Arizona republican., 1921-01-26
SCHWAB SHEDS TEARS WHILE DENYING SHIP
 BUILDING VOUCHERS
tRepubIlcan A. p. Leased Wlrel

ANGW lOIDt JcAi- OftA CcAAA~ " his emotions Charles M. Schwab tenn porarily broke down on the witness stand today before the Walsh congress sional committee Investigating affairs of the shipping board. With tear filled eyes he denied charges of wit nesses that s1OO.OO0 of a s26s.sss voucher charged to his account fin the office of the Bethlehem Shipbuilding corporation had been allocated to ex- pense of construction of government ships.
 MT. Schwab had been recalled to give testimony regarding ship con- struction matters while he was direc- tory general of the emergency fleet corporation. After this testimony his attention was called by Representative r. M. Foster to testify that since making his denial last Friday of the charges he had conferred with Perley Morse of Perley Morse & Co., auditors who found the alleged vouchers. Mir Schwab admitted that he had talked with Mir. Morse. stating that Mir. Wildman, whom he had known several years, came to him with the statement tlrat MT. Morse was a man of the highest repute.
 q listened" Mir. Schwab added, land said that if what you say is true, and what 1 assure you can prove is true, | that I received none of this money, should not MT. Morse be willing to make a statement that he has made a mistake. MT. Wildman said that he thought he would do so."
 As a result of this conference meet i ing between MT. Schwab and Mir. Morse was arranged later and the wit ness said he repeated to Morse what he had said to Wildman-"that the facts had related were true and that was now at the end of 40 years business career. and that it was a matter so indescribably deep in my heart to be charged with something 1 of that kind that l hoped he would correct it.
 He would not do it," MT. Schwab continued. He said there were ex- plantations and reasons" i Schwab Breaks Down
 Here the steel mans voice became husky and his frame shook with sup pressed sobs.
 T hope you will excuse me, Mir. Chairman and gentlemen of the com
 mittee." he started to continue. but '
 and here his voice broke again. } For a moment he endeavored to con ) trol himself. He gave up the attempt
 and from his eyes great tears rolled which he wiped away.
 The committee room was filled and
 it was evident. that he had the sym E lpathy of all by the silence a silence 5 broken by Representative Foster, who ] said:
 r T can not help making this reflec- { tion. I want to express on the record
 my appreciation of the manner Mir . Schwab, in which you have introduced evidence concerning this voucher . Aside from my membership on thi' committee, I wish to express my ap- - prectation as an American citizen fo1 s the services you have rendefed oul
 country.
 e There is no jury to be affected. O s court to be influenced, but I say tha 8 out of an~ appreciation of the situation y I feel I am compelled to give expres e sion to it."
 h This statement was greeted with ap a plause
 q Schwab replied That was the sub '' stance of my conversations with NJ O Morse"
 a Denies Attempt to Suppress z He soon regained control of him d self and in answer to the chairman d question said that he had never in d stituted any steps to have any aud Id stopped. He said that such matter d. were never brought to his attention s- He again thanked the committee an ID asked them to excuse him for his dis l. play of emotion and arising wall1e -d from the room, passing close to wheI e. MT. Morse sat.
 o- Previously Mir Schwab took up inc d. dentally charges that he devoted tin le to visiting shipyards to inspire tn su men to greater efforts IS He asserted that the shipbuildin
 program was an emergency one, thu
 General Pershing was urging nor
 ships and that nothing was allowed
 stand in the way of construction.
 declared that at least two billion |, the three billion dollar cost ought sf be Charged off as war cost ra "The ships should be realized or , he added. lat any price within reaso a to private operators" ed Wooden ships. he said, should 5e scrapped.
 by Downey on Stand nd Wallace Downey, head of the DoV rk ney Shipbuilding corporation. who's
 name was mentioned by Tucker m Sands in connection with the alleg a $25.0O0 payment on a ship contract d e. nied all such allegations. He said ,i- had paid Sands s40,00O in the form
 TOUT notes as a Tee 10 ms Ddilk 10 u
 derwrite a credit for a subsidiary c
 ganization, the Providence Engineeri
 cohporation The credit was arrang
 to the satisfaction of the shippi
 board, and MT. Downey paid two
 the notes when they came due, tn HI discovered that the bank had no lxnov edge of the transaction. He secur lU from Sands the return of one nS
 and S5.00O payment on the third.
 He said the shipping board owed ,.. company approximately s5.O0O, 900. I a last contracted ship was completed ,ar months ago and as the result Of ,s- failure to get a settlement with { ,as shipping board his corporation h .he gone into receivership. .ax The Walsh committee adjourned ,x- meet again In Washington at the C fo- of the chairman. The committee V fin soon bring its work to close, it is |
 Forafnod