The Wilmington morning star., 1943-11-24
Under Cover
BY JOHN ROY CARLSON

Roberts, the Brain Truster
H. W., ~ National Workers League
Ben nntroit. Puts Author to Work,
al De aIs hinder Circle Activity
CHAPTER le
r.o National Workers League
Inc mo of many Nazi-front Or
was ,e o operating in America.
san infl1ence was far reaching, and
Us Us work work Of sabotaging the war
us a was effective: It struck
more. 4ao most vulnerable sector of
al . [ri war effort-Labor.
A, 1sa league organized an extern
-. ln' campaign to SOW dissension
sNe w. factory workers of vital
anioi iSndugtries 1t flooded Detroit
wa ;.h Nazi literature. Its publicity
% 'lao+or william Z. Lyman, made
al! onr reprints of the literature
ND 9oi u issued by Colonel Sane
e.n@v stanrenberg, the Bund,
Edmondson
:. held frequent meetings, ad-
,r ts ed by choice selection of
ols sb1e tousers who offered to
I raoak on any phase of the Ma
Sps aa1ist movement for private
' sstseriocs in homes. The League
lS~onoted the appeasement drives
p pt the America Firs' Committee
w distributing its own seditious
W ,:t.ra+,,re a. America First and
l an,erjcan Mothers meetings and
n+ all patriotic minded
Members n to attend the nationalist
l. .I;esn at which Burton K. Wheel
~ and Gerald l.. K. Smith spoke.
arrived in Detroit with no Gre
dontials other than those for
C ceorge Pagnanelli, publisher of
Tbo Christian Defender; 'associ-
nv. nv If Joe McWilliams and Au-
a a''st Klapplott, / e professional
merchants Of hate.
A II was Almost eight o'clock when
: walked up the squeaking stairs
4 tbe hack porch If the ill-kept,
corner house and knocked on the
door A purify man with a fierce
ao~ntpnance and wild black hair
opened the door.
am George Pagnanelli," I
aid. Mr.. Sage asked me to see
HIM.
Hello, George man inside
,,npd out suddenly. Il am Sage"
Parker Sage's face was that of
7ealot His mouth mere thin
Jit eyes co,d-gray his face clear
" reflected characteristics I had
cspn often in New York: hate
frozen Determination. Parker spoke
nacold Unconditional, deep-throat-
ed mono,tre.
SAGE suggested that we go to
Gerald l. K. Smiths meeting. 1
welcomed the idea.
Take your suitcase along" he
ordered. You'll meet your future
employer at the meeting. You'll
20 10 his pace with him tonight
and start work tomorrow morn
ing.
Who is he?" / asked.
You'll lind out tonight" Par
ker said mysteriously.
i Smiths meeting at Maccabee's
Auditorium mad already started,
and close to 1000 people were on
hand Anxious for my first look
at Smith, I found him a tall, well
built man, The evangelist type; a
continual dynamo o. motion. His
voice rose and fell-hellowed and
vhispered-ln rabble-rousing of a
nigh ords1 He impressed me as
amaster salesman of ideas, a Joe
McWilliams type, but infinitely
more cunning and more intelli-
gent
Smith praised Rep Roy Wood
ruff Of Michigan as a patriot be-
You'd reproaoh. With great ponp
and longwinded build-up he read
goodwill messages from Senators
Nye and Reynolds on the publ
cation Of The Cross and the Flag.
Senator Nye had said: Il have
received issue number one of the
new magazine. It is excellently
DONE
Smith made an eloquent plea on
behalf of the "persecuted, Chris
tan Father Coughlin Then he
beloved. Il would rather die to-
night, rather be diserboweled to-
morrow, or hung at dawn, but let
me have my say in the Spirit of
ehflSt, Give me liberty or give
me death.
Inc mob howled at this tech
hlque. The familiar device of a
oemagogue exploiting the name of
ehrlst for political purposes has
Always disguised me- But the mob
s"auoWed the entire book.
After the meeting Sage intro
ouceo me to Garland Leo Alder
man and Russell M Roberts, my
1ulufe employer. In darkened
Sectlon Of the street I saw Gar
iand talking to Gerald H. K.
, nlllrh' Smith cordially shook Gar
laads hand and nodded to me.
oage' Roberts, Otto and INNER
man We're waiting. Roberts took
rnarge Of me from then on, and
~l'h Mrs. Roberts I followed him
~ lhelr car. We drove swiftly
,o nooeTts knew all about Pagna-
n psI He had read my letters to
arket and had agreed to give
a ays, a job in his machine shop. He
s "a that Otto the one I met
a. smiths meeting) had been in