The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1927-07-01
Professional Patriots
CONTINUED from yesterday


John G. McNutt 1st 1t FARES, sec'y-Treasurer
Tncls
67th Congress End Session, Senate Committee Print
ROTC at Educational Institutions.
Copy of statement by President Elliott Purdue Uni
versty, 1926.
st No 1862
1t happened that these letters were mailed out in
penalty envelope-franked envelope-which privilege
under Section 485 of the u s. Postal Laws and Regu
atoms restricted to Officers of the United States
Government solely for the purpose of transmitting in
the mails free of postage matters relating exclusively
the business the Government of the United States
Just what this letter had to do with government bust
it is difficult to discover When the matter of
Lieutenant McNutts violation of the law referred
to the Secretary of War and the Attorney General of
the United States it explained that the envelope
with it's enclosures, out by authority of the
chiefofstaff of the Saith Division Colonel G. L. Town
send, officer of the Regular Army and competent
under the law"
This was the opinion of the Secretary of War Senator
Thomas j. Walsh of Montana, thereupon wrote to At
General Sargent December A. 1926, saying in
part follows:
"Wl you have the kindness to advise me whether
YOU concur in the view of the Secretary of War that
Colonel Townsend is competent under the law to send
such matter in penalty envelope without postage?
venture without hesitation to say that he is not and
that the matter sent out by MeNutt is not such
laes exclusively to the business of the government of
the United States does relate in any wise the
business of the government of the United Statse 1t
to perfectly plain that the law has been fla
GRAVITY violated in this matter
great deal of the propaganda of the professional
patriots has been published in journals dealing with
the army and navy such the Army and Navy Regst-
er, the Army and Navy Journal and the Reserve Of
fcer publication of the Reserve Officers Association
of the United States None of these publications
in any official though they may so to the
average reader. Practically every branch of the mill
tary service has association connected with it which
issues a journal These journals can print ANYTHING
they like for they also unofficial Typical associ-
ations issuing publications of this character are the
United States Infantry Association and the United
States Cavalry Association There are also various
letters sent out by the civilian aides of the Sec
rotary of War; and bulletins and letters of various
corps and divisions of the army All of these have been
used to distribute ndiscrimnate and irresponsible pro-
paganda chiefly against persons working for peace.
Often they may be used for wider field of propaganda
in 1925 when the Quartermaster Review issued a
broadsde of lies against the League for Industrial
Democracy. This propaganda in turn copied from
the Eighty third Division Bulletin. The Army and
Navy Journal has been especially active in this work
having printed much Of the material issued by Mr. Mar
vim
A minor military organization which has lent itself
to professional patriotic activities and to the propa-
ganda against all shades of liberals and radicals the
National Society of Scabbard and Blade whose head
quarters in Canton, Ohio. It's stated purpose is
"to unite in closer relationship the military departments
of American universities and colleges preserve and
develop the essential qualities Of good and efficient of
ficers; to prepare ourselves educated to take
active part and to have greater influence in
the military affairs of the communities in which we NAV
reside and above all to spread intelligent information
concerning the military requirements of country
This society issues mimeographed bi-weekly Especial
Situation Bulletns to its members in which it details
much gossip about the radicals the pacifsts the youth
movement the League for Industrial Democracy, and
all sorts of college and student activities of which it
dsapproves 1t reprints the Whitney material on "The
Reds in America" and Congressman Blanons orations
against the liberals In Of its bulletins it attacks
Sherwood Eddy the Women,s International League for