Behind Teapot Dome Noise
Are Certain Concrete Facts
Kichi'fl Oil Fit-Id in Wyoming* Set Aside as Reserve for Fu
ture Uses of the Navy in 1913, Has Interested Specula
tors and Government Officials Since That Time
By JOHN J. W. NKVIX.
Ctlirrlfdt. 1924. by Thf Advance
Washington. Feb. 20 ? The oil
scandal, non political in its nature,
promises to clog the courts in var
ious guls?'s for many months to
come. Behind the charges and
counter charges, made and still be
ing made, rest a series of concrete
farts thai an1 so bulled that only U
very few really know what it is all
about.
Teapot Dome is the richest oil
field in Wyoming. Under the law
it was net aside as a reserve for the
future uses of the Navy in 1915.
Three years previously there had
also been withdrawn from settle
ment two areas in -California. Prom
the very outset there was a struggle
between the advocates of conserva
tion and development regarding the
propriety of the Government's retain
ing these fields. It was argued that
they- were being tapped by wells
that had been sunk on the bounda
ries and that the Government was
steadily losing as a result.
In June 1920 a law was approved
under which the Secretary of the
Navy was given exclusive Jurisdic
tion over all of this land and he was'
empowered ti? conserve and develop
by lease, contract or otherwise, and I
use, sell or store, or exchange, the J
oil issuing therefrom or the pro
products thereof.
This situation remained thus for
nearly a year when through an ex
ecutive order secured by then Sec
retary of the Interior Albert Bacon
Fall the administration of these re
serves was turned over to the In
terior Department.
Action of this character caused a
real row in the Navy Department.
Many of the officers declared that
the department was being crippled
in a most vital spot. Secretary Den
-by, howoverT failed ? Us- agrve? witb
them and Mr. Fall assumed Juris
diction.
Didiriiy Cdinis III.
Two of tho California reserves
wore turned over to the Kdward L.
Doheny IntercstK. Then the Teapot
Dome area was leased to Harry F. !
Sinclair on a royalty basis. Just af- .
ter this took place then* was a Ken-'
eral attack on the plan from quar-j
ters which wi re assumed to he en
tirely cognizant of the oil situation.
The charge was made that the
Government had been robbed and
that under tin? leasenhe Sinclair In- >
teresta had -be^ri handed "millions
on a silver platter".
Officials G-f the Department of
Interior insisted that the Teapot
Dome field was being drained by j
the wells in the Salt Creek fields I
owned by private individuals. The
Government, the statement insisted,!
had made a good bargain through
having the oil promptly pumped \out
and stored. The question then nt
issue was simply whether the Gov
ernment had made a good or a bad
bargan.
The Senate authorized an inquiry.
Scnatcr| Walsh of Montana, an ex
pert on land leases, took charge of
the Teapot Home section of the in- j
qulry, though he is u Democrat. H?
soon uncovered a number of leads.
Flrsit It was discovered that the ln-!
formation that the land had been '
leased was In the possession of many
private individuals for some time i
before it was officially announced
by the Government. During that
time there was active speculation In
the Sinclair stocks.
Former Secretary Fall was called
as a witness. He was asked whether
any undue Influence had been used
In connection with the leases. He
insisted none lied. Immediately
thereafter witnesses from his home
town at Three Rivers. New Mexico,
were called. They recited stories of
immense real estate d??als 4by the
former Secretary, of costly Improve
ments to his ranch.
Admitting that he hid made the
Improvements reported and that he
had purchased property to protect
his ranch Interests Mr. Fall sent to
the committee a statement that he
had borrowed the money ? $100,000
? from Edward 11. McLean, tho
Washington publisher. Mr. McLean
at first confirmed this. Out when
Senator Walsh went to Florida to
inquire the complete facts from Mr.
McLean the latter said he had turn
ed over to Mr. Fall checks for $100.
