The Wilmington morning star., 1947-02-07
As Pegler Sees 1t
Bv WESTBROOK PEGLER

lld o41I4do ~ IAN
Georgia has been presented as an issue OF
democracy or fascism by Arnalls TRENDS IN
Guiding practically all OF the totantarlan oleeo-
ing-hearts. The legal status OF the governor
ship admittedly was left in complete DOUBT De-
cause the state constitution did not anticipate
the situation created by the death OF Gene Ial-
madge, who had beaten Arna1 in the election.
Neither Arnall nor Talmadge has a clear title
to the place.
Arnall Immediately received the benefit OF
the propaganda machines Of New York an
Washington because Talmadge has the sup
port of the Ku Klux Khan and kindred spirits
who nevertheless are brothers under the SKIN OF
the organizations in New York winch oppose
the Khan, the Columbians ct al. These noftneTn
terroristic lodges are as klannlsh II tne1r own
methods and for their own purposes as the
southern Klan and its new variations.
They do not burn fiery crosses, but they DO
practice personal espionage, employing protes-
sional sneaks to betray condolences. Ihey I'm
dertake to censor not only news but opinion
and even humor, by threats OF economic pun
ishment, and like the Khan and Adolf Hitler
they take reprisals against innocent relatVes
of defiant offenders against their arrogance.
The Arnal-Talmadge contest is mucn less
outrageous against law. and the STABILITY OF
government than a conspiracy OF President
Roosevelt party and President Humans pest
friends to rob a republican governor OF MS
office in Missouri in 1941.- Although that case
did command considerable attention In
the press across the nation, it did not evoke
any comparable blast of Indignation among
those who are now most nolslly horrlfleo by
the proceedings in Georgia. The reason was
that. in the Missouri conspiracy, Robert Han
negan thea chairman of the democratic city
committee of St. Louis, now Mr.. Humans
Postmaster General, was a conspicuous oppon.
ent Of the republican who had been duly elect
ed.
The republican was Forrest C. Donnell, now
a United States senator. The election of 1940
was close and Mr.. Donnell defeated Lawrence
Mcdaniel, the democrat, by 1878 votes.
A few days after the November election, a
meeting of democrats was called in st. Louis
attended by Hannegan and c. Marion Hulen,
the chairman of the Democratic State Com
mite, and many others. The demo
Gratis figured that Mr.. Donnells margin was
so close that they might beat him in a re-
count if they could pick the precincts to be
recounted. Accordingly, they put a resolution
through the legislature providing for an Gin
vestigation'' of reports of fraud involving
the employment of a vague slush fund and
Irregularities in the count. The democrats
voted through a thing called Joint Resolu-
ton No. 81 on Jan. II, two days before in.
auguration day, which authorized a commit
tee of six democrats and four republicans to
recount the ballots. Although this committee
has the power to examine all ballots, it also
had authority to select only those precincts in
which the democratic majority might pick up
votes to cut down Donnells small
official plurality. Meanwhile. the resolution for
babe the speaker of the house to recognize
Donnell as governor. An equal number of
Democrats and Republicans were authorized
to "attend' the recount. but that didn't mean
a thing because only the members OF the COM
mittee could vote and the committee was
stacked SIX to FOUR.
Joint Resolution No. 81 was promoted by
the state democratic organization with the me-
chanical cooperation Of the subsidiary bodies
of the machine.
A few democrats. notably Governor Lloyd
c. Stark, indicated their disgust and alarm
because the legal method was to recognize
and swear in the man certified in the election
returns and then file a contest. By the method
of Joint Resolution No. g." Mr.. Donneli could
be kept out of office as long as the dem
ocratic majority of the committee could stall
or until it could pick up enough errors in
selected precincts to destroy his plurality, ig-
noring those VIGOROUSLY crooked democratic
precincts in Hannegan's st. Louis and Tru~
mans Kansas City where Donnell's margin
would have been increas ed.
Mr.. Hulen had been going around with a
brletcase which came to be regarded as the
bag containing the evidence of corruption, this
was deadpan comedy on the part of an or
ganlzadon which had enjoyed not only the
tax patronage but the enormous slush-funds
OF the new deals ''humane' agencies and the
unions for years and years. flanagan insisted
that Donnell should not be seated until the
investigation was finished, and the six demo
Gratis had the power to drag the investi2atio,
along indefinitely.
On Inauguration day, Donnell filed a man.
damus in the state Supreme court to compel
the speaker of the House to open and publish
the returns and declare the high man to have
been elected governor.
Two days later, Governor Stark vetoed
Joint Resolution No. 3" on the ground that:
lit gave the democratic majority of the
committee discretion to pick the ballot boxes
which it desired to open. 2-The committee
was loaded, and 3-The winner should be
seated and the contest, if any, should be made
afterward in a constitutional way.
The Supreme court did not rule on the
mandamus until Feb. 10. Then, although all
seven judges were democrats, they ordered
the speaker to recognize Donnell as the elect
ed governor and reminded the conspirators
that they had no right to ignore the law.
MIR. Donnell was kept out of office for "A
days by this slippery trick. He was not in
augurated until Feb. 26. Mr.. Mechanic then
starred MS contest IN the regular. legal way.
The legal recount began and Donnell gained
steadily. When half the ballots had been count
ed his plurality had grown from 3,613 to about
1000. On May 81, Mcdaniel dismissed his
contest and wrote Governor Donnell admitting
that the reports of fraud had been greatly
exaggerated
The "evidence'' which was mentioned 10
justify Joint Resolution No. 81 never was
revealed.
Although President Truman was then a Mis-
sour senator and knew as we'll as anyone
else what was going on, he never said boo,
whereas Governor Stark showed decency, and
the Supreme court also crossed the dirty party
line for honest government. Senator Donnsll
says he does not think Truman had any con-