Closing N. Y. Markets, Pages 12 and 13
Sl9 Entered as second class matter
iNO. 1 post office. Washington. D C.
15 DEAD, 600 HURT IN PITTSBURGH BLAST
FIERY BALL BURSTS
OVER CITY, SPREADING
, RUIN IN NORTH SIDE
Explosion of Huge Gas Storage
Tank Leaves Dead and Dying
Lying in Littered Streets.
| BIG FACTORIES DESTROYED;
INJURED CROWD HOSPITALS
Force of Shock Levels All Wires and
Breaks Water Mains, Adding to
* Difficulty of Rescues.
1 w mm
By tbs Associated Press.
PITTSBURGH, November 14.—Fifteen persons were known
to have been killed and several hundred injured here today when a
. mammoth gas storage tank exploded, spreading death and destruc
tion throughout the lower North Side district.
Hampered in the work of rescue by wrecked buildings, streets
flooded by broken water mains and dangling electric wires, police
and firemen finally penetrated a part of the devastated area. They
recovered seven bodies within a few minutes, and newspaper tnen
at the scene said they had counted other dead in the streets and
k the wrecked houses.
The tank, containing 5,000,000 cubic feet of natural gas, let
loose with one of the nuost terrific blasts in Pittsburgh’s history.
Practically every building in the immediate vicinity was wrecked,
and windows over a wide area were shattered, including some in
downtown department stores and office structures.
t Ball of Fire Shoots Into Air.
\Vhen the tank burst a ball of fire, higher than the adjacent
tip of Mount Washington, shot into the air, spreading out in a
» fan shape.
Firemen and workers expressed the belief
that scores of persons, in their homes and in factories of the
region, had !>een trapped when the buildings collapsed.
The scene of the disaster was one of wild confusion. Resi
dents of the thickly settled district rushed about the streets as if
mad. Women sought their children, while men dug into the debris
of their homes in an effort to bring out some loved one trapped in
the wreckage. v .
The force of the blast ripped down all telephone and light
wires, knocked over poles and caused homes to tumble down.
Streets in the ill-fated region bulged, breaking sewer and water
pipes. *
Every policeman in the city was ordered to duty. They roped
off an area one mile square to keep back the thousands who
rushed to the scene. Private automobiles trucks were com- (
mandeered to take injured to hospitals, and within a short time
every hospital in the city was jammed, and the firemen were forced
to set up emergency first-aid stations at the scene.
The first 11 bodies taken to the morgue were workmen.
Pieces of the tank steel supports, some- weighing more than !
100 pounds, were found a mile from the scene.
Street Car Wrecked by Blast.
A street car, three blocks from the tank when it let go, was
wrecked and every passenger aboard was hurt. Many school
children in a nearby school yard were cut by flying glass when
* the windows in the structure were shattered.
It was estimated by hospital officials that between 500 and
600 were injured, many seriously.
Many of the injured staggered to the Presbyterian and Alle
gheny General Hospitals, and at the latter institution so many of
the victims walked in that the steps leading to the main door were
spattered with blood. Most of the injured had been cut and hurt
by flying glass and debris. i
The gas works, on Reedsdale street, North Side* were said to ’
employ more than 300 men, but just how many of these were at i
work at the time was not known.
Coroner W. J. McGregor for Alle
gheny County, Fire Chief R. L Smith
* for the city of Pittsburgh, and officials
of the Philadelphia Co., of which the
Equitable Co., is a subsidiary, immedi
ately launched investigations of the
fatal blast.
All In Factory Injured.
In some instances, where factories
did not collapse, all employes w T ere
f hurt. This was true of the Pittsburgh
Iron Bed Co., where the entire per
sonnel of 50 men needed hospital at
tention. Entire families, fathers,
mothers and children, residents of the
district, who escaped death, were re
moved to hospitals, some very badly
* hurt.
The first victim to be identified was
Joe Harris, a negro, resilient of the
wrecked district. 11 is body, taken to
the morgue, was identified by friends.
Eittle effort was being made to identi
* fy the other victims.
