Evening star., 1924-03-22
UNFAIR TAX REFUNDS TO MELLON
COMPANIES CHARGED BY WITNESS
Former Internal Rerenue EmplOye Tells of Suspi-
cions-Cratt and Ine6icency Alleged Among
Bureau Workers.

could not recall who wrote it. Sena-
tor Couzens- republican, Michigan,
who brought about the inveStiga-
ton. indicated that he would seek
to obtain this letter for later presen-
tation to the committee.
J. Il. Moore, a former associate of
Adams as a. bureau engineer on
field work described the cases of
the Berwind- White Coal Company of
Philadelphia and the L. H. Smith
Company of Pittsburgh. u dental sup
ply house. Original claims Of allow
ances by these companies had been
disapproved by the field engineers.
but later reasSigped for more liberal
trea tment by other engineers, he
testified, stating that in the Smith
company case. the reassignment fol-
lowed a letter to Secretary Mellon
from the company. Moore did not
appear to know what finally had be-
come of these cases.
In the Senate Senator McKellar,
democrat, Tennessee, asked Senator
the list of tax refunds for 1921 and
1922 he had previously placed in the
record. He said it was alarming
that as much as $2,S00,o00 should be
required to be returned to a single
taxpayer.
The committee has heard of three,
four and even nine millions being re-
funded" Senator King said.
Refund to Gulf Company.
"The Gulf Refining Company, in
which Secretary Mellon is heavily in
terested, received a refund of $780,
000," Senator McKellar said.
Senator King said he understood
this included refunds to fourteen sub
salaries. He urged that a special tax
adjustment tribunal be set up to
which taxpayers could carry addi-
tional assessment protests without
delay. Senator Mcclellan approved
the suggestion, but proposed that the
tribunal be placed wholly outside the
Treasury Department jurisdiction, to
which Senator King disagreed. Both
senators urged publicity of tax re-
turns, ito do away with nine -tenths
of the refunds now made by the gov
ernment."
Senator Wadsworth, republican.
New York, repudiated any insinua-
tions made against those receiving
tax refunds. He said that 1917 re-
funds bad been less than / per cent
of collections.
Before the investigating committee
Adams recounted the case of the
Lionel Corporation of Newark, N. j.,
which he had handled in an Office
review of claims made for amortiza-
tion allowances. The company made
gun sights during the war and made
a $65,000 plant increase, he said. On
the face of the returns he had dis
approved $4,000 amortization
claim, he said, adding that if the
company had been allowed all it's
claims sit would have received $780,
600 on an investment Of $65.000."
Praised, Then Dropped.
When he took up the case, Adams
said, he was told by a superior in the
bureau, whom he identified as "Mr.
Thwing," that the $4,000 claim must
go through because Thwing had
'.promised" it to the taxpayers.
Adams said he refused to sign the
report and understood that no al
lowance had been made, adding that
he had been commended for his work
on this case, only to be dropped from
the bureau with twenty-one others a
week later for inefficiency."
The witness attacked what he said
was the practice of bureau higher
officials of holding secret confer