Evening star., 1951-02-28


particularly heinous crime.
The activities of the Executive
Branch of the Government are so
This is the fourth Of series on in
vestisotions ond the people who do
them.
many and varied; the scope of
Federal control over everyday life
and business SO broad; tile accent
on personal loyalty TO American
ideal SO heavy, that there are few
persons who are not actual or po-
tential objects of Government
attention
Government investigative work
is so varied 1t is difficult to define
except in the broadest terms. It
is even more difficult to delineate
in terms of investigators employed
and money spent.
A safe and conservative esti-
mate of the number of full-time
Federal agents and investigators
is well above $4,000. The figure
for part-time or per diem inquisi-
tors can safely be put above 100,-
900. Neither figure includes stool
pigeons" or voluntary informers.
Investigators are the people
whose activities fit into the fol-
lowing categorical definition:
An investigator is one whose
occupation it is to attend to other
peoples business-no matter how
praiseworthy or justif1able his pur-
pose.
Spearheaded by FBI.
The great army of Federal in
vestigators is spearheaded, OF
course, by 1900 FBI agents. The
Treasury Departments investiga-
tive services total nearly 5000.
There are 1000 investigators in
the Wage-Hour Administration OF
the Labor Department. 1,150 sleuth
and records-searchers working for
the Civil Service Commission.
Then there are more than TOO
aviation safety agents in the Civil
Aeronautics Administration; near
ly 200 security agents in the State
Department; 270 inspectors work.
ing for the Food and Drug Ad-
ministration in the Federal Sc
curity Agency; 815 Postal In
spectors.
So the list goes, and this is only
partial roll call. even of the big
investigative outfits.
What of the additional investi-
gators-those in small offices, like
the four super-sleuths in the In
terror Department or the 20
"sheriffs" of the Veterans Ad-
ministration?
What of the various corps In
the armed services, which are his
torically loath to speak of the
size or scope of their "intelli-
gence" activities?
What Of the other Investigators
concealed beneath titles like "an-
alyst" and research specialist. u
who are skilled at getting the
truth out of records?
There is simply no arriving at
correct total for these cate
gories Of investigators.
Duplication Denied.
Each agency denies that its in
vestigators duplicate the sleuth-
ing work of other departments.
But evidences of duplication crop
up, especially in loyalty and securi-
ty Investigations. In this field
security clearance in one agency
may not be worth the paper it is
written on for the purposes OF
another agency.
Two points can be made about
Government investigative work
and where to find It:
/. Wherever money is spent, OF
classified documents" are kept
there will be auditors and security
officers to watch over disburse-
ments and safeguards.
2. Wherever there is an agency
charged with the enforcement OF
a law. there will be an enforce
ment and compliance section
stated, in part, by Investigators
The first point covers the prob
lem of keeping Government work
ers honest. The second deals with
the conduct of the ordinary citi-
zen whose activities may be regu-
lated by law.
Perhaps the most amazing en-
forcement set-up is that of the
Agriculture Departments Produc-
tion and Marketing Administra-
ton. This group. which describes
itself as the principal action
agency" of the Agriculture Depart
ment, admits it uses 10000 farm
ers to police the activities of three
million of their neighbors.
This is the biggest self policing
operation of its kind anywhere"
a PIMA spokesman says. He is
referring to the activities of farm
er-members of thousands of PIMA
committees in the Nations agri-
cultural communities.
Draw Per Diem Pay.
These committeeman, paid a
Federal per diem wage for work
ing out crop quotas, work from
five to 80 days a year in the ad-
ministration of PIMA programs.
The PIMA has it's own COM
pliance and investigating unit,
but this group numbers only about
80 people to police 100000 times
that many farmers.
In the eorly part of the last war,
the Army had in effect a conf
Dental "counter-subversive" pro-
gram which worked at grass
roots in way not unlike the
PMA's. Each company command
er appointed two enlisted men of
his company as counter subversive
agents and swore them to strictest
secrecy. They were charged with