The Wilmington morning star. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1909-1990, 1945-08-29
Fair Enough
BY WESTBROOK PEGLER
ConYright, 1915 By King Features Svndioa1


Elliott, himself, who takes the negative; Harry
Hopkins, John Hartford, the grocery man: Hi.
Blackett, the radio advertising man, whose
story of his visit to the White House for
family dinner already has been told: Charles
HARDWOOD, Governor of the Virgin Islands. and
Jesse Jones, who negotiated the settlement OF
some of Elliotts debts, however, the issue is
bigger than that. The questions are whether
Mr. Roosevelt was aware of certain activities
of Elliott and his oldest son, James, and Mrs
Eleanor Roosevelt and other relatives and
whether the presidency was commercialized,
AS bearing on those questions we NAV con.
slider Jimmy Roosevelt's venture into the
yeast manufa curing business in 1885 when he
was % years old.
On July II of that year the National Grain
Yeast Corporation, of Belleville, NJ j.,
announced that James had been "elected'
president. This company was formed in 1925,
during the prohibition era, and is now the
third largest manufacturer of bakers yeast
in the United States.
1t is moot question whether alcohol is a
by-product of yeast alcohol and yeast are
co-prOductS.
James succeeded Samuel Brass as president
and the announcement said that ne had &C.
quired stock interest but would continue his
insurance business and continue to manage his
fathers dairy and forestry interests at Hyde
Park. Federal court records show that in 1929
the company was denied a permit to manu-
facture industrial alcohol and operate a bond.
ed warehouse on the ground that the identity
OF all the financial hackers of the company
had not been shown in the application
Soon after Jimmy became president, he took
notice OF reports that Irving Wexler, alias
Waxey Gordon, notorious bootlegger. was in
terested in the company He denied these re-
ports.
1t appears that the company did name its
stockholders in its application for the alcohol
permit but that one of the principal stock.
holders was unwilling to name his own per.
sonal hackers.
The salary which Jimmy received was not
publicly stated but, in August, 1888 he au.
thorized a magazine article in which he said
when Frank Hale, president of National
Grain Yeast, asked me to try my hand at
organizing his sales force, to try to install
some sort Of system of accounting in his or.
ganization, took the job''-at $25, 900 year.
In later episode, when Jimmy became
Hollywood executive, Sam Goldwyn, his EN-.
ployer said his salary $35, 1000 with him.
Jimmy was novice in the movie business
as he had been in the yeast business
In the magazine piece, Jimmy does not re-
fer to himself as president of the company
but Identifies Hale as president.
The New York Times reported on Nov. 20,
1895, that Jimmy had resigned the presidency
and that the directors felt that better results
could have been obtained if he had given more
time to his job. Shortly before his resignation
special representative Of the treasury, then
ruled by Henry Morgenthau visited Beneville
and made particular investigation.
The National Grain Yeast Corporation has
offices at l22 East AZ Street, New York
Three telephone calls to the company have
been answered by a service company which
handles such calls for subscribers who are alb
sent from their premises. Two personal visits
were made during business hours but the of.
tees were closed. A personal telephoned mes
sage and telegram to Mr.. Hale have brought
no response.
In May. 1928, shortly before the nominations
OF Herbert Hoover at Kansas City and Al
Smith at Houston, Senate Committee was
investigating campaign expenditures. At.
tentlon was given to publication called
Politics." operated by Frank j. Hale, which
appears to have been hostile to Mr. Hoover
even during the presidency of Calvin Coolidge
Mr.. Hale had been prohibition agent and he
was called by the committee to discuss the
COSTS OF operating his paper He said the paper
had lost more than $4,000 since the first of
the year and that he, alone, was paying this
expense.
On May %, 1928, Mrs Mabel Walker Willie.
brandt, for long time the Assistant U. S.
Attorney General in charge of prohibition en-.
that she was testifying from official records,
she made statements concerning Hale She
SAID ne had been appointed on the recommen.
datlon of one ]. N. Chamberlain, of Atlantic
City, deceased, who had vouched for him as
good soldier with the added remark 'unut
sed" Mrs. Willebrandt then stated that prior
to Hales appointment Chamberlains bank de-
posts never exceeded $500 but that soon at.
terWard his deposits ranged between ST 900
and $5OOO month. In a little more than
year. Mrs. Willebrandt said Chamberlain de.
posted more than $155000 in two banks. all
but $5,OOO OF it in cash although his salary.
bonuses and commissions did not exceed So.
900. ~O'
OF Hale, Mrs. Willebrandt said that govern.
rnent records showed he never had a bank
account and that his total income tax pay.
ments for the five years that he was in the pro.
hloltlon service, ending in 1926, were SIS. On
this basis, she questioned his ability to stand
the losses of the paper.
Mrs. Willebrandt, continuing, said that
Hale's title was chief of the alcohol and brew
cry control in New York, with unlimited au.
thorlty in any investigation and that, on one
occasion, when two New Jersey agents were
sent into New York to stop an alcohol leak,
the head of the suspected firm telephoned
Hale, who called their superior officer in New
Jersey and rebuked him for sending agents
into his New York territory without his per.
mission.
Mrs. Willebrandt said that after several in
vestigations of Hale had been thwarted he
finally was "surnmarily dismissed
The next day the New York Times reported
tho+ Mr. Halo had no comment on Mrs Wi11o