Statesmanship

Like many another pre-war phenomenon, Mr. Dies was obsolete.

Once a loud Dies committee booster, the American Legion now looked the other way. The press grew more & more hostile to an investigation that seemed irresponsible. Many who once thought Martin Dies served a purpose --when there actually was a fellow traveler behind every other lamppost --became more & more sniffy about his methods, said the FBI could look after such things better. But fewer and cooler headlines made Martin Dies reckless. He made the mistake of colliding with Vice President Henry Wallace, and the encounter sent him fizzling away to Texas. There he announced his latest fantasy: he and a secretary would take secret spy testimony on his ranch, mail the results to Washington. Even this drew only a few newspaper lines.

Mr. Dies was obsolete, but Congress, unsure how many voters still spoke his language, was not quite ready to declare him so. Last week the House shrugged, voted him another $100,000 (a third of what he had asked) plus $10,000 to cover some arrears.

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