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"4. The magnitude of the quartermaster's duties assigned Captain Greene was the result of post quartermaster transferring out of the quartermaster corps of replacement not being available until arrival of a suitable officer from foreign service about 2 months thereafter, and of the further delay in his reporting at Mitchel Field, for duty due to the Second Corps Area granting him a 3 months' leave. During all that period Captain Greene had to take over the duties of post quartermaster in addition to his construction and finance duties."

With the exception of a small saving which I have been able to accumulate, I am entirely dependent upon my retired pay to support myself, my wife, and my dependent relative. I do not feel that I was in any way negligent. I performed the duties to the best of my knowledge and ability. I had no knowledge or information that Billingham was unauthorized to perform the duties which he was performing under me. I had no knowledge or information that Billingham was anything other than a trained, experienced, efficient, and trustworthy clerk. I had no knowledge of dishonesty on the part of Billingham until shortly before he was arrested, when Maj. W. D. Dabney, finance officer for the Corps Area, advised me that they had discovered some vouchers which appeared to be fraudulent. It has been a tremendous hardship to have one-half of my retired pay deducted each month. It has meant that I have had to draw on my small savings, and the result will be that when I die the security which I had hoped to leave to support my family will have been practically exhausted.

The War Department has never accused me of bad faith. The only charge was that I was negligent. I do not think I was negligent under the circumstances, as I have herein explained. All the facts which I have stated herein, with the exception of those which relate to my personal situation, are fully substantiated by the War Department's records. Since I acted in perfectly good faith and exercised as much care and prudence as was possible for me to exercise in the situation in which I was placed during the time Billingham's embezzlements occurred, I earnestly believe I should be relieved of the claim made against me. CLARENCE N. GREENE (retired).

STATE OF RHODE ISLAND,

County of Providence, ss:

I hereby certify that on this 3d day of April 1939, before me the subscriber, a notary public in and for the State and county aforesaid, personally appeared Maj. Clarence N. Greene, retired, and made oath in due form of law that the matters and facts set forth in the foregoing statement are true to the best of his knowledge, information, and belief.

As witness my hand and notarial seal. [SEAL]

STATE OF RHODE ISLAND,

County of Providence, ss:

JAMES A. RATCLIFFE,

Notary Public.

I hereby certify that on this 29th day of February 1940, personally appeared Maj. Clarence H. Greene, retired, who made oath in due form of law as follows: I had no knowledge that Private Billingham was living beyond his means while he was stationed at Mitchell Field. I did learn that he had purchased an automobile and when I inquired about it I was informed a relative of Billingham's had died leaving him some money. I had no information or knowledge, actual or implied, that Billingham was spending large amounts of money elsewhere.

I wish to emphasize that ordinarily the vouchers and money were turned over to Sergeant Haskell for payment. This was proper under Army regulations as he had been authorized to act as cashier. Sometimes when Sergeant Haskell was temporarily absent from the office, he would permit Billingham to make payment. I was not present on these occasions and of course had no knowledge of it. When Sergeant Haskell was on furlough I was compelled to permit Billingham to pay Vouchers and during that period (from March to June 1930) when I was absent from the office I turned over the vouchers and money to him for payment.

As Sergeant Haskell was authorized to pay vouchers I feel that technically or otherwise I should not be charged with any payments which Sergeant Haskell permitted Billingham to make. If the Claims Committee feels that I was at fault in permitting Billingham to pay vouchers when circumstances compelled me to do so (and I maintain I was not at fault), I should at least be relieved of the amounts charged against me by the War Department which occurred while Sergeant Haskell was on active duty and entrusted with the duty of paying vouchers.

According to information which I have received, approximately $9,000 of the amount charged against me occurred while Sergeant Haskell was on furlough. The balance of the money was taken while Sergeant Haskell was on active duty but perhaps temporarily absent from the office, and I should not be charged technically or otherwise with any vouchers which he turned over to Billingham for payment in his absence.

