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Show Senator Made Charge Year Before Admiral Did, Secretary Secre-tary Tells Investigators WASHINGTON, May IS. Senator Penrose, Republican, Pennsylvania, and not Rear Admiral Sims, originated originat-ed the basic charges acainst the navv department reported in the admiral's letter of January 7, Secretary Daniels asserted today .before the senate committee com-mittee investigating the naval conduct con-duct of the war. Mr. Daniels recalled that the senator in a speech in the senate August 24, 191S, declared that procrastination on tho part of the secretary sec-retary delayed the termination of the war at least threo months, cost ?J5,-000,000,000 ?J5,-000,000,000 and many lives. The words used by Senator Penrose were almost identical with those used by Admiral Sims more than a year lator, Mr. Daniels said. "Either Admiral Sims is a plagarist and appropriated his views and charges from Senator Penrose or by I tho new science of .ojifll asJJf the views of tho senator were communicated commu-nicated to Admiral Sims," declared Mr. Daniels. "Penrose comes from Pennsylvania and Sims was appointed to the naval academy from that state." "It is also worthy of note," he said, "that at the very time Penrose was making this speech, Sims was writing to Captain Pratt threatening an investigation inves-tigation of tho conduct of the war." Mr. Daniels said that he would not answer the Penrose charges at length, because his answer to Admiral Sims covered the matter fully. He devoted tho rost of the day to a resume of tho navy department's war construction activities comprising approximately 1000 vessels, nearly three times as many as thoro wcro in tho entire navy when the war started. |