Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-09-26
A Connecticut Innocent.

The employment of Charles l.. cyan
son, assistant to the president of the
Manufacturers Association of Connec-
ticut, by Senator Hiram Bingham to aid
the Senator In his work on the tariff
bill while the measure was before the
Senate finance committee is the latest
point Of Democratic attack on the Re-
publican tariff bill. The defense OF the
Senator from Connecticut Is That ne
was unfamiliar with the hundreds OF
items In the tariff bill and that he went
To a source for information upon which
he could rely, particularly with regard
to the tariff duties on the products OF
his own State. 1t appears that Mr..
Eyanson was first paid by Senator B1ng-
ham out of his own pocket and that
later he was put on the Government
nav roll as his secretary. 1t further ap-
pears that Mr.. Eyanson, as secretary
to Senator Bingham, attended sessions
of the committee when it was drafting
the bill.
Granting that the reasons OF Sena-
tor Bingham fer the employment OF
Evanscn are of the best, the Connect
icut Senator was at least placing HIM
self In o position by the employment
of this official Of the manufacturers
association where an attack upon him
and the tariff bill was practically GER
tain, once it became publicly known
that Eyanson had the position. the
Senator from Connecticut, from his
own statement. seems strangely IN
nocent and unfamiliar with the dark
vays Of his Democratic opponents. Had
he sought the advice Of some OF his
more seasoned colleagues before ne I'M
dertook to bring Mr.. Eyanson into the
tariff picture he might have spared
himself whatever embarrassment, II
any, he Is now suffering. From the re-
ports of Senator Bingham's own story
Of this employment, it appears that the
attendance of Mr.. Eyanson upon the
meetings of the finance committee was
stopped. The inference is that the
matter did come to the attention OF
other members of the committee, who
disagreed with Senator Bingham In re-
gard to the wisdom, if not the pro-
priety, Of Mr. Eyanson's employment to
aid Senator Bingham in connection
with the framing of the tariff bill.
When tariff bills are under consider
alton by Congress, charges commonly fly
thick and fast regarding the Hobbies OF
the manufacturers In Washington, seek
ing to influence the writing Of the
measur~. The investigation by Con-
gress i.seif of tariff Hobbies" has
occurred more than once in the past.
The course pursued by Senator Bing-
ham in connection with the hiring OF
an ofiicial of the Connecticut Manu-
facturers' Association, innocent as it
may be In fact merely places in the
hands Of opponents of the tariff bill
weapon with which to attack the bill.
the manufacturers and the Senator
himself.
Senator Binghams employment OF
Eyanson was defended in the Senate
Yesterday by Senator Watson, Republic
can leader and a member OF the
finance committee, and by Senator
Smoot, chairman of that committee.
They "defed' the Democrats to place
their fingers upon single item in the
bill that Mr.. Eyanson had written or OF
which be had influenced the writing.
But, say the attackers for what con-
ceivable purpose was Mr.. Eyanson en-
ployed In connection with the tariff
bill II not to have some hand in the
writing of the bill, or at least of having
some influence upon the Senator from
Connecticut in this activity? Senator
Bingham insists that Eyanson was there
merely to give him information. To the
Democrats, however. there appears little
difference between giving information
upon which Mr.. Bingham was to act
and influence" in connection with the
drafting of the bill. Senator Bingham
lacks some of the shrewdness for which
the Connecticut Yankee has been cele-
brated In the past.
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