Evening star., 1951-05-02
By the Assesietsd p,sss

|. 49,, By ihs Asseeiotsd Press
| Public officials and newspapers
generally accepted today the chal-
Ilenge of the Senate Crime Investi-
eating Committee for better local
law enforcement in the cities most
prominently mentioned In the
groups report.
Chairman Kefauver and his coll
leagues included a number of rec
Concentrations for Federal legis-
Ilation to block interstate crime.
But they said primary responsible
tity for cleaning up the underworld
rests with State and local officials.
This view was accepted in the
first reaction to the committees
report, although 1t gave rise to
some doubts that non-Federal Of
Ificials would be more effective in
the future than they have been In
the past.
There was widespread praise of
the committees report focusing
public attention on hitherto OBJ
Iscure rackets. But several news
papers suggested that the COM
|mittee had not uncovered any
thing new.
On the, whole, there was a feel
ling of so far SO good'"-but where
do we go from here?"
Here is city-by city breakdown
Iof the crime committees report
and the local reaction to it:
NEW YORK CITY.
The committee reports former
Mayor William O'Dwyer's "inti-
mate friendship with persons who
were close friends Of Gambler
Frank Costello" 1t continues
along these lines:
Mr.. ODwyer also had friends
who were close to Racketeer Joe
Adonis. and he appointed friends
of both Costello and Adonis ito
high public office" The pattern
of connections between crime and
politics is well established in New
York City. certain counties Of
Northern New Jersey and Sara
Itoga, N. Y. A great deal remains
to be done by public officials and
the citizens of these areas to alter
the basic pattern"
| Mr.. O'Dwyer. now Ambassador
| to Mexico, had no comment
This was part of the editorial
reaction in New York City:
New York Times -''The alarm
ing extent to which the initial
impact of these hearings has faded
away in-.the public mind =. is in
itself a vivid warning that vigor-
GUS leadership by conscientious
officials and persistent expression
of public opinion will be required
liz we are to reap the full benefits
of this able inquiry.
How complete will be the
consummation is too soon to say.
Mayor (Vincent) Impellitteri's
tardineSS in removing the &C
quaintances of Costello, and Tam
many's (Manhattan Democratic
organizationD complete indiffer-
ence to faint In it's leadership are
discouraging but not wholly un-
expected. A revolutionary up
heaval within the electorate is
the only solution that has a faint
chance of success"
New York Daily News - IKE
fauver: 'Cluck cluck cluck'-that
caption expresses, as well as we
know how to express in print. our
opinion that when the COM
mittee yesterday released its
eagerly awaited report it laid an
egg. r.
E". (the nisclosures) were no
news at all " any reasonably in
telligent newspaper reader.
a.. It's the proposed remedies
that fascinate us. They
recommended a lot of steps which
in effect would put the Govern
ment into a sort of hostile part
nership with the racketeers. -
Largely by stringent taxation on
gamblers and underworld figures.)
I New York Herald Tribune
%. Where do we go from here? ?
The Kefauver committee. to its
credit, admits the cleanup job
ldevolves on the people themselves.
|. AS j. Edgar Hoover says,
Washington can never be a salts
factory substitute for local self
government in the enforcement
field.
g. One can appreciate the
IKefauver committees helpful
spirit and yet wonder whether
more law and regulation will solve
the problem. -"
Costello refused to comment.
\ SARATOGA COUNTY, N. Y.
Open gambling in Saratoga has
existed for many years with the
knowledge of New York State po-
lice ana of public officials and the
!, local political organizations that
control such public officials" the
report said. The committee noted
with qualification a special State