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Show INQUIRY OH BOK AWARDPLAiED SENATE MEMBERS TO TAKE AC. TION TO BAR PROPAGANDA FROM U. S. MAILS Investigation Will Be Started at Onej According to Pledge Made By Group of Senators Who Are Curious Washington, An investigation ol the $100,000 Bok peace award has been definitely pledged by a group ol leading Republicans in the senate. These senators, meeting in confer, ence, arrived at the conclusion thai all the circumstances of the organization organiza-tion of the Bok plan, its method ol selecting the prize winning essay and its award of the prize should be in. vestiguted under the resolution of Senator Iteed of Missouri, calling for an inquiry into all forms of propaganda propa-ganda which are flooding congress. Application to the postoffice depart, ment for issuance of a fraud order against distributors of the Bog propaganda prop-aganda probably will be the first step taken on behalf of the senate to the mails, thereby checking the propaganda prop-aganda at the source. The fraud order will be asked for upon the ground that the conditions of the contest were not adhered to and the award of the prize was fraudulently made. . In this -connection senators asking for the fraud order are prepared to show the manuscripts submitted in the contest were not read by the judges. Information has reached Senator Lodge and others that Elihu Boot, chairman ' of the judges, has been physically incapacitated for at least three months from performing any work of the character required in the judging of 22,000 essays on peace or any other subject. The senators also have learned that former Ambassador Brand Whitlock, another of the judges, has been out of the country and there is no record rec-ord that the entire body of judges ever held a meeting to pass upon any of the manuscripts. Senator Iteed is due to return here from Missouri either Monday or Tuesday. Tues-day. He will at once ask for a report re-port from the committee on contingent contin-gent expenses on his resolution to investigate all forms of propaganda. It is understood the resolution will be promptly acted upon, as Republicans Repub-licans and Democrats alike favor it. It calls for the appointment of a special committee of five, two Republicans, Re-publicans, two Democrats and one Farmer-Labor senator, to carry on the Investigation. Senator Lodge, chairman of the foreign for-eign relations committee, which has jurisdiction over all such matters, is known to be in favor of a searching inquiry into the Bok plan. If any other member of the committee disagrees dis-agrees with him on this point he has not yet found occasion to express himself. |
