The New York herald., 1921-01-19
CITES BIG TRUST CASE
Declares Attorney-General
Is Hopelessly Incompetent
to Deal With Situation.
GOES BACK TO WAR TIME
Asserts That as the Alien Prop
erty Custodian lie Wasted
Vast Fortunes.

Samuel Cntermyer delivered last
night a. sweeping attack upon the
policy Of the Department of Justice
toward trades combinations and urged
an immediate Congressional investiga-
ton of Attorney General Palmer S
present office and of the adninistra-
ton Of his former post as Alien Prop
erty Custodian.
Characterizing the newly launched
Federal drive against building trades
combinations as an appearance of
eleventh hour repentance" he warned
against placing too much confidence in
it, despite the fact that it is headed
by two able and experienced prose-
cutors" in William Rand and Isidore
j. Kresel.
Mr.. Untermyer's. speech was delivered
at dinner rendered to Nathan Hirsch
ut tho Hotel Commodore in recognition
of Mr.. Hirschs services as chairman OF
the Mayors Committee on Rent Profiteer-
ing. Francis G. Caffey, the United
States Attorney for the district and local
representative of the Department of JUS
tice, was present.
Mr.. Untermyer was speaking of the
accomplishments OF the Lockwood COM
rlittee. which he has been serving in the
btpacity of volunteer chief counsel. and
ne said "one of the most surprising re-
suits of the disclosures of the COM
Inittee is the apparently genuine surprise
of the public TO find that almost every
avenue OF industry Is clogsed and
glutted with criminal combinations in re-
straint of trade.
Charges Incompetence.
Il place the main responsibility for
this monstrous condition squarely at the
door of the Department OF Justice" he
said. Its record for the past eight years
is one of incompetency. supineness. and
worse. one that is unspeakably bad
Mr.. Cntermyer then related the man
ner of procedure adopted by the Atto--
ney-General against the so-called cement
trust, referring TO his promises OF drastic
action and his announcement that he
would ask s1,500,000 for the purpose
OF proceeding against il and the final
fling OF a civic suit against the COM
bne. after which nothing more was
heard of it. He then told how the men,
bers of the Lockwood committee had
asked the Attorney-General for perInis-
sion to inspect such evidence rs lie had
gathered against the cement people. and
how he had refused TO let them do his
despite his protestations of cooperation
in the housing probe.
AS matters now stand. he said the
Lockwood committee has gathered a
mass of evidence against the cement
trust which II has turned over TO the
Department of Justice. From what we
have since learned we strongly suspect
that they have nothing of value except
ing what we have furnished he said.
1T will be interesting to learn what
has become of the vast funds voted it
by Congress for the prosecution of this
and other trusts"
Mr. Cntermyer criticised the Federal
authorities for not urging prison sem
tences for the members of the sand and
gravel ring who were fined in the Fed
eral Court yesterday. saying that the
case of these men was not at all similar
TO that OF the cut stone combine, the
members OF which were fined at his
own instance after they had furnished
evidence involving other price boosters.
But bad as the record Of the Depart
Inent of Justice Is in the enforcement,
of the antitrust laws" he said, "the
hopeless and humiliating laundering and
'nefficiency OF the Attorney General in
dealing with these combinations is al
most a brilliant success as compared
with his accomplishments in other direc.
tons, such as the administration of the
Alien Property Custodian act. the sedi.
ton laws and the internment Of alier
enemies.
There has never been a governnen
tai department national or State S,
urgently in need Of immediate an,
painstaking investigation as are thos
OF the Alien Property Custodian and tn
Department OF Justice. The vast pow
ers and patronage OF these great Office
are said TO have been used. and IL is tn
general belief that they were used. 4
build up political machine which how
ever, fortunately failed Of it's purpose
Extravagance Alleged.
II have no direct legal evidence. bu
" fraction of what comes 10 mo 1
true. and I believe much Of Il to be true
such an investigation will disclose {
tho world a series OF the most mortify
: ing scandals that has ever befallen ou
country. Fortunes in patronage are be
iieved 10 have been squandered amont
favorltes. IN the form OF lawyers an,
directors fees taken out Of the pocket
OF citizens and aliens whose propertie
we're seized or unfortunately came un
der the control OF tho Government
There Is Just ono decent ioophole Of es
cape for us. and that is by n merciles
exposure Of the facts by Congress-
IT believe also that an investigation
OF the activities OF the Secret Service o
tho Department Of Justice before an
during the war will develop the fact tina
II did little except TO rely largely upo
reports OF the British Secret Service tha
were gathered by that Government &
our country before we entered the wa
and 10 pay Off It's grudges and play Il
game and induce us 10 intern the unfor
funates who had incurred it's enmity be
fore we entered 'h- war.
One OF our first acts after the dec
laraton OF peace should be 10 ascertain
70 what extent we have been punishin
our own resident German citizens 70
their hostility 60 Great Britain when W
were a neutral country and when thes
people were supposed to have the righ
20 tfeir sympathies on either side Of tn
conflict ms between Great Britain an
Germany"
EDsEL FORD OPERATED ON.