Senator NIXON. I see. In other words, it showed cash transactions involving $12,000 each year. Mr. BELLINO. Approximately; yes, sir. Senator NIXON. My next question is this: Has examination been made of Mr. Boyle's finances-I am thinking now of his bank accounts to determine whether he may have deposited any cash in his account or cashed any checks? Mr. FLANAGAN. No, sir. Senator NIXON. You have made no such examination? Mr. FLANAGAN. No; we examined his books, and took out of his books, his cash journal, every payment that he records from Siskind. Senator NIXON. In other words, if cash transactions could have taken place and I am not suggesting that they did, if they could have taken place between Siskind and Boyle, then the committee would not know it as of the basis of your investigation now. Mr. FLANAGAN. That is true. Senator NIXON. I would suggest to the committee that I think you might further request the opportunity to examine any cash transactions that may have taken place between the two. Senator HOEY. Proceed, Mr. Flanagan. Mr. FLANAGAN. I have no further questions. Senator UNDERWOOD. I have got a question I would like to ask, if I may. Senator HOEY. Go ahead. Senator UNDERWOOD. Mr. Link, this is an editorial from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, although not written by you, I assume based on the articles which you wrote; is that correct? Mr. LINK. Usually are. Senator UNDERWOOD. Usually are? Mr. LINK. Or somebody else. Senator UNDERWOOD. Did you read the testimony of Mr. Boyle yesterday? Mr. LINK. Not in full. I was trying to get here yesterday. I had to go by way of Chicago. Senator UNDERWOOD. This editorial says this: Mr. Boyle says that on account of his high sense of propriety he discontinued his law practice in May of 1949. But he went on receiving monthly checks from American Lithofold all through 1949 and well into 1950. Have you seen anywhere any evidence-do you have anything that would indicate-that that is a true statement? Mr. LINK. That he went on receiving them or Siskind? Senator UNDERWOOD. What does it say there? No, it says Mr. Boyle says that on account of his high sense of propriety that he discontinued his law practice in May 1949, but he went on receiving monthly checks from American Lithofold all through 1949 and well into 1950. Mr. LINK. That must be in error, because the money that he got was from Siskind. I mean if you get my point on that. Senator MCCLELLAN. May I inquire from the Senator, is that an editorial? Senator UNDERWOOD. That is an editorial. Senator MCCLELLAN. From the St. Louis Post-Dispatch? Will you give the date of it? Senator UNDERWOOD. July 28, 1951. Senator MCCLELLAN. Mr. Chairman, I ask that that editorial be made a part of the record of this hearing. Senator HOEY. It will be included in the record. (The editorial referred to from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, dated July 28, 1951, was marked "Exhibit 28" and will be found in the appendix on p. 1240.) Senator UNDERWOOD. Now, it says here: A St. Louis firm applies for an RFC loan and is turned down. Collector of Internal Revenue James P. Finnegan interests himself in the loan and visits the St. Louis RFC office to champion it. Mr. Boyle and Mr. Finnegan confer with the company officials in St. Louis, Washington, and Florida. Mr. LINK. That is correct. Senator UNDERWOOD. Have you got any testimony that Mr. Boyle conferred with company officials in regard to that loan in St. Louis or Florida? Mr. LINK. I turned it over to the committee; gave them names and dates of the hotels where they were conferring with Mr. Boyle and Mr. Finnegan. Senator MUNDT. To our committee? Mr. LINK. Yes. Senator MCCLELLAN. Do we have that information? Mr. FLANAGAN. We have that information. What is that? Mr. BELLINO. We have information that Mr. Boyle and Mr. Finnegan may have been in hotels at various times. Mr. LINK. One of them may have been the Nicaro Nickel deal. Mr. FLANAGAN. We have information that they stayed at the Muehl bach Hotel together. Mr. LINK. At the Mayflower, the Muehlbach. Senator MUNDT. What information do we have? Mr. FLANAGAN. That they stayed in the Muehlbach Hotel. Senator MUNDT. If they were conferring Mr. FLANAGAN. We do not know what they were conferring about. Senator MUNDT. We did not have that before us. Mr. BELLINO. There is no question they had been in Washington many times. Senator MCCLELLAN. This editorial that they