The Washington times., 1923-11-16
FORBES DENIES
USING CODE
NAMES
Asserts Harding Approved
Presentation Of Medal to
Alexander.
Continued from First Page)

mine The President added, GIVE
them with my compliments, too.
"The President did know you
were going to give 1t to Alexander!
! Says Harding Approved List.
Eyes, he did. I wrote list OF
four names, and Alexander's was on
It,"
"You made up this list7"
Yes
''Where?"
SIN the White House."
did you show 1t to the Presi-
dent?"
''Yes, and he approved it, and ]
thought IL was fitting occasion 70
hand it to Alexander at that banquet
in Tacoma"
Organ Stopped BY Reed.
Senator Reed, chairman Of the
committee. stopped General O'Ryan
from probing into the life Of Colonel
Forbes before he entered the Vet
erans' Bureau.
"That is remote in it's relevancy
to the matters under Investigation,
and is not desired by this conn
mittee," said Senator Reed.
Senator Reed then asked Colonel
Forbes what he knew concerning
Charles F.. Cramer, former general
solicitor, who committed suicide
some time ago.
My acquaintance with him was
slight" said Colonel Forbes, "I met
him In California a short time be-
fore his appointment
did you ever suspect him Of
taking graft?" asked Senator Reed.
He is dead, Senator, and / do not
wish to voice suspicion" said
Forbes.
''Yes, he is dead said Senator
Reed. but men have suffered from
maladministration of the bureau and
no man, even though dead, should be
spared when guilty. Cramer urged
you to buy the Livermore Hospital
site at $150,00O. The record shows
that the owner asked $4,000. Did
you ever suspect Cramer Of getting
part Of the difference?"
Ordered Investigation.
'I ordered an Investigation of that
transaction. Major Grant, the dis.
trict officer at San Francisco. told
me he thought the transaction was
all right"
"Do you know why Cramer COM
mitted suicide?"
"I had an investigation made.
There were domestic difficulties and
financial difficulties. / heard OF
some Irregularities in the Veterans
Bureau"
When cross-examination OF Colonel
Forbes was finished Senator Walsh
Ilof Massachusetts read some testi-
mony given by DR.. Thomas Hugh
Scott, Of Oklahoma City, taken by
the committee in executive session
earlier in the week. Scott testified
that in November, 1922, he delivered
what he described as two code tele.
grams to Colonel Forbes.
| Questioned about this testimony
Forbes said he had received many
such tefegrams with inarticulate
language"
'I received hundreds Of such tele.
grams" said Forbes. II don't deny
he gave me two and maybe even
more. They were usually written
by people a little bit off and didn't
make any sense at ALL"
Committee Is Attacked.
A new element was injected into
| the investigation when the commit
tee itself was subjected to severe
criticism for "inquiring into waste,
| frauds, graft and scandal while fail.
ing to improve conditions among the
| disabled
James A. Mcfarland, head of the
Disabled American Veterans, de-
nounced the investigation from the
witness stand. He declared the dis.
abled men are "astounded, hurt and
| bitterly disappointed" at the methods
employed by the committees counsel
| (MaJ. Gen. John F. O'Ryan) to de.
velop scandal. He demanded TO
know what is being done by the
committee" for disabled veterans.
| He said nothing of a construc'
tive nature has come out of the
public hearings" and he described
the testimony as reading like ian
account of dog fight"
| Mcfarland inferentiaIIy defended
Colonel Forbes by stating that no
evidence has been disclosed to
Justify a conviction on any charge
OF graft or fraud" He said what
evidence OF wrongdoing has been
uncovered should be turned over to
the Department of Justice and the
Senatorial committee confine itself
to doing something for the disabled
His statement, read to the com.
mittee, in part follows:
| Dissatisfied with conditions In
the Veterans Bureau, the Disabled
American Veterans started an agi
tation for reformation last Decem
Der which eventually led up to this
investigation, as it seemed to be
the thing needed to improve condi
lions among the disabled.
Surprised and Hurt"
I'VE are surprised and hurt that
more evidence of constructive
nature has not been submitted to
the committee. We believe the
committee wants the truth, and
VIII try to get at the truth of con-
dltlons In their efforts to better
the condition Of disabled men, but
we regret very much the manner
IN winch the committee investigators
have presented the evidence.
| Il have just returned from q
tour OF the Pacific coast States and
southern States, which took me
into the hospitals and vocational
schools in many sections of the
country, and l must tell you the
men are astounded at the misin-
FORMATION and are disappointed at
| the lack OF constructive proposals
Tor improving conditions of the dis.
abled.
They, of course, do not know
what has been done in the closed
! sessions of the committee, and we
nope that much has been done at
! those sessions, but they want to