"Corruption"

As every one had expected it would be, the campaign was punctuated by the loud shout of "Foul play!"

The Charge. A fortnight ago, warming up on his stump tour, Candidate LaFollette thrust an accusing finger at the moneybags of the Repub- lican Party. Cried he, in effect: "Huge slush fund ! Corruption ! A desperate attempt to buy the election!"

Its Grounds. The grounds given by the candidate for his accusations were two:

1) A letter sent out in Pennsylvania to collect funds for the G. O. P. treasury: "We have in LaFollette and Wheeler a Lenin and Trotzky. . . . The American dollar, of 100 cents value, will help this defensive fight against a rampant radicalism. . . ."

2) An excerpt from a Philadelphia despatch in the Democratic New York Times: "Last week hurried conferences on the subject of finance as well as organization were held by the party leaders here and in New York. Chairman Butler conferred with E. T. Stotesbury, the Philadelphia partner of Morgan & Co., and plans were immediately set afoot in Pennsylvania by W. T. Mellon of Pittsburgh and Joseph R. Grundy of Philadelphia to raise $600,000 in that State for use elsewhere."

LaFollette's Case. On these grounds Candidate LaFollette erected a case maintaining that: 1) If Pennsylvania's quota is $600,000, the National Republican treasure trove must be $4,000,000 or $5,000,000; 2) "Use elsewhere" meant use in the Middle West; 3) "This campaign to raise enormous slush fund is based on malicious slander and libel. The New York Times says this conspiracy was initiated by William M. Butler, Chairman Republican National Committee, in conference with W. T. Mellon, brother of Secretary of Treasury, and Edward T. Stotesbury, partner of J. P. Morgan."

The latter quotation is from a telegram which Candidate LaFollette despatched to Senator William E. Borah of Idaho. Also the telegram said: "I demand immediate action to halt this outrageous conspiracy."

The Court. Candidate LaFollette wired to Senator Borah because the latter is Chairman of the Senate Committee on Campaign Expenditures. The "action" demanded was promptly forthcoming. Although he had only just opened his campaign in Idaho for reelection to the Senate on the Republican ticket, Mr. Borah did some telegraphing of his own and entrained at once for Chicago. There he was met by Senators Bayard of Delaware, Shipstead of Minnesota, Caraway of Arkansas, Jones of Washington.

Sitting in Chicago's Federal Building, with all the power of a court to swear witnesses and take testimony, these investigators proceeded to summon the chairmen and treasurers of the three leading parties. The Committee was resolved that "every line of inquiry" should be followed, that its reports should "not deal with lump totals, but with detailed contributions and expenditures."

Said Chairman Borah: "I understand the witnesses that LaFollette has to substantiate his charges . . . are in Philadelphia and New York. We will hear whatever evidence there is here on that matter and go to Washington for the rest."

The Republican Testimony was heard first. Republican Treasurer William V. Hodges presented his accounts and with them an explanation of the Republican budget which, he said, had been reduced from an original estimate of $3,000,000 set in the spring.

In the original Republican plan, quotas had been fixed. For instance, one Joseph R. Grundy, woolen manufacturer of Bristol, Pa., had been asked to raise $300,000 in eastern Pennsylvania, The quota for the State of Illinois had been set at $400,000. Other states, other quotas and a list of individual donations revealed the fact that the Republicans had raised the $1,000 limit, set in 1920 by Republican Chairman Will H. Hays, to $25,000. This list began:

$25,000--William Wrigley Jr., chewing-gum manufacturer of Chicago.

$20,000--James A. Patten, grain dealer of Evanston, Ill.

$15,000--Union LeagueClub of Philadelphia (collection from members); Aldrich C. Johnson, of Camden, N. J.; Mortimer L. Schiff and Arthur Curtiss James of Manhattan.

$10,000--Arthur W. Cutten, Chicago grain merchant; B. A. Eckhart and A. W. Harris of Chicago; Charles G. Dawes, the party candidate for Vice President; Harry P. Knight of St. Louis; A. R. Carleton of Colorado Springs; and Julius Fleischmann. Charles Hayden, J. Horace Harding, J. V. Armitage, Julius Forstmann, all of Manhattan.

Chairman Borah: "Do you know of any contribution from J. P. Morgan & Co., or members of that firm?"

