Browning chief. [volume] (Browning, Mont.) 1941-1953, 1952-01-11

can't answer that; they must just
like me-"
Our Committee had uncovered
some interesting facts on Mickey's
method of reporting income to the
government. These interested the
Internal Revenue Bureau, too, and
after our final hearings, Cohen and
his blonde wife, Lavonne, were in
dicted for alleged income tax
evasion over period of three
years. Instead of paying taxes on
approximately $318,50O in me,
they reported and paid on only
$87 500, the government contends.
(Cohen was found guilty and SEN
fenced to S years in PRISON..
The piece de resistance of our
West coast investigation was the
appearance of Arthur H. Samish,
the portly million-dollar beer lobby
list. Californians have had snatch
es of his squalid story before, but
never in quite such detail direct
from the lips of the master string
puller himself.
Samish stands over feet, 2 inch
es and must weigh better than 300
pounds. He is bald with a monks
tonsure of grey fringe, and face
of bland innocence. He gesticulates
freely in the grand style. stabbing
the air with his horn-rimmed glass;
es or fiddling with his watch chain,
a heavy affair of white gold or
platinum, made up of large links
which form his initials.
From his 1949 tax return, we
knew Samish's gross reported in
come had been S143, 69?. Of this
income, 9O,999.94 represented fees
from his public relations" clients.
The principal contributor was the
California State Brewers institute,
which provided a modest 10000 in
salary and expenses, plus control of
a Sl53.OO0-a-year slush fund.
A 1898 report from Howard R.
Philbrick, investigator for a Cali
fornia legislative committee, had
charged: 1.-THE principal source of
corruption in the legislature has
been money pressure 9. The prin-
cipal offender among the lobby
lists has been Arthur E. Samish :"
1t was the Philbrick report which
credited to Samish the famous dec
laration that he was "the gov
ernor of the Legislature" "to
hell with the governor of the state"
The State Brewers institute. a
non-profit organization. has a spe-
cial so-callcd "5-cent fund" For
every barrel of beer produced. the
brewers paid cents into fund
which Samish spent as he saw fit.
Into the Scent "Samish fund.-"
over a period of six years, $685.
943l9 has flowed. All but S43.9l3.29
of the $685., 1000 has been spent by
sole and exclusive direction OF Sam
ish Some of it, he admitted, went
to pay his own personal hotel ex-
perses when he was presumably
engaged in business Tor the insti-
tute. He didn't mention this in his
tax returns.
The fireworks began after our in
vestigator had gone over the books
and records which Samish had
turned over with flourishes 1t de-
veloped that Samish's personal rec
ords and books were in understand
able shape. but there were no rec
ords concerning the "Samish fund"
of nearly 81 100000
We asked him what happened to
cancelled checks and stubs written
on this fund He said he throws
them in the l'astebasket
Finally. he re'inouished to US a
typewriter analysis II wasn't
much of an analysis" it merely
showed that most of the big checks
from $4,000 to 4O.OOO-were
made out to leash" or "contribu-
tions Samish admitted that
" cash and contributions are the
same thing" and that these items
in most cases meant that money
was distributed by him personally
and in cash-to good. honest. out
standing officials that subscribed
to 1.-THE temperate use Of beer, wine
and spirits " He demanded m
receipts from them.
He made contributions to the can
dldates OF both major parties but
he couldn't seem to remember to
whom he gave the money
Next week: How the Laws Are
Enforced in Upstate New York.
Condensed from the book Crime In
America. by Estes Kefauver. Cpr. 1851.
Pub bv Doubleday. Inc Dist General