The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1938-02-18

law" he once said.
last election. He pounces on weak
spots with ferocity, calling respon-
sible leaders to task.
Last November, when Senator
Moore "a Hague puppet) was elect
ed governor, it is alleged that votes
were cast for babies and dead peo-
pie, illegally listed in the registra-
ton books. Such allegations have
been made after previous elections,
too, but legislative investigations
come to naught.
Small Salary, Big Fortune.
Not the least puzzling feature Of
Hague's success is his ability to
get rich on $4,000 yearly salary. He
refuses to answer questions on this
subject on the ground his privacy
would be invaded. One investiga-
tor claimed Hague made 5000, 900 on
certain real estate transactions at
the expense of taxpayers. The may
or lives in fine apartment suite
in Jersey City, keeps an elaborate
summer estate at Deal and lit is
claimeO maintains elaborate quar-
tiers in Manhattan.
Personal banker and attorney for
the mayor is John Milton, the new
United States senator who succeed
ed Harry Moore. Himself a SUBJ
ject of considerable investigation,
Milton admits having paid for
Hague's $125,0OO Deal estate.
Hague, in turn, reimbursed him in
cash. This trick has popped up be-
fore federal income tax agents sew
eral times but the mayor, bland as
usual, refuses to have his privacy
invaded.
Milton is equally suave. When
investigators began nosing in his di-
rection, he calmly announced that
few days ago he'd decided to
retire and-so sorry-but all his rec
ords had unfortunately been de-
stroyed.
What will eventually happen to
this dictatorship? Undeniably, the
Hague machine has a hold on it's
constituents that can be compared
only to Huey Longs Louisiana re-
gime a few years back. Recently,
when 26 congressman wrote Hague
in protest over wholesale arrest
and deportation" of labor organic
ers, they received a reply that "ev-
erything is under control and
don't worry"
81 Am the Law!"
A few days later, irked, Mayor
Hague sponsored a mass meeting
attended by thousands of the faith
full, one of the largest gatherings
Jersey City has ever seen. There a
select roster of speakers re-affirmed
the community's faith in the man
who says, II am the law"
No moral can be drawn from the
career of Frank Hague, because it
is not yet ended. The strange fea-
ture is that boss control over Jer-
sey City and New Jersey in gen.
eral has been the vogue many
years, yet it took handful of c. I.
o. organizers to bring it into the
public eye.
Equally strange is the seeming
efficiency with which Jersey City
is governed. High taxes seem to
be the only objection, and even that
all-important item is sometimes for
gotten by jealous Hague henchmen.
The mayor himself sums up the
conditions prevailing in his unusual
city with the following typical
speech: q
"Taxes are higher here because
we had to pay for progress. We
were just about bankrupt 20 years
ago. The city is a city now and
business is beginning to pick up.
But let me point out one thing about
the town. The burden of taxation
is being borne not by the house
holder and the small business man
as in other cities, but by corpora
tons whose shoulders are broad!"
That makes 'em smile. Next time
there's an election, they'll vote fol-
Haguel