Evening star., 1944-05-04
Sedition
Continued From First Page.)

ment charges, constitutes contempt
of court. The motions and inter-
views assailed the Integrity" and
"trustworthineSs" Of Justice Eicher
The big trial has been recessed
until Monday because of the con-
tempt case.
Henning Placed on Stand.
First Mr.. Burns called court re-
porter to identify a portion of the
transcript of the sedition trial. Then
Arthur Sears Henning, Washington
correspondent of the Chicago Trib-
une, was placed on the stand to tell
of an interview with Mr.. Laughlin
Mr.. Henning identified a published
story in which Mr.. Laughlin said he
was filing a motion to have Henry
Ford and Charles A. Lindbergh sum-
moned as witnesses in the sedition
case.
Justice Bailey's small courtroom
was filled by members of the bar
not connected with the sedition case
or this side issue and by newspaper
people. There was no room for the
general public and line of persons
waited outside, hoping for vacant
places.
Some paragraphs of the Govern
ment's contempt citation, Mr.
Laughlin admitted, were chiefly
written motions he filed during the
sedition trial and others he required
the prosecution to prove.
Laughlin Defends Self.
Mr.. Laughlin defended himself
with his fellow counsel aiding him.
The attorney moved, solely on
behalf of his clients" to refer the
contempt case until after compile
ton of the sedition trial. Justice
Bailey refused.
Mr.. Burns, in seeking to prove
that, as the Government charges,
Mr.. Laughlin was trying to "ob-
strnct" justice, said it was contend
ed that several motions which de-
fense counsel had filed, demanding
witnesses and records at the sedition
trial, could not possibly have been
relevant at any criminal trial"
Mr. Burns took up Mr.. Laughlin,s
charge, in announcing he needed
Mr.. Ford and Mr.. Lindbergh as wit
nesses, that the sedition prosecution
was not brought in good faith, but
was an attempt of the administra-
ton to punish pre-Pearl Harbor
isolationists along with others.
Statements Recalled.
This clearly could not be an issue
at the sedition trial, the prosecutor
contended. Mr. Laughlin had said,
Mr.. Burns recalled, that he wanted
to show that Mr.. Ford had made
in the past anti-Semitic statements
more incendiary than some of the
defendants were alleged to have
made and that Mr.. Lindbergh had
taken the Allies to task and neither
had been prosecuted.
The issue is not whether any one
else has committed crime" said
Mr.. Burns, "but whether the de-
PENDANTS on trial are guilty"
Justice Bailey said he was pre-
pared to rule on that issue at this
time-he agreed with the Govern
ment.
The court later asked Mr.. Laugh
lin to show what he expected to
prove by Mr.. Byrnes, Justices Eicher
and MCGUIRE and Mr.. Pearson.
Mr.. Laughlin pointed out that the
defendants in the sedition case, or
some of them, were charged with
making pro-Axis statements before
Pearl Harbor and some with giving
the Nazi salute.
Mr.. Laughlin said he. wanted also
to call Representative Dies and At
torney General Biddle to identify
some correspondence in l94l. The
files of the Dies Committee. Mr.
Laughlin said, would show its men,
bers were alive to the Japanese
danger, but Federal officials were
rather complacent" and ignored the
danger.
Senate Investigation Refused.
Meanwhile, a petition by another
defense attorney in the sedition
case, Albert Dilling, attorney and
former husband of Elizabeth Dill
ing, Chicago writer, for the Senate
to investigate the trial brought an
adverse report late yesterday from
the Judiciary Committee. The