The Wilmington morning star., 1945-09-05
By WESTBROOK PEGLER

Of making people think)
BY wEsTBRooK PEGLER
copyright, 1s45, by King Features syndicate)
NEW YORK-We have had lately in New
York some imposing feats of demagogery
done in the cause Of that all-purpose thing
called democracy and the rights and dignity
of those who segregate themselves into groups
called minorities for what there is in it for
them.
woman with a Latin name, apparently
Italian, wrote 4 provocative letter to Senator
Theodore Gilmore Bilbo, OF Mississippi. In his
reply, he addressed her as Dear Dago."
For this he has been denounced publicly
by William ODwyer and Jonah Goldstein, the
democratic and republican candidates, re-
spectively, for mayor, by Senator James
Mead, democrat, and others. The gist of these
resounding and pietistical rebukes to Mr.. Bill
bo, known as "the man, Bilbo," is that this
was an insulting un-Amerlcan form of ad-
dress. He was asked to apologize but mean
while, although his state is Mississippi and
he is not in any way involved in the New
York mayoralty campaign, both principal can
didates and some secondary political mounte-
banks are using the incident for the purpose
Of indicating their own deep affection for the
Italian minority vote which all concerned,
as usual, are trying to segregate from the
rest of the Americans in town.
NOW OdSO is nOC an luSu1CLS WOAQ WcU-
sters New International Dictionary says it
was derived from the Spanish Diego, COM
mon proper name and that it indicates pei
son of Spanish Cor, by extension, Portuguese
or, now, most commonly, ltallan) descent.
The dictionary says that in the United States
it is slang word but does not even suggest
that it has insulting meaning. And inasmuch
as the dictionary, respectable authority on
the American language, does recognize it as
an American slang term, it cannot be said
to be un-American.
Unquestionably Bilbo meant to be rude. Be
cause Of his ignorance of the true meaning
of words he did not succeed These candl-
dates and others achieved success for him.
Senator Bilbo is a loose-jointed deep-South
democrat who fights tomcat style and has
been elected lieutenant governor of his state
once, governor twice and senator twice Tor
a total of "a years in high office. The re-
turns indicate that he represente the political
and personal taste of his fellcw-citizens He
is, by dignified standards, a vulgar politician
but he is highly superior to Fiorello H. La
Guardia, the present mayor of New York.
who also exploits the feeling of those groups
called "minorities" Bilbo never has been ac-
cused of such shocking blasts of obscenity as
La Guardia has uttered with permission to
publish nor of any such unclean lnnuendos
as La Guardia commonly employees in his
speeches, even over the air. for the simple
reason that he cannot express himself decent
ly.
Early in the new deal, Bilbo was given a
lob in one OF the new deal hide-aWays IN
Washington as a deserving democrat to whom
the Roosevelt administr alton owed place on
the payroll and whom this very practical
band of takers wished to keep available for
| future dirty work In its behalf In this job
his duties were to clip articles out of news
papers He frankly admitted that such was
| the case and that he was there because. be-
tween terms in elective office, he needed the
salary of $6 900 year. There was no hypo-
| critical pretense that he was serving the COM
mon man or carrying a musket IN the war
on want. He was interested only in his own
want and the new deal took care of him at
public expense for its practical political pur-
poses.
The new deal wanted to keep him off the
neck of Pat Harrison, also of Mississippi, one
of it's more respectable Southern senators.
There was some apprehension that the man
Bilbo might 60 to the voters OF Mississippi
and, with his known appeal unseat Mr.. Har-
| rison.
Then there came a time when it appeared
that Huey Long, in adjacent Louisiana, might
move into Mississippi and the party ran Mr..
Bilbo for the senate and elected him as a
Roosevelt new dealer. When he took his seat,
there was a common understanding that II
ever Huey got really fresh again, the admin
! stration would sick Mr.. Bilbo on him who
would tear hlm apart because, although Huey
fought with no holds barred, so did Bilbo.
It was impossible to insult either man and
the Roosevelt administration was comforted
by the thought that the man Bilbo would keep
Huey in his place.
| Strangely, they never did tangle but appar-
emily were friends and enjoyed the position
| in which they had been placed.
In Mississippi. Bilbo employees the same
methods that ODwyer, Goldstein, Mead and
the others have used against him and others
in New York. He appeals to the old pre]udlces
and bigotries of his followers just as the DEM
agogs of local New York politics denounce
as fascist or Nazi anyone who fights the
criminal excesses of unions. In reverse, he
exploits the same hatreds that New YORK pol
iticians inflame at campaign time and 1or the
same purpose, to get elected.
! The most persistent charge against blloo is
that he is poll-taxer, meaning senator
from poll-tax state. :.
O'Dwyer, Goldstein, Mead and La Iuarola
also are poll-taxers,- however.
These men uphold that rule OF unlohlsm
which forbids worker to vote IN union
election unless he has paid his dues or poll
tax and would bar him from MS nVelnooo
for failure to pay MississippIs poll tax K Goes
not affect q mans right to earn nVng:
He doesn't starve if he fails 10 pay Ills pon
tax. He Just doesn't vote.
| .