Nazi Repentance Week

This was hair-shirt week along the Nazi front.

Walter Kappe, militant Nazi editor who had lustily assailed the Jews from the editorial offices of the Deutsche Zeintung, and quit that paper when its editor’s apology in a criminal libel action resulted in a change of policy with regard to the Jews, himself joined the ranks of apology-makers.

Faced with a $100,000 civil libel suit and threat of a criminal action for his vicious attacks on Dr. Kurt Rosenfeld, former Prussian Minister of Justice, Kappe acted Thursday to save his skin by making a sweeping apology to Arthur Garfield Hays, attorney for Dr. Rosenfeld.

COLUMBIA DEAN UNDER FIRE

Another notorious Jew-baiter was brought to book in Boston when Edward Hunter, attorney and executive secretary of the Industrial Defense Association, an organization which fought “Jewish-Communists” and battled the “Jewish red menace,” lost two libel suits brought against him and against the organization by the Artkino Guild, Inc.

A New York City official who had lent his name to a “Fascist” outfit, American Concentration, Inc., built out of the wreck of the “Khaki Shirt” organization, found himself in hot water and the subject of two investigations.

Mayor LaGuardia, after being advised by the Jewish Daily Bulletin that Major John T. Prout, confidential clerk to Comptroller McGoldrick, was head of the Fascist organization, promised an immediate investigation. Comptroller McGoldrick promised likewise. Major Prout hastily denied that he was anti-Semitic and insisted he was interested only in fighting the Communist “menace.”

The Columbia University campus shared in the excitement following allegations that Dean Thomas Alexander, of New College, had engaged in anti-Semitic activities and that students were being organized into anti-Jewish groups. Pelham St. George Bissell 3rd, son of the New York judge, denied acting as “contact man” for Royal Scott Gulden. Dean Alexander was reported visiting in Germany.

After hearing a vigorous denunciation of the un-American and subversive aims of the League of Friends of New Germany, Supreme Court Justice McGoldrick reserved decision on an application by the organization for a New York State certificate of incorporation.

AMERICAN FASCISTS

Smedley D. Butler, retired commander of the Marines, hurled a bombshell into Wall Street last week with his sensational charges that a Wall Street group had tendered him an offer to lead a Fascist veterans’ army into Washington to seize command of the government.

General Butler told his story to the Congressional Committee investigating un-American activities. Despite a storm of denials from all those named by “Old Gimlet-Eye,” the committee appeared impressed by his story and promised a full investigation of it. Links between Nazi and Social Registerite anti-Semitic groups and the “conspirators behind the Butler ###t” were to be sought.