Scholarship Racket

In 1925 the Pennsylvania State Legislature passed a resolution by which each of the 50 State Senators would annually receive three four-year scholarships, to hand out as he pleased, for each of the four institutions which receive State aid: the University of Pennsylvania. University of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania State College". Temple University in Philadelphia. The resolution conditioned the granting of annual appropriations upon the awarding of these 600 scholarships, whose total worth (average tuition: $300) is $720,000. It was predictable that some scholarships would be misused, bandied about for their political worth. But not until last week was this $720,000 worth of educational "pork" much in the public eye.

For certain tuition fees the University of Pennsylvania had been paid $1,040 in worthless checks. Temple University had $749 worth of scribbled paper. A lawyer named Joseph M. Gazzam Jr. had been making investigations for several Philadelphia youths who had been mulcted of various sums. All the investigations converged upon one man, a 45-year-old retired druggist named Henry S. Fitch. Last week he was arrested on ten warrants sworn out by university officials. Many a Philadelphian joined in to declare he had been swindled by Druggist Fitch. All their stories indicated that sometimes Druggist Fitch had genuine scholarships, which he sold at from $350 to $600, and that sometimes he had only hopes of getting scholarships, which he sold anyway at the same rates. If he could not deliver, it was charged, he would explain to would-be students that he would pay their tuition himself until a scholarship could be obtained. These payments he made with worthless checks.

Soon as Fitch was arrested, there met in indignation U. of P.'s President Gates, Pittsburgh's Chancellor Bowman, Temple's President Buery. Penn State's President Hetzel. They vowed to stamp out racketeering.

State Senators readily admitted that they swapped scholarships about so that they could hand them out in their own districts. Senator Max Aaron of Philadelphia exchanged one with Senator William D. Mansfield of Pittsburgh. The Mansfield scholarship somehow fell into the hands of Druggist Fitch. Senator Aaron explained that he had signed it, turned it over to the office of Boss William Scott Vare. But he, and many another Senator, agreed that the practice ought to be abolished. What they did not publicly admit was that many a Senator handed scholarships over to his ward leaders, indifferent as to what became of them and perhaps well aware that they would be used for political patronage or exchanged for a contribution to party funds.

Meanwhile the charges against Druggist Fitch mounted to 85. His bail was raised from $6,500 to $7,500. When the hearings began, he was absent. His attorney explained that "Fitch was pursued by a bunch of armed students into New Jersey," where he suffered a nervous breakdown.

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