Evening star., 1951-03-14
Probe of U. S. Morals
Recalls Ohio Gong
Of Harding Era
By Joy 6. Hayden
North American Newspaper Alliance

BY Joy q. Hayden
North American Newspaper Alliance
Not since the scandals follow
ing the death of President War
ren G. Harding has there been
so much questioning Of United
States official morals as there is
today.
Senator Capehart, Republican.
of Indiana has characterized re-
cent RFC doings as worse than
the 1923 naval oil scandals, but it
appears scarcely justified. How
ever, there is the same multiplic-
ity of disclosurse of Govern
mental looseness and laXity, pop
ping up one after the other and
each more shocking than its
now, as in the post
Harding era.
President Harding may never
have heard of most of the wrong
doings of his appointees. since
these were not disclosed until
after his death. And current
evidence indicates that President
Truman is just as blithely un-
conscious of much that goes on
in his name.
Truman Loyal to Subordinates.
But Mr.. Truman also is like
Mr.. Harding in an unwillingnesS
to countenance charges against
his subordinates and in blind de-
fense of their action, even after
abundant proof of gross i'm
or worse.
Thus Maj. Gen. Harry Vaughan
among the Presidents
closest conf1dants, despite his ad-
mitted involvement in the deep
freeze-f1ve percenter revelations Of
bought ht-and-paid-for political in
fluence that led to the criminal
and conviction of John
Maragon.
Mr.. Truman has refused to date
all suggestions that ENHANCEMENT
in the RFC disclosures OF donald
Dawson and Mrs. Merl Young,
two others of his White House
family, are such as 10 demand
their temporary suspension at
least from the public payroll.
Red Herring" Charge Recalled.
1t is nearly three years since
the President branded as a parti-
san red herring" congressionally
developed evidence of Communist
completely by Alger Hiss and Will
liam Remington. And, despite
subsequent criminal conviction of
these former high officials in his
administration, Mr.. Truman to
this day has spoken not one pub
lie word in condemnation of either
of them.
Just as Mr.. Harding had his
Ohio gang" Mr.. Truman has a
great attachment to the large
group Of old Missouri friends he
brought into the Government, in
Gliding Gen. Vaughan and the
Youngs and DawSonS.
Not all of the official peccadillos
now turning up, of course, are at
tributable to President Truman.
For instance. there are the TOO
letters from Congressman, pre-
sumably soliciting Government
loans for constituents, which
President Truman had picked out
of the RFC file in a seeming at
tempt to scare the Senatorial in
vestigators off.
Senator Murray Criticized.
The one sample of what these
letters may contain is the blandly
admitted solicitation by Senator
Murray. Democrat, of Montana
Of large loan to a Miami Beach
hotel for which his (Murray's)
son was a highly paid attorney.
Describing his action as "just
routine" Senator Murray de-
manded revelations of not only
letters, but phone calls, of all
other congressman, in apparent
confidence that the solicitation in
which he was caught would be
proved in noWiSe unusual.
The shocking fact is that
United States Senator should see
nothing wrong in exerting his Off
cial influence in behalf of
company by which his son was
employed.
On the other side of the political
fence, the investigation of the
1850 Maryland election has dis
closed the use of an Enthusiastically
faxed photograph in behalf Cf
Senator Butler, the Republican
winner. And three Republican
Senators have made speeches,
claiming justification for This
fraud on the ground that it Was
originally used by Democrats in
1886 to defeat President Hoover.
After listening to the RFC tes-
timony, Senator Fulbright, Demo-
crat, of Arkansas has moved Ior
another Hoover Commission, di-
vided three ways between execu-
tive officials, Congressman and
non-ofhcialS, to find out what is
happening to "the general moral
levels of Government.
1t is impossible for Congress
men, and much less Senators
alone, to do that job fully, says
Senator Fulbright, because, if they
start turning up all the truth
about each other, they would ere
ate "vendettas with their col
leagues" destructive of the whole