Evening star., 1923-11-07
Surplus Supply Sale at Perry
vile, Md, Prompted Order,
Senate ProberS Hear.
GOODS SOLD DESPITE
BAN, PHYSICIAN SAYS
Public Health Service Needed Ma
terials, Disposed of at Low Price,
Is Charge.

PRESIDENT HarQlnB Cdlleu LOT Ine
resignation of Charles r. Forbes as
director of the Veterans Bureau as
a result Of the Perryville, Md, surplus
supply sale transaction, Brig. Gen.
Charles e. Sawyer. personal friend
and physician to the late Executive,
testified today before the Senate vet
erans' committee.
Gen. Sawyer testified that in the
face of an order by the President that
the shipments of supplies from Per-
ryville be stopped, carloads of ma
terials were sent out for two or three
days.
LAS a result of this INSTRUMENTATION
Col. Forbes was asked to resign,
Gen. Sawyer said.
Reads Prepared Statement.
Gen. Sawyer who is co-ordinator
for the general disqualification board.
read to the committee a prepared
statement regarding the whole Per-
ryville transaction. He said that on
or about November 26. or twelve days
after the contract of sale had been
entered into with Thompson & Kelly
Co., INC, OF bOSIOIl, SuIScOh ocHcLd al
Cumming of the public health service
reported to him that supplies at Per
ryville were being sold regardless of
public health service needs.
Gen. Sawyer accompanied DR.. Cum
ming to the Veterans Bureau and
asked for a conference.
"It was after quite heated confer
ence," the witness continued, that
Col. Forbes was persuaded that the
public health service should be con-
sidered in the matter at all.
Tells Harding of Talk.
After this conference I took the
matter up with President Harding and
he requested me to proceed at once
to Perryville to see what was going
on. Accompanying me on this trip
were Gen Cumming and DR.. Smith
CDR. Frederick C. Smith of the pub
lie health service).
Upon arrival at Perryville we
found great activity going on in the
matter of shipping supplies Investi-
cation showed that-one large truck
load of towels was just being moved
out of one of the buildings.
Assuming the authority that had
been given me by the President. ]
directed the officer in charge to have
the materials unloaded and asked
him to await further orders before
any other shipment was made He
gave me his word that such order
shipping proceedings would cease
until this matter was finally deter
mined.
Gets New Executive Order.
Returning home I made state
ment to the President, telling him
that 1 felt sure that very valuable
r;oI1
erans' Bureau hospitals and the pub
lie health service were being disposed
of at great loss to the government
He Immediately ordered through me
that further disposition of this prop
erty should stop until there was COM
pliance with the executive order re-
quiring division of the property at
PerryVille on the basis of 80 per cent
for the Veterans Bureau and 20 per
cent for the public health service.
within a day or two a second con-
ference was held with Col. Forbes
including DR.. Cumming. DR.. Smith and
myself, myself al and I've we re received a written
provisions of the executive order
would be carried out. Col. Forbes
gave US to understand positively by
a signed agreement that no further
letter of the executive order had been
executed. About three weeks later
word came to me from a representa-
tive of the public health service at
Perryville that materials were still
being shipped; that practically 126
carloads in all had been forwarded
to Thompson and Kelly.
Says Forbes Ignored Harding.
II then took the subject up with
the President and he Immediately
called Col. Forbes and said to him
that nothing further must go: Re-
gardless, however, of this order di-
rectly from the President, other
days were shipped out. and as re-
suit of this insubordination Col. Forbes
was asked to resign"
To show President Harding's per-
sonal interest in the matter, DR.. Saw
yer said the Executive came to his
office in the State, War and Navy
building to see the samples of goods
sold. which were there.
He looked at the samples much
more critically than 1 have in pre-
senting these samples to you," the
witness said.
Exhibiting the goods to the COM
mittee. he declared: These blankets
are good enough to be used In any
home; this is the same kind of towel
as Is used in my own home; this
sheet Is as good as can be purchased"
Sees Autocratfc Power.
Gen. Sawyer was led into a long
discussion of his opinions as to trou-
bles in the administration of the Vet
eranS Bureau.-He declared one cause
of trouble was the autocratic power
given one individual.
Its too big a task for one man."
he declared.
Evidence presented to the committee
Yesterday was that Gen. Sawyer had
opposed the sale from the first and that
he had made representations to the
President after he had failed in his
efforts in other directions to retain for
the government large quantities of
supplies which were being disposed of
at one-fifth of their invoice value.
There also was evidence that Sena-
tor Calder, republican, New York, had
taken the matter up with the Execu-
tive Lieut.. Commander Charles r.
O'Leary formerly in charge of the
supply division Of the bureau, told the
committee it was his understanding
that the subject had been brought to-
Mr. Calder's attention by New York
firms seeking government surplus ma
terials.
Threat OF Exposure.
A number of firms were trying to
"get in" on the sale. O'Leary testified,
and the representative of one of them,
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