A CANADIAN SCANDAL.

Press, Volume LXVII, Issue 20302, 30 July 1931, Page 9

A CANADIAN SCANDAL.

ELECTRIC POWER SCHEME. SENATORS STRONGLY CONDEMNED. (tXITKD PRESS ASSOCIATION —BY ELECTRIC TELKQRWH—COPYBICHT.) (Received July 29th, 7 p.m.) OTTAWA, July 28. The Beauharnais Committee of Enquiry has presented its report to the House of Commons. The Committeo recommends that Parliament should take such action as is within its power to procure the development ol' the Beauharnais project, and declares that the actions of the Senator concerned "cannot too strongly be condemned for letting private interest interfere with liis public duties." Two other Senators are criticised for the acceptance of Party funds and other actions. The Committee asserts that the firm's vice-pr»sident and general manager is not a fit and proper person to continue in management, and states that the company's money squandered on campaign funds should be returned.

It was reported Ottawa on July 24th that an enquiry had opened to investigate charges regarding the Beauharnais dollar St. Lawrence power project, which was carried out under a concession alleged to be invalid, since it was authorised by the Governor-in-Council instead of ov Parliament. It is claimed that Parliament only is competent to grant concessions involving a diversion of water from a navigable river. It has been established that the project was not carried out in accordance with the plans on which the concession was granted. The firm's president admitted that ho sought to divert into a canal the whole rivcrflow instead of the 40,000 cubic feet permitted. Another charge was that politicians improperly used their influence to procure tho concession, being financially interested therein, and it was established that one Senator holding an interest in the Beauharnais Syndicate before the concession was granted made cash profits of 300.000 dollars therefrom, and received over a million dollars in Beauharnais shares after the concession was granted, from which a series of threats and allegations of "graft" developed, but it is hoped that "finis" was written to the scandal when tho investigating committee's chairman suddenly arose and stated: "Wo will hear no moro argument by counsel. T do not think we can stand any more."