Bobby & the Businessman

Political corruption is almost as much a part of Massachusetts as its climate. And like the climate, everybody talks about it, but no one does much of anything. Last week U.S. Attorney General Robert Kennedy had his say on a television program in Boston; some observers saw Bobby's appearance as the opening shot to get elected Governor of Massachusetts in 1964. ''We have a major problem of corruption here in this state," said Bobby.

"Many things have to be done. They're going to have to be done by the citizens themselves. How much are businessmen taking an active role? And what about labor leaders? Where are they?" Bobby Kennedy's questions were angrily answered by Carl Gilbert, board chairman of the Gillette Co., who appeared on the same television show a night later.

Said Gilbert: "The Attorney General is too wise a man not to know that private citizens do not have any effective means to determine whether or not widespread corruption exists in government. The powers of the state government appear to be about to move into the hands of a Governor* who received strong Kennedy support. The police commissioner of Boston is an ex-FBI man. The U.S. attorney is a Kennedy appointee. Between the President and the Attorney General, all of the law-enforcement agencies of the United States Government are available. I hope that we are entitled to take the Attorney General's comments as a recognition of the fact that the power to take the lid off Massachusetts' state government, and to prove or disprove these freely repeated charges of corruption in this Commonwealth, lies in their hands.

And further, I hope that his comments can be taken as an acceptance of the responsibility to act promptly."

*Democrat Endicott ("Chub") Peabody, who --pending the outcome of a re-count--defeated Incumbent Republican John A. Volpe in last month's election.

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