St. Paul recorder. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1934-2000, 1944-10-27

public's business
because what McALPIN
write, or any other correspondent,
becomes public property-and the
public has a right to know the
attitude and reliability of the per-
sons who feed them information.
The story I wrote three weeks
ago criticizing the FEPC chairman,
Malcolm Ross, has aroused official
resentment in the FEPC. 1 have
been accused of deliberately snip
ing at Mike-who as an individual
is a fine fellow that I like very
much. But as a self-assumed ex-
pert on Negro affairs, he needs to
be debated lest he become danger
Gus to our general welfare.
A protest was sent my employ
ers, by direction of the FEP COM
mittee, saying the article about
Mike was full of inaccuracies,
though not saying what was untrue
in it. still maintain it was true,
and have written the committee
asking the chairman and the men,
bers to point out the alleged in
accuracies to me. I shall be
anxious, of course, to retract and
to throw away further information
haven't used yet if they can prove
I was wrong. 1 took pains, how
ever, to be sure before I wrote the
article.
The FBT, the White House and
others have been asked to help stop
up the "leaks" through which !
got my information. That's prac-
tically a confession, because a dry
pipe doesn't leak.
Another storm was created when
revealed in this column two weeks
ago that Lieut.. Gen. Brehon Somer-
veil, chief of the Army Service
Forces, had said in a meeting re-
garding disposition of returning
battle-weary, Negro soldiers, "Pd
like to dump the coons in the mid
die of the desert"
Indirectly, 1 have learned that
the General claims he said no such
thing. More directly, however,
have been further convinced that
he did. His previous record on the
Negro question is not conducive
to any belief that he would be above
saying such a thing-nor would the
manner in which he baked at the
Presidents orders that a new Re-
distribution Center plan be worked
out minus the jimcrow proposals.
Nevertheless, I have asked, in
directly, that the General be in
formed that I will be happy to cor
rect the statement attributed to
him if he will tell me what he did
say. I confess I may have left out
an adjective of emphasis just in
front of the word "coons."
And to top all this, I have been
accused Of being politically par
tisan to the Democrats and politi-
cally partisan to the Republicans.
Democrats tell me I am hurting
Roosevelt by exposing Army jim
crow and administrative ineffi-
ciencies. Republicans say my
stories "ooze" with New Deal
flavor, and that I wrote a prepond-
erance of New Deal news.
Personally, 7 am partial to
Roosevelt. That, of course, is my
prerogative. No man or group Of
men may take from me the right to
my own political choice in the light
of what think best for the world
the nation and for the Negro. But in
my work, representing both Repub-
ican and Democratic papers, sub
merge my personal preference and
try to report the news as it comes
or is uncovered by me regardless
of where the chips may fall.
In the same way, I drop too, the
personal admiration, animosity and
even friendship I may have fol
men and women in public office
when their activities, attitudes and
administration are not in the best
interest of the general welfare as
see it. I believe, in such cases,
they should be held up to public
light in their true colors. When
they deserve a pat on the back, ]
think they should have that too.
In no other way could I justify
to myself remaining in the news
paper field. In no other way would
I feel was shouldering the respon-
sibility that goes with the printed
word written for public consump.
ton.
All, me! The life and problems
Of a reporterl But 1 love it!