Show HAD uva SGRIMAOEE I I Animated Discussion Over I I Sulzer Resolution j l r ONE TO INVESTIGATE gAGE i I Committee on Rules Recommended that the Matter be Referred to the I Ways and Means Committee as tho I Latter Has tho Response of Secretary Sec-retary in its Possession There was I no Opposition to the Proposed Action Ac-tion but it Furnished Pretext for I I I Democrats to Renew Attacks I I Washington Jan 29Thc bill for I t I the reorganization and Improvement of I the weather bureau which Includes I I provision for pensioning disabled and I aged i employees of tho service re I I I celved a black eye In the House Tho bill was bitterly fought by the opponents I op-ponents of civil pension rolls on account I ac-count of the lifetenure provisions It 1 contained and It was sidetracked on a test vote of 67 to 53 Although the I Speaker ruled that It remained Unfin I Ishcd business when the House was I again In committee of the whole the opponents of the measure believe the action of the day kills It SULZER RESOLUTION j Immediately after the reading of the journal Mr Dalzell Pa from the I I Committee on Rules reported back the I Sulzer resolution for the appointment of a committee to Investigate the deposit I de-posit of public funds by Secretary S Gage In New York banks and all the I transactions relating to the sale of the New York customhouse with the i recommendation that it be referred to i I the Ways and Means committee Mr I Dulzcll explained that the response of the Secretary of the Treasury to the I Sulzer resolution of Inquiry on the i same subject had been sent to the Ways and Means committee and It I i was proper that the committee should have Jurisdiction I WANTED AN INQUIRY I I I Mr Richardson Tenn leader of theI minority said he wal not opposed to the reference of the resolution to the Ways and Means committee but he Vtiu UecHieQo ui the puuiiuii inui an Investigation should be made He renewed i re-newed his assertion made in a pro I vious debate that the reason why the I I National City bank of New York had I not completed Its title to the customhouse custom-house property purchased from the I Government was that It had been the Intention of the Secretary of the Trea i i I sury to relieve the bank of its tax ob j I llgatlons to the State and city of New I York by retaining the title In the Government I Gov-ernment The Government had agreed to pay rent for the property yet the j I I i bank was not to pay taxes upon Ilo I I I CONDEMNS GAGES ACTION I I If that was the Secretarys motive said Mr Richardson emphatically I am here to condemn It and to Insist I that It Ill becomes the Secretary of the Treasury to go Into partnership with a t I private corporation j The National City bank of New York I i Mr Richardson said had been able to earn Interest upon the 3J21o000 It had i I nominally paid the Government In tercst upon the bonds It had deposited 1 to retain this money and to charge the Government a rental equal to 4 percent per-cent of the purchase price In other I words ho said this juggling had enabled 1 ena-bled the bank to make 3 > 7000 up to date Mr Richardson said he was surprised sur-prised that the Secretary of the Treasury Trea-sury had not already asked to be allowed al-lowed to mnko an explanation SULZER SEEKS TRUTH Mr Sulzer N Y tho author of the resolution said the people of the country coun-try wore deeply Interested In ascertaining ascer-taining tho truth He characterized the conduct of the Secretary of tho Treasury as Infamous and his cornIce I Ion with the Rockefeller bank which I had been used he said to manipulate I the stock market against adverse Interests In-terests as scandalous We demand this Investigation said he to ascertain ascer-tain who the stockholders and the directors di-rectors of this bank are that they are I entitled to special prh lieges from this I Administration GOES FOR GAGE Ever since the present Secretary had been In office Mr Sulzer said he had been aiding the National City bank at the expense of other national banks He declared the people of the country recognized that the Secretary of the Treasury was unfit and Incompetent to i hold the purse strings The United States treasury was made the Instrument I Instru-ment of the Standard Oil trust Aye more he said the people believed the Secretary should be Impeached I II I I HOPKINS DEFENDS SECRETARY Mr Hopkins III In reply said all this djscusslon woa premature and out of place tlr nlmply rise said he to protest against the unfounded unwarranted I un-warranted and untrue charges made by the gentleman from Tennessee Richardson What right has he to Impute false and fraudulent motives to the Secretary of tho Treasury Is there any evidence upon which to base them None whatever When the Secretary of tin Treasury was called upon for the facts ho presented a full response INTERRUPTED BY RICHARDSON Why did the 550000 remain unpaid 7 Interrupted Mr Rlclmrdaon Ill come to bait replied Mr Hopkins Hop-kins I I Proceeding he said Mr Richardson hud charged that the Secretary had entered Into a fraudulent contract I afllrm said he that there is no support sup-port whatever for the charge The customhouse property was sold to the NationalCity bank 11 took possession and made a lease I claim that the city and State of New York can proceed pro-ceed to the collection of taxes just as If the paper title had passed The Secretary ofthe Treasury sold the property to the highest bidder Were there anything wrong In depositing the purchase money with the bank That bank Is a Government depository selected se-lected by a Democratic Administration because of Its financial standing and a deposit In that bank was the same as If It had been made In thu subtreas ury or In the treasury itself I ask then In the name of decency and justice Jus-tice where is the wrong done by the gentleman who presides with such dig nlty and ability over the Treasury department de-partment DECLARES IT BUNCOMBE Mr Hill of Connecticut declared the resolution for an investigation was pure buncombe Intended for political purpose just as a similar resolution directed against the Democratic Secretary Secre-tary of the Treasury in the last Admin istration was I asked the gentleman from Illinois Hopkins again Interposed Mr Richardson Rich-ardson why 50000 had been held back He did not answer It I now propound the same interrogatory to ou1I youCOULD COULD NOT EVADE TAXATION Mr Hill replied that the law under which tin property was sold compelled the payment of only 750000 cash the remainder from time to time The Secretary Was compelled to receive any I DOOOO He of S i cash paymont In I cxcess couJd himself The gentlcman not help made the from Teimnesao HIhardsO1 done for Limo pecinc charge that It was tlC city oC New pur pose or defrauding hIm York of taxes It 111 becomes fald Mr HIll lndigflantlY to charge with oC the JreasulY the Secretary orcreiaii had fraudulent Intent Furthermore he further into the I mcsthatlon gone that the city he would have ascertained i could not lose the taxes upon the prop I ert y the tax laws explain Ho proceeded to national of New York relative to banks Therefore said he In conclu I disreputable charge that the Blon the Secretary of the Treasury did anything Intent falls to the with fraudulent the Republican und Applause on ground side I RICHARDSON REPLIES Mr Richardson replied In a twomln ute speech Neither Mr Hopkins nor j i Mr HIM he said had made any an II slY er to his question as to why the ur had not ta Secretarv of the Treasury kpn a paper credit for 3205000 Instead I I He also questioned time of 33 2I5OOO right of the National City bank with I a capital of 7000000 to buy real estate Ito I-to the amount of Its Capital In closing Mr Dalzell of Pennsyl vanla said the whole question of referring I refer-ring the subject to the Ways andeans M and-eans committee had been used to re t i had been answered now charges that by none better I again over and over I than by prominent Democrats In the liourc and country Who are they cried several Democrats I Dem-ocrats Mr Dalzell paid no heed to the crIes So far as the right of the bank to purchase pur-chase the property was concerned Mr I Dalzell said 1U purchase had been authorized au-thorized by the act that authorized the sale The resolution was then adopted I without division The House then considered the bill for the reorganization and improvement I I Improve-ment of the United States weather bureau bu-reau and considerable opposition developing I de-veloping in several features of the I measure the House at 335 pm was forced to adjourn leaving It the unfinished un-finished business |