the com mittee, because the German government had made 1t public.
 l Under questioning MT. Root, who ap peared in the inquiry voluntarily, went on to say that while the Senate was within it's rights in asking for copy after the treaty became public in Ger many President Wilson also was within his in withholding it if he chose. All the witnesses said they had heard rumors of other copies in New York, but did not know whether they existed. Like 1 statements were made in telegrams to the committee by Jacob Schiff of Kuhn, Loeb & Co. and Paul warburg, former l ly partner in the same firm
 i. Tonight the inquiry ordered by the Senate last week seemed to have reached standstii. Senator Lodge and Senator Borah, republicans of Idaho, who made the revelations which started the investi- gation, said they considered the situa- ! tion in the Senate had been improved. and Senator Hitchcock, democrat. of Ne | braska, author of the investigation reso- lution, declared the inquiry showed no dangerous leak in political chanel.
 HAS PECULIAR INTEREST
 Senator Borah questioned MT. pavi- son at length to support his declara- tion in the Senate that the treaty was in the hands of "certain interests" whick were peculiarly interested' n lit. Asked directly whether he had a "pecular interest" in the document. he replied that he certainly had, though he never had used his knowl- edge of the text in an unofficial way.
 MT Morgan and MT. Vanderlip were not examined at length regarding the treaty, but from the latter, who re- gently returned from abroad, the com mittee got considerable information on European countries. Both were ques- toned also regarding the present status of international banking.
 1 In his telegram MT. Warburg ex- pressed willingness to testify should the committee desire it. and Ee probably will be called if the inquiry is resumed MT Schiff asked to be ex cused because of i'll health, saying he was willing to send an affidavit an swering any question.
 Mir. Lamont still is abroad, and opin- ion seemed to be that little would be gained by bringing him here to tes- tify.