Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-09-30
Tells Committee He Went to
Conference Only to Bring
Out Americas Side and
Facts of Naval Armament.
COMPANIES KNEW HIS
PURPOSE, HE DECLARES
Rear Admiral Reeves Testifes That
He Never Entertained or Ex.
pressed Hope That Sessions
Would Fail, in Answer to Pear
son Charge.
BY G. GOULD LINCOLN.

William B. Shearer, charged
with having gone to the Geneva
naval conference in 1927 in the
pay of American shipbuilders to
break up the conference, today
told the Senate investigating
committee that he had not gone
there to break up the conference
nor had he ever claimed that he
did so.
"A fair treaty or no treaty and
the right to build 10,000-ton
cruisers was the strongest state
ment I ever made" declared
Shearer.
The base drum" of the Geneva
conference, as Shearer has been
termed, held the center of the
stage at the Senate investigation
this morning. He denied en-
phatically that he had ever been q
spy, as has been charged in some
quarters, or that he had been ar
rested or charged with any crime.
He himself repeatedly charged the
Senate committee with treating
him unfairly. Some of his rapid
fire exchanges with the committee
threw the whole committee room
into bursts of laughter.
: Says Companies Knew His Aims.
Shearer told the committee that he
had gone to Geneva to bring out Amer
icas side Of the controversy over naval
armaments, and that he had brought
out the facts. He said that the three
shipbuilding companies which employed
him knew his purpose in going to
Geneva and his activities there.
He said that he had always been for
o fair agreement on naval limitations
which would do justice to America. He
declared that he had never done any
thing to fustrate such an agreement.
MY activities never were criticized
by the American delegation at the
Geneva conference In 1927, that know
Of" said Shearer.
Before Shearer took the stand, Rear
Admiral j. M. Reeves, one of the naval
experts accompanying the American
delegation to the Geneva conference,
testified that he never had entertained
or expressed a hope that the Geneva
conference would not succeed.
Denies Pearson Statement.
Admiral Reeves testimony was given
In refutation of a statement made last
week before the committee by Drew
Pearson, a newspaper correspondent.
who said that he had heard Admiral
Reeves. then a captain, in the company
Of Shearer. express q hope that the
conference would not succeed.
The testimony of Shearer today took
up the so-called Scotland Yard record
of Shearer, which also was referred to
by Drew Pearson in his testimony be-
fore the committee. Shearer told the
committee he had learned from other
American newspaper correspondents in
Geneva that Alvin johnson, corre-
spondent for the New York World, had
shown a copy of this document to sew
eral other newspaper men; shearer said
that a few days before the conference
ended, he went to Johnson's hotel and
demanded the document. johnson, he
said, handed it to him.
IT told him he should be ashamed OF
himself" said Shearer. "to seek to
klacken my character when was work.
ing in the interests of America at the
conference"
Shearer said that he had not
threatened johnson or laid hands on
him. He said that johnson had
apologized for using the document par
ticularly as he had been a guest at
Shearer's house.
johnson admitted to him. Shearer
said, that the alleged Scotland Yard
record had been given johnson by the
head of the British secret Service at