The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1920-01-31
TO DETERMINE
 TOTAL COST OF 'RUM0R CHASINC'
Democrats Intend To Call Republicans To Ac-
 count.

washington, D. C., Jan. 31.-Re- publican members of the House of Representatives have been doing little else but Investigating the Democratic Administration since they took over the legislative part of the Govern ment on May 19, when the extra ses- sion convened. Conduct of the yic- torious war, why America startled the world by it's overnight shipping achlevements, and anything else that 1t was thought might furnish po11tI- by an investigating committee
 The Democrats now propose to bring these committees to book and force them to confess officially how much of Uncle Sam's money has been spent in chasing the elusive rumor. The Republican leaders are decidedly reluctant and so far have managed to 'stalP' by having the official vouchers turned in at long intervals. They are on partial record, however. as regards the investigation of the Shipping Board and the War Depart ment from May 19, to July 1, the statement indicating that these two committees alone have spent Between $12O,000 and $150,O00 in those Six weeks.
 As most of the committees anl subcommittee are still function ing'' it is estimated that, counting the cost to the departments that were ! required to detail clerks to satisfy the unlimited Republican curiosity, the total bill rendered the American
 public will closely approach $3;O0O,- | 900 with no results to justify it.
 The House Committee on United
 States Shipping Board operations is l on1n nf n
 luxuriously, having out-junketed the l Frear spruce sub-t smelling com
 mittee in it's search for mares nests l in the Pacific Northwest. The Ship ping Board took a private car last summer for a jaunt to the Pacific l Coast, and plan a couple of more trips soon, one to New England, an- other to South Atlantic points. Thus
 far it has expended $12, 2,234.64 accord
 ing to the figures submitted to the
 House Appropriations Committee by William Tyler Page, clerk of the | House.
 Three Representatives occupied the
 private car at an expense of $4,061.25. 1 MT. Pages explanation of that being "they (the committee headed by Rep- resentative Joseph Walsh of Massa- i chusetts found it more economical to l get a special car than to go on regu-
 lar tickets A representative of the | Shipping Board accompanied them. The Select Committee to investigate
 War expenditures, popularly known
 as the "smellers'' is alleged to have spent but $75,000 up to July 1, but 1 the Democrats believe the total to | have been many times that sum. i Everyone of the five sub-comm mittees
 has taken prolonged trips, one gong 1 to France, another to the Pacific | Coast, a third all over the country visiting camps, a fourth darting from North to South and East to West in
 an attempt to find fraud in contracts, l and the fifth undertaking a merry go-round search for pofteering in the | quartermaster' supplies
 "I do not know personally anything
 about the work of these Investigating 2 | committees,'' said Chairman James w. Good. Republican, of the House Appropriations Committee, "but I dc | think it is a false theory to con- 1nence to investigate matter simply because a large appropriation was
 made for particular purpose. have
 wondered whether the investigating
 committees were trying to blow the
 whole field and go into ali eXpend1-
 lures, even if they have no idea there
 is any waste or eXtravagance, or that there has been any misuse of the Governments appropriations"
 House Clerk Page also expressed
 himself skeptically before the Ap-