Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1920-02-11
SIMS DENIES THAT HE D|SCREDITED THE
 AMERICAN EFFORT
Declares He Merely Repeated Rum0r for It's
 Value
PARIS CONVERSATION
 AGAIN IS DISCUSSED
Naval Officers Alleged Charge That Armistice was Due to Failure of Army to Break Through
 Repeated

Washington, Feb. 10.--The contro- ve~sy over naval war decorations took a new turn today before the senate Investigating committee, the question of just what was said in conversa- tions between Rear Admiral William S. Simms and trio of members of congress in Paris during the war dis placing to some extent inquiry into charges made by Secretary Daniels in decoration recommended by Ad- miral Sims.
 The officer was recalled to supple ment his previous testimony, Chair man Hale of the committee, pointing out to him that the secretary has ap- peared since the Admiral's first hear ing. It was in answering some of the statements made by MT. Daniels that Admiral Sims touched upon the ques- tion of conversations he had with Representatives Byrnes and Whaley, of South Carolina and Senator Glass, then representing Virginia.
 Secretary Daniels had referred to a speech in the house of representa- tives by Representative Byrnes in which the South Carolina representa- tive asserted that Admiral Sims had told him the armistice was forced on the allies by failure of the American army to break through the German lines. the failure being due to a collapse of the American service of supply. Admiral Sims today denied that he had made such an assertion except as to repeating rumors then current in France and which he said, he warned his visitors not to believe. He denied fatly other statements at- tributed to him by Representative Byrnes said to belittle the part of the American Navy in the war, and asserted he had not told Byrnes and his associates that the American Merchant Marine should not be de- veloped and the seas be left to great Britain.
 At the request of Senator Pittman of Nevada, democratic member of the
 investigating committee, Chairman
 Hale asked Representative sByrnes and Whaley and Senator Glass to come before the committee. Repre-
 sentative Byrnes not only reiterated all he had previously said, but added
 that he had personally reported his
 conversation with Admiral Sims to
 President, Wilson before MT. Wilson
 made his first trip to Paris. Byrnes
 added that he had not spoken to
 Secretary Daniels, because, since the
 war was over, he did not wish to
 "stir anything up"
 Senator Glass, who was member
 of the lower house at the time, recall ing the conversation which Admiral
 Sims, much as 'Byrnes reported it put a somewhat different interpreta. ticn on what the officer had said. He did not understand Admiral Sims tt : wish to discredit the army, he said adding:
 "I rather believed that he was sim ply telling us what he had heard ant thought to be true"
 : Representative Whaley did not ap
 pear today because of illness. H' asked to be allowed to testify Mon day but Chairman Hale, fixed no dat for resumption of the investigation . Near Verbal Clash. Admiral Sims reference to tn : Paris conversations which prompted , the calling of Representative Byrne F and Whaley and Senator Glass wa : made after he read a prepared state ment, reaffirming his position as t : naval awards and asserting that MI
 Daniels method had injected "de : featist policy" in the navy depart 9 ment more dangerous than Bolshe : yism to organized government. Ii :. also characterized some parts of MI Daniels testimony before the com : mittee as very surprising" and wen Q into details of some cases of award : to sustain his own views.
 Taking up the statements of Kel : resentative Byrnes to the house, Ae 2 miral Sims said the representativ : misunderstood him or confused his r ' marks with those of others to who
 they talked in France. He had sougi
 he said. to disabuse his visitor
 minds of the idea that America
 forces were "winning the war" bt
 cause that was not true and wa n "hurting us with the allies" ? It was this testimony that diverte
 the course of the hearing, and whe l. Representative Byrnes and Senate + Glass were questioned later, Admlr' if Sims listened closely and subsequent l. ly was returned to the stand to maj s a brief statement.
 t "If you believed the things you sa o I told you," he said, turning to Rel
 Iresentative Byrnes and Senate 8 Glass, "all of you neglected your dut n in not putting up howl to get n le out of there. You oughtn't to ha, Il rested until you got me out g there."
 W "You have no quarrel with me is said Representative Byrnes, vii
 some show of feeling. "I reported r. President Wilson personally and le was his quarrel, not mine" y- Press Also Blamed. .k In the course of his testimony, Re
 resentative Byrnes said he had be
 "depressed and disappointed" at wh
 Admiral Sims had told him in Pal
 land "found relief from that feelil mi only when personal inquiry at Ge h. eral Pershing's headquarters and ,n the service of supply had conyinc in me there had been no break dow t". :. ; J .~.e.Ne><-A~~~~-