The Waterbury Democrat., 1939-08-08

Outside Chicago, the country has scarcely heard of this in- vestigation, yet it reaches down into the very roots of Democratic politics, and 1t touches the sport ing nerves of perhaps one-fourth of the American people.
 For the probe of Moe Annen- berg's bizarre career has gone into every phase of the racetrack gambling racket. How much the government will prove remains to be seen but before the final An- nenberg proceedings are over the entire story of Americas huge rac- ing industry will be laid before the public.
 The general public will not be so much interested in the p0li- tical ramificat ations of the Annen- berg case, but Republican p0li- tians will. For the trial of An- nenberg's activities in Chicago weaves in and out the warp and wool of the Kelly Nash machine which, like Pendergast in Kan sas City, Tammany in New York and the Long -Maestri machine in New Orleans, voted enhusias- tically for Roosevelt and expect ed immunity in return.
 It is Mayor Kelly of Chicago who always swings the huge Chi- cago vote into the Democratic column and make up for Repub- lican leads in down-state Illinois. And 1t is Mayor Kelly who en- Enthusiastically roots for Roosevelt for a third term.
 But now the man whom Kelly would re-elect apparently is bent upon pulling the machine wh''h helped elect him in '32 and '36 down upon His Honor's ears, as Is be ing done in other great Demo- cratic cities. That's however, IS a story in itself.
 TELEPHONE EMPIRE
 To return to Annenberg, the trail goes back approximately four years when the Treasury first be- gan poking a nose into his income tax. Annenberg paid a tremendous income tax, but also he was one of the wealthiest men in the cour- try. In addition to his news papers and magazines, he operates the Nationwide News Service Tele- flash system which carry racip results frcm every track in the country.
 This is a monopoly. No other
 agency supplies this news, and
 Annenbcrg has set up a private.
 telephone and telegraph empire
 that few people know anything
 about. Taxes on telephone calls
 are merely one item in the huge
 tax bill the government Is pre-
 senting Annenberg.
 Although Internal Revenue agents pried into Annenberg's in- come tax as early as four years ago, they couldn't get anything tangible until about two years ago when they ran across his private code.
 This was a windfall. For through this code they were able to trace every bookie in the country with whom Annenberg did business.
 66 REVENUE AGENTS At this point. Secretary Nor genthau himself reviewed the case and assigned 50 revenue agents am 16 special agents to do nothing except dig up evidence for the Annenberg suit.
 Thousand of bookmakers al over the country were interviewed and asked how much money they were paying Annenberg. Hitherto the Treasury had had no means O checking on the income Annenbert was receiving. Some of thu , bookies were sore at Moe ant } talked more freely.
 During the investigation, thu , Treasury also ran into troubl, with men of much less statur, l than Annenberg. A bookmaker, fo
 instance, would be quite franl in reporting his winnings but h. could not be frank in admitting that he paid protection money t the police. If he did report 1t. tn x Treasury wouldn't allow 1t. No could the boolsies prove how mucl they had paid out to customers ol bets.
 PITY THE POOR BooKIEs
 One result of the Annenber' . hearings has been that the gov ernment has taken pity on the