Evening star., 1934-04-29
BY REX COLLIER.


A picked army of 400 Federal ON
GERS, seriously handicapped by made
quate facilities, is waging q bloody,
but effective war against gangland
forces estimated by Attorney General
Cummings to be larger than the Army,
Navy and Marine Corps combined.
How unequal are the opposing forces
in this battle of wits and Drawn is
disclosed by a comparison of the
equipment Of the two armies.
Whereas the underworld appears to
have unlimited funds at its disposal,
the Government forces must keep
within a budget.
Gangsters move rapidly from the
scene Of one crime to another in ex-
pensive, high-powered automobiles,
but the special agents of the Justice
Departments Division of Investiga-
ton must give chase in second hand
seized cars Of the prohibition era.
BuIlet-proo Cars.
Crimes sharpshooters fit their cars
with bullet-proof glass and steel-plat-
ed bodies, while the Justice men have
not an armored car in the service.
Predatory criminals of the Dill
linger, Barrow and Pretty Boy" Floyd
ilk have no dearth of Thompson and
Browning machine guns, repeating
rifles, sawed-of shot guns, automatics
and bullet-proof vests.
Until the machine gun slaughter of
Federal and State officers at Kansas
City last year the Federal authorities
had no weapons but automatics. The
massacre cut red tape and recently
the Justice officers acquired limited
number Of Thompson submachine
guns and gas grenades. A few bullet
proof vests. captured from criminals,
have been added as unofficial equip
ment.
Airplanes Used.
The underworld does not hesitate
to use airplanes. The Department of
Justice has no planes, and until the
past week there was War Depart
ment regulation barring Justice agents
from using Army planes. Criticism of
this ruling prompted by disclosure
that Justice men had to charter a
private plane to reach Dillinger's hide
out in Northern Wisconsin, resulted in
lifting OF the ban by Secretary Dern.
Henceforth Army planes will be avail
able to Justice investigators in ''emer-
gencies."
There are other handicaps besides
disparity of armament and other
equipment. however Inadequate laws
which burden the Federal men With
restrictions and favor the criminals
with loopholes of escape have an i'm
portant bearing on the trend of the
war on crime.
For example, 1t Is no crime against
the Government to kill a Federal Of
f1cer, or to assault one. When the
Dillinger gang murdered Special
Agent Carter Baum at Little Bohemia,
Wis, last week, no Federal law was
violated. The same was true when
Special Agent Raymond Caffrey and
two other officers were moved down
by machine gunners in front of the
Kansas City Union Station.
Only Federal Charge. 4.
The only Federal charge outstand-
ing against Dillinger is violation OF
the Dyer act, which has to do with
transporting stolen automobile
across State line. That charge
grows out of the use OF Sheriff Hol-
ley's car in DillingerS' spectacular es-
cape from the Crown Point, Ind, Jail.
This extraordinary situation-in-
credible to many people-would be
corrected by bill submitted to Con-
gress by the Attorney General. In
dications are that this measure, to-
gether with half a dozen others de-
signed to strengthen law enforcement,
soon will become law.
Had the legislative program recon-
mended by Cummings been on the
statute books heretofore. the list Of
Federal crimes against Dillinger prob
ably would include murder. bank rob-