Evening star., 1937-09-19

Au Klux Klan, points to fund
Amental weakness in our machinery
Of Government and raises a vital ques-
ton that must be answered even
though the truth may hurt in high
places.
It is important, of course, that the
people should know whether Mr. Black
sits on the highest court in the land
as member of an organization
which for years has been linked in
the public mind with terrorism and
intolerance. If Justice Black is a
Klansman, the Nation has a right to
hear it from his own lips. If he is
not, he owes it to himself, to the
court, to the President and to the
Senate to deny the charge.
This is matter of great moment,
but from the standpoint of good Gov
eminent there is another and more
important question that must be an
swered. That is the question of how,
considering all the facts, such an ap-
pointment could have been made by
the President and confirmed by the
Senate.
1t Can Happen Again.
Il it happened in the case of Mr..
Black, it could happen again If the
pages Of history are not to be en-
numbered with another episode of this
character, it is of first Importance
that the responsibility for failing to
investigate Mr.. Blacks career be
fixed and safeguards erected against
the possibility of another appointment
being made in the same manner
Records, the authenticity of which
have not been denied by Mr.. Black,
show that the associate justice joined
the Klan in Birmingham, Ala, Sep
tember IL, 1923. At that time he was
rising young lawyer, virtually un-
known politically. On July 10, 1925,
shortly before entering the Democratic
primary for the senatorial nominal
ton, he submitted letter of resigna-
ton from the Klan, which, so far as
available records show, was never
acted on. On September 2, 1926, after
he had won the nomination which
was tantamount to election, he at
tended Klan mass meeting, thanked
the Klansmen for their political sup
port and tacitly, at least; accepted
life membership in the hooded order
That in brief is Blacks Klan rec
ord. There is nothing to show he ever
took part in Klan activity after the
mass meeting adjourned. 1t may be
that he was never a Klansman at
heart and that he will not carry the
prejudices of the invisible empire to
the Supreme Court. One OF his asso-.
ciAtes, Postmaster Cooper Green of
Birmingham, has said that If Black
did join the Khan, he did so for polit-
ical reasons. Those who know Black
are inclined to accept this view.
No OfIicial Questioning.
But whether or not Black was a
sincere believer in the Klan principles
is beside the point at this time The
fact remains that he was sent to the
Supreme Court without single ques-
tion being asked of him to ascertain
the truth. His attitude on racial and
religious questions might have been
SO warped as to render him wholly
unfit for judicial duty. but he would
have gone to the high court never
theless.
The initial responsibility for deter
mining the fitness of a prospective
appointee to the Supreme Court natu-
rally rests with the President This
Is especially true in the case of a
President whose party has a large
majority in the Senate and who may
reasonably expect his choice to be
approved on the basis of party loyalty.
In this case, consideration must be
given to the additional factor that. in
selecting Mr. Black. the President was
fully aware of the fact that the
Senate as whole would be most re-
luctant to oppose the nomination of
one OF its own members. There is
every reason to believe that had Mr..
Black been a private citizen, the
anti-administration Senators would
have fought his confirmation and
might well have succeeded in defeat
ing the Presidents choice.
1t has now developed that Mr.. Roose-
velt, apparently, made no investiga-
tion of Mr.. Blacks past record TO
ascertain whether there was anything
In his career that might be a bar to
his appointment to the Supreme Court
Ordinarily the White House investi-
gates prospective judicial appointees
with great care. and responsibility for
the failure to do so in this case must
rest with the President.
Roosevelt in Dark.
Mr.. Roosevelt told reporters last
week that, prior to the appointment
he had no information that Mr.. Black
had been connected with the Klsn
While there is every reason to believe
that the President would not have
made the nomination had he known
OF any Klan affiliation, the fact re-
mains that even the most cursory
investigation would have disclosed in
formation sufficient TO put him on no.
tice that, in any event, the connec-
tion between Mr.. Black and the Klar
was more than casual.
At the time of Mr. Blacks nomi-
nation for the Senate seat of the
late Senator Oscar w. Underwood the
newspapers carried articles indicatine
he was closely connected with tn,
Klan. For example, Charles Michel
son, who directed publicity for tn,
Democratic National Committee. il
writing of the 1926 Alabama primar,
in the New York World, said tha
"the primary resulted in the nomina
ton of Klan-indorsed men for boil
the senatorship and the governor
ship" Other newspapers of the tim
carried stories that went even furthe
in intinating that Mr. Black was tn
klan's candidate
The fact that Mr.. Black was sup
posed to have been affiliated witt
the Klan was no dark secret amon
Democrats on Capitol Hill and in tn
party organization. Had Mr. Roose
velt seen fit 10 consult any of ther
before sending the nomination to tn
Senate, he could have obtained som
nj ~ he !,