Evening star., 1948-10-01
Pendersast Machine Defended


To the Editor of The Star:
A letter contributed by Edmund Colds
borough about President Truman and "Pender-
gastism" in Kansas City certainly occasions
reply.
AS former Kansas Citian, have read with
disgust MANY letters to the editor and many
editorials painting the Pendergast organization
in broad strokes as completely evil product
of an evil will and attempting to link the
President of the United States with 1t. Many
of these politically inspired attacks am sure
come from individuals who never have been
West Of the Mississippi River and who wouldnt
know Kansas City from Omaha, even with
tourist guide Their information comes from
biased newspaper and magazine accounts most
of which are attributable to the Kansas CITY
Star, monopoly paper which has Kansas City
completely under its influence and has long
been a bitter rival OF the Pendergast organiza-
ton The other side Of the picture never Is
presented to the American people.
The reason that Pendergast rose to suprem-
acy and maintained that position for many
wears was that ne and his devoted followers
got the most votes and were returned TO
offlce time after time Election frauds OF one
kind or another have been perpetrated by
political organizations in every part Of the
inherent in our system Of government. What
ever votes Pendergast stole simply counter
balanced those which the Republicans stole.
but the vociferous and biased Kansas City Star
chose to ignore the sins Of the latter, so out
sders know nothing Of them.
AS for President Truman, he is as scrup-
ulously honest q man as there is in public
life. He has built up an unassailable record
for integrity ever since he was County Judge
of Jackson County.
Harry Truman himself said that Tom Pen
dergast never asked him to do dishonest
thing. Only by malicious inference and vicious
innuendo can anything to the contrary be
advanced. w H. MALONEY, JR.
The Candidates on Health Policy
To the Editor of The Star:
Your recent editorial "The Doctors Dilem-
ma" urges that proponents and opponents OF
national health insurance both should stop
bandying epithets like "socialized medicine
and define what they mean by that unlVer-
sally disliked idea. The local medical society
seems to profit by confusing the issue, although
Messrs. Truman, Dewey and warren nave
made their positions clear. Here's the record
for these three candidates:
Gov. Warren has taken pains to explain
for California is not socialized medicine be-
cause Quoting from his article in Look mag
azine, July %, 1s4s): Patients are free to
choose their own doctor and hospital, just as
they do now. Doctors and hospitals are LETT
free to select the patients they want to care
for. The bill am sponsoring to put the
plan into effect expressly provides that no sys-
tenn shall be created for dispensing medical OF
hospital care by the State through doctors en-
ployed by the State"
When President Truman proposed national
health insurance in his special health message
to Congress in November, l945, he declared
that; What I am recommending is not
socialized medicine Socialized medicine means
that all doctors work as employees OF govern
ment. The American people want no such
system No such system is here proposed
Mr.. Dewey, Of course, is on record against
socialized medicine along with Messrs. Warren