Some of the larger plants wrecked
Included the Union Paint Co., the
Standard Plate Glass Co. warehouse
and the VVarren-Herrent Roofing Co.
It was feared the death list w’ould
Crow to a great extent because many
of those in hospitals were reported in
a critical condition. Doctors said many
of the victims had suffered internal
hurts.
% In the lists of victims at Mercy Hos
pital was Paul Mundeski. his wife and
, four children.
An additional victim was added to
the death list when George Bowen
gate died of injuries in Allegheny
General Hospital.
Among the injured at one hospitnl
was Mrs. T. .1 Mullen and her 11-
month-old twin sons. James and
Several hours after the blast oc
curred, rescuers were finding it hard
to get into the center of the w'recked
district. In the midst of the section
was the city asphalt plant, and here,
it was reported. 15 employes had been
killed or injured. The plant, across
the street from the tank, was a total
v reck.
Many Pedestrians Hurt.
* Even pedestrians on downtown
•treets did not escape the blast. Many
persons were cut by glass when
large department store windows were
•haltered.
The blast occurred just as the Police
Courts of the city got under way.
-liagutrate* -immediately adjourned
WEATHER.
• 0 9 W»»iher Hi re* ii for*c*»l t
Fair an<l warmer, with lowest tem
pera! ure nboul 4U degree* tonight. To
morrow cloudy and warmer.
Temperature—Highest. 53 at noon
today, lowest 12, at 6 am. today.
Full report on page 9
court and rushed the police to the
scene.
While the exact cause of the explo
sion was undetermined, it was said
that gas company workmen were re
pairing a section of the tank with a
blow torch when the blast occurred.
Stunned at first by the extent of
the catastrophe, Pittsburgh soon col
lected itself, and before noon relief
agencies were hard at work rendering
aid. Every available Red Cross nurse
w T as at the scene and rescue workers
of the organization were summoned
from all parts of the county by A. K.
Oliver, chairman. Advised of the dis
aster. Oliver ordered Red Cross equip
ment. including cots and blankets,
rushed to the district, and he sent a
score of doctors and nurses to North
Side hospitals to aid the oxertaxed
staffs.
The American Railway Express Co.
offered the use of its automobile
trucks to the Red Cross, and soon
many of the machines w»ere carrying
injured to hospitals and taking med
ical and other supplies to emergency
stations inside the police lines.
Warehouse Is Cnished.
The Joseph Horne department store
warehouse, near the tank, w'as crush
ed like an eggshell by the force of the
blast.
" ith ll bodies at the morgue the
regular undertakers were forced to
summon outside aid. A number of
morticians from private undertaking
houses were put to work, while others
were held in reserve to handle addi
tional bodies as they were recovered
from the ruins.
The death list continued to grow
when two others victims, C. M. Mi
chaels and a Mrs. Marty, succumbed
to their injuries in hospitals.
Begrimed firemen, working within
the radius through which the explo
sion shot death and destruction, said
words would not describe the scene.
They were fighting their way through
the debris-choked streets, aided by
volunteer rescue workers, but their
progress was slow. They were men
aced hy tottering walls, dangling
j wires and flooded streets.
Here and there the firemen halted
to pick up an injured victim. At one
point they stumbled upon a baby boy.
He was rushed to & hospital. Anoth
er little fellow, cut by flying debris,
told the firemen he was Jack Smith,
aged 4 years, hut he did not know
{Continued on Page 2,
U\\t timing §kf.
WASHINGTON, D. C., MONDAY, NOVEMBER 14, 1927—THIRTY-EIGHT PAGES. *
Tank Rises Intact
High in Air Before
Terrific Explosion
By the Associated Press.
| PITTSBURGH. November 14.
A vivid description of the explosion
was given by Fire Chief Richard
1.. Smith, who was driving his au
tomobile over the Manchester
i Bridge at the junction of the Al
' legheny and Monongahela Rivers,
in full view of the blast when it
let go.
