"Hell and Maria!" Charles Gates Dawes Tells Off Congress and Becomes a Celebrity

Charles Dawes with the AEF

Charles Gates Dawes (1865–1951) was one of the most colorful and substantial characters of America's 20th century history. Lawyer, banker, musical composer, first head of Bureau of the Budget, Vice President of the United States, and Nobel Prize Laureate. His involvement in the nation's war effort stemmed from his  crossing paths with Lt. John J. Pershing in Lincoln, Nebraska, in the 1890s.  They became lifetime friends. Two decades later, the then General Pershing, Commander of the AEF, would help bring Dawes and his financial skills into the Army. He went on the serve with great distinction in France as  chief of supply procurement for the American combat forces and earned promotion to brigadier general. (Article on the scope of the AEF purchasing program HERE.)

After the Armistice, Dawes was instrumental in managing the logistical aftermath of the war. He oversaw the liquidation of billions of dollars' worth of surplus war material. In February 1921, Congress still coming to grips with the stupendous cost of the war was holding hearings on the subject, and called Dawes to testify, since there had been accusations of waste and overspend in the purchasing of war materials and the disposal on surplus supplies and equipment after hostilities.  The tenor of the hearings had returned—as normal for Washington— to distinctly partisanship.  When Dawes testified, Republican lawmakers were hungry to discredit the now out-of-office Wilson Administration and targeted Dawes despite his party affiliation.

An Early Summary of the Surplus Disposal Program Under Dawes' Command

Dawes famously defended his actions against congressional scrutiny regarding the sale of the enormous volume of surplus "junk," arguing that the speed of disposal was necessary and that the items were not worth moving back to the U.S. When questioned by a committee member about whether the Army had paid excessive prices for "mules and broomsticks" in France, Dawes famously shouted: "Hell and Maria, we weren't trying to keep a set of books over there, we were trying to win a war!". (That's Maria as in the "Wind Called Maria".)

He followed this by telling the committee he would have paid "horse prices for sheep" if they could have hauled artillery to the front lines, emphasizing that in the heat of combat, formal accounting was secondary to survival. "What Pershing needed, he got. Now you bark and whine about not getting more for that junk in France when it was not worth guarding, much less moving. To hell with that sort of talk!" 

Later, Vice-President Charles Dawes and Old Friend, General Pershing

The public reaction was immediate and positive.  The formerly little-known banker and army officer became nationally famous as "Hell and Maria Dawes." Instead of being condemned for his temper, the public appreciated his blunt honesty and common-sense defense of the war effort. The fame from this incident directly boosted his political career. Shortly after, President Harding appointed him the first director of the Bureau of the Budget, where he was tasked with bringing the same intensity to streamlining government spending, and which he accomplished.

The colorful career of Dawes continued after his time with the Bureau.  Hell and Maria Dawes, managed to slip into the Vice-Presidency,  bicker constantly with President Coolidge, win the Nobel Peace Prize, write the music for a classic song, and  almost become the Republican candidate to run against FDR in 1936.  Here's a concise, but informative biographical sketch of the man.