had been in Washington, St. Louis, and Florida Senator UNDERWOOD. Implies that they conferred about this loan. Now, my recollection is that Mr. Boyle said they did not confer about the loan; that he did not talk with them about the loan. Senator MCCLELLAN. Let us proceed to ask the witness what he knows about those things as facts to his knowledge. Senator UNDERWOOD. Do you know whether any such meetings took place? Mr. LINK. Yes, sir; at Blauner's home in Miami, Boyle and Finnegan were down there. Senator NIXON. I could not quite hear you. Mr. LINK. At Blauner's home. Senator NIXON. Did you say Mr. Boyle and Mr. Finnegan visited the Blauner home in Miami? Mr. LINK. Oh, yes. Senator NIXON. Mr. Boyle has been at the Blauner home in Miami? Mr. LINK. Yes, sir; that is what I understood. Senator MUNDT. Have you turned information to that effect over to the committee? Mr. LINK. No, I don't think I have. Senator MUNDT. I never heard about it. I would like to ask Boyle about that. Senator MCCLELLAN. Give us the approximate date, will you please, sir? Mr. LINK. I will look it up; I have got my notes. Senator MCCLELLAN. And furnish it to the committee; and any other dates or places. Mr. LINK. Well, Senator Senator MCCLELLAN. That you may have. Mr. LINK. Well, Senator, there are lots of them, but they go over into other subjects, like the Nicaro Nichel deal; like meetings at the Waldorf-Astoria. Senator MCCLELLAN. Not whether they go over-the point is we want to know about these meetings so that Mr. Boyle may be recalled, and let us find out what connection it had with it. That is what I wanted to find out. Senator NIXON. In connection with Senator McClellan's pointif you will yield, Senator-on Senator McClellan's point, the committee is interested, Mr. Link, not only in Mr. Boyle's dealings in the American Lithofold case and the $8,000 that he did or did not receive from American Lithofold, but the committee is interested in dealings that Mr. Boyle may have had after he became the acting chairman of the Democratic National Committee in February and for that rea son Mr. LINK. Yes, sir. Senator NIXON (continuing). I think any information that you have on these matters would be of interest to the committee because those are the matters, as was pointed out in the hearing yesterday, were estimated by Mr. Siskind to be valued at $158,000 that he had received; and Mr. Boyle to date has received, as a result of that, approximately $40,000 for most of the transactions, and we are interested in any impropriety that was involved there, if there was any. Mr. LINK. There are a lot of ramifications to this thing; I don't know what to start on. I mean, it goes into different departments of the Government, and the investigation is half completed on some of them, and it would not be fair to come out with too much. Senator NIXON. That is right. Mr. LINK. On the Nicaro Nickel deal, why, that is simply explained. We had an informant tell us. Senator HOEY. You need not go into that now. Senator MUNDT. Let us get a little background on it. It is a new one to me. Mr. LINK. Nicaro. Senator MUNDT. Just a quick story. Senator MCCLELLAN. Did it involve Boyle? Mr. LINK. Well, according to our informant it did. Now, our informant, I am sure I can get him before you-I think I can. Senator MUNDT. You said you could get him before us? Mr. LINK. I think I can. Senator HOEY. Let us not get into ramifications with unnamed people. Senator NIXON. You will furnish the name of the informant to the chairman or the staff so that the committee may subpena the informant? Mr. LINK. Yes. Senator HOEY. All right. Senator MCCLELLAN. You can and will do that? Mr. LINK. Yes. Senator UNDERWOOD. Now, then, proceeding, you say that— Suddenly the RFC directors reverse the decision of the St. Louis office and of the Review Board and Washington and approve the initial installment of a loan which ultimately totals $565,000. At about the same time, both Mr. Boyle and Mr. Finnegan began receiving monthly checks from the company. Now, that to me indicates that they received the checks after the loan was executed. Is that what it would mean to you? Mr. LINK. It came about the same time, as I recall the dates. Senator UNDERWOOD. Of course, Mr. Boyle testified, as I understand it, that the checks were received before the loan was executed, and by the time the loan was executed he had no connection with the Government; that he had quit the practice