“The great steel tank rose hun
dreds of feet into the air like a
great balloon,” he said. “It re
mained intact for an instant and
then burst like a great fireworks
bomb. As it iet go with a terriffic
roar, the hundreds of tons of steel
went hurtling through the air as
so much pasteboard and then the
crash of buildings and glass filled
the air.”
Chief Smith was the first of a
hundred city. State or county offi
cials to reach the scene.
DEBRISEXTENDS
FOR SQUARE MILE
Water Gushing From Mains
and Sewers Covers
Wreckage in Streets.
By the Associated Press.
PITTSBURGH, November 14.
Scenes of utter destruction greeted an
Associated Press reporter today as he
made his way through the stricken
lower North Side district, which was
laid waste by the explosion of a huge
storage gas tank.
An area of approximately one square
mile, fronting on the Ohio River, was
devastated by the great blast, believed
to have been caused when a blow
torch, in the hands of workmen, came
into contact with the tank and ignited
the gas.
The gas w'orks, located at an inter
section of Boyce street, Reedsdale
street. Allegheny avenue and the Ohio
River, w r as in the very heart of a
district crowded by the homes of
workmen, factories, warehouses and
industrial plants. The reporter made
his way over the flooded streets, wa
ter gushing from broken water mains
and sewer pipes. On all sides the dev
astation was jgreat. Many buildings
collapsed. In some instances only the
roofs were lifted from houses.
Rescuers Work Feverishly.
Firemen, policemen and volunteer
rescuers worked feverishly, - digging
into the ruins in an efTort to And
trapped, injured persons or recover
the dead.
On all sides were men, women and
children, their heads and arms swathed
in bandages. These victims had been
treated at emergency stations set up
by Red Cross nurses and Salvation
Army workers.
In one doorway sat a mother, her
four children standing nearby. Stricken
beyond speech, the woman sat waving
her head back and forth.
Eight blocks from the tank, in the
middle of a street, rested a twisted
mass of steel, a section of the big gas
container. Only a great black scar
marked the spot where the tank stood.
Many homeless families found
shelter in houses outside the wrecked
zone. Several hours after the tank
exploded the entire region was choked
by the odor of gas. <
Two See Explosion.
At least two persons were looking
directly at the mammoth North Side
gas tank when it exploded today. Miss
Ruth Pastre and Jerome Henkle, em
ployed in a nearby plant, were stand
ing at a window, gazing at the tank,
when it exploded. All they remem
bered was a blinding flash of fire.
They were rescued by firemen and
sent to a hospital, where cuts and
bruises were treated.
Patrolmen from the Center Avenue
station, among the first to reach the
gas blast disaster scene, were in time
to rescue a woman who had given
birth to a baby in a wrecked Ridge
avenue house. The mother was cut
by flying glass, but the infant was un
harmed.
James Condon, 65, a storekeeper
whose place Is within one block of
where the explosion occurred, told of a
race he won with a sheet of flame
down Reedsdale street. Standing at a
window, Condon was cut about the
body when the force of the blast
shattered the glass. He rushed into
the street, believing the district had
been visited by an earthquake. Look
ing toward the gas works, he said he
saw a sheet of flame traveling down
the street in his direction.
Condon started to run ahead of the
Are, and escaped the flames.
Most of the residents of the dis
trict who escaped the blast said that
at first they were convinced it was an
earthquake, with streets bulging up
md houses and buildings collapsing.
LAFOUNT ON RADIO BOARD.
Harold A. LaFount of Utah, was
appointed by President Coolidge to
day to be a member of the Federal
Radio Commission, succeeding John
F. Dillon, who died recently.
Hughes Assumes Naval Post.
Rear Admiral Charles F. Hughes
former commandcr-in-ehief of* tiie
United States fleet, this afternoon
will assume the duties of chief of the
Bureau of Naval Operations, with the
rank of admiral. He will relieve Ad
mn-ai E. W. Eberle, who will become
senior member of the Navy General
Board, relieving Rear Admiral Hil
lary P. Jones, who retired for age
today.
Dead in Blpt
PITTSBURGH, November 14
UP). —The identified dead in today’s
gas explosion disaster:
C. F. Michaels, superintendent of
the gas works.
