Evening star., 1934-08-18
BY WEsTBROOK PEGLER.

BATON ROUGE. La, August 1s.-
1t is Hell Huey" in the State of
Louisiana now. but 1t must be ad-
mitted that the citizers seem calm
about the putsch which has estab-
lished the dictatorship of Der King
fish.
In hour and 20 minutes In q
committee room about IS feet by 80,
Huey Long ratified his legislative pro-
gram creating a secret police force
subject to his Governors command.
empowering his Governor to use the
Militia as a standing army ard au-
thorizing him to hire unlimited num-
bers of special officers to guard the
chastity of the ballot on election days.
The election officers will get $5 a
day and vote for Der Kingfish. The
local taxpayers viii pay the IS per
head. Thus, a community, which Is
hostile to Huey Longs ticket, will lose
its voice in the government and pay
a cash indemnity as we'll. The more
the people resist Der Kingfish the
more it will cost them in money to
buy votes at IS each to overcome
their own resistance.
The dictatorship is ratified by the
Senate Finance Committee Of IL
statesmen. Only two members. both
from New Orleans, belong to the op-
position. It Is moving along smooth
ly and in an anonymously merry at
,mosphere toward the Senate chamber,
where the honorable gents will shove
it through according to Huey's plan.
Bloodshed Mentioned.
There had been talk of q pitchfork
and shotgun army, the grand old
sacred heritage of freedom and blood
on the moon when the statesmen In
the Lower House were voting the gov
ernment over to the fuehrer, who
never did paint silos and barns, but
got his start selling sterling remedy
for the ills of ladies. Some Of the
statesmen had mentioned bloodshed
out loud.
But Huey shows up airy and i'm
pudent, takes charge Of the hearing
and gets down to business. He Is
wearing q dark-gray suit and reached
back ever and anon to scratch himself
in the region of his flask pocket, which
is a nervous habit of his.
Huey's bodyguard, Joe Messina, once
q house dick in the hotel business, now
a State employe, is close at hand. He
is short, swarthy, smiling and incon-
spicuous, but never missing.
There are no embattled farmers In
sight, no aroused citizens Of the type
which historians describe as stern
eyed, coming to see about all this.
There is, in fact, not a soul in sight
through the window except a sailor
hanging out his wash on the gore
castle of a distant tanker.
About hundred people flll the COM
mittee room. The members surround
the table and Huey takes up his posi-
ton at the end. The newspaper re-
porters have chairs close up. The
spectators seem not at all indignant.
but merely curious.
We'll" Huey says, with smirk to
the newspaper set, II don't see any
sign of that revolution and all that
armed force today so had to fill up
the room with job-holders to make a
crowd. Otherwise we wouldn't have
no crowd"
Represents Two Organizations.
Huey scratches himself. A look Of
bliss fits over his features.
Now" he says, pausing to look
around, "now I appear here as the
representative of two political organi-
zations." He refers to a couple Of
political clubs. Der Kingflsh smiles
mockingly at the two opposition
statesmen with this qualification. 1t
gives him his standing before the
committee
The clerk reads the titles of the
bills in a rushing tumble of words
and Huey grabs them out Of his
hands to explain them. He describes
them as moral measures or bills to
protect the poor or restore the sanctity
Of the ballot. The opposition Senators
offer feeble objections. Huey banters
them and the bills 60 through, 10
to 2.
Now this one," he says, extending
his lower lip in a taunting smile at
the minority of two, lis for the purity
of elections and to make sure that
there will be no more ballot-boX
stealing"
Laughter in the committee room.
First thing you know, you will
have me going to church tomorrow" !"
exclaims Senator Dick Wingrave of
New Orleans. He is one of Huey's
Senators and describes himself as a
crap-shooter.
Gov. Allen, Huey's man, edges into
the room. He is a white-haired man
about go, more pathetic political
menial you could not imagine. He
can't even offer word of suggestion,
If Huey wants him to hush. He utters
no remarks, but throws back his head
in occasional convulsions of mirth
over Hney's droll mockery about the
honest ballot ---