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Show Federal Laws Inadequate to Cope With Radicalism, Attorney General Says More Than 60,000 Persons Under Surveillance, But Weakness of Laws Handicaps Department Of Justice, He Adds. WASHINGTON, Nov. 15. The I growth of radicalism throughout through-out the country was to bo attributed at-tributed to inadequacy of federal fed-eral laws against preaching violent overthrow of the government, Attorney General Palmer declared tonight in replying re-plying to the senate's recent inquiry as to what action had been taken by Tho department of justice to curb efforts ef-forts to establish a "dictatorship of the proletariat." Mr. Palmer disclosed that the department has more thnu sixty thousand persons under surveillance surveil-lance as radicals, with whom it is unable un-able to cope because of weakness of preaent statutes. The attorney general urged the passage pas-sage of a law to supplement the espionage es-pionage act and to take its place when the wartime measure ceases to bo ef feetive. He described the proposed act as being the most effective method of dealing with sedition, anarchy and radicalism rad-icalism generally which members of his staff had been able to draft. Mr. Palmer Pal-mer said the bill was broad enough to stop effectually all attempts to overturn over-turn the existing order and yet safeguard safe-guard free speech and the press. Problem Presented by Foreign Language Press. Activities of the foreign language press present another problem which the department has been unable to meet successfully, he said. Investigations Investiga-tions have uncovered 222 foreign language lan-guage newspapers which have openly advocated changes in the governmental system by violence and preached sedition. sedi-tion. English newspapers branded as anarchistic an-archistic and menacing by the department's depart-ment's agents number 105, Mr. Palmer said.- He explained that theso were much more easily dealt with, as loyal citizens are aiding the government in reporting them. In addition, Mr. Palmar said, 111 radical newspapers, published in foreign countries, are received and distributed in the United States. Most of them, ' he said, were not sent through the I mails, but were shipped in bulk and j distributed by hand to the foreign popu-1 lation. Mr. Palmer listed the foreign language lan-guage newspapers engaged in radical activities, printed in this country, as follows': Armenian 1, Bohemian 9, Bulgarian 3, Croatian 4, Danish 4, Ksthouian 1, Finnish 11, French 1, German 21, Greek 2, Hungarian 23, Italian 27, Jewish 20, Dettish 11, Portuguese 1, Rumanian 1", Slovenian S, Spanish 8, Lithuanian 13, Polish 7, Swedish 6, Ukrainian 8, and Yiddish 13. Corps of Translators Always Kept Busy. The department has kept a corps of forty translators busy and is attempt ing to gather evidence of their activities activ-ities from other sources as well, Mr. Palmer said. Articles advocating violence vio-lence always atw .supported, he ex- plained, by being folowed up with pamphlets and other propaganda. Most of the newspapers nauied are practically devoid of advertising, which the department accepts as proof that funds are coming from outside sources, Mr. Palmer said. Mr. Palmer argued for changes in immigration laws and revision to simplify simp-lify laws governing deportation. Rad-ical Rad-ical leaders have taken advantage of countless technicalities to evade deportation, de-portation, he explained. Practically all of the radical organizations organi-zations in the country have looked upon the negro race as fertile ground for the i spread of their doctrine, Mr. Palmer said. He warned that the propaganda had been successful in many respects and that the government should guard against trouble from that direction. |