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Show OIL TRIAL ARGUMENTS Up WAY Government Council Gives Brief Statement of Method to Be Followed by Prosecution; Prosecu-tion; Secrecy Stressed, i WASHINGTON, Nov. 2:1 (UP) The prosecution will base its criminal crim-inal conspiracy against Albert Fall and K. L. Doheny on the eonleniiun that two days after Duheuy proposed propos-ed to Fall, then secretary uf the interior, in-terior, that naval oil reserves be leased to his company, the oil magnate mag-nate gave the cabinet officer $100.-000 $100.-000 in cash, Owen J. Huberts or government counsel, 'revealed today to-day in his opening argument. Huberts Outlines Case Outlining the government's case at the opening of the second day of the trial, lioberts said Doheny wrote Fall about the leases on Nov. 28, 1A21, and that on Nov. 20 the very next day Fall asked Doheny for $100,000. The money was paid by Doheny to Fall in cash Nov. MO, the day following, lioberts said. The prosecutor said Fall used the money to improve his ranch in New Mexico, and a senate invesligating committee uncovered I ho t ransac-Hon ransac-Hon when it became suspicious of Fall's sudden affluence. Koliorts traced the history of the case fully. Up to November 30, 1021, lie said the government had always followed follow-ed a policy of conserving oil in its great western naval reserves so fuel would be available for battleships when rebuilt as oil instead of coal burners. On that date the late President Harding issued an. executive order transferring naval rt I'erves f'rom the navy to the interior department, then headed by Fall. Plan is Conceived Five months later Fall conceived the idea of leasing the Elk Hills reserve to a private oil company in return for oil and for construction of storage tanks at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, for use of the navy. FalJ. lioberts said, went to Doheny after talking with the then secretary of the navy, Denby, and put the matter up to Doheny. "The contract was entered and the' $100,000 cash was, paid by Doheny to Fall through Doheny's son, who withdrew the money from a New York bank," Itohcrts said. ''We will show you in i uiieny's own words that Ik; expected to make $1 1)0,000.000 out of the lease he obtained ob-tained from Fall.'1 Doheny signed a contract in April, 192'2. to construct the Pearl Harbor tanks and was given preferential rights in future government leases, Roberts declared. Finally December 31. 1022. Dn-heay Dn-heay was given a lease on naval reserve number 1, he added. . "We will show that, the entire transaction was coin! net ed in iit-most iit-most secrecy.'' said the prosecutor. "We will show that Fall in a letter let-ter under his signal ore. ordered that if any people inquired about" I Hie leases, officials in the interior department were to say they knew nnihing about it.'' |