Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1919-07-07
ACTIVITIES
IN WAR CHARGED
President and Council of De-
tense Scored Before House
Investigating Committee.
big BUSINESS FAVORED"

wv ]
Charges that the President organ
lied the Council of National Defense
tefore war was declared in absolute
violation of law and thereby created
a secret government of the United
states" which formulated war IeSis-
lation. dictated policies the country
was TO pursue and befriended big
business" were made today by Chair
man Graham Of the special House
committee investigating War Depart
ment expenditures
Says Cocktails Defied Powers.
Minutes of the council were read to
the committee by MIR. Graham. to-
gether with report in which ne as
serted the council assumed such broad
powers that Maj. Gen. Goethals.
former chief of the purchase, storage
and traffic division of the War De-
partment. defied it; cabinet members
protested against its activities. and
Judge Gary, president of the United
States Steel Corporation, accused IL
of operating in fragrant violation of
law"
Mr.. Graham declared the President
created the secret government by
ignoring and reversing the intent OF
Congress in authorizing the tablish-
ment of Council of National Defense
in August, 1916. AS authorized by
Congress. he said. the council was 10
be composed of six members of the
abinet. who were to be the real eN-
ecutives. and seven civilians. to be
selected by the President. who were
to act in a purely advisory capacity.
Instead of doing this. Mr.. Graham
asserted. the President made the ad-
visory commission the real executives.
clothing them with unprecedented
and almost illimitable powers
Behind Closed Doors"
Behind closed doors. weeks and even
months before war was declared he
said, these seven men designed prac-
tically every war measure which Con-
gress subsequently enacted. They de-
v:sed the entire system of purchasing
war supplies. planned a press censor
ship, designed a system of food con-
troll, and selected Herbert Hoover as
it's director, and even determined Oh
the daylight saving scheme.
Conceived within the law. but
brought into existence in absolute
violation of law. it is not surpr Sing
to find this secret government of the
United States itself persistently ig-
nored and even violated the law: that
it allowed interested parties to fix the
prices of war materials: that il put
the people of the country to meal
culable unnecessary expense. and car
ried things with a high hand"
Mr.. Graham declared that when Mai.
Gen. Goethals was called at the
eleventh hour to rescue the War De-
partment from the public obloquy
which was fast settling upon il as
result of the methods and incapacity
of the commission, he repudiated and
practically defied it
SOLDIERS Dying of Pneumonia"
Our soldiers were actually dying of
pneumonia in the camps because of
lack of proper clothing and blankets
Mr.. Graham sad, land Gen. Goethals
assumed the duties of quartermaster
general only on condition he should
have free scope in the performance OF
his duties, unhampered by the Council
of National Defense.
Immediately he took from the
members of that council their power
to order purchases and fix prices and
soon dispensed with the services OF
those members of the advisory COM
mission who had SO deplorably bun
gled the control of supplies for the
Army"
Judge Gary advised the advisory
commission. Mr.. Graham said. that it
was operating in disregard of the
Sherman law, the Clayton law and
''all other statutes that are supposed
to regulate business. particularly big
business" When the Attorney Gen
eral was called upon by the commits
sion to answer Judge Gary. Mr.
Graham said, he answered that the
matters referred to as violations Of
rather than a legal question
Bought From Themselves"
'tAfterwar&" Mr.. Graham declared.
when there was evidently a discus
sion in Congress as to the legality OF
members of the committees on the
council buying from themselves the
council discussed this general policy
and it was suggested that this en-
barrasment might be removed by the
plan of the committee reorganization
now under consideration.
THE minutes show that on account
of this So-called embarrassment the
war industries board was created. and
committees were appointed by the
National Chamber of Commerce, so
the letter of the law might be com
piled with, but by which scheme no
part of the method of buying was
changed in the slightest degree, so
far as l can observe"
Various Charges Made.
Citing cases in which he said the
council formulated Legislation before
war was declared which legisla ton
later was considered by Congress. Mr.
Graham declared that on February IL.
1917. the council discussed the draft
system and considered a report from
,iec Co
Howard +. Coffin relative to the exclu-
sion of labor from military service:
on the same day recommended that
Herbert Hoover be employed by the
government in connection with food
control, and ON March 3 Endorsed the
scheme. and recon-
mended a federal censorship of the
press.
About the first thing the commits
sion did was to take up the matter of
an easy method of COM
between the manufacturers
and the government" Mr.. Graham con-
tInued. In several meetings, long be-
fore war was declared. the commission
met with the representatives of the
industries and formed
an organization of them for selling
supplies to the government.
This method consisted of having
the representatives of various bust
NeSSeS, producing SoOuS which the
would have to buy, form
themselves into committees SO they
might be able to sell to the govern
ment direct. When war was declared
this machinery began to move.
Bids Against Each Other.
although this scheme was sup
posed to enable the industries to
ieal with the government as one man.
I'M n 10.
to deal with the industries through
and the CONTRARY