The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1921-01-26
SHIPPING BOARD
GRAFT ALLEGED
Big Sum Charged Off as
Expenses of Officer of
Bethlehem COrpOr-
alton


SzSo,o0o ''for personal expenses of an
ofhcer OF the Bethlehem Shipbuilding
corporation" was found i'm an audit
Ut the main Offices OF that company
Col. T.. III. Abadic today Informed the
Walsh congre ssional committcc in
vestigating the shipping board. lie
Identified this officer" as Charles NJ.
Schwab who was then director gen
eral OF the Emergency Fleet corpor-
alton. The voucher was made for
the month OF October. 1918, "Onc
hundred thousand of this amount he
ttstined. was Arbitrarily charged to
ship construction.
1T was learned prior TO ADJOURN
ment today that Mr.. Schwab had
heen asked TO appear before the COM
rhittee TO testify.
The voucher I'm question. Colonel
kbadie added. was not seen by him
nor WAS it's alleged amount or pur-
pose verified. He said IL was report
sd to him by MIR. Morse of the firm OF
Pefley. Morse and company. expert
accountants. employed by him rs
ssrnptroller Of the shipping board TO
make an independent audit of ship
buiidinx companies. He also testified
that from what he knew of Mr..
0chwab he would be the first man
20 codeann any injustice by his
corporation toward the government.
lie added that while the voucher In
question was not accompanied by
supporting papers he thought 1t could
~ explained. Asked if IL might not
represent Mr.. Schwab's expenses for
that month as an officer OF the feet
corporation the witness replied that
mad II been no. the amount should
have been covered by feet corpora
usii voucher.
The subject was brought up by
Colonel Abadle in explaining certain
unAtters connected with his resigna-
teh from the board. involved i'm
Which was "a dispute with Chairman
Payne In the employing OF tho au-
0iuaE Arm to make an audit OF
Afn<r4can ship yards.
We 0hareed that Martin j. Gillen.
Then special assistant to John Barton
Patnes chairman Of the board, had
abnnived'to get him removed.
= The auditing brought on a dispute
With Chairman Payne as To his, Aba =
1.-THE first lntimation had that
my res sgnntion would bc acceptable
he said. was when Gillen asked me
20 rree. him and "anted to know II
M heart was all right and could |
~ shock. I was then told that
NJ AN executive meeting OF the board
u had been decided TO accept my
resignasion II II was rendered"
yColonel Abadie said ho filed his
resignation and II was accepted and
he was given a month on detached
duty.
He afterwards ascertaincd that ho
MAS 'framed' and ne asserted that
Mr.. Giilen used similar tactics to ge,
rid of Other employees in executive
positions
Eugene G.. Grace. president of the
lcthlehein Steel corporation. in a
statVnnent tonight denied that inn
propAr payments had been made to
his company by the shipping board
during the incumbency OF Charles NJ
Schwab as director general OF the
Emergency Fleet corporation.
New York. Jan. 2i.-Charlcs NJ
Schwab appeared before the congress
sfonal committee today and denied the
testimony OF Col. T.. III. 'Abadie form.
ar. comptroller Of shipping board, tC
effect that Schwabs personal expense!
tor October 1918. amounting to $3.50
900 were charged to the shipping
board. Schwab declared the state
ments to be absolutely unqualinedly
and maliciously false and that he
personally paid all his own eX-
penses during his term OF Office us di-
rector general OF emergency fleet
corporation.