The Morgan County press. (Wartburg, Tenn.) 1916-1926, 1920-04-23
SHOULD BLAME
HIGH OFFICERS
LAWSUITS SHOULD BE INITIATED
AGAINST cREEL, REPORT OF
coNGREsSMEN STATES.
"officiaI Bulletin" Sold BY Federal
Censor to r. w. Babson, Joint Com
mitee contends-War Time Organ
Used BY Propagandists.

mitee contends-War Time Organ
Used BY Propaeandists.
Washington.-Legal proceedings by
the Government against George Creel,
former Chairman of the Committee on
Public Information; Roger w. Babson,
of Wellesley Hills, Mass, and others
concerned in the transfer of the com
mittee's war publication, the Official
Bulletin" to Babson are recommended
in a report made public by Senate"
Reed SmoOt, of Utah, Republican,
chairman, and Representative Edgar
r. Kiess, of Pennsylvania, Republican,
vice chairman of the Joint Congress
sional Printing Committee. The re-
port charges that BabsOn obtained the
Bulletin" in March, 1919, by "secret
connivance" with Creel and others
without the Government receiving a
cent in compensation and urges that
suit be brought to obtain "just COM
pensation" for the Government. MI
merous abuses in Government publica-
lions, including army and navy and
other war service journals, are
charged in the report.
A number of these publications, it
says, were used for propaganda fa-
yorable to the League Of Nations, to
the liquor interests and to officers in
charge. Advertisements, the report as
serts, included "get-rich-quick" oil
speculations and political propaganda
improper in Government publications.
Another alleged abuse Of Government
funds charged by the report was print
Ing of 80, 1862 speeches of Federal
officials at an expense of S442.79S to
the Government. Paper consumed to-
tailed 1,451,000 pounds. AS members
of Congress must pay for copies of
their speeches, the report says, the
"gross abuse" resulting from the free
printing of other Federal officials
speeches should be stopped. The re-
port says that the committee, under
it's power to supervise Government
printing, investigated 266 journals,
magazines and periodicals and discon-
tinued Ill, ut saving of 81 100000 an
nually. Eight army and navy news
papers and magazines were suppressed
at a saving of 100000. '"This has
been done," the report states, with
out single protest from any man in
the ranks, chiefly in whose interests it
had been urged, the publications were
printed.
"The objections to disseminating
came entirely from high ranking Off
GERS. The committee has no desire
whatever to hamper or discourage the
men of the army or navy in publica-
ton of their own magazines and news
papers. In fact. it heartily indorses
and approves such expression OF Amer
icanism. Government controlled, cen
sored or subsidized newspapers are
utterly un-American, and the commit
tee earnestly hopes that this Prussian
idea will find no root or favor here"
A number of the war service publica-
tons, the report declares, were es-
tablished largely for the Self-glorifica-
ton Of certain interests and to provide
comfortable and safe places for a
large number of men who found such
occupation to be more congenial than
active service in the trenches" While
conceding that numerous war publica-
lions were necessary and helpful dur
ing the world war, the report says that
other cravings for the limelight I'M
doubtedly were inspired by the bonn
bastic activities of the Committee on
Public Information, headed by the
master publicist, George Creel." The
law giving to the Printing Committee
control over Government publications,
the report declares, "nipped in the bud
the greatest propaganda scheme the
country ever has escaped"