Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1922-05-10
Daugherty Says Examina-
tIonS So Far Completed
Indicate That a Crime
Has Been Committed.
ATTORNEY GENERAL
SEVERELY GRILLED
Woodruff, Republican, De-
cIares He Never Acted
Until Party Members Had
Attacked Him.
tBy The Associated Press.)

w dSl4IiSlOH, MAY J.-ln de-
tailed statement concerning the
prosecution Of war fraud cases,
prepared at the request Of the pres
ident, and transmitted today to the
house, Attorney General Daugherty
declared that examinations so ia
| completed disclosed in each in
stance sufficient indication that
crime had been committed to war
rant submitting them to q grand
Jury"
Presented on the eve Of repub-
lican caucus, called to consider
Legislative program. including re-
publican resolution for investiga-
ton of charges of alleged laxity in
prosecutions by the department of
Justice, the attorney generals let
ter provoked a partisan row, in
which Representative Garrett, the
democratic leader, broadly inti-
mated that it was intended TO
smother the proposed investigation.
Representative Mondell. the re-
publican leader, to whom Mr..
Daugherty's letter was sent by the
president, did not indicate in reply
TO question on the floor as TO
whether it meant the resolution, al
ready given privileged status BY the
| rules committee, never would be
heard from again.
Taking issue with the attorney
general, Representative Woodruff,
republican, Michigan, declared the
former was requested six months
ago to appeal to congress for half a
million dollars to clear up his war
time docket and that he never acted
until republicans had assailed the
department in the house. Mr.. Wood
ruff reiterated that unless the at
torney geenral allowed the courts 70
decide the pending case against the
Lincoln Motor company "on its
merits, I will move his impeach-
ment in the house of representa-
tives," the Michigan member as
serted that republican congress
could not face the country in an
election unless it clears up war
fraud cases which smell to high
heaven"
Charging that "little or nothing"
bad been done by the former adj
Iministration to bring war robberies
to light, Mr.. Daugherty wrote the
president the country soon would
have reason to know that "infIuen-
tial personages in the government
who had knowledge of these trans
actions. who were in position TO
make disclosures. and who were
personally interested in concealing
them" The department, he said
was handling upward of 200 war
contract cases, and If recoverics
were obtained in all, the total would
reach 100000
1t was a terrible thing. the at
torney general said, to charge a
citizen with robbing his own gov
ernmeht, and for that reason he
had insisted upon painstaking in
vestigation of all cases involving
charges of criminality. 1t was re-
grettable. too, he declared, that
public attention should have been
focused SO strongly on these cases
on the eve of their prosecution"
Given a special fund of 100000,
and with the passage of pending
bills for twenty-three additional
judges ana an additional grand
jury in the District OF Columbia.
Mr.. Daugherty said the work OF
clearing the dockets would be ac-
celerated. Two cases of "the first
magnitude" were ready for prompt
submission, he said. adding, how
ever, that investigation showed
others lurking in the shadows
and involved in the unlawful trans
action, and that principals and diff
ferent groups or principals in other
parts Of the country might soon be
indicted.