AMERICAN SCANDALS

Otago Daily Times, Issue 19135, 1 April 1924, Page 7

AMERICAN SCANDALS

MB DMJGHEBTT'S RESIGNATION fcTHE PRESIDENT REPROACHEDtbMM Association—By Tfllotmph—Copyrl Ttt WASHINGTON, March 30.' “I can sec no way but for you to retire as Attorney-General, and 1 am therefore* compelled *to request your resignation," said Mr Coolidge in a letter to Mr Daugherty, a request with which Mr Daugherty immediately complied. Mr Coolidge ” charged ,Mr Daugherty with using his power and the staff of his office to defend himself politically. Mr Daugherty made a spirited reply, which reflected that a deep feeling of animosity must have developed during the last day or two. Mr Daugherty had been determined to bold on, ana repeatedly declared that he would only quit upon the direct command of the President. In his reply he says: “Your action is most untimely. You are following a dangerous doctrine in suggest-' ing that an attack upon a Cabinet officer disqualifies him from further official service. Your letter comes at a time when falsehood has banished truth from the public mind. I have not yet had a chance to place a single witness on the stand in my defence.”—Sydney Sun Cable. THE AIRCRAFT FRAUDS. HUGE OVERPAYMENTS ALLEGED. WASHINGTON, March 30. Giving evidence in the Standard aircraft case, in which huge graft is alleged, AlleA Pickering, a former accountant in the Air Service, testified that millions of dojlars were overpaid to aircraft companies. He said the Department of Justice declined to do anything in these cases. He said that the Lincoln Motor Company was overpaid 5,000,000d0l under war contracts, and other companies got more than that, which rightfully should be returned. Cases were purposely allowed to drag along until everyone connected with them was dead or absent or had got his money sequestrated.—Sydney Sun Cable. FORCING THE CLOSURE. PUBLIC WEARY OF SCANDALS. NEW YORK. March 30. (Received March 31, at 7.40 p.m.) The Washington correspondent of the New York Times says that Senators of bdth parties, responding to popular regent meat agaimVt the devoting more attention to the scandals than to legislation business, will probably end the oil investigations within a week. The proposed new investigations will probably be choked off, despite a feeling* among the Democrats that further inquiries .n various Government departments would expose questionable conditions or create the impression that such conditions exist. The committee investigating the Department of Justice will continue for some time, but Mr Daugherty’s resignation, it is believed, will minimise the importance of the investigations. The popular reaction against the socalled eeandal-mongering is growing.—A. and N.Z. Cable.