Mrs. Marty, a resident of the
stricken district.
George Lowengate, workman.
Joe Harris, negro, workman.
Herman Sobech, 35, mechanical
engineer, who was at work on the
tank.
M. Beaver, 25, structural steel
worker.
P. W. Walters, Sarver, Pa., struc*
tural steel foreman.
fi. liighman, workman*
HEROINE GAIHERS
WITH AIR HEROES
AT WHITE HOUSE
Ruth Elder and Noted Flyers
Here for Lindbergh Cere
mony Tonight.
GROUP EXCHANGES IDEAS
WITH WEATHER EXPERTS
Ocean “Trail Blazer”* to Receive
Hubbard Medal From Fresi*
dent at Auditorium.
America's heroic adventurers of the
air—including one smiling heroine—
gathered around the White House
luncheon table this afternoon, prepa
ratory to watching the youngest and
shyest of their number receive to
night from the hands of President
Coolidge, the coveted Hubbard medal
of the National Geographic Society.
Col. Charles A. Lindberg, slim vik
ing of the skies, who blazed a trail
across the Atlantic Ocean from New
York to Paris for others to follow,
is the youthful hero who will receive
the rarely bestowed decoration at
brilliant ceretnones in the Washing
ton Auditorium.
“Lindy” and the others, numbering
nearly a score, from Comdr. Byrd, who
conquered the North Pole, on down
the famous list of transoceanic and
round-the-world flyers to the latest
additions to their illustrious group—:
Buth Elder and Capt. George Halde- ;
man—swapped reminiscences of their j
epic adventures at the presidential |
luncheon.
Meteorological Forum.
Jus( prior to the luncheon, a ma
jority of the group recalled grim in
cidents of their fights against storms
and ocean fogs in a "meteorological
forum" held in the office of William
P. MacCracken, Assistant Secretary of
Commerce for Air. The conference de
veloped into an exchange of ideas be
tween Government weather experts
and the flyers regarding future colla
tion of weather data for transaceanic
flights.
The circle of celebrities which as
sembled about the White House table
represented probably the greatest
gathering of cotemporary national
•heroes in history.
The list included Col. Lindbergh,
the guest of honor; Miss Elder and
Haldeman. who accompanied her on
her almost-successful flight over the
Atlantic; Comdr. Byrd, hero not only
of the polar flight, but of the attempt
to fly to Paris, which ended in the
English Channel, and who already has
been decorated with the Hubbard
medal; Col. Arthur C. Goebel, winner
of the Dole prize flight to Hawaii;
Berndt Balchen. companion of Byrd in
the flight to France; Lieuts. Hegen
berger and Maitland, first to fly
from San Francisco to Hawaii; Wil
liam S. Brock and Edward F.
Schlee, whose round-the-world at
tempt ended in Japan; Clarence Cham
berlin and Charles A. Levine, who
flew to Germany; Paul Schulter, sec
ond-place winner in the Dole contest;
Emory Bronte, companion of Ernest
L. Smith on the Hawaiian flight;
Lieut. W. C. Davis, who accompanied
Goebel, and George Noville.
Several Are Delayed.
Smith and the following were unable
to reach Washington in time for the
luncheon: Bert Acosta, a companion of
Byrd on his flight to France, and Mar
lin Jensen, companion of Schluter.
Smith wired the President this morn
ing that engine trouble had forced his
plane down at Rockville, N. Y., and
the others sent word they could not
reach here by 1 o’clock, the time set
for the luncheon. They are expected,
however, to be on hand at the Audi
torium this evening.
Lindbergh was among the last of
the flyers to arrive here today. He
landed at Bolling Field shortly after
noon,from New York, accompanied by
his mother and Daniel Guggepheim of
the Guggenheim Foundation.
Only the flyers. President and Mrs.
Coolidge, Col. Blanton W’inship, mili
tary aide to the President, and Capt.
Wilson Brown, naval aide, attended
the luncheon.
