Evening star., 1939-02-12
Early Exoneration
OF Miss Perkins
Is Predicted
Committee Members
Of Both Parties See
No Other Course
BY the Associated Press.

Some members predicted fatty
yesterday that the House Judiciary
Committee would exonerate Secre-
tary of Labor Perkins of charges Of
Wilfully failing to enforce the i'm
migration laws.
Both Democrats and Republicans
said privately the only question re-
naming before the committee was
whether to close a preliminary in
vestigation Immediately with vote
of confidence in her administration.
Nothing has been presented to them,
they added, to warrant impeach-
ment as proposed in a resolution
by Representative Thomas, Repub-
lican, of New Jersey.
UNLESS something turns up pretty
soon in the way of lead for us to
follow, my guess is that the only
.hing for us to do is to report back
to the House that our investigation
has produced nothing said one
committee member, who declined
use of his name.
Another member said he would
ask the committee at its next ses-
sion-probably Tuesday-to vote at
once on motion to table the i'm
peachment resolution.
Two Aides Accused.
The committee could take that
! course, or could ask the House for
articles of Impeachment for trial in
/ the Senate, or could send to the
! r;y or
( sure.
/ Representative Thomas accused
Miss Perkins, Gerard D. Reilly. La
Dor Department solicitor, and James
L. Houghteling. immigration CON-
missioner, of high crimes and mis-
demeanors" for not pressing de-
portation charges against Harry
Bridges, c. I. O. West Coast leader,
on grounds that he was an alien
! Communist.
Secretary Perkins went before a
closed session Of the Judiciary Com
mlttee Wednesday TO repeat the
departments contention that the
Bridges proceedings had to be slls-
pended until the Supreme Court an
4AOtLISSo a titIAS4Oll III tdSp III
volVlng the question whether mem
bership in the Communist party J.
adequate grounds for expulsion.
That litigation involved Joseph
Strecker of Hot Springs, Ark.
fit'etaoin shrdIu cmfvyp
Representative Thomas has con-
tended the Strecker and Bridges
cases are not similar and that, even
So the department chose a weak"
case to test the issue of Communism.
He criticized the department for the
f1ve-year delay in the progress Of the
Strecker case through the courts.
Robinson Held Opposed.
Judiciary Committee members said
Miss Perkins had told them privately
there were a number of reasons for
the delay. One of them, she said,
was letter from the lale Senator
! Robinson, Democrat. of Arkansas
asking for discontinuance of the
proceedings.
The Secretary's statement to the
committee that she was not in accord
with the principles of the Com
munlst party, that she did not share
communistic economic or political
views and that she regarded COM
munistic tactics as an impeachment
to this Government, brought TART
retort from Representative Thomas.
In statement, he said: "She
doesn't hate it, she doesn't abhor il
she dislikes certain features of it."
He said she had only given Com
munism gentle slap on the wrist.
Mr.. Thomas said Secretary Per-
kins' defense of her administration
led him to the conclusion she and
her friends have been the best
friends that this Communist alien
Mr.. Bridges could possibly have
had