Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1919-01-12
a. : Z
NEW YORK OFFICIAL
.l|lnHHOLDS PAPERS
~
Documents in German Prop
S uganda Inquiry Are
Kept Secret.
SENATOR REED OBJECTS
SENATOR REED OBJECTS

1t developed yesterday at the hearing
rmittee on German propaganda that
attorney General Gregory refused to
allow certain papers asked for by
the committee to be presented and
that after they were brought to
Washington several days ago from
New York, under orders from Gov.
Smith, they were returned by the
same messenger that brought them.
The papers dealt with an investiga-
tion by the states attorney general
of New York and purport to show
payments made to investigators in
connection with activities of German
agents in New York and to men who
investigated alleged visits to the
home of William Randolph Hearst by
former German Ambassador Bern
storff and Bolo Pasha. the Frenchman
convicted of treason last year.
Mr.. Gregory based his refusal to
allow the papers to be presented on
the ground that they deal with prose
cutions which the Department of JUS
tice expects to conduct in the future.
Request by Senator Reed.
Senator Reed of Missouri. who APP
peared in the hearing to cross exam
inc Fred l.. Becker. deputy attorney
general of New York asked the COM
mittee to request Attorney General
Gregory to produce the papers so that
the committee may examine them con-
fidentially and eliminate those which
properly could not be made public.
Attorney General Gregory's action
was revealed by Mr.. Becker while I'M
der cross-examination by Senator
Reed.
The papers. which have been in the
possession of the New York state Of
ficiaIs. were ordered by Chairman
Overman several days ago at the re-
quest of Senator Reed.
On January I. New York Attorney
General Newton and Mr.. Becker
agreed that the papers could prop
criy be sent to Washington and ac-
cordingly they were sent here. When
yesterday morning he went to the
Department of Justice and was in
formed by John Lord q Brian that the
papers had been sent back.
Commute. Fails to Rule.
Maj. E. Lowry Humes. counsel for
the committee asked that all of Sena-
tor Reeds cross-examination of Mr.
Becker be stricken from the record on
the ground of irrelevancy, but this re-
quest was reserved for consideration
in executive session. The committee
had not ruled on the motion of Sena-
tor Reed for return of the papers from
the ofsice of the attorney general of
New York when 1T adjourned until
tomorrow.
Senator Reed questioned Mr.. Becker
about report given to New York
by Bolo in honor of Hearst. and in
which it was made yk6 appear that
Capt. Boyd and Capt. Won Papen,
formerly identified with the German
embassy here. were in attendance
This, Mr.. Becker said. was an error
caused. he believed. by improper
punctuation in the statement of for
mer Attorney General Lewis. as 1t had
been intended only to convey the i'm
preston that Won Papen and Boy Ed
had been identified in a general way
with Bolo and Won BeruStorff. He said
he thought the papers corrected it.
Didn't Like Methods.
Rerley Morse of New York. an ac-
c0untant who was. employed on the
Bolo investigation questioned by Sena-
tor Reed, said he had withdrawn from
the Investigation. but preferred not to
give the reasons. Later he said he did
not like Dir. Becker's methods"
Senator Reed asked il II were not
fact that a great many people visited
the. Hearst residence daily .-and in a
sense it might almost be said that Mr.
Hearst keeps open house.
Mr.. Becker said he did not believe
that was II ae- since process-servers re-
Gently had difficulty in finding hearst
and after. six weeks effort 1inaliy had
to<Eet service by publication.
Referring to British propaga nda in
the United States before Am rfea en-
tered the war. Mr.. Becker said:
There has been more nonsense told
about what the British sec.et s.rv-
ice was doing thar anything else
Joseph a. Moore, general manager
for the sHearst International Library
and international Magazine Company,
told the committee that the testimony
OF Capt G. b. Lester OF the military
intelligence department that Mr..
Hearst owned the Deutschland Lii
brary was q .glaring misstatement."
The Deutschland Library was formed
by. ]. l. Perkins former employee
of the Hearst library interests, Mr..
Moore declared. and Mr.. Hearst had
no interest in it.