Resentment was expressed in several New York Jewish newspapers at the omission of Charles A. Levine’s name from the congratulatory telegram sent by President Coolidge to the American Ambassador in Germany, Jacob Gould Schurman, on the flight of the Columbia.
Metropolitan newspapers quoted excerpts from an editorial pablished yesterday in “The Day,” New York Yiddish daily.
A Washington despatch to the New York “World” states: “The White House tonight (Tuesday) took no notice of ‘The Day’s’ editorial, advance copies of which had been sent here. One of the President’s friends explained that Mr. Coolidge had not mentioned Levine in his first message because he regarded the accomplishment as belonging to Chamberlin and fell that Levine was a passenger and was to be congratulated only for surviving the trip.”
In his formal message to President von Hindenburg, the President mentioned the names of both flyers. Mr. Coolidge’s original message was sent to Chamberlin through Ambassador Schurman and read:
“Congratulations upon your wonderful feat in setting a new non-stop record in conquest of the air. Our country rejoices with me in your safely making first sustained flight from America to Germany with our greetings to its people.”
President Coolidge’s cable to the German President read:
“I thank you for your friendly message about the flight of Chemberlin and Levine. They carried with them the good wishes of America to Germany. I am glad to add my personal good wishes to you and the German people, and at the same time to thank you for the kind reception given to the American aviators.”
Considerable surprise was also caused by statements made public by Postmaster General New containing what virtually amounts to charges against Charles A. Levine.
The story, apparently released by the Postmaster General to Washington press correspondents, concerns mail carried by the Columbia on its trans-Atlantic flight. There is some surprise that the matter should have been made public at this time when the Columbia’s flight is a subject of international ac-claim.
It was disclosed at the Postoffice Department that it had called on Fred Sealy, postmaster at Hempstead, L. I., for an explanation of why he cancelled the stamps on 250 letters said to have been carried across the Atlantic by the Columbia addressed to Charles A. Levine and others.
Postoffice inspectors have made some inquiry into the incident and Mr. Sealy is understood to have made the statement that he did not cancel the stamps until he had consulted Postal Inspector Owen Keene.
At yesterday’s Cabinet meeting the preliminary report of inspectors who had looked into the matter was discussed before President Coolidge.
Estimates were made by postal authorities that each of the cancelled stamps on the 250 letters would have a value to stamp collectors or something like $1,000 each or a total for all of them of $250,000.
Stamp collectors are not ot the same opinion as the Postoffice officials of the value of the cancelled stamps. Several collectors who were asked, said they didn’t believe they would bring more than $5 or possibly $10 each. R. P. Levis, well known stamp collector, said that the stamps on the letters would bring closer to $50 a piece than to the $1,000 estimated in Washington. “Collectors are interested not so much in novelties of this kind but in general rarities of issue and, as a consequence, these novelties do not command very high prices,” he said. “There are 250 of these stamps, I understand, and this, too, would bring down the price. The price might go as high as $100, but the average, I should say, would be about $50.”
The incident of the letters has attracted great interest in Washington Postal officials recalled that there have been what was termed a series of clashes between Postmaster General New and Mr. Levine. The first one followed the opening of bids on January 15 for carrying the air mail from New York to Chicago. There were three bidders, one of them the Columbia Company, with which Mr. Levine was connected and whose bids proved to be low. All the bids were finally thrown out and new bids called for.
Last March the Postmaster General refused to award an air-mail contract to the North American Airways, Inc. of Cleveland. The bid of this company, in which Levine held one-half of the outstanding stock, was slightly lower than that of the National Air Transport, Inc. of Chhago, headed by Paul Henderson, former Second Assistant Postmaster General under Mr. New.
Postmaster General New discarded the low bid and awarded the contract to the Henderson Company. Levine and other stockholders of the North American Airways. Inc. immediately filed protests. Comptroller General McCari, to whom the matter was referred officially, ruled that Mr. New was justified in the action taken.
Postmaster General New gave as his reason for not considering the bid of Levine’s company that he had been apprised of actions against Levine resulting from his salvaging transactions with the War Department.
Frank O’Connor, press representative of Charles A. Levine, stated yesterday: “A month ago there was a discussion on the possibilities of presenting members of the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce with souvenir cancelled air mail letters. It was suggested at the time that this apparently would be the only recognition these members would receive for the purse they then offered for the flight, $5,000.”
CHAMBERLIN AND LEVINE MAY FLY BACK TO U. S.
Clarence Chamberlin told the United Press yesterday that he and Charles A. Levine may fly back to the United States, a United Press despatch from Berlin states.
“An American organization has offered us $100,000 if we fly back to Roosevelt Field,” Chamberlin said in an interview with the United Press correspondent. “This offer is so attractive we are again considering the possibility of returning by airplane. I believe it is quite likely we shall leave Berlin in five or six days and fly to Vienna.” Chamberlin continued. “We have accepted an official invitation from the Austrian Government to visit them by air at their capital. We are also planning to fly to Rome. Paris and London, and are considering a flight to Moscow, possibly pausing at Poland on the way.”
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
