Perth Amboy evening news., 1924-03-24
Investigation Into Teapot
Dome Case Continued with
New Witnesses Called

WASHINGTON. March 24-Harrs
F. Sinclair was formally cited 70
the senate today for contempt fo1
his refusal TO submit to further
questioning by the oil committees
Immediately after Chairman lad
submitted the committee report
making the citation. Senator Walsh
the committee prosecutor. recon-
mended that the case be certlneo
TO the District of Columbia courts
for grand jury proceedings.
After reviewing the resolutions
under which the COMMITTEES has been
conducting its inquiry, the cllae'on
said: ..,.
1924 witness, Harry F. Sinclair.
being called before the commitfee
and being on the stand. refused 10
answer ary questions that might be
nropounded to him by any member
of the committee ss set forth IN the
report made by the committee 70
the senate on Saturday. the saIu
22nd day of March 1924, copy q
which report is hereto appended ana
made a part hereof.
THAT upon such statement so be-
ing made by the said witness. Harry
f. Sinclair. questions pertinent 70
the inquiry being prosecuted by the
said committee were addressed 70
the witness as set forth in the sara
report so submitted on Saturday fhe
22nd day-of March, 1924. which 49, -
witness severaily declined and re-
! fused TO answer as therein set FORTH
"And now your committee reports
to The senate that the said Harry f.
Sinclair, having appeared as a Wit
ness before your said COMMITTEES,
refused to answer questions perth
nent to the question under inquiry,
and is in contempt Of the said COM
mittee and of the senate.
Odds and ends of testimony bear
ing on widely separated aspects OF
its inquiry went into the record Of
the oil committee today while It's
members were perfecting plans TO
hale Sinclair into court because of
his refusal to submit himself to fur
ther questioning.
As If the committeeman had de-
termined to push their task of in
vestigation to a quick conclusion.
witnesses succeeded each other
rapidly at the big committee table
and most of them were dismissed
with only a scant semblance OF
| ross-eXamination.
Carmi A. Thompson of Cleveland,
one of President Soolidge's cam
paign managers and a close friend
of the late President Harding. testi-
fed that be had no knowledge OF
an 'oil deal' at the Republican ma
tional convention of 1920.
| Harold Vivian, a reporter for the
New York Times told the commit
/ tee he had received Confirmation
I from the New Y ork office of viii H.
Hays that Hays would testify to a
| stock transaction by which Sinclair
helped wipe out the Republican ma
! tiona. committee deficit after the
! 1920 campaign. Vivian said such a
1 story was told to him by Joseph J.
o'Neill. Hays publicity director. but
! O'NeiH in a telegram read to the
committee, denied It.
The next witness, Martin ]. Pow
ers of Philadelphia. denied q story
| that he was interested in anv way il,
Teapot Dome and then proceeded to
/ brand as "ignominious lies" various
( other stories he said had been cir
culated about him.
He was succeeded on the witness
stand by Michael Circelli, also OF
! Philadelphia, who in turn denied
some of the testimony of Powers.
n. W. TarbeH, OF Bethel Conn
was questioned by Senator Walsh
about an article he wrote about
! Teapot Dome. saying the lease to
Sinclair was not in the public in
terest." The article pointed oul
! that no cash honus was given in the
lease, and said that the terms sas.
tonish the oil experteby the appar
ent great size of the royalty pro-
/ vided, this, it was argued, eneour.
aged restricted production.
c. c. Chase. son-in-law of AIber,
3. Fall, declined to answer ans
questions by the oil committee on
the ground that an answer h,
night make Nigh ttend to incrina.
mate him ~
Price Mckinney. OF Cleveland
had testified that Chase visited hin
at his home TO ask him TO say thai
he had make the famous S100.o0l
loan to Fall.