Witness my hand and notarial seal. [SEAL]

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JOHN P. HART

JULY 1, 1940.-Committed to the Committee of the Whole House and ordered to be printed

Mr. POAGE, from the Committee on Claims, submitted the following

REPORT

[To accompany H. R. 6060]

The Committee on Claims, to whom was referred the bill (H. R. 6060) for the relief of John P. Hart, having considered the same, report favorably thereon with an amendment and recommend that the bill as amended do pass.

The amendment is as follows: Strike out all the language of the bill after the enacting clause and insert in lieu thereof the following:

That the Secretary of the Treasury be, and he is hereby, authorized and directed to pay out of any money in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, to John P. Hart, of Chicago, Ill., the sum of $1,000, in full settlement of all claims against the United States for refund of value of Liberty bond deposited as bail for one Fred Sering, who was arrested for violation of the National Prohibition Act on January 9, 1926, the said John P. Hart having secured an order of the court directing the clerk of the court to pay to him the sum of $1,486.55, representing the face value of the bond, plus the premium and interest realized from the sale of said bond and others, with which order the clerk was not able to comply as the money had been covered into the Treasury of the United States: Provided, That no part of the amount appropriated in this Act in excess of 10 per centum thereof shall be paid or delivered to or received by any agent of attorney on account of services rendered in connection with this claim, and the same shall be unlawful, any contract to the contrary notwithstanding. Any person violating the provisions of this Act shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction thereof shall be fined in any sum not exceeding $1,000.

The purpose of the proposed legislation is to provide for the payment of the sum of $1,000 to John P. Hart, of Chicago, Ill., in full settlement of all claims against the United States for refund of value of Liberty bond deposited as bail for one Fred Sering, who was arrested for violation of the National Prohibition Act on January 19, 1926.

STATEMENT OF FACTS

The bill, as introduced, asked for refund in the amount of $7,000 deposited as bail by the claimant for 7 different defendants in the

case of the United States against them for violation of the National Prohibition Act.

On January 9, 1926, Fred Sering, Carl Anderson, John Meyer, Elmer Knapp, John Smidt, Floyd Milford, and John Becker, were arrested on a charge of "unlawfully possessing intoxicating liquor and unlawfully possessing material and machinery for manufacturing of liquor. They were brought before United States Commissioner Beitler on January 19, 1926, who fixed the bond for each defendant at $1,000. The claimant, Mr. John P. Hart, deposited as bail for said defendants six $1,000 Liberty bonds and $1,000 in cash.

It appears that each of the defendants except Sering waived examination before the United States commissioner and were held for the grand jury. On March 3, 1936, informations were filed against all of the defendants except Sering, and a bench warrant was issued for the latter defendant.

On April 2, 1926, all of the defendants except Sering entered pleas of not quilty and the cause was set for trial for April 27, 1926. The defendants failed to appear on that date and an order was entered forfeiting their respective bonds, totaling $6,000, and on May 1, 1926, the court directed the issuance of a writ of scire facias as to each of said defendants.

The claimant states that he was not notified that the trial of these defendants was set for April 27, 1926, and therefore was not in a position to have the defendants in court on that date.

Or. January 31, 1927, judgment was entered for $1,000 and costs as to each defendant, except Sering, and their surety, John P. Hart, with specific direction that the bonds on deposit with the clerk of the court be sold and the sum of $6,000 representing the total of said sale deposits be transmitted to the United States Treasury.

While it is established that the court order of April 27, 1926, forfeiting the bonds of each defendant, other than Sering, was entered before the six bonds were actually filed with the clerk of the United States district court, and the informations against the seven defendants were dismissed on authority of the Attorney General on July 31, 1933, your committee is not of the opinion that this is justification for the refund of the amount of bond deposited in the case of the six defendants referred to.

