The Daily Alaska empire., 1942-12-10
CHALLENGE
 DIRECTORS
 LEGAL RIGHT
Believe Mail Has Been Opened So Far With-
 out Authority

WASHINGTON, Dec. 10-Chair- man Frederick Van Nuys of In- diana, heading the Senate Judici- ary Committee, yesterday chal- lenged the legal authority of Di- rector of Censorship Byron Price to censor mail between the Unit ed States and its Territories and Possessions.
 Senator Van Nuys expressed his views in a press conference after Price had testified for three hours behind closed doors before the Committee. Taking over the re- ports before the conference, Price said that he had no doubt but what it was the intention of Con- gress in passing the first War Powers Act last year to protect the security of communications in our country"
 Thought Illegal
 Van NuyS said, on. the o tn T hand, that he thought the censor ship of mail, except that going to foreign countries, had "all been illegal up to date"
 Said the Chairman of the Judi ciary Committee: T don't think the Commander-In-C Chief has any more right to censor mail between Alaska and the United. States and Puerto Rico and the United States than he has to censor mail be- tween New York and California"
 A bill authorizing the censorship of communications between the United States and its Possessions and Territories is at issue. It has been recalled after being passed.
 Price claimed that the mandate of the Commander h. Chief cer- tainly includes mandate of con- trol over the communications in or around combat areas. So far as I am concerned, I have never had the slightest doubt that it was not the intent of Congress to protect the security of communi- cations in or out of the country"
 Prices View
 The Director of Censorship add ed: Because all communications from Possessions or Territories must pass through a territory where there is possible danger of enemy interception" or must go through a combat zone, he felt that cen- sorship of these communications was necessary for the security pur- pose.
 How mail going from Alaska to the United States and from the States to Alaska would be passing through enemy territory was not explained. Canada could certainly not be considered combat or enemy territory.
 Both Gov. Ernest Gruening and Alaska Delegate Anthony J. Di- mond appeared before the Com mittee.
 Van Nuys told reporters that he thought Price was doing as good job as anybody could do under the circumstances Price admits that the whole system is un-Am- erican and undemocratic, but says it is necessary in time of war"
 Will Investigate
 Emphasizing that he was voicing personal opinion, not the Com mittee's, Van Nuys said he was going to Seattle for long time" before he voted on the pending bill, apparently to investigate the Seattle censorship setup.
 Van Nuys said that Gov. Gruen- ing presented the Committee with letter from high Navy official of Alaska who said there was no need of censorship between the United States and Alaska Earlier, Western Defense Commander Lieut.. Gen. John L. Dewitt had said practically the same thing when he found that newspapers being sent to Alaska were being clipped in Seattle.
 Thus the Director of Censorship attempts to point out the neces- sity for censorship while. at the same time, the military leaders responsible for the military secur-
 Continued on Page Three)