Treasurer Hodges: "Yes, Dwight Morrow and Tom Cochran each sent $5,000."

"Is there any plan to distribute one million copies of President Coolidge's biography?"

"I do not know. . . I should say not. . ."

Treasurer Hodges' summary showed $1,714,317 received from 16,902 con- tributors. The list of disbursements included an expense of $437,000 for a publicity bureau under the direction of one George Barr Baker.

Chairman Borah: "Is there any moneyed institution in New York, either singly or in combination, that is expending money for the benefit of the Republican campaign that does not account it to you, that you have any knowledge of?"

Treasurer Hodges: "No."

Chairman William M. Butler of the Republican National Committee tes- tified, scouting Candidate LaFollette's charge of slushery in "doubtful" states. Said he: "We have no such intention ... no ability ... no funds for purposes of that kind." Mr. Butler confirmed the figure of $3,000,000 for the Republican budget and called it "a modest amount." He answered detailed questions about the uses to which Republican moneys had been and would be put. George Barr Baker testified as to the activities of his publicity bureau. It was an- nounced that the inquiry would go no further than taking the financial statements of the two other party managers, unless Frank P. Walsh, of Kansas City, attorney for the Third Party, submitted sufficient new evidence to warrant prolonging the probe.

Third Party Testimony. Senator Caraway (Democrat) opened the hearing on the LaFollette finances, Representative John M. Nelson, Third Party Manager, submitting his accounts and testifying.

Senator Caraway: "I presume you saw the statement that some Labor organizations were spending large sums in carrying on your campaign. Do you know anything about that?"

Manager Nelson: "No. I have no knowledge of anything outside the re- ports I have made to you."

"Do you know anything of an independent campaign carried on and financed by them?"

"Oh, yes, . . . but I have no knowledge of the amounts or the details."

Mr. Nelson was pressed for, and named, other organizations acting inde- pendently for LaFollette, but consistently denied having any knowledge or control of their operations. His report, as of Oct. 10, showed $190,535.36 received from about 72.000 persons, and disbursements of $155.062.69. Though one Illinois manufacturer stood liable for "anything up to $40,000," most contributors had given a dollar at a time. Said Mr. Nelson: "The psychology prevails. . . . We had to revise our budget so often that we had to abandon it. Our great trouble was lack of money." Here Senator Bayard interpolated: "Then your budget was largely a matter of hope, was it not?"

Mr. Nelson: "Yes, that's right."

Walsh's turn. He trundled forth a huge mass of correspondence and other data and told the Committee that he would undertake to show that three G. O. P. funds were being collected, "one by the National Com- mittee, the regular fund; one a fund created by the bankers of the United States and taken care of by them; and the other by the manufacturers and business men." Mr. Walsh added that he had talked with Candidate LaFollette over the long distance telephone and the latter had "under-estimated the amount of the 'slush fund'. ... It is very likely," said he, "to reach $12,000,000." Mr. Walsh briefly outlined his evidence and requested the Committee to subpoena a long list of Philadelphians, Washingtonians, New Yorkers, Kansas Cityites." He explained that it was Candidate LaFollette's mission to "delouse" the political parties.

Chairman Borah agreed to issue the subpoenas, adding the names of Samuel Gompers and other Labor officials whom he wished to interrogate about their expenditures in behalf of Candidate LaFollette's campaign. The Committee then adjourned with the announcement that it would reconvene in Washington, there to examine the subpoenaed witnesses and to receive the financial report of Clem L. Shaver, campaign manager of the Democratic forces. Parenthetically, Senator Borah asked the chairmen of all the national campaigns to report to him periodically, on Oct. 20, Oct. 25, Nov. 1.

The Penalty. Should a political party be discovered to have raised a billion or ten billion dollars, for legitimate national campaign expenses, no legal penalty could be imposed upon that party's officials. Their only penalty would be chastisement by public opinion. If, however, it should be proved that a party misrepresented its expenditures in reporting them to Congress-- or, this year, to the Borah committee; if it should be proved that votes were, in some definite sense, "bought," then impeachment and probably imprisonment would follow for those responsible.

It is asked: "Where does the money go? Is it spent lawfully or crookedly?" Answer: "Millions are wasted. The estimate placed upon the total cost of a national election is $30,000,000--more than a dollar for every vote cast."