However, with regard to the claim for the $1,000 deposited by the surety with the United States Commissioner on behalf of Sering, it appears that this bond was actually never filed with the clerk of the court and no scire facias was issued pursuant to the order of the forfeiture in that case. However, on June 19, 1928, the court on petition of the United States attorney, entered an order directing the clerk of the court to sell the Sering bond and to deposit the proceeds in the United States Treasury.

Thereafter, this procedure was recognized by the court as being irregular, and on December 3, 1934, Judge Sullivan of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, entered an order vacating the said order of June 19, 1928, and directed the clerk of the court to pay to Mr. Hart the total sum of $1,486.55. This sum represented the principal amount of the said Sering bond of $1,000, and the accrued interests and premium on the sale of all of the Liberty bonds deposited by Hart.

However, this sum had already been covered into the Treasury of the United States, and the clerk was unable to comply with the order of the court directing the said refund.

The Comptroller General of the United States has paid the sum of $486.55, representing the amount recognized from the sale of all of the bonds over and above their premium amount, to Mr. Hart, but has declined to authorize the refund of $1,000.

Your committee is of the opinion that the order of the court should be complied with, and the only way this appears to be possible is through a special act of Congress, in view of the fact the money ordered refunded had already been covered into the Treasury.

Accordingly, your committee recommend passage of the bill as amended, which eliminates the refund of any money deposited by Mr. Hart on behalf of any of the defendants, with the exception of Sering.

Appended hereto is a corrected report of the Attorney General, together with the report of the Comptroller General.

Hon. AMBROSE J. KENNEDY,
Chairman, Committee on Claims,

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE, Washington, D. C. March 26, 1940.

House of Representatives, Washington, D. C.

MY DEAR MR. CHAIRMAN: I have your letter of March 8, relative to the bill (H. R. 6060) to provide for the payment of the sum of $7,000 to John P. Hart as reimbursement for the loss claimed to have been sustained by him as the result of the forfeiture of a bail bond filed in a criminal proceeding against Fred Sering and others in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, concerning which the Department wrote you on June 13, 1939.

As stated in the letter of June 13, 1939, the records of this Department contained no information to indicate what connection, if any, the claimant, John P. Hart, had with the transaction or that a bail bond of any kind had been deposited for Fred Sering. However, additional information has been recently made available which seems to justify a recast of the facts as follows:

On January 9, 1926, Fred Sering, Carl Anderson, John Meyer, Elmer Knapp, John Smidt, Floyd Milford, and John Becker were arrested for violations of the National Prohibition Act. Bond for each defendant was set at $1,000 and John P. Hart deposited six Liberty bonds of the par value of $1,000 each, as surety for six of the defendants, including Fred Sering, and the sum of $1,000 as surety for John Meyer, the seventh defendant. On January 19, 1926, all of the defendants, except Fred Sering, appeared for examination before the United States Commissioner. Sering's bond was forfeited. On March 3, 1926, an information was filed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois against the seven defendants charging them with violations of the National Prohibition Act. The bonds given for appearance of the six defendants before the United States Commissioner were ordered by the court to stand and a bench warrant was issued for Sering.

On April 27, 1926, the date set for the trial, none of the defendants appeared, and their bonds were ordered forfeited. On June 21, 1927, judgment was entered and the collateral ordered sold. Although this order was directed to only five Liberty bonds and the cash bond, the clerk sold all six of the Liberty bonds, including the Sering bond, and the proceeds from such sale, totaling the sum of $7,486.55 were subsequently covered into the United States Treasury.

On June 19, 1928, the United States attorney filed a petition to sell the Sering bond, although it had in fact previously been sold, and an order was entered the same day by the court directing that such sale be made.

On December 3, 1934, the court made an order directing the return to John P. Hart of the sum of $1,486.55, representing the interest and premiums on all of the Liberty bonds and the principal sum of $1,000 for the bond deposited as surety for Fred Sering. The clerk was unable to comply with the order as the money had previously been covered into the Treasury.

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