The Colorado statesman., 1924-02-16
SENATE COMMITTEE CALLS
PUBLISHER TO STAND IN
TEAPOT INVESTIGATION
M'LEAN TO TESTIFY
JOHN C. SHAFFER ADMITS RE.
cEIVING $4,000 FOR INTERESTS
ADJOINING TEAPOT DOME

Washington.-Out of another day of
lightning developments in the oil scan
day there emerged definite deter
mination by the investigating commit
tee to go to the bottom of rumor
that n $1,000,O00 oil slush fund had
been deposited in Washington for dis
tribution among men in high places.
Edward b. Mclean, publisher of the
Washington Post, was summoned for
questioning regarding the slush fund
report and committee members said
Otto II. Kahn of Kuhn, Loeb & Co.,
and Benjamin f. Yoakum, retired
president of western railroad, would
be called later. Information reaching
the committee was that the story has
been subject of discussion among
New York financiers and that some Of
Its details had been brought to Wash
ington by Mr.. Yoakum after he had
talked to Mr.. Kahn.
The oil committee continued to hold
out against approval of Silas H.
Strawn and Atlee Pomerene as gov
ernment counsel in the oil cases, and
after being advised of this, President
Coolidge withdrew the name of Mr..
Strawn. He took the position, how
ever, that no conclusive evidence of
Mr.. Pomerene's ineligibility had been
produced.
The testimony given during the long
session related largely to the methods
by which former Interior Secretary
Fall put into operation his leasing po.-
icy and provided the investigators
with several new sensations.
John c. Shaffer, publisher of the
Chicago Post and several other news
papers, testified that Fall told him in
the same month he entered the cabinet
that he would lease Teapot dome to
Harry F. Sinclair.
He himself Mr.. Shaffer said, got
a One-eighth share in the $1O0O,OOO
Sinclair paid the Pioneer Oil Company
in connection with the Teapot deal
and through an advance agreement
with Fall was promised in addition
200 acres in Teapot dome
Fhus far, he said, he had received
$4,000 on account of the S125,OOO
share out of the S1.OOOOOO Sinclair
paid the Pioneer company. He testi-
fled that Fall had arranged with Sin
clair to give him holding in the
naval reserve after it was leased be-
cause he had submitted an applica-
ton to the Interior Department ut the
time Franklin X. Lane was secretary.
Shaffer Indignantly denied that the
Influence of his newspapers had in
81,
He asserted that no oil company or
anyone else had undertaken to shape
the policy of those papers with regard
to this or any other matter.
E. G. Finney, assistant secretary of
the interior, testified that the Fall
leases We're negotiated privately, and
that not even the departments own
to their legality.
A letter written before the contracts
were signed, by II. Foster Balm, direc-
tor of the Bureau of Mines, saying he
understood Attorney General Daugh-
erty had given an informal and YER
bal" opinion upholding the leasing
policy, was put into the committee
record.
As a result, the committee author
lied search of the files of the Depart
ment of Justice. Mr.. Daugherty has
said he never gave an opinion on the
subject.
In announcing the issuance of sub
poena for Mr.. Mclean, who is in
Palm Beach, Senator Walsh, Demo-
crat, Montana, said the committee de-
sired to question the publisher not
only with reference to rumors of the
81 100000 slush fund.- but also as to
the 100000 which he first said he
had loaned Mr.. Fall, but which he
later testified had been returned to
him in uncashed checks.