The Wilmington morning star. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1909-1990, 1945-02-01


much as many of his readers His articles
serve the good purpose of making people
Think
BY WEsTBROOK PEGLER
Copyright, 1945, by King Features Syndlcate)
For efficiency and economy of effort, Pres.
dent Roosevelts insult to his friend Henry
Wallace Jesse Jones and the rest of the
people in ordering Jones to get out of Com
merce to let Henry have the OBJ, hansomely
deserved a capital CO..
That innate rudeness, so consistently dis
played in patroniZing relations with a gen.
|erally docile White House press delegation,
was never expressed more exquisitely than in
the statement that Wallace deserved the place
for his work in the role of political Johnny
Appleseed during the campaign. There was
only a passing and furtive reference to the
matter of Henry's ability and Roosevelt
couldn't have said less than his light obser-
walton that the poor fellow was fully suited
for the job.
After ALL he had to say that for the record
but it was only technical point for lack of
which his letter would have been a fiat pro-
position that any half-wit, panhandler Or ma
chine gangster of the New Deal PAC organlza-
ton deserved place to plant his 1eet in the
trough at the expense and peril OF the nation
if he gave of his utmost toward the victory.
Before the letter was written. Wallace had
been cast in the role of priceless moocher
abstemious and fit as he is and, considering
the alleged shortage of hands in the war
paints, the place for him to apply would seem
to have been the U. S. Employment Service.
Wallace, be it remembered, is supposed to
be Roosevelts friend The boss could have
adopted one Of his moods OF elephantlne puck
ishness to argue his qualifications but ne didn't
feel called on by friendship to make the effort.
So, the result was public paper in which
man who had occupied the second highest
offci elm the nation, depicted as Jobless
doorbell pusher whose dull plodding travels
on the thumb through New England and Penn
sylvania had earned him place in out of the
cold
This reference Of course was fake because
Wallace had so little personal appeal that in
many of his transforming stands in Connecti-
cut, for example, he couldn't outdraW a pitch
man with a potato peeler or miraculous spot
remover. The truth was that in further de-
velopment of the pattern of personal lnfidell"
ties to other trusting friends before add during
the Chicago convention Roosevelt had assur-
ed Sidney Hillman that Henry would have
chance to advance h Communist program
from the sidelines and keep himself prominent
as the years roll on toward 1948. The letter
to Jones, by itself appears to have been anoth-
er personal doublecross because Roosevelt
knows his Senate well enough to anticipate
accurately how it will act in such a situa-
ZION. Illus he uOuDlleSS naQ private p)ullCdl
| assurance that if he did send in the name of
Wallace for the Commerce department. Henry
would be turned back, Whereupon Roosevelt
could say that, well, he did his best
The insult to Jones was too plain to afford
comment Admittedly Jones had done good
work and he was canned only because Wal
lace, himself, Thought he could do the great
est amount of good in the Department of
Commerce" The offer OF a choice of cheap
in tbo ir,1o Of ,1bic
take him out of the country where he couldn't
readily heckle his successor, was true to the
manners and ethics of man who, with his
own spectacular record OF personal betrayals,
from Farley down to Byrnes had the effront-
cry to declare with a straight and pious face
that the way to make friends was to be
friend.
IT, however, we say that Wallace md Jones
were insulted in equal lavish measure in one
letter, the rest of the people, including those
fighting overseas, can be in no intelligent
doubt as to the sheer at themselves.
This was declaration of supreme disdain
for their citizenship, and their gulliblllty in
accepting Roosevelts campaign statements
that he believed in private enterprise and the
American system of government.
The selection of Wallace with the intention
that this cloudy and emotional misfit should
have the power Of the purse over practically
all the treasure of the nation, including the
earnings and taxes of future generations, was
bow to the Communints who are Henry s
comrades and who on inauguration day,
prowled the White House at Mrs. Roosevelts
invitation in studied mockery of loyal Aneri-
cans Even William Gailmore, late Margols,
thief, impostor and radio preacher OF Mus
covite policy on the Blue network was invited
to snaffle macaron and Clipped beef and the
Hollywood local of the Moscow international
was there in open celebration OF a famous
victory over the Americans who last Novem-
Der couldn't believe it could ever be.
| There were those who, on the day after
election, tossed their hats over Rooseveit's
transom in token of surrender ana fear OF
repr. sails for truths which they had t1mldly
alleged during the campaign. There were 9TH
ers, and they were fewer, who, on thai day,
affirmed all they had charged and predicted,
insisting that Roosevelt's election would be a
historic disaster to the American nation, what
ever the outcome of war in which industry
and all the people had had to redeem his
personal guilt and derelection at Pearl Har-
Dor.
Quickly ensuing events, once the returns
were in, have indicated this uncompromislng
conviction Wallace, a failure in private bust
ness, author of spectacular economic follles
in agriculture political kinsman OF the COM
munists and disparager OF the Dill CT rights
was kept in the background during the cam
pagn. The draft worked lightly and sparlngly
in those days, lest families already marked
for quick disruption be alienated at the polls
Ratoning was enforced with fact and dis