000 but that later they had been re
turned to him uncashed. Mr. Fall
had sworn that "he never approach
ed Mr. Doheny or Mr. Sinclair" on
any matters connected with their
corporations nor had he "received
from either of said parties one cent
on account of any oil lease or upon
any account whatsoever."
Archie Roosevelt's Story
Late In January Archibald l?.
Roosevelt, Hon of the former Presi
dent and an an official of one of the
Sinclair Companies, appeared volun
tarily and wild ho had been to'.d by
Sinclair's secretary that the oil
magnate had made large payments
of cash to the foreman of the Fall
monuments ,
Lawson & Newton I
The Monument People ,
KdllmitM rtlvw <*i Work I
Het Complete
<dontlcello At?. ?t llth fM
NORFOLK, VA.
I
raiK'h. Before the effect of this
> testimony had died out Edward L.
Doheny, appearing as a voluntary
, witness, told the committee that lie
had loaned Fall llUO.OdO on his un
endorsed demand note.
immediately after Col. J. W. Zev
Hy. personal attorney For Sinclair,
admitted that he had given $25,00U
i to fall in addition to a payment of
. $l1U,0UU advanced as expenses for
i a trip to Russia to investigate Sin-!
: clalr Oil prospects there.
Fall was brought before the com*
; mittee to explain his former state-;
j men is but his lawyer, Levi Cooke,1
stood upon the former Secretary's
constitutional rights. First lie'
questioned the authority of the
. committee and then he argued that
J .Mr. Fall could not he compelled to!
answer questions which might in-1
criminate him. The committee up
held this line and Fall was excused.
'1 hen Edward L. Doheny, recalled
at the request of Senator Reed of!
Missouri, told the committee that j
lie had employed a number ofi
former Government officials
and among them was William Gibbs
McAdoo, former Secretary of the j
Treasury. This statement created
a sensation because of the position I
erf Mr. McAdoo as one of the aspir-.
ants for the Democratic Presidential;
nomination. . ^Later McAdoo ap*j
peared and explained that his only
connection with the case had been
that of a regularly retained lawyer
by Doheny and that he never had
. had anything to do with the oil
i magnate's aTtairs in the United
i States, confining his efforts to mat
ters affecting the Doheny companies'
interests in Mexico.
j This was followed by the sensa
i Rational action of the Senate in pass
rthe resolution asking the President 1
to demand Secretary of the Navy
Edwin Denby's resignation on the
gro'und that he had been derelict in
itis duties and among other things
declaring that the leases "were ex
ecuted under circumstances indicd/'
tJng fraud and corruption; were en- ;
tered into without authority on the
part of the officers purporting to act
in the execution or the same fur the
1'nited States and in violation of the
laws of Congress; and were made in
defiance of the settled policy of the
Government, adhered to through
three successive administrations, to
retain in. the ground a great reserve
I supply .of oil adequate to the the
needs of the Navy in any emergency,
threatening the national security.'
The President Involved.
To this the President replied
sharply that he find special counsel
investigating; that the rights of the
people would be properly safeguard
ed but that the "the dismissal of an
officer of the Government, such as
is -Involved in this case, other than
by impeachment, is exclusively an
executive function. 1 regard this'
as a vital principle of our Govern-!
ment.
"The President is responsible to
the people for his conduct relative 1
to the retention or dismissal of pub-!
lie officials. 1 assume that re
sponsibility, and the people may be
assured that as soon as I can be ad
j vised so that I may act with entire
Justice to all parties concerned and
I fully protect the public interests, I
! shall act. 1
I "I tier not propose to sacrifice any
innocent, man for my own welfare,
nor do I propose to retain in office
any unfit man for my own welfare.
I Khali try to maintain the functions
o: tho Government unimpaired, to
act upc.ii the evidence of the law as
( I find it. and to deal thoroughly and
WHAT'S THE GOOD
WORD?
