Evening star., 1937-08-13
Subscription by Coercion.

Denial by the House Committee on
Rules of recommendation of congress
sional investigation of the manner in
which the Democratic National Commit
tee has conducted the sale of copies of
year book" demanded by Representative
Smell, minority leader of the House, was
! quite to have been expected 1t would,
| indeed, have been astonishing if the
Rules Committee had acted otherwise and
| set in motion an inquiry that would prob
ably have disclosed scandalous if not
an illegal transaction. For the circum-
stances OF the circulation" of these
bookS-there have been in all three sep
arate issues of different compilations
| have been such as to constitute a grave
charge of impropriety if not illegal
requisition.
Representative Smell in his brief sub
mltted to the Rules Committee in support
Of his demand for an investigation
charged that In SO far as these political
enterprises have brought in campaign
i In violation of both the letter and the
| spirit OF the Federal corrupt practices
act. Whether in subtlety of insinuation
or more openly in direct statement it
would seem from the evidence presented
by the House minority leader to the COM
| mittee that those to whom the solicita-
| tions for subscriptions were addressed
were given to understand that subscrip-
ton meant favorable consideration by
Government agencies for those who
took" and expected to continue to trans
| act business with the Federal and in
some cases with the State authorities,
with almost explicit threats of reprisals
In case Of refusal to subscribe.
The legal question raised by the House
minority chairman as to the propriety
OF these transactions has not been an
swered by the Rules Committees declina-
tion to move for hearing and investi-
cation. If these subscriptions were sold"
to corporations doing business with the
Government, through any agency, bu-
| reau or commission. they were susceptible
| OF the Interpretation that they were
actually contributions to campaign funds
in violation of the act which forbids such
dealings and relationships.
The suggestion has been made that
the enterprise was conducted upon
the basis of liberal agents fees. It would
be interesting to ascertain the rate of
the commission thus paid out to the high
pressure statesmen, who were apparently
in all cases supplied with detailed memo
randa bearing on the business dealings
OF the prospects, with one or more of
the numerous recovery" activities of the
administration. According to one of the
afndavits presented to the Rules Com
mittee by Mr.. Smell the agent or solicitor
in one instance frankly stated that he
had been sent" by the Democratic Ma
tional Committee to secure subscription
purchase of $500 worth of the campaign
books-one hundred copies at five dollars
each, first promising that two and later
SoHASS
autographed by the President. Thus it
would seem that the rate Of the pros
poets" purchase was fixed, not by him,
but by some one higher up.
In this affidavit were interesting details
to disclose the manner In which the
pressure" was applied to the reluctant
prospect. Nor was there any attempt at
concealment, according to the afflant, on
the part of the solicitor, in respect to the
varieties Of pressure" that might be
applied.
The magnitude of the operation is in
dicated by Representative SHELLS state
ment to the Rules Committee that the
public records In the office of the Clerk
of the House of Representatives show
that something more than 81. 900 900 has
already been collected by the Democratic
National Committee by these practices,
more than nine hundred corporations
having contributed Illegally" and that
to date under the corrupt practices act
fines aggregating $l8oO0,oOo might have
been collected from those participating
in this practice, but that not a single
prosecution has been initiated by the
Attorney General.
These figures show that this has not
been petty business 1t is big business,
conducted upon big scale, with as vet
unmeasured possibilities for the extortion
OF funds, some of which 90 to the solici-
tors, some to the between-campaign ex-
penses of the National Democratic Com
mittee and some saved for use in the
congressional campaign of next year and
perhaps some put aside for the presi-
Dental compaign of 1910. Apparently
there is no limit to the enterprise of the
book makers or to the demands upon
the unwilling but seemingly helpless
subscribers"