Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-01-29
Richie DEFENSE
IS MADE BY LEE
Speaker Denies Governor
and MaCkaII Received
Roads Fund Gifts.
BY WILLIAM J. WHEATLEY,
STAT Corresuondent of The Star

STATEHOUSE, Annapolis, Md, jan
uary 29.-After being subjected to a
barrage Of verbal fireworks in the House
of Delegates in a bitter partisan de-
bate, during which at one time there
was threat to use the manly art were
it not for remarks made under legis-
lative immunity, the grand inquest COM
mittee, which has been kicked around
by insurgents and Republicans for
nearly four weeks, finally got its au-
thority to proceed. Shortly after mid
night it settled on a tentative form OF
procedure, after electing Senator S.
Scott Beck, Democrat, of ChestertoWn,
Kent County, as chairman and Francis
p Curtis, Democrat, of the second leg
islative district of Baltimore City, as
vice chairman
During the debate on the House floor
over the Coburn resolution calling Tor
information as to the amount Of State
roads money used at public celebrations
and the authority for the expenditure,
the author of the resolution, Frederick
l.. Coburn of Hartford County, intlmated
that Gov. Albert c. Ritchie of Maryland
had received silver bowl costing 1000,
paid for out of State funds, and that
John NJ Mackall, former chairman OF
the State Roads Commission, had re-
ceived a silver service costing $1,000,
paid from the same source. the lmpu-
tations we're fatty denied on the floor
by Speaker E. Brooke Lee OF Silver
Spring, administration spokesman. The
governor later denied that he had re-
ceived any gifts.
Mitchell Offers to Quit.
Senator Walter ] Mitchell Of La
Plata, Charles County, majority floor
leader in the upper house, sought to
resign as a member Of the committee,
because of imputations in the House
last Thursday by Republican Floor
Leader Joseph A. Wilmer OF Faulkner,
Charles County, that the Senator had
been directly interested in road-exten-
sion contracts which the House member
asserted would preclude fair investl-
CATION He suggested that Senator WI
liam A. Gunter, Republican, of Cumber-
land, Allegany County, be selected to
serve on the committee, but the latter
refused.
The debate in the House was pre-
cipitated when 1t took up the report OF
the grand inquest committee on the
Coburn resolution. The resolution was
amended SO that instead of the gov
ernor being directed to make the report,
the State Roads Commission would be
required to do it, and instead of having
the commission report to the House, 1t
would report TO the investigating COM
nlittee.
Coburn said that the only object Of
his original resolution was to have the
governor tell the House of Delegates, to
which he is directly responsible, about
the funds. He insisted that the only
81 rSAkk lao fV.fN rx1asa fnnl fr0y1
the governor, and added that while he
held no brief for any of those who had
been convicted in connection with the
populations, if there was any one else
higher up, the Governor of Maryland Or
any one else, if any CT them diverted
funds intended for the construction OF
roads they were just as liable under the
law as those who had been already con-
victed. If the governor has nothing to
hide, he continued, why doesn't he an
swer, SO that the people of Maryland
would know all the facts.
He said that the governor had given
out a statement, following his previous
remarks in the House, in which he said
that it was no secret as to the amount
of money expended at the public cele-
brations. Coburn conceded this, but he
said it was the purpose of his resolution
to find out by whose authority the
money was expended, and Tor, the de-
tails Of the expenditures.
Lee Defends Governor.
Delegate Daniel C. Joseph of Balti-
more, leader of the Democratic insur-
gent bloc in the lower house, said that
If the governor could have the right Of
appearing on the House floor he would
ask the passage Of the resolution in its
original form.
Speaker Lee said that the committee
amendments were unanimous, and he
thought that Delegate Coburn was going
very far by making the governor OF
Maryland messenger to bring inforna-
ton from the State Roads Commission
to the House The commission not
only had the figures which he sought,
he continued, but also has the authority
to give them to the House. He charged
that Coburn, under legislative immunity,
had brought on the floor of the House
a Republican newspaper, and read the
charges Of receipts OF gifts by the
officials - -.
Speaker Lee said that he had con-
ferred with the governor about the
matter, and he wanted the House in
formed that the governor had never
received any silver or any gift of any
kind in connection with the opening OF
the Grain Highway. He said that the
governor informed him that several
days before the celebration, he had been
informed that gifts Of jewelry had been
planned, and he directed that that part
of the program be killed, and it was.
The governor also was represented by
the speaker as saying that he did not
know Of any gifts, or jewelry being given
on that or any other occasion, until
after the delegate from Hartford County
had introduced his resolution.
Continuing, Speaker Lee said that he
would violate his duty both as dele
gate and as a man If he did not tell the
truth to counteract the underhanded
tactics of the gentleman from Hartford
County.
Republican Floor Leader Wilmer
then launched into long verbal at
tack on the proposal to joint with the
Senate committee in the investigation,
saying that under the Maryland Con-
stitution the House Of Delegates was
delegated solely as the grand inquest
of the State. He said that the House
was surrendering its prerogatives, and
once surrendered, they would never
be returned and cited the case Of the
eighteenth amendment to the Federal
Constitution. which, he said, was ap-
proved at first as as experiment.
Attacks Lees Charges.
Coburn, when his name was reached
on the roll call, answering the Speaker,
said:
IT have been called everything but a