Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1922-03-10
BONUS FIGHT
IN HOUSE IS
GAINING
IF Veto Is Found Probable,
Will Endeavor to XII
Bill
MELLON JOINS FIGHT
Courtroller Crissinger Says He Mlli
Advise Banks Agains. hah''s
Loans on Bonus Certificates.

Washington, March 10.-The attack
- tho Donus bill framed by the Ways
and Means Committee showed ihcreaS-
ing vitality yesterday. c.u
Comptroller Of the Currency crls-
s;nper, close friend of President
Harding. denounced it, and SAID that
# il became a law he would advise
The hanks against accepting the m
s,,ranre certificate as collateral Tor
loans. ..,-
At the same time an open attack
wax made on the bill in the House by
Republican member from Ohio, and
word went out that some of the mem
hers wno favored meeting q bonus ap-
propriation with a sales tax are pre-
naring to call on the President as soon
as he returns 20 ascertain Whether ne
really means to veto the bill II 1t
reaches him. and if so, to move ac-
cordngly in the fight in Congress:
Representative Charles L. knight,
of Akron, made the attack IN the
House. He branded the Bonus bill as
'the capsheaf upon the whole stack
of class legislation" and accused HAN
ford MacNider, national commander
of the American Legion, of using Ian
puage 10 President Harding (which
might have been expected from cap
tain Of the Pretorian Guard to weak
and pusillanimous emperor, but hard
" to the Chief Executive OF this great
republic"
Despite the opposition that has de-
vcloped to the soldier certificate plan
of adjusted compensation, Represen-
tative Joseph ". Fordney, of Michigan
chairman of the Ways ard Means
Committee. said he plans to bring the
bill before the House for consideration
one week from Monday. It's passage
few days later is anticipated. Reports
to the effect that President Harding
would rot accept the soldier certl-
ficate plan, but would veto such legis-
lation if enacted, have not altered the
course charted b. the chairman.
Some. of the other members of the
Wavs and Means Committee, among
them representative Longworth, OF
Ohio, and Isaach Bacharach, OF New
Jersey. whose views have been more
in harmony with President HardlnG's
than have those of Mr.. Fordney, en-
cept to call on the President as soon
as he returns from his Southern trip,
to ascertain whether he will go to
the extent of vetoing the present bill.
Like President Harding. MIR. Long
worth and Mr. Bacharach believe that
if bonus legislation is enacted sales
tax should be levied to raise the mon
ey for il. but they were given to un-
derstand that the President would an
prove the soldier certificate plan IN
lieu of any taxes. If he will not do so
u determined fight will be made to kill
the present bill.
Secretary of the Treasury Mellon
has been quoted as saying the soldier
certificate plan is the worst yet; and
Mr.. Crissinger said today that lnsur-
ance of certificates as collateral tor
loans to so per cent. of their face val
uc as "the worst kind of frozen credit"
Mr.. Crissinger would not have au-
thoritv under the law to prohibit ma
tional banks under his jurisdiction
from refusing to accept that class OF
| security, but he said he would strong
" advise against their acceptance.
The Comptroller said that the GER
| tificates would be non-negotlable pa
per and loans upon them would load
the banks up with an unmovable mass
of securities for the three-year per-
iod they cover. The certificates, so 1t
was said. would be like real estate
| loans. which are not rediscountable at
Federal Reserve Banks. There IS a
general desire for more liquid securi-
ties, instead Of freezing up the present
credits still tighter.
/ he would take the social status of the
person into consideration; that he had
a list OF four or five boarding houses
which he would sometimes recommend,
and that sometimes he would simply
give the person the city directory and
| suggest that he look up the boarding
houses in that; that he had had re-
| quests from very respectable boarding
house keepers in the city ask him to
send them roomers.
When asked whether, in handling
these cases, he knew, or would have
reason to know. that certain number
! of people lived with Mrs. Baggett, the
Judge replied that he did not; that if
it had been brought to his attention
that 81 people lived with Mrs. Bag
gett. this would not have aroused any
suspicion in his mind, because diff
ferent people have different modes of
living; some people wanted a whole
suite of rooms, while others were con-
tent to live several in room. and he
did not know the number of rooms in
the Baggett house.
The committee took an adjournment
at o'clock, to rcconvenc ut o'clock
Attorney Frank Stuart will make a
statement this afternoon in attempted
rabuttal of Judge Moncure's counter
/ charges against him.