Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1919-04-08
REPORT OF COMMITTEE INvEs'
TioArINo ExPosHAoN CON-
MISSION IN ~ TUESDAY.
wooowoRTH >cLUM SAYS
HE WELCOMES PROBE
Secretary Of Commission Says Only
e Vouchers Lacking Are Those Cover
inc Expenditures Before Legislature
Appropriated Funds - lnvestis alton
Resolution.
,ciai to Times Republican.

Special to IlmeS- kcpuhiican,
Des Moines, April s.-The senate
committee appointed Monday to inves-
tigate the charges brought by j. Nj.
Pierce, publisher Of the Iowa Home
stead, against Woodwork Clum, secre-
tary of the Iowa Panama Pacific ex-
position commission, and the commits
sion, began its work today. Pierce
charges that there has never been
proper accounting of funds.
Senator Milton B. Pitt, of Harrison
county. who is chairman Of the special
committee, said today the investiga-
ton should not take long. He said
that the matter had been gone over by
the retrenchment and reform commit
tee and that 1t would probably not re-
quire examination Of many witnesses
to get at the facts.
My position is that these charges
have been made by Mr.. Pierce over
his own signature and the senate
should not sit by and ignore them"
said Senator Pitt
The motion passed by the senate
requires that a report must be brought
in by Tuesday. April Is. II will there
fore require night sessions and prompt
action by the committee in order to
conclude it's Investigations by the date
set.
Cium Welcomes Inquiry
Secretary Noodworth Clum. of the
Greater Iowa Association. who is in
Des Moines. says he will welcome the
Investigations He is anxious to have
the matter cleared up. The position of
Clum is that the state executive coun-
ell should have vouchers for these
amounts which the prObcrs heretofore
working on the case claim can not be
located.
The retrenchment and reform COM
mittee of the Iowa legislature, went
into an investigation of the eXpendi-
lures of these funds and when their
report was filed with the senate early
in the session resolution as passed
by the committee on the Panama Pa
cific funds was a part of the report.
This resolution, passed by the re-
trenciment and reform committee last
summer following its Investigations.
was as follows:
ment and reform committee that
whereas. by chapter G. acts Of the
thirty sixth general assembly the Iowa
commission on the Panama Pacific in
ternational exposition was authorized
to make certain expenditures of public
moneys, and
Whereas, by said act it was pro-
vided that such funds needed by said
commission were to he drawn from the
state treasury upon approval of the
state executive council and that said
executive council should audit and
make an accounting and report all
such funds, so drawn and expended
and.
Whereas. questions have arisen
over the expenditures of various items
and the failure Of the commission to
file proper vouchers for some of these
expenditures, now
Therefore be it resolved, that upon
investigation by this committee Of the
expense report Of 1916 of the executive
council and of various items Of ex-
pense as made in a report furnished
by the Panama Pacific international
exposition commission this committee
recommends that the state executive
council further investigate the ac-
counts of said commission and make
an accounting and report of the funds
drawn and expended by said commits
siop in so far as the same have not
been fully audited and that suitable
investigation be made by said execu-
tive council of such items for which
there are no proper vouchers to the
end that any property or funds Of the
state or any unCXpended balances of
such fund be returned to the state of
Iowa. subject to the order of the eX-
ecutive council and that this resolu-
ton be embodied in the report of this
committee to the Legislature and that
Il copy thereof be sent to the executive
council
An $500 Dinner.
The state executive council has not
yet reported to the senate on the mat
ter of these vouchers.
At the time the expenditures were
Investigated by the retrenchment and
reform committee last summer sub
committee, of which Representative
Rube McFerren. &c Hamilton county.
and Representative J. w. Bailey. of
Shelby county. were members, made a
report in which it charged among other
things that $3.SG5.29 was expended by
the Iowa commission before the pass
age of the appropriation bill for $75.
600. for the commission thru the legis-
!ature and that this amount is unsup-
ported by any vouchers. 1t was report
cd this expenditure was for furniture
railroad fare, salaries, telephone and
telegraph fees. Other items We're set
out for which the committee said there
were mo- vouchers.
This committee also charged that
Secretary Clum spent more than $500
FOR one dinner during governors week.
Clum las later explained that this ex-
penditure resulted in Iowa getting a
big lot Of orders for manufactured
1t