R:?y "Oirrk - ch?'ck - <!he< kcrhrrr- '
la thr cr>KTr or thr (truftfiUt Vr
the now ???fund ninn. (iei th? l?r;*n?1
ncw umn with the new flavor that ?
P'raard In. Floor < ChiN kertx-rry
t'htwlnit C>um.
summarily with every kind of wrong
I doing. "
Incident to these developments
there also had been the action of
the President in selecting the spe
cial counsel to safeguard the inter
j e?ts of the Government and to ini
tiate any prosecutions that might
I be required. His initial selections
were Silas H. Strawn of Chicago.
, Republican, and Thomas Watt Greg
ory. Attorney General under the
Wilson administration. It soon
, developed that once Gregory had
! worked for a Dcheny company and
, his name was eliminated. Then
former United States Senator Atlee
Pomeren? of Ohio was chosen.
Later Strawn was eliminated and
Owen J. Roberts was selected.
There has been the continued reve-'
llations from day to day of the con
nection of various people with the
I scandal in one way or another and
a growing determination among ofTi-'
jcials who have risen above partisan-!
! ship that before the matter finally is
dismissed guilt will have been de
I finitely fixed.
In this latter connection the posi
tion of the Administration was out-J
lined by President Coolidge in his
Lincoln Day address in New York
when he said:
"At the revelation of greed mak
ing its subtle approaches to public
officers, of the prostitution of high
place to private profit, we are filled
with scorn and indignation.
"There will be immediate, ade
quate unshrinking prosecution,
criminal and civil, to punish the
guilty and to protect every national
interest. There will be no politics,
no partisanship.
"i cannot shield anyone because
he is a Republican; I cannot on that
acccrunt (because I am a Republi
can) prosecute anyone because he
is a Democrat."
SPECIAL THIS WEEK
A 15c BOTTLE OF
PURE SUGAR CANDY
and a box of Destost Peanut Rrlt
tle, total value 5 2c, will be sold
for -!<?c.
_ ..... . . ..r , .? ?
NEW COATS and
DRESSES
For Misses
and
? Women ?
Especially attractive
because of their style,
quality and material.
Spring Suits and
Capes
FOR THE IT ELL
DRESSED WOMAN ~
They are all new and
very attractive. We in
vite your inspection.
Prices are very slight
when you consider style
and quality.
$12 up to $55
McCABE & GRIDE
Shopping Center Since liiOO
FRECKLES AND HIS FRIENDS
A Dark Serrcl
... ... ...
- ^ ... H. ?.sufr^WW'S'W??
A BUSINESS MOTIVE POWER
The time must come when all business will
rmmider tin- advisability nf advertising in the
unnir spirit that u manufacturer ponder* ov
er tin- advisability of adopting a new ma
chine. One does not install a piece of labor
saving mechanism because it suits his fancy:
hut because the efficiency of the business rc
quircs it.
He expects the new machine to reduce his
cost to operate ? perhaps to make a better
product ? and thus aid hint in meeting com
petition and making larger profits.
Advertising in exactly similar. The man
who refuses to consider it as a possible expe
dient, dimply shuts hi* eyes on one of the
problems of his business, lie might as well
ignore the bank as sources of credit when
he has nrcd to Itorrow capital.
On tin- other liaiul, the inun who looks lo
advertising In checkmate nil wonkiiMfioo and
shortcomings of 1i!h IniHinrm und to carry it
along to victory despite these, has a childlike
faith in the miraculous.
. Advertising will not make 'lis product or
his service any better than tlicy are; hut it
will bring him the full benefits of their mer
its. It will not eliminate wastefulness in his
factory or his store; hut it will reduce his
cost to operate. It will not make illogical
selling methods successful; hut it will assist
good selling methods, and often point the
way for improving them.
Advertising is the most inexpensive mo
tive power that the manufacturer or mer
chant can buy today. It is a form of stimu
lus that brings excellent returns on the in
vestment.
