Evening star., 1949-08-17
Five-Percenters
Continued From First Page.) }

was also told there was a Carlton
Hotel bill for $168 for Mr.. Mara
gon.
Not Shown on Tax Report.
! Mr.. Ross, the company presi-
dent, who followed Mr.. Poland tC
the stand, said he handed Mr.
Maragon 500 cash in New York
when Mr.. Maragon told him che
had piled up expenses and needed
500 fast"
Mr.. Maragon's sworn testimony
before the committee on July "a
was read into the record by As
sistant Chief Counsel Francis D,
Flanagan. In this testimony Mr..
Maragon was directly asked,
Have you ever been paid at all
for doing any business with the
Government"
The answer was, mo"
Mr.. Flanagan also said. in an
swer to question from Commit
tee Counsel William P. Rogers
that Mr.. Maragons income tax
returns from 1945 to 1948 did not
mention that Mr.. Maragon re-
ceived any money from the Allied
Molasses Co. or from Milton Pol
land.
Violated Rationing Order.
Herbert c. Hathorn, former al
ternate administrator of the
Agriculture Departments sugar
branch, now an attorney in a
private consultant service. was the
witness who described to the COM
mittee the role played in the
molasses negotiations by Gen.
Vaughan.
He began by explaining that
the company had willfully disre-
garded q sugar rationing order
and that the Agriculture Depart
ment had gone so far as to recon-
mend criminal prosecution be-
cause of the seriousness Of the
violation.
He then testified that Gen.
Vaughan. late in 1916, called him
to say that he would like Mr..
Hathorn ito do something" to
ease the plight Of the molasses
company.
Gen Vaughan, Mr.. Hathorn
testified, said in this conversation
that he had been at football
game and had met Mr.. Ross and
told him that molasSes was to be
decontrolled.
HE Could Get My job"
Gen. Vaughan, Mr.. Hathorn
said, told him that the company
had contracted for a large guam
tity of molasses on the basis of
this information and that ut
could be embarrassing" if the
company was not allowed to get
the molasses.
Mr.. Hathorn said he told Gen.
Vaughan that the company was
in serious violation and if Gen
Vaughan had talked to Secretary
Of Agriculture Anderson, Mr.. Ha-
thorn was sure Mr.. Anderson was
not acquainted with the facts.
| The general, he said, got q
little rough"
Gen. Vaughan ended up with
the statement that he was very
close to the President and a friend
in the White House could mean q
lot to a man in one of the Govern
ment agencies, and also he could
get my job," Mr.. Hathorn testi-
fed. MY impression was that he
inferred he could help a man in
my position, or be detrimental"
Didn't Get Molasses.
Mr.. Hathorn said the company
did not get the molasses.
He testified that he later at
tended a meeting in the Office of
Joseph P. Elvove, assistant direc-
tor of the sugar branch, at which
Mr.. Maragon presented an appeal
on behalf of the molasses company
and Mr.. Maragon gave the im-
preston he was a '1eg man" for
Gen. Vaughan.
After hearing this testimony
Senator Mundt commented an
grily:
ITO me it is distressing to rea-
lie that the Government has
sunk to revolving and repugnant
low when the Presidents aide will
call up a high-class young mar
in the Government and use pres
i sure, intimidation, bluff and blus'
!, ter to get him to do something