of law-I mean with the Lithofold Co. Mr. LINK. That is not correct, Senator. Senator NIXON. Senator, I have got the facts right in front of me, prepared by the staff. Senator UNDERWOOD. Before he became national chairman. Senator NIXON. Just a moment on that point, too, so that we can get the record absolutely clear. On Mr. Boyle's testimony yesterday the facts are these: The first tangible evidence of any contract of employment between Mr. Boyle and American Lithofold Co. occurred on February 17. Mr. LINK. That is right, sir. Senator NIXON. That was the date that the first check was drawn for-February 17, 1949. Mr. LINK. 1949; yes, sir. Senator NIXON. He was placed on the payroll on a semimonthly basis on February 17, 1949, at $500 a month. The first check, however, issued on February 17-and this may explain the confusion to an extent-covered payments from February 1, 1949. In other words, it went back to cover the period to February 1, 1949. Mr. Boyle made the appointment at the RFC on February 28, 1949. On March 3, the loan was granted-March 3, 1949. Mr. LINK. First instalment. Senator UNDERWOOD. $80,000. Senator NIXON. That was the one mainly in controversy. If you are referring to the $565,000 loan you are entirely correct. But on March 3, 1949, the $80,000 loan was granted. In order for the record to be clear, Mr. Boyle stated on the stand yesterday that at the time he made the call, at the time that the loan was granted, he was acting national chairman for the Democratic National Committee without pay. Mr. LINK. Yes. Senator NIXON. And, as a matter of fact, the call was made from the office of the then nominal national chairman, Mr. McGrath, who later resigned. Mr. LINK. I see. Senator HOEY. All of that is in the record. Senator UNDERWOOD. I have nothing further. Senator NIXON. I think it was worth repeating, though, there was some confusion. Senator HOEY. Well, I think you gentlemen sum up a lot. You make a summary of it, like making a jury speech every few minutes. Senator NIXON. You know, you may do the same thing to us. Senator HOEY. I have not so far. Senator MCCLELLAN. I may say to you, Mr. Link, that I share the responsibility for your presence here today. Mr. LINK. Yes, sir. Senator MCCLELLAN. I am willing to take the full responsibility for it. Mr. LINK. Yes, sir. Senator MCCLELLAN. Because it has been testified by Mr. Boyle that he told you, before this article was published, that he had severed his connections from the company and from the law practice. Mr. LINK. That is right. Senator MCCLELLAN. And that he told you when you asked him about the $8,000 that he had only received $1,250. Now I have not seen all of the article. I have before me now only the first article-I assume the first article that was published. According to Mr. Boyle and from my interpretation of his testimony yesterday, his absolute denial under oath that he had received. money as related in this article, and not having seen the newspaper articles, but assuming that the publication had been made as was revealed to the committee, without the article before me I took the position and said to Mr. Boyle that he was either perjuring himself before this committee or that he had been deliberately libeled and slandered. I am of that opinion still. It is not my personal interest in this matter-I am not interested in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch or Mr. Boyle as institutions or as individuals, but I am interested in what I conceive to be the public interest, and in this hearing the purpose of it is to find out the truth if we can. Mr. LINK. Yes, sir. Senator MCCLELLAN. For that reason I asked Mr. Boyle very pointedly, and I would like to read his testimony to you at that point and ask your comment and ask questions about it. Mr. LINK. All right, sir. Senator MCCLELLAN. Again, my interest is-I wanted Mr. Boyle's help in doing it and I earnestly solicit yours in doing it Mr. LINK. Yes, sir. Senator MCCLELLAN (continuing). To make this record speak the whole truth when it is through. Mr. LINK. Yes, sir. Senator MCCLELLAN. So that we may have the truth before us when we pass judgment, come to conclusions, and report those conclusions as public servants of the people to the Congress and to the country. Mr. LINK. Yes, sir. Senator MCCLELLAN. That is the only interest I have in it. I asked Mr. Boyle this question, if you will follow me, please, Mr. Link. 81249-51-pt. 3-51 |