An exclusive audience of Amer
ican and foreign notables, numbering
6,000 persons, will witness the presen
tation of the Geographic Society
medal tonight. Diplomatic represen
tatives from all of the countries visit
ed by the various flyers during their
daring jaunts over two oceans, many
lands and the top of the world, will
occupy boxes or reserved seats.
The ceremonies will be broadcast
over a country wide network of radio
stations, beginning at 8:45 o’clock.
Join's Hall of Fame.
Only seven men before Lindbergh
have been honored so singularly by
the Geographic Society. When Presi
dent Coolidge bestows the Hubbard
medal on the fair haired idol of his
country tonight, the name of Lind
bergh will go down in the records of
fame alongside such names as Peary,
Amundsen, Bartlett and Schackleton.
The program will not be of elaborate
nature.
The President will be introduced by
Dr. Gilbert Grosvenor, president of
the society, and Mr. Coolidge then will
confer the decoration, with appropri
ate remarks. The whole function is
designed to he simple, but of deeply
impressive character.
The flyers converged on Washing
ton yesterday and today by air and
rail. Among those, who reached here
yesterday were Goebel, Brock, Schlee
and Bronte. They arrived in planes at
Bolling Field.
Miss Elder and Capt. Haldeman
came by train early today.
Greeted by Admirers.
Crowds of cheering admirers greet
ed the distinguished visitors'in their
movements about the city today, the
largest throng assembling at the
White House early this afternoon.
Other crowds collected outside the De
partment of Commerce during the
meteorological conference and outside
the Carlton and Mayflower Hotels,
where most of the flyers are stopping.
Judging from the inquiries and
shouts of the crowds much of the in
terest centered in the radiant Parisian
gowned Miss Efider whose broad
{Continued »«t rky*. Column 34 ~
asdfg
1 RUTH ELDER WEARS PARIS FROCK
TO WHITE HOUSE LUNCHEON
r
1 ■■■
! Meets Lindbergh as Guest of
President and First
1 1 , .
Lady.
; Aviatrice Denies Estrange
! ment From Her
r
Husband.
i __________
• By the Associated Press.
Ruth Elder, wearing a Parisian
• frock Instead of her famous knickers.
! came to the Nation’s Capital today
j to be the guest of President Coolidge
at luncheon and to meet Col. Charles
, A. Lindbergh, the man, she says, in
l spired her hop over the Atlantic,
i One of the first things the young
; flier did on arrival here was to deny
any es :cmi. with her 24-year-
I old husband, Lyle Womack. But she
i will not return to Panama with him
1 "just now," she said, adding that
"Lyle is going back to Panama
| today."
Weep at Parting.
Miss Elder and her husband spent
. 40 minutes together last night, friends
■ said, and they wept while exchanging
pledges of affection. A member of
1 Miss Elder’s party described her as
"a small-town girl, w-ho became fa
mous overnight," and said her in
; tention was to return to New York
• before tomorrow to consider which of
numerous proffered contracts she
would accept. She will probably go
on a 20-week lecture tour to tell of
the flight w'hlch ended in the ocean
near the Azores, he said. Miss Elder
1 CABARET HEADS
TO FACE COURT
Five Proprietors Accused of
Violating Sunday
Ordinances.
A campaign to force Washington
night clubs to close at midnight Sat
urday was inaugurated quietly by po
lice early yesterday morning with the
result that proprietors of five leading
clubs have been summoned to appear
in Police Court tomorrow to answer
charges of violating section 16 of the
police regulations, which forbids
operation of public amusement places
Sunday, except between the hours of
2 and 11 p.m.
The clubs affected are Le Paradis,
L'Afglon, Ligon, Better ’Ole and Lido.
The proprietors of all night clubs
were warned by the police Saturday
afternoon, It was said, that they
would not be permitted to operate
in the early hours of Sunday morn
ing. All of them, with the exception
of the five whose proprietors were or
dered to appear in court, it was said,
obeyed the warning.
The campaign was directed by
Lieuts J. D. McQuade of tpe second
precinct and, E. T. Harney of the
eighth precinct.
It was ordered by MaJ. Edwin B.
