Evening star., 1924-04-03
WEEKS is ORDERED
TO BRING AIRCRAFT
FACTS TO PROBERS
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Continued from First Page.)
prosecutor, brought out that Lane
had not volunteered TO testify but
had appeared only when sent for.
Il hadn't sought the limelight," he
said. Il had thought that what is
going on at the War Department
would come out"
Il don't believe the Secretary of
war viii indorse any action of this
kind" commented Senator Jones'
wasn't even given a written
notice" Lane continued. "and / told
Capt. Folandt that l was shocked
and pained. and that it looked to me
as though some uIterior motive was
behind the action"
Big sums Involved.
Senator Wheeler directed Lane to
tell in detail Of the Standard Air
craft case.
~ became convinced when I first
started that the situation was bad
as to all of these negotiated settle
mentS of war cases that involved
huge sums of money" said Lane. I'm
1919 officers in the air service re-
signed and were discharged. About
the middle of 1919 a colonel came
from the Treasury Department and
was put in charge.
The first case called to my atten-
ton was the Lincoln Motors. l was Or
dered to write an opinion as to
81, ,000,0 900 item. / recommended IN
stead that the Lincoln Motors ought
to pay back ss.s00.000."
Think U. :. Got Too Little.
I'D bet my ears that if a suit had
been filed. the government would
have got more than il did. / handled
the case and 1 know what I'm talk
ing about"
Lawyers for the receivers of the
Lincoln Motors admitted greater liza
bility, Lane asserted.
Were the assets in the hands of
the receivers enough to meet the
governments claim" Chairman
Brookhart asked.
NO. they were about ss,000,ooo.
Z. $. Claims Priority.
but the governments claim had
priority against that sum and ahead
of other creditors" remarked the
chairman.
Attorney General himself in these
matters?" asked Senator Wheeler.
Frequently" Lane said, MIR. Will
liam d. Ryder, one of the assistant
attorney generals. was with Mr.
Daugherty, Capt. Volandt, ]. NJ Vain
myself and a dozen people represent
ing the Lincoln Motors, who partici-
pated."
The government paid this company
"a million for the privilege of can
ceiling the contract" Lane said under
the head of anticipated profits" He
knew of no other case in which the
government had paid "a nickel" to
any other company under similar cir
cumStanceS.
Those at Conference.
Assistant Secretary Wainwright,
Maj Gen. Patrick, chief of the air
service, and other War Department
officials stated their objections wig
orously" in conference with the De-
partment of Justice as to the Lin
coin settlement, the witness cont1n-
ued, then walked out" of the con-
ference. The War Department imme-
diately tiled up" the remaining eight
millions of the government claim in
the Lincoln case.
And the Department of Justice un-
tied them?" asked Senator Wheeler.
Except for tax and legal expense.
Lane insisted, the government could
have gotten all'' of the s8,000,000.
Henry Ford had bought the Lin
coin plant and the money was in the
bank to the credit of receivers" he
said.
Takes Up Aircraft Case.
The witness then came to the case
of the Standard Aircraft Corporation.
Files in this case were scattered and
''meager," Lane said, but his final
Judgment in August, 1919, was that
the government should recover $2,-
100000. The company then had
pending a $4,000 900 claim of its own
During the discussion with Harry
B. MinGle, head of the company, the
witness said that Mingle told him of
the connection with the Japanese
banking firm of Mitsui &, Co.
Financing of Company. T.!
Mingle's relations with the Japan
ese company, he said, went back TO
student. Ha declared that Mingie
never had a dollar and didn't put
4 dollar into" the Standard corpora
ton.
Lane declared that the Mitsui
had charged in S1,619 900 which rep
resented a loss in financing the old
Sloan Manufa cturing Company" The
government paid this charge in the
added that Mitsui loaned the stand
ard between $5,000,000 and $6,00O,000
which they got back with interest,
"to say nothing of this s1,619, ,000."
'Tn 1919 the government" Lane
said, "by sort Of a lump-sum set
tIement, paid the Standard aircraft
about $3.700.00o."
''Besieged the Omce.n
T investigated" he went on, land
thought the probabilities were that
company had been overpaid already
notified them they could not receive
any more, and they came down with
their officers and lawyers and be-
sieged the Office"
Audits and claim preparations went
ahead.
"They got about s3,4oo,000 paid to
them on their final claim" the wit
ness said. THAT was the total sum.
! 1t was a bad case. The files were
scattered, some in New York, some
| in ST. Louis, some in the air service:
| "I completed my investigation and
fled my report in August, 1918,
kreeomme ending that the government