The Wilmington morning star., 1944-08-28
BY WESTBROOK PEGLER

ny WEoADAOOA fE0AEH
NEW YORK-The subtle nature of the ex-
ecutive order defining, but also limiting, the
duties of the Roberts commission in its in
vestigation of the Pearl Harbor disaster may
have escaped most of the people at the time
when the report was published, only 10 days
after the attack. The whole country was still
stunned. The people wanted information but
were willing to concede that many details
could not be revealed just then without advant-
age to the japanese Therefore attention CEN
tered on the commissions sketchy and re-
stricted version of the facts and its conclu-
sions. The preamble evoked no comment, but
that preamble, nevertheless shows that the
executive order was a self-serving document
SO written as to preclude any criticism OF the
civilian authorities in Washington, including
President Roosevelt, the Commander in Chief
The preamble says:
''The purposes of the required inquiry and
report are to provide basis for sound decisions
whether any derelictions of duty or errors Of
judgment on the part of United States Army
and Navy personnel contributed to such sue
cesses as were achieved by the enemy and
IT SO, who was responsible?
If President Roosevelt had committed any
dereliction of duty or errors of judgment, the
commission was not authorized to "provide
basis for sound decisions on that score. He
was not of the Army or Navy personnel
But although the commission had no mis-
sion to pass judgment on the conduct of civil
authorities in Washington, it did presume to
report that the Secretaries of State, War and
the Navy had fulfilled their obligations The
report says the secretaries OF War and the
Navy fulfilled their obligations by comforting
frequently with the Secretary of State and
with each other and by keeping the chief of
staff and the chief of naval operations in
formed of the course of the negotiations with
Japan and the significant implications there
of.
The report does not fully demonstrate that
this actually was so, and it certainly leaves
doubt that Adm. Kimmel and Gen. Short were
thoroughly warned Of the Significant impli-
cations Moreover, it says fatty that the last
warning to these commanders, indicating
an almost immediate break in relations" dis
patched from Washington at $50 in the morn
ing of Dec. T. 1941, Honolulu time, was not
delivered until after the attack, which came
at 7:55, one hou, and Is minutes later.
The delay is attributed to conditions be-
You'd control of anyone concerned but the
warning is evaluated as only IAN added pre-
caution which still would have come too
late to be of substantial use. Yet, the fact
remains that the two commanders were still
under restraints, forbidden to adopt a state
of preparation that might have caused alarm
among the civilians.
The limitation of the Roberts commission S
field of inquiry so as to exclude examination
of official conduct in Washington obviously
blocked access to historic facts which are
an important part of the whole story and
should be the property of the people. And
although the commission had no right to pass
Judgment on Kimmel and Short considering
that it was instructed only to provide basis
for sound decisions it nevertheless went be-
yond that Limitation in convictng these two
men of derelction The preamble does not say
| who was to make those sound decisions after
| it had provided the basis for them. Possibly
the public was to make the Sound decisions. y
But in that case the commissions conviction
of the two officers, the vindication of the three
secretaries in Washington and the implied vim.
| dieation of the President, were prejudicial to
Kimmel and Short and politically favorable
| to Mr.. Roosevelt. The conclusions were era.
tuitous in two respects, first in generating
civilians whose conduct was not within it's
scope. Second, in condemning men who had not
/ been placed On trial CIR even served with
1 charges according to law.
l The report becomes a political issue in q
Il presidential year because it has been intro
u duced into the campaign by Senator Truman
the running mate, on the democratic ticket, o.
? the President who might be shown by history
70 have had a share of the responsibility