-AN INVESTMENT
Which assures an annual return of
not less than 7 j?er cent
| and
which pays an additional 2 |**r cent
annually when net earning* on the
total capital amount to 0 |*?r cent
in a cor|?oration under the direct
management of a group from among
the most successful executives in the
Piedmont Section
secured by one of the most modern
and best equip|>ed weaving mills in
the South manufacturing a consist
ently profitable line of goods
IS WORTH LOOKING INTO
| For full particulars write
BOND DEPARTMENT
J American Trust Company
1 Charlotte, N. C.
Frank B. Green, Manager.
I FARMER HAS TERRIBLE
EXPERIENCE
"I den't think anybody ever suf
I fered more pain than I have. Twice
1 was operated for gall stones and a
'third operation was advised. A friend
j in Iowa wrote me how he was cured
1 by taking Mayr's Wonderful Remedy.
! 1 took a bottle on his advice with
good results and have also taken the
j full coarse. My pains are all gone
?and I feel I am permanently cured."
! It removes the catarrhal mucous
from the intesinal tract, and allays
?the inflammation which causes' prac
I tically all ?stomach, liver and in
i testinal ailments, including appen
j dicitis. One dose will convince or
. money refunded at all drug
| gi?ts. 20adv
BILIOUSNESS? 8K7I W-ADACittr.
cmll for an K? Tablet. <* vec?tabfe
aperient) to tone end t:reni;*haa
the or jan? of discern #n4 elimi
nation. Improves Awctlu. . ee
Conetlpatloa.
? Chips off ihe 0 lii block 9
N) JUNIORS? Littl* N?s
I One-third the regular dose. M:u!e I
I of same ingredients, ther? candy I
I Coated. For childron and adults. I
?mm SOLD BY YOUR CRUCCiK f
STANDARD PHARMACY N
SAYS RED PEPPER
HEAT STOPS PAIN
JN FEW MINUTES
Rheumatism, lumbago, neuritis, back
ache, stiff neck, sore muscles, strains,
sprains, aching joints. When you arc
suffering so you can hardly get aro nd,
just try Red Pepper Rub.
Nothing has such concentrated, pene
trating heat as red peppers, and when
heat penetrates right down into pain
and congestion relief comes at once.
Just as soon as you apply Red Pep
per Rub you feel the tingling heat. In
three minutes the sore spot is warmed
through and through and the torture is
gone.
Howies Red Pepper Rub. made from
rod peppers, costs little at any drug
store. Get a jar at once. Be sure to
get the genuine, with the name Rowlef
on every package
If Rheumatic
Eat No Sweets
| Says Glass of Salts Helps to
Overcome Rheumatism
Acid.
I Rheumatism is easier to avoid than
I to cure, states a well-known authority.
I We are advised to dress warmly, keep
I the feet dry, avoid exposure, ana
I above all, drink plenty of good water
? and avoid eating sweets# >f all kind.
J Rheumatism is caused by body
: waste and acids resulting from food
fermentation. It is the function of
I the kidneys to filter this poison from
| the blood and cast it out in the urine ;
I the norcs of the skin arc also a means
of freeing the blood of this impurity.
! In damp and chilly cold weather the
j skin pores are closed, thus forcing
I the kidneys to do double work; they
become weak and sluggish and fail (O
eliminate this waste and acids, which
keeps accumulating and circulating
through the system, eventually settling
in the joints and muscles, causing stiff
ness, soreness and pain, called rheuma
tism.
At the first twinge of rheumatism
get from any pharmacy about four
ounces of lad Salts; put a tablesnoon
ful In a glass of water and drink be
fore breakfast each morning for a week.
This l's helpful to neutralize acidity,
remove waste matter, also to stimulate
the kidneys, thus often ridding the blood
of rheumatic poison.
Jad Salts is inexpensive, and is male
from the acid of grapes and lemon
juice, combined with lithia, and is used
with excellent results by thousands of
folks who sre subject to rheumatism. '
I