THE CONGRESS: Investigations

Although it is vacation season, two investigations have been resumed by the members of Congress. ¶ In Washington, there assembled the Special Senate Committee for investigating the Bureau of Internal Revenue. Its former Chairman, Senator Watson,* was not present. His successor, Senator Couzens, took charge. The other members present were Senator Ernst of Kentucky (Republican) and Senators Jones of New Mexico and King of Utah (Democrats). They invited Secretary Mellon to confer with them. He came and promised every assistance, promised that their examiners and agents should be given access to the hitherto confidential income tax reports. He was given an extensive questionnairecalling for detailed information about practically all returns of net income over $100,000 from 1916 to 1920, inclusive. It will take several weeks to gather this information from the files, and for agents of the committee to make their examinations. Meanwhile the committee adjourned subject to call. Its members will be pretty well occupied with political matters until election time. The desired information can hardly be prepared much sooner than a few days before election. Only such of it will be made public as seems to show irregularities. Later, the investigation will turn to the Prohibition enforcement. Whether there will be any developments before election time is indeed dubious. ¶ The Special House Committee, investigating chargesthat there was duplication of bonds in turning out the War loans, assembled and began to pore over books.¶ Far from the theatre of political war, the bantering of accusation and counteraccusation, quietly in a Chicago Federal Court, Judge George A. Carpenter set the date for the trial of Charles R. Forbes, former Director of the Veterans’ Bureau. Forbes was indicted with a Chicago contractor, John W. Thomson (TIME, Mar. 17), for conspiracy to defraud the Government in connection with the making of contracts for the construction of Veterans’ hospitals. Ex -Senator James Hamilton Lewis,* representing the defendants, asked that the trial be postponed until after the election because all Parties, for political purposes, were now demanding Forbes’ conviction. Judge Carpenter answered that there were no politics in his court. He overruled demurrers, refused postponement, set the date for the trial’s beginning for Oct. 14.

*Senator Watson, whose enemies call him “Administration tool,” retired from the Chairmanship because he did not believe in continuing the investigation. Senator Couzens is not regarded as being friendly to the Administrator *James Hamilton Lewis is “the U. S. political beau.” Spats, pink waistcoats, purple handkerchiefs, whiskers of scarlet hue he wears with infinite variety. In his fighting days, he would go to the toughest wards of Chicago, dressed in his gayest, huge flower in his lapel, fat and fragrant cigar in his mouth. His audacity melted the hearts of the toughs— and toughs vote with their hearts.