Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-07-02
JUSTICE AGENTS SUPPRESSED
LnlDBERGH, SR., BOOK ON WAR
Minnesota Association Asks
Probe of Libraries Dis
elimination.
Father of Flyer Scored Ex.
emption of Wealth in
CONSUMPTION.
BY j. A. FOX.

war, llCLle KNOWN u en- ana alHlOSt AOL
gotten now, stalks he boards.
The central figure in the drama wa
Charles Augustus Lindbergh, who's
memory still Is honored in hhi hom'
State of Minnesota-now with the deed
of an illustrious son-because OF hi
fight to better the condition of his ,fel'
lows, a fight which ended only wher
the grave closed over him seven yea1!
ago.
The story Itself seems fantastic, since
the ardor and prejudices aroused by
armed conflict have cooled with the
passage of more than a decade. But
then 1t was all very real.
Asks Suppression Probe.
A few days ago news dispatches from
Minnesota carried the information that
the Charles Augustus Lindbergh Asso-
citation had asked the st. Paul Library
Board to investigate the alleged sup
preston of books written by the senior
Lndbergh in the libraries of Minnesota
and adjoining States. Two of these
works were published while he was a
M mber of the House of Representatives
where his term of service ran from 1907
to 1917. Another came out in 1923.
An e:ort was made to get copies for
reference in the Library OF Congress
Only one was available there, although
all three were listed in the catalogue.
Then it was brought out that one OF
these, harsh criticism OF war and its
causes as the author saw them. had
been suppressed by this Government
after part Of the edition had been re-
leased.
Plates Destroyed.
Further, that the plates for a section
of another, criticism of capital, writ
tsn four years before the war, had been
dc Stroyed. perhaps by the author him
self. though this point Is in doubt At
any rate. this halted further publica-
ton. This book. Banking
and Currency and the Money Trust
is the one that is now at the Library
of Congress
The third book, described as an am
plification. more or less. of the other
two, was printed in Philadelphia, and.
it is presumed. simply entered into
circulation like any other work, without
question.
The wartime book was titled why
Happens TO You After the War, and
Related Subjects"
Agents Seize Books.
1t was brought out in 1917 by the
National Capital Press. Many had been
distributed, it is recalled, when one
day Department of Justice agents
visited the publishers. seized all the
books on hand. even to the file copy
ordinarily kept by the printer, and
destroyed the plates.
A single copy, which has passed
through several hands. has been found
in the possession OF Mrs. Dora B. Haines
of Washington. who recently completed
biography of the Lindberghs which
was started by her late husband. Lynn
Haines. magazine publisher. The two
families have been Close friends for q
period of years.
In this book the former member OF
Congress laid the blame for war at the
door of the war for profits" group. and
advocated CONSUMPTION of wealth as well
as manpow&r.
In it, too. he elaborated on the theme
of his book of 1913 on the money
trust" which proposed to do away with
gold as legal tender and set up a new
financial system which would be based
in gen raj on exchange of commodities
and which would put the Government
in entire control of the money of the
country.
Beaten for Governor.
Lindbergh is known to have felt deep
ly over the manner in which this book
was received by the public His friends
say it was used as the basis for misrep-
against him when he made
an unsuccessful race for the governor
ship of Minnesota in 1918, year after
he had left Congress.
Although time has dimmed the recol-
lection OF those connected with the mat
ter, the impression prevails that after
the trouble in 1917. he himself took
steps to prevent further publications of
the money trust" book because of anal
agouS passages in the succeeding work.
Some of the ideas advanced by Lind
bergh in the war book are interesting
for the reason that they voice Santi-
ments which have become familiar by
repetition from other sources.
"Is Impressment Justified?"
Els any government justified in i'm
pressing men and women into war
service at the lowest of pay for their
time II 1t does not also impress the
surplus property of the wealthy" he
wrote.
Strange. inconsistent, even lower
than criminal. is that practice of the
governments which takes the lives and
liberties of their citizens to impress
into war, when at the same time they
Day premium for the property of the
rich to be used in carrying on the war
mo one with an ounce of brains.
unless filled with injustice, OF mere
hireling. will defend such a practice.
for when peace is restored the loans
of the rich burden those who risked
their lives and the families of those
killed"
Again he wrote: 1.-THE war appears
upon its face to have been between
the nations grouped upon opposing
end thus. 1t is not a war of shot
and shell. fire and sword alone; 1t has
developed into a war of economics
and the proof of the false economic
system under which We have worked
for long time stands out in such
bold prominence that the evidence OF
it cannot be concealed by the adroit
coverings of those few who have
profited so much by it. In this latter
respect the war will not be ended with
the signing of peace articles, no mat
ter what the Wordlng OF the aItcleS
may be-"
SHOULD Have Set Terms"
Further, he wrote: 1T was great
mistake when we entered the conflict
that we did not set the terms upon
which We would make peace, and have
those with whom We became allies &C
Cept of them SO far as we were in
volved. We should have made 1t con-
dition precedent that we would be ally
to none, except upon terms of disarma-
ment when peace would be established
Because of our failure to do so and to
settle certain other things in the be-
ginning, We shall not md It so easy to
settle things in our way in the end"
Lindbergh also declared 1t would be
a crime" If the war brought no eco
nomic reforms, and asserted 1t Is ''the
most solemn duty of the state to es-
tablish system to liberate mankind
from the existing industrial slavery"