Evening star., 1922-12-05
$29,ODO,Q()O WAR
| SW|NDLE CHARGED
U. S. Files Six More Suits.
Total Now Claimed Ex.
ceeds $50, 900, ,ooo.
BY tho Associated Press.

BY tho Associate ted Press
Six additional suits seeking recovery
OF large sums alleged to have been mis-
spent in construction of the wartime
Army cantOnments were filed yesterday
IN as many cities by representatives of
the Department Of Justice. The six ac-
tions sought to recover s29, 600, 900, and
brought the total Claimed by the gov
ernment from war contractors to more
that sa0.OOO,O0O
The projects, contractors and sums in
volved in the six suits are:
Camp Travis. san Antonio. Tex,
Stone Webster. s3.00O,O00; Camp Lee,
Petersburg. Va, Rhinehard &; Dennis.
Inc, SI.0O0.O0O: Camp Custer. Battle
Creek, Mich. Porter Bros. $4,000. 900 :
Camp Pike, Little Rock, A,".. James
Dodge. Des Moines. Iowa, Charles Weitz
Sons. $4'0O.0OO. and Camp Dix,
Wrlghtstown. n. j.. Irwin & Leighton,
S6.500.00O.
Camp Lee ChnrRes.
The six bills of complaint almost
identical in form. were filed In the
! federal district courts at San Antonio.
Richmond, Detroit Little Rock, Des
Moines and Trenton. They charged
| US: of funds and material. Further
suits against prime contractors on
government wartime construction re
| in preparation byathe department and
VIII be hlcd as they are completed. a
! suit involving construction of one of
| the major Army projects in New Eng
| land was to have been instituted to-
day, but was not completed in time
According To official figures Camp
Lee was. with one exception. the cost
| ,irst OF the war cantonm"nt projects.
More than $1S,670.0D0 was spent on
| the Virginia training center. $685.
| 900 at Custer. SlI.296.OOO at Dodge
Sl3.543.oO" at Dix. Sl2.74s.000 at Pike
! and sS.Ss0.OU0 at Travis. Camp Knox
at Stithton. Ky. holds the high record
in cost. Sls.733.1S4 having been paid
according to War Department records
for its construction.
! as III the case of the four initial
suits filed November "a. an important
Isptcifica ton in the governments com
plaint is the charge that the defend
ments preoccupation in other war ac-
tIvities to grossly violate the conf
| dence imposed in them.
| Accused OF Negligence.
! The bills Of complaint recite that
at the dates the contracts were en-
! tered into between the United States
and the defendants. and at the time
/ he acts charged against the defend
ants were suffered Il national emer-
gency existed and il was impractl-
! cable and impossible for the govern
| ment TO exercise the customary de-
gree OF supervision and inspect:on
Th. complaints further allege that
the defendants did not in good faith
carry out their cantract. but, on the
contrary defendant did knowingly.
recklessly. illegally and fraudulentIy
violate and abuse such confidence and
trust and breach said contract .
in that it counseled. advised, per-
| mitted. aided and connived in the
carrying on and did itself by and
through its agents, servants and en-
ployes. carry on and conduct. in a
grossly negligent, inefficient and
'vasteful manner, the work defendant
had undertaken to perform, and by
reason of said conduct and acts de-
fendant not only caused great dam
age and loss to the plaintiff .
but in addition thereto greatly de-
layed and embarrassed the plaintiff
/ in making preparation for the war
into which it had entered"
SUIT FOR $1,000. .OOo