Evening star., 1934-04-17
PUBLISHING NAMES
D|STURBS HOUSE
Congressional Probe Almost
Results in Frazier-L.e .emke
Publicity.
BY the Associated Press.

BY the Associated Press
Publication of names on the
Frazier -Lerkc farm mortgage-refl-
nancing bill petition stirred a Juror
in the House yesterday and almost
resulted in a congressional investiga-
tion.
The Associated Press and the news
papers of William Randolph Hearst
were lambasted by Representative
Blanton, Democrat, of Texas, author
of a resolution calling for an investi-
cation of how they obtained incom-
plete lists of petitioners on the
Frazier-Lemke and the Mcleod bank
deposit pay-off bills.
Blanton charged they had violated
House rules and that either member
or employe of the House had made
the signers' names available for
publication. Later, however, he with
drew his resolution at the suggestion
of Chairman Bankhead of the Rules
Committee.
House Rule Provisions.
Rules of the House provide for the
publication after l45 members, the
required number, have signed the
petition to extract bill from a COM
mittee for a vote. The real issue is
over the las rule, many members
wanting to return it to 2l8, majority,
to prevent the petition from being
used for lobbying
The situation was precipitated yes
terday by Representative Warren,
Democrat, of North Carolina an ad-
voCate of the restoration of the ma
jority rule Last week he obtained
a ruling from Speaker Rainey that it
was against the rules for incomplete
petitions to be made public.
Blanton said if the Associated
Press continued to publish such lists,
its representatives should be barred
from the galleries.
Warren said The Washington Eve
ming Star on Saturday published a
list of signers of the Frazier-Lemke
bill petition, in report credited to
the Associated Press.
Blanton Opposes Resolution.
Speaker Rainey said nothing could
be done unless a resolution were in
troduced, and Blanton offered the
following:
whereas, in violation of the rules
OF this House, the Hearst newspapers
and The Star on two different occa-
sions recently have published the
names of members who had signed
an incomplete petition to discharge
committees:
Resolved, That the Committee on
Rules be and is hereby requested to
inquire and find out what member
or employe of this House has vio-
lated the rules and report their find
ings to this House"
Representative Carpenter Democrat.
Of Kansas, asked why there should
''be any secrecy about a bill as i'm
portant as the Frazier-Lemke bill,
which affects all of the farmers of
the country?"
Because it is rule of this House"
Blanton said. He replied in the mega
tive to Representative Gray, Demo-
crat, of Indiana, who asked whether
ANY newspaper could have secured
the list other than by the help of
somebody in the House"
II think the Record should show
that this bill now under discussion
was introduced by Mr.. Lemke." War
rem said. 1T is fact that IA names
were taken off the petition, and yet if
press reports are true, the gentleman
from North Dakota threatened to 60
on the air and personally derounce
these IA members who have taken
their names of the petition"
Heard by Blanton.
THAT is what I have heard" Blan-
tnY, renIinI
heard it from the gentleman from
North Dakota"
Meanwhile, in speech prepared
for delivery last night over National
Broadcasting Co. network, Representa-
tive Lemke, Republican of North Da-
kota, said there is not a word in the
language of the rule that requires
secrecy or star chamber proceedings"
II deny that there is anything in
this rule that prevents any member
from making public the names of those
who signed the petition or those who
withdrew their names" he said.
Il deny that the Speaker or any
former Speaker can intelligently and
honestly interpret this language to
mean secrecy. Some of the members
who signed the petition themselves
advertised it among their constituents.
No Speaker or set of members in
the House can put paddock on my
brain or seal my lips-I am going to
make the names Of those who took
their signatures off the petition public
at the proper time"
Lemke said Speaker Rainey and
other Democratic leaders had induced
IL members to withdraw their names
last week, when there was 141 on the
petition. Two, he said, had returned
their SIGNATURES