Arizona republican., 1920-12-17
HOLDS CENSORSHIP IN
 ALL CABLES II
 J. ]. IS CLAIM
During War American Bus mess Suffered Because Of Wire Tapping" Prac- tices, Witness Alleges
[RepubIlcan A. p. Leased WIreI

WASHINGTON, Dec. 16-Direct +eAimony that American business messages sent over the British cables during the war had come into the pos session of British business interests was given to a senate committee to- day by Captain F. K. Hill, formerly an American naval attache in South American countries.
 The committee also learned from Newcomb Carlton. president of the Western Telegraph company, that the British naval intelligence authorities were now holding up for examination all cable messages from Great Britain to the United sStates. MT. Carlton was unable to say whether messages to Great Britain or diplomatic mes sages Of the government were being subjected to such examination, but promised to let the committee know as to the latter.
 Cites Instance of Trapping"
 Captain Hill testified that the most glaring instance of American mes sages getting into the hands of Brit ish concerns was when the General Electric company submitted bid for certain electrical installations for Brazilian, who received next day bid from an English concern to supply the same dfIlCteS aL d tOWSI pi ibC tlle1ii the American firm offered.
 This testimony was adduced at fur ther hearings by the committee into the general question of cable com munications and the three cornered controversy over the landing of a South American cable at Barbadoes which involves a question of British cable intercoastal monopoly in Brazil.
 MT. Carlton, in discussing the hold ing up of American message in Greet Britain, said there was some justifl- cation for the practice as the purpose was to throw light on internal dis turbances in Great Britain, chiefly, l suspect, with reference to Ireland. He added that his company had taken firm stand on the matter but had been assured that no censorship would be imposed.
 The Western Union president, tes- tifying further as to the attempt to land the Miami cable, said his com pany was proceeding in an orderly way through the courts to get the cable connected. While the hearing was in progress it was said at the state department that the company had been informed that if it landed the cable via Cuba the permit under which existing cables at Miami were
 
 vent the transmission of through messages to Brazil over the British 1 Western company's lines from Barba- does
 An international Legal Battle
 Elihu Root, Jr., counsel for the All 1 America Cables, Inc, was again ex- amined and said the Miami contro- versy was merely a step in a grea l international struggle for the contro of communications to South Americs "a struggle between the United
 States on the one hand and Grea
 Britain on the other.'
 Tt is a very great national prob
 lem" Mr Root added.
 w. ". Hawkins. president of tn
 United Press. told the committee tha
 cable facilities were the chief linlita
 ton on distribution of American new
 abroad and said conditions were sucl |, that his organization could not ge into South America all the news it de
 sired to send there
 ''The situation between the Unite'
 States and Japan" he said, lis large
 ly affected by the fact that news com munications are slow and limited. European countries realize the i'm , pOrtance of news distribution How ever we don't want subsidies and pre- , fer that American press association be left free from influences that le ! to the making of propaganda ma
 chimes
 T think congress should amen ! statutes to allow naval radio station
 to handle press and government dis f patches. I don't think the heads (
 the cable companies would object { that, because it would relieve ther . of a burden"