Hesse, superintendent of police, who
said that a number of complaints had
been made to the Police Department
that the night clubs were operating
early Sunday morning.
ITALY HASNEWFLAG.
Fascist Emblem Placed Beside That
of Royalty.
Br Radio to The Star and Chlcwo Dally
New*. Copyright, 1027.
ROME, November 14.—Fascism to
day endowed Italy with a new flag.
Dictator Mussolini has ordered the
Fascist emblem, a lictor, placed on the
flag. The emblem shares honors with
the royal emblem, but appears at the
right-hand side. Certain regimental
flags, emblematic of historic battles,
alone are exempted from the order.
This Is the latest phase of the policy
placing the Fascist emblem every
where on an equality with the royal
emblem. Legal papers and govern
mant buildings already have been
adorned with the lister. ,
dj
RI'TH EIJDER,
herself denied any intention of going
on the stage or into ihe movies.
Contracts offered Miss Elder run
as high as $12,000 a week, it was de
clared. Her intention is to reap
what gains are offered by reason of
her flight, and then, possibly, to re
turn to Panama to her husband.
Attitude of Husband.
Womack was represented as being
anxious to avoid being considered cap
italizing his wife’s achievement, and
it was only after he found that he
could not obtain suitable work in this
country that he decided to return to
Panama.
As Miss Elder talked with news
paper men this morning, her pilot in
the Atlantic hop, George Haldeman,
sat quietly in the background. When
questioned, he would talk only of his
companion’s courage on the trip.
POLICE INDICTED
IN BLACKMAIL CASE
: Two Privates Charged With
Taking Bribes in Whisky
Violation Law.
1 Ralph G. Blasey, 25 years old, and
’ Robert L. Smith, 27 years old, sus
pended police officers, were Indicted
1 today by the grand jury on two
1 charges of blackmail. The men are
accused of accepting money from per
sons violating the national prohibition
act to prevent their arrest,
i According to the indictments, they
i accepted $25 from Charles S. Beal,
' 1259 First street southeast, September
30, when they found him In possession
of 24 cases of whisky. The officers
i also took four of the cases, according
1 to one of the witnesses before the
grand jury, removing the intoxicants
i in the patrol wagon.
Accepted Marked Money.
The men accepted SSO in marked
money October 25 from Claude New
som, 209 Virginia avenue southeast,
whose car had been apprehended while
transporting liquor. Newsom reported
the demand of the policeman to head
quarters and Sergt Wise and Detec
tives Weber and Sullivan arranged to
be on hand when the money passed.
Newsom met Blasey and Smith at
Second street and Virginia avenue
southeast and at ft signal from New
som the waiting officers approached
the two suspects and took them to the
station, where the money was found
on one of them. Both men were then
suspended from the police force.'
Violation of the Mann act is charged
in two indictments reported today by
the grand jury to Mr. Justice Slddons
against Samuel Mathers and Charles
Obrosky of Pittsburgh, Pa. They are
alleged to have brought two girls from
Akron, Ohio,, to this city last month
for immoral purposes.
Charges Ignored.
The grand jurors ignored 5 charges
presented to them. They refused to
indict Romulo Rosales for violation of
the Mann act;, George McDowell for
grand larceny; James A. Hackett and
(Continued on Page I, Column I.)
Radio i*rogram—Pa2e 32
The only evening paper
in Washington with the
Associated Press news
service.
UP) Means Associated Press.
; 1001 NOW BACKS
1225,000,000 CUI
Senator Alters His Tax Slash
Ideas After Study of
U. S. Expenses.
Senator Smoot of Utah, who as
chairman of the finance committee
will have charge of the tax reduction
bill In the Senate this Winter, and
who has been personally advocating
a $300,000,000 tax cut, has come to
the conclusion that it would be safer
to confine the reduction to $223,000,000,
the maximum amount recently recom
mended by the Secretary of the
Treasury, and since approved by
President Coolidge.
The Utah Senator expressed himself
to this extent at the White House
today, following a conference with
„ the President, held Immediately after
* a similar one between the President
3 and Representative Green, chairman
, of the ways and means committee of
■, the Senate, who will direct the
f destiny of the tax reduction bill in
that body.
