The New York herald. [volume] (New York, N.Y.) 1920-1924, 1920-12-01
BR0THER-M-LAW
OF WMS0NDENIES
SHIP BOARD BRIBE
Advances Several Reasons
for Sands Story, Which
He Calls Untrue.
ONCE FRIEND, HE SAYS
Comptroller of Board and
Former Secretary Join
Him in Testimony.
TALES ARE CONFLICTING
Tweedale Says $4,000 Was
Paid to Obtain Credit of
1926, ZOO for Downey.
ONCE FRIEND, HE SAYS
TALES ARE CONFLICTING

r. W. Boiling, treasurer of the United
States Shipping Board and brother-in-
law of President Wilson. made vigor-
Gus denial yesterday before the Walsh
committee that he had received part
of the $4,000 which Wallace Downey
is alleged to have paid to Tucker K.
Sands, former president Of the
Commercial Bank of Washington, D.
c.. for the purpose Of obtaining favors
from the board in award Of contracts
to the Providence Engineering Cor
poration.
Mr.. Boiling charged Sands with abus-
ing friendship of many years stand
ing in dragging his name into an az
fair of which he knew nothing. Sands,
like hundreds of other people, he said,
attempted to make use of his position
with the Shipping Board and his sup
posed influence with the President. Mr..
Billing said that Sands asked him to
use his influence with the President to
have an indictment dropped which had
been found against him for violation
VI Tie udllOIldl DdHtlIlS lie Suid
this appeared to be the most plausible
explanation of why Sands had made
the charges against him.
Groundless, Says Tneedalc.
Tho testimony of Mr. Boiling was
corroborated in several parts by Alonzo
Tweedale, comptroller of the Shipping
~ hot h. hoI
into rumors of the bride last July, when
Mr.. Boiling was made treasurer, and
had satisfied himself they were ground
Jess
Lester Sisler, former secretary Of the
Shipping Board, who was also charged
by Sands with taking part of the money.
testified last night that he knew nothing
Of the transaction. He said that Sands
had also asked him to try to get the
indictment quashed. He told Sands
that he would "see what he could do"
He saw Mr. Boiling. he said, and learned
that a similar request had been made
Of him. He said that he and Boiling
agreed that, though Sands had done
them many favors, they saw no way in
which they could interfere legitimately.
When he told this to Sands, he said, he
was charged with having failed TO exert
himeslf sufficiently. Sands pointed out.
Sisler said, that he could not have been
secretary of the Shipping Board If he
had not had some pull" somewhere.
Despite the mass of testimony bearing
on the disposition of the $4,000, the
exact purposes for which IL was used Is
lost in maze of contradictions. Boiling
and Sisler have denied that they got
any money or knew of any such trans
action; Sands has testified that the
money was received and dsbursed for
the sole purpose of obtaining the con-
tract for the Providence Engineering
Corporation and Wallace Downey has
given out statements saying the money
was paid to Sands in his capa city as
vlce-president of the bank for the pur-
pose of establishing n line of credit of
Sl25.000. This amount. II has been
show. never was put to the credit OF the
company, but was diverted to a savings
account and never touched.
MIR. Tweedale said that John Cranor
who was also named by Sands in the
alleged bride, came TO Washington as
representative Of Wallace Downey when
nc learned there was some danger of the
contract not being awarded the Provi-
dence Engineering Corporation. Sands
told Cranor, according to Tweedale, that
he would underwrite the required amount
OF credit for n fee of $4,000 T. f.
New, head of the credit department of
the Emergency Fleet Corporation. was
informed by Cranor that he had ar
ranged credit with Sands letter con-
flr1ning this was received from Sands,
but 1t was not signed as e-president
New insisted that the letter be sent back
and signed by Sands as vice-presdent
and this was done. The contract was
then awarded. Mr.. Tweedale said the
letter from Sands was vital to the letting
of the contract as IL showed the com
pany had credit sufficient to meet ex-
ponses incurred during the first part Of
the construction work.
Admits sum Was Rather High.
Doesn't It seem to YOU" asked Rep
re5entative Kelley, that $40. 900 is an
exorbita1t sum to pay for a credit of
s125,000, especially when this credit was
no good?"
Mn. Tweedale said he thought Il was
rather high, even to the point of being
almost unheard of. He said the con-
tract never would have been let on such
letter II he had been comptroller then
He said that Mr.. Boiling had proved on
many occasions that he was honest and
reliable.
Mr.. Boiling at one point in his testi-
rncny declared that he sometimes wished
he never had become connected with
public work, because of the many at
tempts which were made to impose upon
him. He gave a detailed account OF mis-
financial transactions with Sands. He
said that he frequently had borrowed
money from Sands: that Sands had
been both his personal friend and finan-
cial adviser. and that until the trouble
came over Sandss indictment they had
enjoyed only the most pleasant personal
relations.
Replying to questions from Represen-
tative Kelley, Mr. Boiling said that even
now he Is not sure just what prompted
Sands to make the charges against him.
The best theory. he said, was the re-
fusal to intercede In the natter of the
Indictment Another theory was that
Sands was angry when Bolings brother
stepped into his place when he was
ousted from the Commercial National
Bank Boiling said both Sands and
Mrs Sands pleaded with him not to let
his brother take the position Still an
other theory suggests Benjamin Franklin
Fuller, the man VINO caused the story to
be made public by telling IL to a New
York newspaper man. had been moved
by personal animosty of some sort
Fuller was convicted Of uttering
forgery and sentenced TO four years In
The Federal penitentiary.
Fuller, under those circumstance