Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1926-06-23
Penn State. w. c. T. U.
Raised $4,000 to
Enforce Prohibition

Washington, June 22.-P)-Pro-
hibition enforcement in Pennsyl-
vania with a special fund raised by
the Women's Christian Temperance
Union and the effort of Secretary
Mellon and other members of his
family to have a controlling hand in
Republican politics in that state
divided the attention today of the
Senate campaign funds committee.
From Mrs. Ella NJ. George, state
president of the temperance organi-
cation, the investigators learned that
approximately 100000 had been
raised to enforce the states new dry
law and that Governor Pinch0t had
set up special machinery with two
deputy attorney generals paid out
of the fund.
This testimony aroused members
of the committee, some of whom
brought up the legal right of pri-
waite organization to thus contribute
funds to a commonwealth. Finally
Senator Reed, Democrat. MissiurI.
the chairman. called to the stand
Representative Graham of Pennsyl-
vania who had never known of a
governor of his state accepting funds
for law enforcement from such an or
ganization until Governor Pinchot
had done so.
More light on the activities Of
Secretary Mellon and-Ais nephew. ".
l.. Mellon, president OF the Gulf Oil
Company, in the pre- primary man
euvering, was shed by w. Harry
Baker. now secretary and formerly
chairman of the Pennsylvania Re
publican state central committee.
and State Senator Max g. Leslie of
Pittsburgh.
Baker testified that at his first
conference here at the home OF Sec
rotary Mellon the discussion ranged
around proposal that Secretary
Davis OF tre labor department, run
for governor.
At latci conferences at which W.
l.. Mellon was present, the then state
chairman sought to get support of
the Mellon interests for f. +. Beidle-
man for governor but without sue
cess.
Other witnesses heard during the
day were l.. V. Babcock and Joseph
G. Armstrong of Pittsburgh. COM
missioners of Allegheny county.
Only one other to be questioned re-
Sardine the Pennsylvania primary
is on Representative NORM, OF
Pittsburgh, who was western man
aeer for Representative Ware. How
ever, the committee decided tonight
to call several additional witnesses
whose names were withheld.
Chairman Reed explained that
there had been difficulty in locating
some witnesses as a result of an an
nouncement that they were sought.
Previously he had Indicated during
the eXamiltation of Baker that COM
mittee process servers had been I'M
able 10 find Thomas W. Cunningham,
treasurer of the Pennsylvania State
Republican committee. and MagiS-
tTate Frank O'Connor of PhiladeI-
phia.
Questioned about .Beidleman's
charge of irregularities in the vote in
Allegheny county, Commissioner
Babcock testified that the county
commissioners found that one ballot
box WAS irregular" but that every
thinG else was as clean as whistle"
Chairman Reed developed that tins
one box contained no ballots but the
less said he had never heard OF
any stories to the effect that the
missing ballots had been thrown into
a sewer"
Babcock also denied that the coun-
ty commissioners had refused access
to the return sheets filed with them.
lie said that after Beidleman
brought action in the courts his at
torneys were permitted 10 examine
all of the sheets and that in nearly
every case they accepted the total
as accurate.