The Birmingham age-herald., 1924-02-15
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before the session opened, he found q place not far from the seat occupied by Senator Walsh and chatted for a time with friends until the days pro ceedings got under way.
 There was visible disappointment among the spectators when the com mittee failed to call Mir. Vanderlip as the first witness. It had been the plan to examine him after Mir. Sutro left the stand, but the line of evidence by the Standard Oil attorney opened up a field of inquiry which readily could be persued through other witnesses then present, and the New York bankers examination was deferred until to. morrow.
 Shaffers statement on the witness stand that Mir. Fall had told in March | 1922, of his intention to lease the Tea. pot Dome to Sinclair was preceded by an explanation that he could not be I wholly certain of dates as he had hur- ried to Washington without having opportunity to refresh his memory with regard to details of the oil transac- tions. When asked the pointed question, however, he let the record stand that the conversation with Fall as to Teapot i Dome occurred almost immediately after the interior secretary took office.
 Land AdjOins Dome
 The publisher told the committee that he had land adjoining the Teapot reserve and that he had entered into an agreement with the Pioneer Oil com pany, by which he was to obtain one- eighth interest in that company's hold ings in the Teapot field He said he did not put up dollar, and conceded that he had never rendered any service in connection with the matter.
 Thus far, he said, he had received $92,OOO on account of the $125.000 share out of the $1,OOO,OOO 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 because he had submitted an application to the interior department at the time Frank lin k. Lane was secretary.
 Shaffer indignantly denied that the influence of his newspapers had ill any way entered into the transaction. 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.
 Admits Fall Indiscreet
 Assistant Secretary Finney was questioned broadly with respect to all of the Fall leases and he told the com mittee that he thought the leasing policy was surrounded by ''indiscreet circum- stances" He agreed with committee members that Fall was without legal authority to lease a foot of the reserves themselves, but contended that the con tract with Doheny for the offset wells and construction of tankage at Pearl Harbor was entirely legal.
 Moreover, Mir. Finney expressed the view that Fall was wrong in dismiss ing the proceedings which had been started by the government in an effort to recover two sections within reserve No. in California, and which had been purchased by the Standard Oil company of California from the state. Comparatively early in the examina- ton of the assistant secretary, Senator Walsh said he regretted that he had to reach the conclusion that MT, Finney was not telling all that was in his mind in connection with the leases. Declaring that the senator was mis- taken, the witness said that all he had was his good name, and he regretted that MT. Walsh had formed or expressed any such conclusion.
 PrObers Press Finney
 Later on, after committeeman had pressed him as to why he had not pro tested against the methods pursued Tn making the leases, several members said they could not feel that he had done his full duty, although all of them attested to the high standing for off cial integrity which the assistant sec retary had enjoyed over the country throughout the 20 years of his service with the government.
 Mir. Finney was visibly moved, and as senator after senator first praised him for his fidelity to the public serv ice and then criticized him in connec ton with the leases, he brushed tears from his eyes, and ill faltering voice replied that he had gone as far as he thought he could in opposing the or ders of his superiors.
 There was another tense moment il the committee room as the letter Oi Director Bain was read into the rec ord. It was addressed to the then Sec retary Fall at his ranch at Three Rivers, N. M., less than month before | lIle 1OHtlly l chII 1AdIuui COulluSI "ds signed. It related largely to the ques tion of the legality of such an agree ment.
 None of us want Mir. Doheny tC get into trouble" the letter said 'anC 1 take it we will want to do anything we can to make it easy for him."
 Feared Trouble Makers
 Rain informed his chief that the orig inal proposal to have one of the smaller oil companies go into court and fight the contract had not been carried through because some had felt it would embarrass the department and would give support to the trouble-makers il Congress"
 While the bureau of mines director said he realized the objections to ask ing Attorney General Daugherty for a1 opinion as to the legality of the con tract, he told the secretary he was letting him know "the difficulties that are being raised here so that you might reconsider" about asking for an opin ion, and have "the attorney general put in writing what have understood was his informal and verbal expression of opinion favorable to the action the de- pertinent has taken"
 Senator Walsh asked his special in vestigator, who produced the letter whether he had found anything ir the record which would throw any light on how it would be embarrassing to have the attorney general put 1T writing what he had expressed orally. Receiving a negative reply, he had thu