| Show mm x Washington i L T I T t 1911 11 4 z J Washington 1 hlf Ov Overshadowing al all 1 else eise In the national capital at this writing Is the con con- Need Curb that Is Is' Is I M on n Inquiries boiling and and- sur surgIng surg- surg s i Ing n around ro u n d the head of at Democratic Senator Sen Sen- ator Black mack who I Is the chairman of the the- senates senate's lobby I Investigating J committee As an nn offshoot of or this t controversy t-controversy the the f federal deral commission Is In In water nich too hot for tor bathing and It be be- r 1 i t ap appear ear t that when the steam bi blows s off the communications commission commission com- com mission Is likely to be a 0 thoroughly thorough- thorough ly Iy discredited federal agency because because be- be cause cause of ot of the Ue part pad It Jt played In Senator Sea Sen ator Blacks Black's unprecedented seizure c- c cof of or private tele telegrams rams from the Western Union and Postal Tc Telegraph Telegraph Tele- Tele e- e 1 graph companies Speaking generally It has been seldom that a n United States sena- sena ator has hns ever attempted to assert the tile authority that Senator Black mack has used and It Is equally unprecedented dented that a federal agency has hns gone to t time the Je extremes that characterized characterized charac charac- te the action of the tile communications commission In connection with the the seizure of the the messages But some good may come from the police court prosecution n tactics employed by S Senator Black and some good may come from the accusations ac ac- leveled le at the communications c commission because that body helped Senator Black carry carryout out out his bIs plans The wide country Indignation that has arisen from Senator nr Blacks Black's usurpation of oC power has brought to tho front t a n question that nc needs qs public attention and needs It badly JI p.-I p. I 1 refer In n this connection con to the steadily expanding efforts of ot con- con Investigators especially f f sc Investigators Investigators' to take lake ov ov- t f rr r as as' as ureic own wn powers that always k f b been cn regarded edns as reser reserved ed ex x oJ i elusively to to- the courts The con consensus consensus' con among Washington observers n ers certainly Is that the legislative l Inquiries have hae developed develop d to toI n a aj I j point where the most humble humble reI re re- I J lr of ot justice j ustice e have ha been arid rind are being are completely l Ignored Ignore Whether er they are so Intended these inquiries and this Includes Include h ives tI conducted by committees s riot only of con congress hut but of state legislators and antI even cn even city city cit councils are lire approaching the point pont where are almost tyrannical If s without sn saying ln then that the thc time has arrived for citizens to i. i iss th themselves These Inquiries J gill cill riot proceed when tI the e elected legislators r state or or r national learn tJi f the people do not approve o of 11 such handed handed tactics r In n order to have an nn understanding understand 1 Ini lag ing of the latest of these escapades esca- esca pales lades It Is nee I i Blacks Black Blacks 5 es essary m to review re A Activities briefly what has happened In the cs c's case of the senate lobby In Investigating sll aln al- al ing n committee Almost a n year ar a ago o othe the committee sought the life Uie aid of the fe federal eral communications commission com corn mission which had the color of ot authority nu au- In 11 law for Investigating the t. t business of or the tile telegraph compa compa- nies Senator Black I issued sued a n broad hrold 1 subpoena directing the telegraph co companies to make available any mH md all messa messages cs his committee de do sired Communications commission agents fI ts Ua then n went event Into the tele telegraph company files tiles read er e everything the they could find and made copl copies s of all oJ of the m messages which those n agents under ender guidance of or Black mack Investigators tors thought ht would be helpful toe to the e Black committee In exposing operations of private Individuals The p purpose of ot this as outlined by Senator Black was to locate clues s' s sto to the lie machinations of or busness bus busl- ness ness ness' Interests Interest who were seeking passage or defeat for legislation le pending In cOD congress ress The Alabama senat senator r wanted to show up lobb lobbyists lob lob- b He ne conte contended ded anti and has hns main maIn- r 1 consistently that these mal uial of great reat wealth could coul not accomplish accomplish- un any influence In congress con con- gross gress unless It were done secretly and ln tJi the dark In other words Senator mac Black persuaded members of the commission to help him r In his fishing lin expedition lie He persuaded per per- sunder that organization that It If should become a party to lo an um designed ned as ns n dragnet dragnet dragnet drag- drag net ii i movement to smear anybody and everybody who had bad used telegraphic telegraphic tele tele- graphic service ser The mack Black plan linn was WIS carried O out Ot t In In hi secret Senders ll ers n and receivers Cr of of messages a s which those agents copied knew nothing about It Tit The operation was Just as ns much Ir the dark as ns any of ot the thc lobbying ln n about out which Senator Black complained com cony lain i C even Cn n more so It was only li b accident by that the facts became known wn hut but when they did lid h become known the tile lid was promptly blown off ocr The end I Is not yet ct nor nCr Is It er even 1 iiI In sl sight ht One federal Judge e has Issued a retraining restraining order against such tactics and a n half dozen other applications ns for similar