The Washington times., 1924-03-21
OFFICIALS
GOT TAX
CUTS
Weeks and Mellon Obtained
Refunds-BIair's Wife and
KinfoIk Benefit.

Fresh impetus was given the
senatorial investigation Of the In
'ternal Revenue Bureau today
when evidence was turned over
to the special Couzens committee
showing that $2OO,OOO,OOO had
been paid out by the Treasury
Department in the last three
years on refunds of Federal taxes.
Mrs. Blair Tops List
Topping a long list Of persons
and corporations benefitting by the
refunds were found the names Of
Mrs. Adelaide c. Blair, wife of
Internal Revenue Commissioner
David H. Blair, several members of
her family. Secretary of War John
w. Weeks and the Gulf Refining
Company, of which Secretary of
the Treasury Andrew w. Mellon
was a principal stakeholder.
The refund records gave no indi.
cation Of wrong doing, but the large
totals and the identity of benefi.
Charles led to a demand by Demo.
cratic Senator'S for a thorough in.
vestigation Of the entire admins.
tration Of the bureau.
Gathered By Mcclellan.
The list Of refunds gathered from
official sources by Senator Nickel.
lar Dem.) Of Tennessee, and turned
over to the Couzens committee for
Investigation. The list included
only those refunds in excess of
$4,000 but several of the repay.
ments ranged above $1,000, 900. In
addition, Mcclellan said he had posi-.
tive evidence showing that $780,.
900 was repaid to the Gulf Rein.
ing Company and it's subsidiaries
in 1929.
While reporting the totals Of re-
funds for each of the last three
years, Mcclellan gave the committee
the names Of individuals and
corporations which benefited only
during the years 1922 and 1891.
The annual total repayments were
1922 and $12S,000,000 for 1923.
The official records, Mcclellan
said, showed that Mrs. Blair, wife
of the commissioner, received a re
fund of $31, 1893 in 1922. Her home
was given as Salem, N. c..
and the account carried under hel
name as Adelaide c. Blair. -Four
other members of her family, in
GLIDING brothers and sisters and g
corporation owned by the family
were also given refunds in excess
of $4,000.
Weeks Gets Two Refunds.
Two refunds were paid to Secre
tary of War Weeks during the
same year, according to McKellar's
/ figures. The amounts were $21,151
and $6.366 or total Of $27.517.
To support his declaration thai
| $3,300,00 was repaid to the Gull
| Refining Company and it's sub
salaries in 1922. Mcclellan said HI
had obtained official confirmation
from Secretary Mellon himself. This
refund, said Mcclellan, was in add
ton to two refunds to the Gull
Oil Corporation, of Pittsburgh. re
! vealed by the records. These
amounts were for $61, 400 ant
| sos, 042.
The largest individual beneficiary
under the 1922 tax refunds wa.
William Rockefeller, who was re
paid total of $1,451 ,O44 by thu
! Treasury. A close second wa!
William d. Hunt, Of Boston, whC
received refunds totalling $1.O57.774
/ The largest single amount re
funded to a corporation was $2,O38,
326 turned back to the CudahS
Packing Company, of Chicago
Three other refunds to the CudahS
company gave them an additions
return of $147,519.
Nationally known Republican
leaders were found among tn,
beneficiaries. An outstanding ex
ample was Edwin H. Ware. Lat.
(COntinuedr on Page A cOlumn "a