Evening star., 1951-05-30
Signal for New Probe
OF RFC Loan 10 B&0
Stirs Little Interest
By Robert K. Walsh

"A 1SCS0AAoOA 0StAQAA n AAA0&4SO WI ~
loan to the Baltimore 81 Ohio
Railroad raised new steam in Con-
gress today, but some Senate In
vestigators showed little enthusi-
asm about going over the same
tracks covered four years ago.
The signal for possible revival
of Congressional probe into the
$S7 million loan in l943 came
at q Senate Banking Committee
closed session yesterday.
A Senate group in 1947 looked
into the loan. A report drafted
at that time and repeatedly crit
ical OF the railroads activities in
connection with the loan will be
made public next week, Commit
tee Chairman Maybank an
nounced. It has been referred
to the Fulbright subcommittee for
further checking, he added.
Controversy swirled today about
the sponsorship and scope of the
report and the responsibility for
having kept 1t unpublished for
four years,
Full Inquiry in Doubt.
But there was doubt that the
subcommittee investigating RFC
will reopen the matter to the ex-
tent Of a full-scale inquiry.
Chairman Fulhright told re-
porters that the whole thing was
gone into pretty exhaustively in
1s47. Senator Capehart. Republi-
can, Of Indiana, said he does not
oppose an investigation. He de-
clared, however, that the 1947
committee hearings and later
court decisions found no evidence
Of illegalities.
Still others noted that RFC
Administrator w. Stuart Syming-
ton already is having his agency
as well as the Justice Department
look into various aspects Of the
loan, on which more than SIC
million is yet to be paid. The
Senate subcommittee should wait
to see whether that administra-
tive study turns up anything, sew
eral Senators said.
Mr.. Symington, meanwhile, has
scheduled a news conference for
Friday and might discuss the b.
d o. loan at that time.
Capehart Protests.
The main purpose of yesterdays
suddenly called closed meeting of
the Banking Committee was to
discuss Senator Capehart's protest
against published statements that
he was principally responsible for
"suppressing" the 1947 report.
That assertion was made by
Columnist Drew Pearson, who
later attended a news conference
held by the Indiana Senator.
: Senator Capehart recalled that
the report in question was drafted
by committee staff officials under
the supervision" of Senator Tobey,
Republican, Of New Hampshire.
At committee meeting in July 1
1947. which Senator Tobey au-I
thorized but was unable to attend,
Senator Capehart suggested that
action on the report be postponed
and that it be referred to q SUBJ
committee then headed by former
Senator Buck, Republican. Of
Delaware.
The Trdiona Carm4or ,,ro5,,o>.a
q record showing that Senator
Fulbright. at his request, made the.
motion, which was unanimously
adopted. The report was re-
turned to Senator Tobey, he said.
Later the committee authorized
Senator Tobey, who was Bank
ing Committee chairman. to re-
lease the report with the under
standing that it was not to be
identified as a committee docu-
ment. Senator Capehart said.
Release Postponed.
In August. 1947, Senator Tobey
announced that members had mo
objection to release of the chair
mans report at this time" but
that he decided to postpone its
release for the time being" be-
cause some members indicated q
desire to study it more fully.
Senator Tobey said yesterday
that he always was in favor of
making the report public.
I Senator Capehart declared that,
when the report is published in
full next week, it will represent
Senator Tobey's views and not be
report of the committee"
The principal criticism in the
report, members said, centers on
the manner in which the railroad
went into bankruptcy proceedings.
Senator Capehart said the courts
looked into that matter and found
nothing wrong.
MY conclusion was, and still
Is" he said, that the RFC people
were careless in letting the B. e. o.
make such a good deal in getting
q big loan. I never felt there was
fraud. but I was disturbed that
three or four RFC officials later
took jobs with the railroad COM
pany."