Evening star., 1952-12-01

and continued to do so after
the so-called Smith fund was
raiSed-SumS ranging from
$1,000 to $1,700 a year for his
Office expenses in excess of the
$4,000 allowance given by law
to members of Congress to pay
Office personnel. Not a dollar
of the special fund" raised by
Dana Smith was used for per-
sonal expenses or for his fam
lily budget. nor was Senator
Nixon relieved Of his own an
nual expense for Office work
after the Smith fund came into
being in 1850.
Third, the gross income of
Senator Nixon before any de-
ductions for tax purposes for
the year 1947 was $11,458. For
1948 it was $13,100. For 1949 it
was $14,223. For 1850 1t was
$12,728. and for 1851 1t was
$19,870. The last years total
was larger than other years be-
cause Of a lecture tour and
other speaking engagements. No
fee for a single speaking en-
gagement exceeded $500, with
one exception, and this was less
than $1,000.
Apart from the data about in
come-tax returns, this cores
pondent has also obtained the
following information which
rebuts the principal canards
distributed during the campaign
about Senator Nixon:
/. Senator Nixon never saw
the list of persons who con-
tributed to the special fund"
of $4,000 raised by Dana Smith
to help the Senator win re-
election. When the names were
made public last September,
Senator Nixon found that he
had a personal acquaintance
with only a third of the 78 who
did contribute. He knew that
MIR. Smiths letter of solicitation
had been sent to hundreds Of
Californians who had been
contributors in his previous
campaigns for Congress, but he
had heard only names of a few
who did contribute.
2. Senator Nixon personally
never telephoned or visited any
governmental agency in behalf
of these constituents or any
others. He left all such contacts
to his Office assistants in the
same way that many other
members Of Congress do.
8. Senator Nixon never re-.
ceived any fees from the current
practice Of the law firm with
which he had been connected
and did receive from this firm
only a small sum as the pro-
ceedS Of estates due him for
work performed before he went
to Congress.
4. During the campaign Gen.
Eisenhower was told that his
aides could have access to any
Of Senator Nixon's income-tax
returns or personal papers. He
also told friends who raised the
question that he had no objec-
tion to examination Of his in
come-tax returns, but he didn't
want to keep on debating the
subject publicly and thus aid his
political opposition in their
diversionary tactics.
/ 8. Senator Nixon never had
any correspondence with any
member Of the special fund"
about the fund, and if any Of
them wrote to him on other
matters-as a very few did
they were treated as all other
constituents were treated.
6. The so-called Christmas
cards were acknowledgements
and greetings to persons who
had worked in or contributed
to previous political campaigns,
and this item of anticipated
expense was explicitly men
toned by Dana Smith in his
original letter of solicitation,
because there were as many as
10000 political campaign work.
ers to whom these cards were
to be sent. Had this letter been
published at the very outset of
the controversy. there might
have been much less furor. For