Evening star., 1938-04-18
PRESIDENT GIVES
EXECUTIVE PARDON
TO DR.. TOWNSEND
White House Statement
Says Conviction Sustained
Dignity of House.
PENSION LEADER ALSO
ESCAPES s1Oo FINE
Action Taken as 71-Year-Old
Doctor Was Preparing to
Begin Sentence.

BACKGROUND
Townsend old-age pension plan
rould haze supplied aged persons
1ctth 5000 monthly under condition
that money be spent promptly in
United States. Movement became
politically poWertul throughout
country until House committee
launched investigation in spring
OF 1886. During inquiry, DR..
Townsend refused to testify fur
ther, was cited for contempt. con-
picted, sentenced to pay 500 fine
and spend 80 days in jail.
DR.. Francis E. Townsend, 7l-year
old country doctor, whose scheme fo
.pensioning the aged swept him to dizz,
heights of popularity few years ago
was spared the humiliation of goins
to jail today when President Roosevelt
granted him an executive pardon.
Announcement of the pardon came
as DR.. Townsend, his old-age pension
dream now a thing of the past, wa:
preparing to enter the District Jail K
serve a 3O-day sentence for contemp
Of the House of Representatives.
The pardon also relieves DR.. Town
send Of the necessity Of paying Sl0(
fine, imposed with the Jail sentence ir
District Court after he had been found
guilty of walking out on House com.
mittee that was investigating his or.
ganization, Old-Age Revolving Pen.
sions, Ltd.
White House Statement.
A White House statement, after re.
viewing the history of DR.. Townsend's
case. said:
The nature of the offense is one
which concerns primarily the Con-
gress. The authority. the dignity ano
the rights of the House of Repre-.
sentatives have been fully sustained
by the conviction. The Speaker ot
the House, the majority leader and
the chairman of the committee which
originally recommended the prosecu-
tion have recommended the extension
of executive clemency."
AS DR.. Townsend left the United
States marshals Office upon receipt
OF the pardon, which he had said
earlier he would accept, but would not
seek, he told newspaper men he re-
earded the granting of the pardon as
an "act of contrition on behalf of the
committee that caused me to be
prosecuted"
His attorney, Joseph A. Cantrel,
said DR.. Townsend had wanted Ito
serve little time in Jail, even if only
few minutes"
AS he left the courthouse, the old
age pension advocate said he probably
will return to Los Angeles, where his
organization is holding a convention
June 1923.
Knew of Pardon Yesterday.
Mr.. Cantrel, who, with Otis j.
Bouma, Washington representative of
the Townsend plan, accompanied the
doctor to the courthouse, said his
client knew yesterday he would be
pardoned.
DR.. Townsend told reporters he
would have refused to pay his fine and
that the Government would have been
unable to collect it because he had no
money and no property-only a pro-
prietary interest in one woman"
He predicted that Representative
Bell, Democrat of Missouri, chairman
of the special House committee that
cited him for contempt, would receive
his full share of the blame for SUBJ
jecting me to this indignity" Yester-
day he accused Mr.. Bell and Senator
McAdoo, Democrat, of California of
being influenced by "vote-getting"
motives in asking that he be pardoned.
DR.. Townsend carried two valises,
one of which contained a typewriter
and the other a "clean shirt and a
pair of socks" He said he had planned
to write a book in jail. He said he
(See TOWNSEND Page A.21