The Wilmington morning star. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1909-1990, 1945-07-20

(EuItoI 1lOIe.-Ine Star ana the news
accept no responsibility for the personal
views OF MIR. Pegler, and often disagree
with them as much as many of his read
ers. His articles serve the good purpose
of making people think.)
BY WEsTBROOK PEGLER
Copyright, 1915, by King Features Syndicate.)
NEW YORK,-The facts thus far known do
not make a complete picture of Elliott Roose-
vet's loans and defaults in consequence of
which the good old common man appears to
have picked up the tab but we are beginning
to fill in.
The stories of John Hartford, the president
of the A. and P. grocery chain, and Jesse
Jones, the former Secretary of Commerce and
former chairman of the Reconstruction Fl
nance Corporation, agree that Hartford loaned
Elliott 5000, 900 and that Jones settled the debt
for 81 OO0 And the statements that the late
President Roosevelt encouraged the loan in
a manner which could be interpreted as solicit
tation and that he enlisted the help of Jones in
cleaning it up at two cents on the Yankee
dollar may be reduced to formal testimony
any time an appropriate committee of Con-
gress calls these two men as witnesses.
The loan of $40, 900 from David c. Baird
a New York insurance man and banker, and
the $4,000 loan by Maxwell M. Bilofsky, a
New Jersey manufacturer, were similar deals
although not identical in detail. Mr.. Jones
also, and Mr. Bilofsky says the late William
Sirovich New York new deal congressman,
told him the President knew about his loan
Mr.. Baird, however, says that as far as he
knows the President was not awre of his
investment"
1 have reason to suggest that Hartford's
check for the 5000, 900 was drawn against his
account in an out-of-town bank and that the
81 900 settlement was made by a cashier S
e. kt14
identity of the one who put up the money. I
don't like this vealy way of speaking, this
business about II have reason to suggest, -
and so forth but sometimes on this kind OF
story YOU get information which you know to
be reliable, yet can't name your authorities so
you have to kind of mince around.
would surmise-which is way OF saying
I know-the reason Hartford didn't tap his
regular New York account for the 5000, 900 was
that he didn't want the boys downtown to get
wind of it and talk it around. Maybe he
was afraid his friends would kid him for a
sucker but you have to reserve the possibility
that he thought he was insuring himself against
trouble with Congress or Mr.. Roosevelt's De
partnent of Justice, in which case the pur-
pose OF the loan would have been jeopardized
by talk.
It is my understanding that, although
Elliott's dad was millionaire and wanted the
loans washed up, no member of the Roosevelt
family put up the 81 900 and you can put ii
down that SO far the Treasury has not chal-
lenged Hartford's deduction of the $4,000
from his 1912 income tax return as a bad
debt.
These and other loans were made in 1899
when Elliott was going strong in his radio
promotions and were settled by Jones early in
1912.
Meanwhile. in October, 194O a special dis
patch from Forth Worth, Tex. Elliott's home
and his base of operations at the time report
ed that he gave up an annual income Of
S76, 900 to serve in the Army at 1915 month
and this seems to have been true The piece
quoted G. T. Stanley, treasurer of Elliott
Texas state network as saying that Elliott
the president and principal stockholder re
ceived a salary of $4,000 which was pretty
good going, considering the condition of the
company, and 81, 900 week for doing com
merical broadcast. A st. Louis new deal paper
had to take nibble at the developing story
of Elliott's operations the other day and re
ported that Gerald P. Stanley, who might b.
| the same fellow, the son of a rich cigar manu-
facturer, invested $4,000 in Elliott's network
and became vice president and general man
ager. It added that this Gerald P. Stanle,
was now working in the mems wear depart
ment of a Chicago store and that he refused
| to talk.
John Kantor, of New York, who claims t,
! have been hired by Elliott to find lender
and sell radio time, contributes statemen
that Elliott got $500 or $500 week from
big New York radio manufacturer for doing
commercial and that after Is weeks he wa
renewed for another 10 weeks at about twic
| the original price.
| Mr.. Hartford says Kantor called on hin
when Elliotts affairs appeared to be deterior
ating, as the diplomats would put it. Wantin
to buy Elliott's 5000, 1000 notes. Kantor who
a hustler, might have figured that some loya
democrat with the interests of the admins
tration at heart would buy them from hir
at face value to avoid scandal. John late
had to 90 away for 20 months for some NOR
key business about cemetery lots and he Nigh
have been a hard man if he had picked u
those notes for a few thousand.
| q. can't say whether Elliott and S1rov1ch &C
wind of this attempt but anyway one nigh
in late 1889 Sirovch and another fellow, who's
name am saving for dessert, called him Int
the Roosevelt hotel Mere and, in return 70
5000, in fist and promise of some NOR
money, got him to sign a document releasln
Elliott Sirovich, Hall Roosevelt, who was E.
liott's uncle, and Texas state network fror
all debts and claims.
i The public stenographer who typed and exc
Il cuted the releases was suspicious and reporte
the incident to the New York District Attol
news office. Sirovch died the next mornin
and the stenographer now tells me that Kantol
hearing about this, stormed into her office
shook his fist in her face ana holefed tina
don't go! That don't go!
4 What he expected her to do about it
bevond me because she was just a publ
servant in the deal
to Inc,