orders are arc pending Undoubtedly the questions questions questions ques ques- whatever the rulings s may be bp will find their way e eventually to the Supreme court of the United States The senate Itself Is looking Into the situation It has by resolution resolution tion asked the federal c communications commission to make a 8 report stating the facts and by what authority au nu It acted So there Is much hubbub about the whole thing timing and If one may Judge from Crom the line of or conversation conversation conversa conversa- tion generally l heard around WashIngton Wash Ington Inston Senator Black Jack Is o on the hot hut hotspot hotspot spot and the spot thus far tar has hns shown no Indications of or entering a cooling stage Senate Investigations long have been considered by many people as ns mod modus u s operandi Charge that cr creak ak w V with I t h b bUn Un Unfairness fa irn unfairness Unbiased Un- Un U p n biased observers frequently have criticized them because because be be- cause of ot- the methods employed It seems absolutely necessary that the senate should have power to call witnesses wItnesses- to ask legitimate and proper questions and to force an an- savers If It It Is going to enact legislation leg leg- to correct evils It mu must t be equipped with such powers But the point t Is that in seeking such In Information Information formation the tl senate has consIstently consistently consistently consist consIst- permitted Its committees committee's to act In a fashion that can be described described described de de- scribed by no other word than out out- 1 I have ha watched them over ov ov- Oer over er a period of ot nearly twenty twenty years and nd seldom If It e ever er r has hns there been an Important Investigation that did not degenerate soo sooner er or later Inter Into a condition that savored su of or p police Uce c court urt practices For several se years there has been beena a n bill pending In In congress d designed to prevent or at nt least r reduce duce lynch lynch- Ings The theory back of r It t Is that many times s Innocent persons have rave been lynched and that every ery one has a right to a trial by jury In a prop properly r y constituted court Over across ucross the Atlantic ocean dictators dicta dicta- dictators tors tor have operated and have hare employed employed em em- plo ed the fire blood d purge the summary summary sum sum- n mary ary death 1 ath sentence or the execution execution tion without t granting tile the accused the the right of or defense Undoubtedly Undoubted Undoubted- ly Iy some persons guilty of murder or rape cape ba have been lynched undoubtedly undoubtedly un un- the summary executions by the Soviet or the Fascists of Italy have provided death e lh for tor In in- in who were festering sor sorto sores to humanity but there can cnn be no ro doubt that in the case of oi the I lynch lynch- Ings or In the case of the blood purge or the summary executions many Innocent persons have had their lives snuffed out So It Is with senate U Undoubtedly they then have uncovered uncovered un un- covered some flirty dirty crooked dealIn deal- deal In ings s. s Un Undoubtedly they have e br brought to public atten attention l m activities ties lies an and conditions that ought to have e lave been exposed Yet the fact remains that nearly nil all of our people people peo peo- pIc are de decent ent people Jaw law abiding ln and self And when senate senate senate sen sen- ate Investigations go beyond proper prop er limits they approach If they do donot donot o not wholly become tyranny In defense of Senator Blacks Black's ac nc acion action ac- ac lion ion In the lobby Investigation I Ir think It ll can an can fairNot fall fair r TT T ft Not Wholly I iy ly be said that he heto heto heto to Blame I Is not wholly to blame If If- he has bas gono gone further than nn any other In the liro program of Inquiry and prosecution upon which h he has launched Little Littie Little Lit Lit- tle tie by little bit by bit the senate has arrogated to Itself authority hitherto not used by It Little b by little It IL t has hns encroached upon what many believe c to be the Jurisdiction of the time courts and In a n like manner I It has huts taken unto Itself powers hitherto supposed to have been exclusively ex ex- i cJ ly reserved to the executive e department of or government II It would seem then lien that drat If Ie oth cr or senate committees had lisher the time precedent Senator Black mack could properly use lse time the e same ineth oll oda The rhe trouble In his his' case is that he did dIll not stop at limits previously previous lous I ly set discreditable as ns those limits were but went beyond them To repeat there Is Is' every IndIcation Indica IndIca- tion that some sane some good will come conic ou out out of this clr circumstance Important nt men and brilliant Jaw lawyers and ond great greaf organizations or or- like c the Chamber r of Commerce of the United United States Slates the National Association of ot luri rs anti and the American Liberty lea league ha have haC C taken en note hote of th the steadily expanding power powel claimed calmed h by the senate seriate r This means menns that tha the time questions involved will swill get Into the courts It Is 15 to be hoped that tha they will be he presented to lo the time courts courts In such a manner that the tile gins ques lions may be he finally and lastingly answered ans that the powers of th th the legislators may he be delimited am and that a n definite e c expression mn may conic come from the Judiciary that will vIII determine deter deter- wine mine wh whether members or of lie e house and the senate can cnn serve vat at oneas once one as ns lebl legislators llIors judges s and rind tors tt tJ Western Newspaper Union t I |
