Q. You mentioned three people three other people—as using these tickets; Swangin, Duncan, and Adam Clayton Powell III. Was there a fourth person who used one of the tickets? A. Mrs. Upshur. Q. Now, you have before you, Mrs. Dargans an Eastern Airlines transportation receipt indicating that on March 28, 1965, your credit card was used in flight on the shuttle between New York and Washington to purchase a ticket and in the upper left-hand corner what name appears as the signature of the cardholder? A. Maxienne Dargans. Q. Were you on that plane? A. No, sir. Q. So someone using your credit card purchased a ticket and signed your name on the transportation receipt on the Eastern Airlines shuttle: is that correct? A. Yes, sir. Mr. TAYLER. May that be marked "Dargans Exhibit 1"? Mr. O'CONNOR. I don't believe we have the date of that travel there. Mr. TAYLER. March 28, 1965. (The above-referred-to document was marked "Dargans Exhibit 1" and received in evidence.) By Mr. TAYLER: Q. I show you a similar transportation receipt showing an in-flight purchase of a ticket on the Eastern Airlines shuttle between Washington and New York, date of issue shown as March 28, 1965, bearing your credit card stamp and there appears to be a signature in the upper left-hand corner of Don Anderson. I ask you to examine that exhibit. Does the signature appear to be that of Don Anderson? A. I don't know. Q. Are you familiar with Mr. Anderson's signature? A. I have seen it, but to say that this is or is not his signature, I don't remember Don's signature well enough to identify this. Q. The ticket that was issued against that transportation receipt you are now examining was purchased with your credit card, was it not? A. Yes, sir. Mr. TAYLER. May that be marked "Dargans' Exhibit 2"? (The above-referred-to document was marked "Dargans' Exhibit 2" and received in evidence.) By Mr. TAYLER: Q. I show you a similar form dated March 28, 1965, same flight same airline, and in the upper left-hand corner the signature "Aurora Harris." Was that ticket purchased with your credit card? A. Yes, sir. Q. Do you know as a fact that neither Miss Harris nor Mr. Anderson performed the travel indicated on those cards? A. To my certain knowledge, sir, I do not. I did not see who boarded the flight. Q. But you found a Miss Swangin, Mr. Duncan, and Adam Clayton Powell III, with Miss Upshur at the airport? A. They went with us to the airport. Q. And Miss Upshur took your credit card? A. Yes. By Mr. O'CONNOR: Q. Can you give us the full name of Mr. Duncan? Q. Do you know where he lives? A. In New York City but I don't know his exact address. By Mr. TAYLER: Q. Do you know his relationship with Congressman Powell? Q. Have you ever met him? A. Oh, yes. Q. I am talking about Mr. Duncan. A. Yes. Q. Under what circumstances? A. Socially. By Mr. O'CONNOR: Q. Do you know his business? A. No; I do not. Q. Could you give us the first name of Swangin, was it? Q. Do you know her employment? Q. Did you subsequently receive your credit card back from Miss Upshur? A. Yes, I did. Q. How long after March 28 was that? A. Very shortly. I don't remember exactly when, but very shortly thereafter. Q. Did you bring to the attention of Congressman Powell the fact that as far as you knew your credit card had been used to purchase tickets for three persons who were not employed by Congress? A. I was given the order by the chairman to make these purchases. Q. For these particular people who used the tickets? A. Yes. Q. Did you question whether or not it was proper to use your Government travel card to purchase tickets for those persons? A. No, sir; I didn't. Q. Did Mr. Powell explain to you at the time why he was asking you to use Government funds to purchase these tickets for these persons? A. No, sir; he did not. Mr. HAYS. May I ask a question? Did he tell you to purchase the ticket for Miss Swangin and for Mr. Duncan or did I understand you to say earlier that he told you to purchase tickets for Harris, Anderson, and Upshur? The WITNESS. He asked me to purchase the tickets in the name of these people, with the understanding that these four people were going to use them. Mr. HAYS. That the other four people were going to use them? By Mr. TAYLER: Q. We have shown you three transportation receipts showing travel on that date on the shuttle by-presumably, or purportedly-by Harris, Anderson, and yourself. Did you ever see attached to any voucher another ticket or transportation receipt to indicate who used the fourth ticket? A. I don't Q. Do you know whose name was actually used to purchase that fourth ticket? We have only shown you three. A. It was to be Odell Clark. Now, I don't remember. Q. Did there come a time when you received in the normal course of your office business a voucher for the payment to Eastern Airlines for those four shuttle tickets? A. Yes. Q. Did yon notice at that time who signed for the fourth ticket? A. May I check? Q. Yes. A. I have a Thermofax copy of the coupon in the name of Odell Clark, or someone has signed "Odell Clark." Q. Would you produce that, please? Is that for March 28, 1965, on the shuttle? A. Yes, sir. Q. The copy you have produced is a copy of one of these Eastern Airlines transportation receipts showing an in-flight purchase on March 28, 1965, on your credit card of a shuttle ticket between Washington and New York and in the upper left-hand corner a signature purporting to be that of Odell Clark. Is that what you have produced? A. Yes, sir. Mr. TAYLER. May this be marked as "Dargans Exhibit 4"? (The above-referred-to document was marked "Dargans Exhibit 4" and received in evidence.) Mr. TAYLER. At this time, Mr. Chairman, I would offer into the record Dargans Exhibits 1, 2, 3, and 4, being the four Eastern Airlines transportation receipt forms that have been mentioned in her testi mony. Mr. HAYS. Without objection, they will be entered at the appropriate place. (The exhibits referred to were received into the record as heretofore noted.) By Mr. TAYLER: Q. Mrs. Dargans, are there any other instances during the life of the 89th Congress when you have either loaned your credit card to someone else or have used it to purchase tickets for someone other than staff employees whose travel was authorized by the chairman? A. To my certain knowledge, no, sir. By Mr. O'CONNOR: Q. What do you mean by your "certain knowledge"? By Mr. TAYLER: Q. You have never loaned your card to anyone other than on this one occasion; is that right? A. That is right. Q. Did you ever purchase any airline tickets for an employee of the committee named Walter B. Huber? A. I don't remember offhand. I am asked to purchase tickets for all of the staff and I can't remember just offhand whether I had ever bought a ticket for Walter Huber. Q. Do you know whether or not he has performed any travel for the committee since January 3, 1965? A. No, I do not. Q. Would you have any records in your office which would show travel performed by Mr. Huber if he had in fact performed it? A. If I had had to purchase transportation for him, I would have a record. If he had presented a voucher for per diem in connection with such travel, I would have a record. Q. Upon the conclusion of your appearance before this committee, would you check your records to see if you have any record of any committee travel performed by Walter B. Huber since January 3, 1965, and would you advise me as soon as you have made that check? A. Yes, sir. Q. All of my questions relate to the period since January 3, 1965, for convenience. A. This would be my T-4 record, airline vouchers and Q. Whatever records you have that you regularly maintain that would reflect committee employees' travel. A. Per diem vouchers. Mr. HAYS. Off the record. (Discussion off the record.) Mr. HAYS. On the record. |