The Indianapolis times., 1929-06-11
A Suggested Survey

The new presidential crime commission
might find 4 survey Of Lake county elections
not altogether without significance or iIlumina-
ton in the question of why crime seems to in
crease.
Especially interesting should be an inquiry
either by that body Of or Congress, as to the
activities or lack Of them. on the part Of fed
ersl agents. And Of even more curiosity
might be the present vacation of one Oliver
Loomis. now district attorney but formerly
the private secretary to Senator Arthur Rob
insou
Grave charges have been made by reputa-
BILE citizens They include the importation Of
trucks loaded with colored voters from the
crime section of Chicago at time when 1t
appeared that the voters of Lake county had
decided to throw off the burden of the graft
machine which rules it and that the revolt
might be great enough to reverse the verdict
i'm the state on very high Offices.
Every form Of known corruption and II
regularity has been charged. In addition
there has been collected and turned over to
the proper authorities documentary evidence
which cannot be ignored.
Can not be ignored The fact remains
that it has been gnored.
There has been singular apathy on the
part of federal agents OF the department Of
Justice. That suggests interference from high
sources.
There comes now the travesty Of a grand
jury from which the district attorney, charged
by law with the enforcement of law, absents
himself with no greater excuse than that he
chose this particular time to take his summer
vacation
1t may lee remarked that there are a hun
dred thousand or more residents OF South
Bend. engaged in quite as arduous tasks as IS
the district attorney. who do not find it neces-
sary to run from salubriouS climate OF that
city during the bamy days Of June They
either remain there, advertising the de>ira-
bility of that city as . summer resort on wait
until their tasks are tiniShed-say. at the adj
iournment Of court.
This Lake county fraud ease hits at the
very foundation of government. It may IL
lustrate a very close connection between crime
and government.
Whenever the ballot is corrupted all gov
ernment fails When fraud bribery. imported
voters can overthrow the viii of the voters,
there is no redress save a very drastic one.
If the evidence 50 far unearthcd has any
foundation it indicates that vast sums OF money
were spent to control the elections Of Lake
county. and through that county of the state
itself.
There are whispered intimations that very
important men had a hand in this conspiracy
There are more than whispers that the tide
turned late in the afternoon after the mporta-
tionS began
There is the ndeniable fact that the vote
in Lake county was many more thousands
than any estimate previous. to the election and
many more thousands than can be explained
either by school census, postal addresses, util-
ity service or any other known standard of
measurement for cities
Here is something that is fundamental.
Congress should make casual inquiry into the
extraordinary vacation of District Attorney
LoomS
If his health is such that he cannot handle
this important business he should have the
aid of stronger character and more ability
than is furnished by his own as assistants
If his health was not in immediate peril,
his vacation at this time should force an i'm
mediate resignation.