The Birmingham age-herald., 1924-10-07
CANDIDATE BARES PACT TO FIX RATE Alaskan Railway Involved
 In Alleged Monop.
 0ly Plan COOLIDGE'S RECORD IS ALSO ASSAILED Bank Failure Transaction In Massachusetts
 Termed Illegal
tBy Associated Press.) )

SEATTLE, Wash, Oct. G. i In a campaign speech to 3 Seattle audience tonight Sem ator Wheeler, independent vice presidential candidate, charged that there had been, with Interior Secretary Works approval, "a secret contract entered into between j.. F. Morgan's Alaska steamship company on the one hand and the government-owned Alaska railroad on the other," which fixed divisions of freight rates between the two con cerns on joint shipments. He exhibited a copy of the con- tract which he said Senator La Toilette, independent pres idential candidate, had been unable to obtain from Secre- tary Work.
 He also assaiied President Coolidge, | in a prepared in advance text which re- cited an account of banking transactions l in state fundG when the President was governor of Massachusetts.
 ReFmDed View or CentEaes ,i
 4SenAtor La Toilette one yss sIii- q half ago asked Secretary Work to fur l niEh him with copy of each contract entered into between the government railroad and the Alaskan Steamship | company and the Pacific Steamship I company," Senator Wheeler said. "I have here Secretary Works reply. There were enclosed copies of three un- important and perfectly regular busi- | ness contracts. Secretary Work, 10 | doubt, believed he had disposed of Sen ntor La Toilette.
 q am now holding up for your view the contract which Senator La Toilette wished to see and which he has seen despite Secretary Works misleading l letter. It is n secret agreement as to the joint rates on freight shipped by the Morgan Steamship lines and the government railroad between the porte of Seattle and Tacoma, and points on the government railroad. Why should | Q government railroad make secret agreement with anybody?
 
 such concessions to big and rich and powerful business combination as l against its small competitorsg Here is a combination trying to obtain monop- oly over the resources of Alaska in- stead of seeking to break 1t up, the government enters into a secret pact to assist it. That is the meaning ot fine contract which Secretary Work en- deavored to hide from Senator La Fol lette."
 Attorney General Rustgard Of Alas ka. Senator Wheeler proceeded, 0b- tained the copy of the contract and letter declaring it was not for gen, eTal publication nor for the public. He read a paragraph from the ex- hIbited document which said, "the Alaskan engineering commission ana the steamship companies will treat ali division arrangements as eonfidential and promulgate the information to in- lerested employees only"
 Concluding this subject Senator Wheeler said that one of the first steps propOsed by the independent ticket candidates was ''the breaking of this unfair, illegal hold of the Morgan GuRgenheim group upon the land and water transportation of Alaska"
 Il ask your close attention 10 the following facts he proceeded. "In 192O Calvin Coolidge was governor or Massachusetts. Joseph c. Allen was state bank examiner and Fred J. Bur rell was state treasurer. Max Mitchell was president of the Cosmopolitan Trust company of Boston. which failed September %, of that year, causing losses to over 22,OO0 depositOrs.
 Under the Massachusetts, law, the deposis of state funds in any one hank must not be more than 10 per cent of the banks capital stock. A lawsuit resulted. State Treasurer Bur r1ll testified as follows:
 That about q. m., on a spring day of 1920 Max Mitchell, president of the bank called him on the telephone say ing that unless he received money from some source before the bank opened that day, the bank would go broke. That he, Burrell, then went to Governor Coolidge to whom he talked in company with Bank Examiner Allen and Max Mitchell, president of the trust company. That Governor Coolidge and State Bank Examiner Allen told him--Burrell, the state treasurer-tO put some more state money in the Cosmopolitan bank at once. That this Continued on Page TwO)