Evening star., 1925-02-22
A|RCRAF INQUIRY
ABRUPTLY HALTED;
BOMB TEST BEATEN
Committee Pleads ''Lack of
Funds" Denying Coercion"
Rumors at Capitol.
PROPOSED PLANE-SHIP
EXPERIMENT DEFEATED
Report Will Be Made on Basis of
Present Information-Many
Witnesses Unheard.

Without word of warning the
House aircraft committee, Off
cially designated as the select
committee of inquiry into operations
OF the United States air service, sud
denly announced late yesterday
afternoon the cessation of its hear
tnss on the threshold of what ap-
peared to be a busy and interesting
week of testimony. judging from the
witnesses that were to appear.
The announcement was made at
the close of a two-hour executive
meeting in the Office of Chairman
Florian Lampert of Wisconsin. The
majority of the members before en-
tering showed no evidence of what
was to be taken up, but the general
impression broadcast was that the
matter of holding more battleship
bombing exercises to wipe out the
grave doubt in the minds of the
American people as to the compare
tive values of the different arms of
the country's military service" would
be discussed
Plea for New Test Loses.
Representative Aiming S. Prall
Democrat, New York, had prepared a
resolution for adoption, which would
have accepted the invitation of Secre-
tary of War Weeks to attend an anti
aircraft demonstration, provided
that the Secretary of War and the
Secretary Of the Navy cooperate in
giving the Army Air Service an op-
portunity to show it's efficiency in
bonn bing from the air, and provided d
further, that the battleship North
Dakota be placed at the disposal of
the Army Air Service for this test
The resolution was voted down, 5 to 2
Chairman Lampert voting with Mr.
Pran. The New York representative
then left the meeting and announced
that the committee had decided to at
tend the anti-aircraft demonstration
March 6. program already had
been mapped out by the War Depart
ment, and was presented to the com
mittee.
At the conclusion of the executive
meeting, there was noticeable hasty
exit on the part of the members, but
waiting newspaperElen were able to
corner" Representative Randolph
Perkins, Republican, New Jersey, the
committee examiner. He stated it had
been decided to conclude the hearings
a [ this time owing to the shortage of
funds and in order not to lose the
benefit of the years work which the
committee had expended on finding
out what was the matter with the
air services.
Doubt Fund Forthcoming.
1t was explained that the commit
tee felt Congress would not grant an
additional appropriation to carry on
the inquiry through the Summer and
that it had better cease its investiga-
tion now and spend the remaining
days of this session preparing its
record for printing at the Govern
ment Printing Office. There is pend
ing in the rules committee of the
House resolution authorizing the
committee to make it's report at the
opening of the next Congress, in De-
cember, which authority. If granted,
will enable a careful study and check
of the voluminous mass of testimony
before an intelligent report is rem
dered.
The committee in open session la st
week had moved that Secretary of
War Weeks be called to explain a
War Department news release that
there are now 1900 airpIanes in the
Army Air Service ready to meet an
emergency. Brig. Gen. William
Mitchell, assistant chief of the Army
Air Service, had testified there are
only 19 modern planes-all of the
pursuit type. that could cope with a
modernly equipped enemy.
Author of Story Called.
Then the committee, through Rep
resentative Prall, had announced tina t
Representative Sol Bloom of New
York was to appear tomorrow and
explain an invention in bomb sights
that would revolutionize bombing ac-
curacy Representative Bloom was
to have spoken in behalf of the in
ventor and introduce him to the COM
mittee.
A subpoena was issued for the
author of a recent magazine article
that Congress had sold the lives of
the "a officers and men killed on the
Roma explosion for $412 apiece be-
cause it failed to appropriate $4,000
10 transport helium available at Fort
Worth, Tex, to Langley Field, for
imitation in the new dirigible Just
acquired by the Army. The ship had
10 be buoyed with hydrogen, and on a
flight exploded with the loss of lives.
The author of this story was Lieut.
Comdr. Clifford A. Tinker, U. S. N.
X. +.
Another witness held for the COM
mittee was Jean Alfred Roche, an
aerodynamic expert of McCook Field,
Dayton, Ohio, who, with Lawrence
keryer, another expert, had prepared
a report to the committee on the per-
formance of planes accepted by the
Army with those built by James V.
Martin, an aircraft manufacturer with
many grievances against the Govern
ment. Mr.. Roche and Mr.. Kerver had
explained the report in some detail,
but it was the desire of Representa-
tive Frank r. Reid of Illinois that
Mr.. Roche give further testimony on
the subject.
Coercion Rumored.
Talk of coercion against the com
mittee OF the welding of mailed
fist and other forms of intimidati
buzzed about the corridors and a
feeble attempt to substantiate this
assumption was given in the form
of an anonymous" letter which each
member of the House rules committee
was said to have received. copy
of the anonymous" letter was trans
mitted to the committee while in
executive session, and Representative
Perkins said it was not read to the
committee, although Representative
Prall announced its presence on
emerging from the meeting.
The letter claimed the committee
had exceeded the bounds of it's origi-
nal authority and criticized the
method it had employed in receiving
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