The Wilmington morning star. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1909-1990, 1944-10-20

Editors Note.-The star ana the News accept
responsibility for the personal views Of MT Psglsr
and often disagree with them mach many Of
bis readers His articles the good purpose Of
making people think.
: BY WESTBROOK PEGLER
NEW. YORK, On the evening of September
49, following President Roosevelts GRAFTON to
Dan Tobin's goons in the Hotel Statler, in
Washington, two young naval officers, with
good war records, were ganged and beaten
by an overwhelming number Of persons I'M
known whose conduct strongly indicated that
they had been members of Mr.. Roosevelts
audience.
The officers were quickly identified and ex-
onerated of misconduct. Had they been drunk
or had they provoked the fight they undoubt-
edly would have been tried by courtmartial
The fact that no charges were made against
them by either the navy or the civil authori-
ties of Washington vindicates them complete
~ and indicts the hoodlums who attacked
them The victims said the gang went to work
on them when they refused to promise to vote
for Roosevelt in the election.
Washington is the headquarters of the vaunt-
ed Federal Brueau of Investigation whose
Chief j. Edgar Hoover has received more
publicity than HawshaW the detective, old and
young Kings Brady, Nick Carter and Sher-
lock Holmes, combined, much of it promoted
by himself for his own qualification and re-
nown through journalistic claque. Washing
ton is the headquarters also of the Department
of Justice which has general supervision over
the local grand jury. Washington is the head.
quarters of the secret service and the other
Investigating forces Of the treasury, Of the
Army and Navy Intelligence Services and Of
Harold 1ckes' gestapo In addition. w astington-
has three police forces. s-t---g r. -
Yet all these fabulous agencies, with thou
sands OF detectives at their command, and
with powers Of subpoena, in more than three
weeks have been unable to make a single ar
rest or even to identify single one of the
goons.
Old Dan Tobin, whom the President greeted
affably as DAM in beginning his address.
has not been dragged before the grand jury in
the absence of voluntary appearance and
made to tell under oath just how much he
knows about the gang attacks on the naval
officers.
This would have been normal procedure in
any law-abiding community where political in
! fluence did not interfere with the adninistra-
ton of justice In New York couny, Frank
Hogan, he successor Tom Dewey, would
have showed Tobin and his executive board
into the grand jury room within "a hours and
the police, unless they were handcuffed By
political orders from the city hall to lay off
friends OF the admins ration, would have
pinched the entire gang before the night was
over and looked them up for assault.
This case presented the simplest kind o
police problem. bunch of hoodums got
drunk and, when the President had finished
his. speech, went out looking for trouble. Feel
ing that the President had endorsed the bru-
tally for whirh they are notorious and which
the Supreme Court solemnly approved in the
disgraceful Byrnes opinion they permitted
themselves to be deceived by the young and
Slight appearance of the two officers. All goons
are yellow as they have repeatedly demon
strated IN Waylaying unsuspecting and de-
tenseless wagon drivers in Chicago and beat
ing their brains out with the ballbats and in
nabblng Individual workers trying to 60 to
| their jobs in Seattle. These particular gor-
r;llas obviously did not realize that some men
have courage even against gangs and, rom all
published accounts, it appears that the naval
officers kicked their ears off in a rousing
rough and tumble
Undoubtedly Tobin's influence quickly reach
| ed the White House connivance in the mis-.
handling of police work by which the F.B.I. is
| placed In the absurd position Of being unable
to pick up half dozen ,disorderly DRINKS
whose names undoubtedly are known to Mr.
Hoover and to Steve Early, the Presidents
secretary.
| Senate committee has been making alb
surd passes at the case, with political motives
directing both the inquiry and obstruction of
the inquiry but this is no proper business of a
| congressional. investigation. It is a straight
police case in which nothing has been done
because the gorrillas were members of the
following of Mr.. Tobip and the President.
| More than that, the Navy even tried, for
political motives to prevent news of the gang
attack from reaching naval ships and stations
in the war zones, although, by now, thousands
of relatives and friends of individual blue
jackets and officers will have mailed them
| hroxx
I In this connection, you might be interested
to learn that old Tobin, himself, is SO fearful
of violence to his own royal person that he
and the rest of the ruling caste of the Team
| sters' union, are protected by special con-
sttutional provision. An assault on General
Officer, meaning Tobin or any member Of
his cabinet, by prosecuted rank and file
member, comes in special criminal Category
under union law. Any member so CHARGED
must stand trial before the ruling CLIQUE Itself
II which case the complaining witness sits al
4 Judge and prosecutor, as well, and NAV snffer
anv discipline which the board, of which
Tobin is chairman, DEGREES.
Now that have begun to delve into tbe
true character of old man Tobin and his ,,n;o-,
Ii shall develop the story from time Ia lin =
so as to reveal more fully the leering mocLer,,
) Of Mr. Roosevelt's selection of this oroan;z.
. ton as the prime audience for an address -
the American people in the midst Of war
Copyright, 1914, King Features Syndicate rNr