Alters His Ideas.
Senator Smoot explained that his
» ideas regarding how far Congress
• could go in reducing the tax burden
| have been somewhat altered since he
5 has learned of the existing sentiment
* for a huge appropriation for Missis
' sippi flood control, and rehabilitation
in . the flood area. He is convinced
that with the Government facing a
large outlay for flood purposes,
’ caution should be exercised in cutting
the taxes if a deficit in the Treasury
next year is to be avoided.
From his recent observations he is
satisfied that sentiment for flood con
trol funds has about crystallized be
tween $60,000,000 and $70,000,000 for
the coming year. He admitted that
the appropriation for flood control
would be less than $60,000,000, but at
» that, will be of a size that will call
for retrenchments in other quarters.
' He would not be surprised to see
, $50,000,000 appropriated for flood con
trol at the coming session.
The Utah Senator stated, however,
that he would prefer to see the size
J of the tax reduction held in abeyance
until it is known definitely just how
much is going to be spent on flood
control.
Green Is Silent.
Representative Green, who has been
conducting hearings for more than
two weeks on the subject of tax re-
I vision, declined after his conference
. with the President to make any com
[ ment. He said he would prefer to
, have the President give out the news
, of their conference.
Senator Smoot said that he had
heard considerable talk about an es
-1 fort to be made to bring about changes
in the present tarifT law in the com
ing session, but he doubted if any such
, movement would get very far. He de
. dared with emphasis that a raid on
the tariff at this time w’ould result
. | n » panic in this country. He said
in this connection that already there
is a slight depression in business, at
1 least profits are generally consider
i ably less than last year, and that if
the protection afforded by the present
tariff w r ere reduced, business in this
country would suffer severely.
( We said that it was his opinion that
those who are advocating tariff re- 1
vision are Interested in foreign loans
• and therefore would be happy to see 1
1 America flooded with foreign goods.
He doubted very much if there is any 1
■ real sentiment among farmers for a
change in the tariff. I
Senator Smoot -expressed the belief !
that some sound practical form of I
farm relief legislation would be passed '
at the coming session of Congress. He
did not want to prophesy as to the
nature this legislation probably would <
take, but he did say he favored the I
administration’s program for promot- i
ing and assisting in the stabilization
of the marketing of agriculture. He :
said he would, be willing to vote for a i
bill that would call for advancing i
$250,000,000 for the purpose of assist- ]
ing in the improvement and extension
of warehouses and orderly marketing, i
Senator Smoot, when asked if he j
had any .knowledge of the reported
removal of an item in the District <
estimates for a preliminary appropria- c
tion for a municipal airport at Gravel- 4
ly Point,- replied that he hrfd no i
knowledge of this. i
Senator Smoot said he thought it
would be inadvisable to attempt a
further liberalization of the retire-
Sent law aa has been proposed. He *
dared he understood, an effort 1
would he made to have the maximum 1
annuity increased, but he Jelt sure it 1
Would'meet with no auessss this year.
Saturday’s Circulation, 98,57 ft
Sunday's Circulation, lift,93*l
BURNS TO DEFEND
OIL CASE ACTIVITY
BEFORE JURY QUIZ
j
Founder of Agency and Sons
Granted Permission for
Second Appearance.
GORDON FAVORS PLEAS
OVER PROTEST OF AIDE
Detective Chiefs Will Tell Story
to Inquisitors at Ses
sion Tomorrow.
Permission was granted today to
William J. Burns, his two sons, Ray
mond and W. Sherman Burns, and ail
the 16 detectives hired by Sinclair of
ficials to shadow the Teapot Dome Ju
rors to go before the grand jury and
answer the accusation made by one of
Burns’ own men that they conspired
through false affidavits to cause a mis
trial in the oil case should it go
against the defense.
