Detroit evening times., 1946-01-04
FAIR
ENOUGH
BY Westbrook
P PeeIer

NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. COMMISSION lOr
an investigation of dealings
whereby the Alamo Broadcast
ing Co. of San Antonio, the
principal property of the Texas
State Network, is alleged TO
have acquired valuable radio
equipment from Mexican
station called KENT at Nuevo
Laredo, Mexico, just across the
international bridge.
The Texas Network was Ell
lott ROoseveltS.
Baker says the FEC had tried
for years TO put him out of the
radio business because over the
ar he held forth promises or
hopes Of a cure for external
cancer
4 s TO whether Baker is a
"A quack and the FEC might
have been acting incidentally IN
the public interest, but in a
-high-haRded manner and for an
ulterlor purpose. as Baker i'm
plies, valid conviction cannot
be reached without a full and
public review OF the charges
and the facts.
The ulterlor purpose would
have been 10 enhance the value
OF stock shares in Elliott'S net
work which the la1e President
acquired by trickery TO defray
his sons obligation in alimony
and for the future maintenance
OF ms dependent minor children.
Obviously, however, Baker
has appealed TO the wrong tri-
bunal Tor he IS asking the FEC
10 investigate charges seriously
impugnlng. IT'S own ethics, mo-
tIvcS and conduct
one Of his charges is that
the FCC tried 10 railroad him
10 prison for transporting across
b6ttttt.-a i1ttonugtapt1- record
which then was played on the
+'4' OH N'b'iVll anu AAlO oUkhlH
"A conviction which was reversed
10y the court OF appeals
This petition by Baker revives
memories OF sensational pollti-
cal incident in 1914
Early IN that year. c Nelson
Sparks Of Akron. formerly
mayor of the city, and long ac-
tive IN CivIC and political al
fans. wrote a book opposing
Wendell NlllkIcS denomination
hy the z pu b llcanS against
Roosevelt
LIE CALLED himself a ma
II tionah~t" bat according 10
the New Deal method of the
moment -Ameared -Wlth-the
label 'lSoIatIonlSt
HIS theme was that the New
Deal or Roosevelt element were
working TO cause Wilkes re-
nomination by the Republicans
on the theories % that RooSc-
welt could beat him and ~
that II elected. Wllkie would
bc AN IntervcntiOnISt
i developed that George
Briggs an undcrling m the de-
purmeni of the interior. had
been providing Sparks with in
formation and data The burden
of this material was that Harry
Hopkins was engineering the
SurrcpuioIS New Deal or RooSe-
Welt boom for WilikIe.
4 NONG the documents which
n Sparks received was a letter,
on White House stationery later
described as forgery. purport-
ing 10 have been written by
Hopkins TO Dr. Humphrey Lee,
president oi Southern Methodist
University al Dallas.
The letter dated Aug II. 1913,
read
Dear Humphrey: What has
been done in the Alamo NATTER
viii YOU write me, please? What
developments in the other situa-
tion? Willkie il going 10 be the
man i'm my opinion, and can
promise YOU good cooperation
from that quarter II you think
II would he helpful
4 grand jury I'm Washington
Investigated. Sparks insists
that the inquiry was not con-
Quoted IN good faith Briggs
was indicted on a charge OF
using a White House lettcr-hcad
for this purpose Hopkins de-
MED writing the letter. Ickes
denied all knowledge of II. Dr.
Lee denied receiving II.
Briggs died before he could
be brought 10 trial.
nor background j must be
remembered that a number
of rich crooks IN the east Texas
hot oil industry, many OF them
IN EliottS circle. had been
treated very lcniently in the
disposal of federal indictments.
This strange business followed
soon after a visit OF President
Roosevelt 10 Texas an which ne
met socially a great many OF
his sons friends.
New Deal politicians, Judges
and other Roosevelt appointeeS
were strangely mixed in with
individuals in a thoroughly cor
rupt and cynical racket
Finally II may be- asked why
Harry Hopkins never was called
by the treasury IN the recent
nNesfICafInn OF tho confidence