The Birmingham age-herald., 1924-03-30
|DAI]GHERTY QUIZ SECRET SESSION SET FOR MONDAY Trend Of Inquiry To Be
 Decided Behind
 Closed Doors SCAN OF RECORDS
 WILL BE DELAYED Hint Of Another $1O0,0O0 Whisky Deal One Of
 Days High Spots

WASHINGTON, March 29.-One more public session of the Senate Daugherty investigating committee was it's members was called for Monday to consider the question of the inqniry's duration and direction. The belief of committee members as developed since yesterdays resignation of the Attorney General was that way had been open ed for cnrtailing if not cancelling the flow of charges which has run through the proceedings.
 A general charge that the depart ment of justice is functioning as an aid to crooks" made to Mir. Daugherty by H. +. Scaife, former special investi- gator in government employe, as he re- signed in April, 1922. and a hint of another $100,O00 whisky ''deal," were the high spots in today's public hear ing. W. J. Burns, head of the bureau of investigation, who had been sum- moned with his files for the day, was excused to wait on the committees ex- ecutive session Monday.
 Await New Attorney
 The question of access to the depart ment's files which the committee sought from Mir. .Daugherty and which he re- fuBed, was settled for the time being by its decision to grant the request of Act ing Attorney General Beck that the matter be left open until a new head takes office.
 Scaife's story, which had wide rami- fcations, indicated that he had been ..biocked" in attempting to bring about prosecution for alleged sirpIane frauds. Going 10 Thomas B. Fielder, a friend of 1Fx. Daugherty, with his story, he said, an interview with the former Attorney General was arranged at which he pre- sented general and extensive charges as to non-prosecution of frauds against the government.
 The matter was dropped, he added, although Fielder wrote him letter ten dering him "a retainer in the Bosch magneto case. He asserted this in- yolved a concern seized by the alien property custodian during the war and sold ''fOr a grossly inadequate sum" to Martin Kerns, identified as "a friend of A. Mitchell Palmer" the alien prop erty custodian.
 Hornblower and Weeks, Boston banking firm, from which Senator JOHes, EcQuDucAu, w AeulukIOu, put III, Secretary of War Weeks retired some years ago." was named as being a factor in the magneto concern sale and reor- ganization.
 Denies Use Of Money
 Nicholas Cimino, a New York res taufant man, told of .Einterceding" with Howard Mannington, a friend of Mfr. Daugherty, in an endeavor to obtain ap- pointments, but specifically and repeat edly denied suggesting that money had passed. He did assist two New York stenographers whom he named as Price" and Moore" to obtain con tracts for reporting federal court pro eeedings, and collected later from Price ''between 1000 and $1,500' as "reim- bursement for expenses"
 He told likewise of approaching Man nington with request to ''get in on'' the granting of permits for withdrawals of whisky, and of being sent by Man nington to W. 4. Orr, who has also fig ured in the stories of whisky deals"
 Cimino overheard a statement that E. Fl. Mortimer got the $100,000 that was involved in another supposed whisky transaction.
 Former Senator Chamberlain, who represented Mir. Daugherty in the cross. examination, said after the hearing that his client might wish to appear and cer- tainly would desire to summon wit nesses before the committee.
 A detail of the committees past ac. tion was brought up when Chairman Brookhart said that a memorandum had been filed with the committee in behalf of M. s. Daugherty, the former Attor- ney Generals brother, challenging the committees right to call him as wit. ness.
 Senator Wheeler, democrat, the com mittees prosecutor, was absent from the days session, because of illness.