This decision, following sensational
disclosures of Saturday, including
revelations by William J. McMullin, a
Burns detective, who worked hand and
glove with the Government investiga
tors, was made shortly before noon by
United States Attorney Peyton Gor
don The three Burns principals, sum
moned to be in attendance today, ap
pealed to Gordon over the head of
Neilßurkinshaw, the young assistant
who is presenting the Government’s
case before the grand Jury.
Burkinshaw Opposes Move.
Burkinshaw had refused to permit
Burns and his tw’o sons to go again
before the grand Jury, stating that the
Government has made out its case and
that they had been given an oppor
tunity to tell what they knew. He had
no intention at this time, he added, to
let the elder Burns make another
"speech” before the grand Jury, as
the Burns men are ex-parte to the
proceedings.
If they had anything more to say
Burkinshaw intimated they would
have ample opportunity to tell it
later.
Burns and his two sons were closet
ed in the United States attorney’s of
fice for upward of an hour while their
position was being deliberated. When
they left the room the elder Burns
declared that "Mr. Gordon has given
all of us permission to go before the
grand jury and testify.”
Both Burns and Sherman were em
phatic in stating that Raymond
burns, the elder son. "knows nothing
at all about this case, as he was at
tending the American Bankers’ As
sociation sessions during the trial.
The grand jury was only In session
a short while today and adjourned at
noon until tomorrow. For this rea
son the Burns officials and detectives
will not be able to appear before that
body until then.
rumors were circulated
that McMulhn’s sensational disclosure
that he was induced by Burns and
other operatives to prepare the false
affidavit and reports about jurors, for
the purpose of obtaining a mistrial
if needed," was to be followed by an
other and equally startling develop
ment. Government attorneys handling
the case, however, would make public
no announcement.
Jury Returns Indictments.
A sensation was caused earlier today
when the grand jurors suddenly filed
out of their quarters and proceeded
to the Criminal Court, over which
Justice Frederick L. fiiddons. trial
judge in the Teapot Dome case, is
presiding. There they presented a
sheaf of indictments. It was rumored
that the indictments possibly were the
"surprise” development which the
United States attorney s office has in
store.
These rumors exploded when it was
revealed that it was the usual series
of indictments which the grand jury
hands down on Monday, Because of
the number of business men on the
grand jury who must give some at
tention to their affairs, only a short
session of the body was held today.
The only two witnesses in the jury
fixing case brought before thb grand
jury today were James L. Riddle,
auditor of the Wardman Park Hotel,
and John F. Schlotterbeek, credit
manager of the Mayflower Hotel.
nwia® witnesses brought to the
united States attorney’s office rec
ords of telephone calls by Sinclair
officials made in connection with the
hiring of the Burns detectives.
Schlotterbeek brought records show
ing that on October 18. when it was
known that the jurors were not to be
locked up, two calls were made from
Sinclair’s ..partment in the May
flower Hotel, one to Harry Jeffries,
confidential clerk of Sinclair’s at
Orange, X. J. and the other to Rector
9320.
Telephone Calls.
Riddle s records with telephone calls
made by C. G. Ruddy. Philadelphia
manager of the Burns agency in
charge of the jury shadowing detail.
These records showed two local calls,
one to the Mayflower and the other
to the residence of Donald Woodward
on Leroy place, where Henry Mason
Day, Sinclair official, who is said to
have hired the jury shadowers, spent
some of his time. Testimony is be
fore the Grand Jury that it was Day
who is now under $25,000 bond on a
jury tampering conspiracy charge,
made the telephone call from Sin
clairs apartment to Jeffries, ordering
him to get in touch with the Burns
agency.
Accounts of the two hotels were
also brought by the two men in an
endeavor to shed some light on ex
pense vouchers turned in by the
Burns men.
Burkinshaw would not predict today
who would be called before the grand
jury tomorrow.
No explanation was given by MaJ.
Gordon In connection with the appeal
of the three Burns principals other
than the mere statement that they
would be permitted to go before the
grand jury.
Burns Appears Defiant.
"We’ve got something to put before
the grand jury that will disprove this
man’s story," declared Sherman
Burns, referring to the McMullin dts
ciosure. He tafrped Ms breast pocket.
' on Bags 4. Column
TWO CENTS.