Senator DONNELL. The Omaha World-Herald has recently had an editorial on this, on the matter of yourself being down here. Mr. JOHNSON. That is correct.

We are

Senator DONNELL. I do not mean this to be offensive at all. talking about whether or not the fact that the attorney general is here. is indicative of the opinion of the people of his State. Mr. JOHNSON. That is correct.

Senator DONNELL. Is the World-Herald an influential newspaper in Omaha?

Mr. JOHNSON. I would say it is.

Senator DONNELL. How large a circulation does it have?

Mr. JOHNSON. I am not familiar with its circulation.

Senator DONNELL. Have you seen the editorial which appeared on February 18, 1948, entitled, "Johnson Against Nebraska"?

Mr. JOHNSON. I have.

Senator DONNELL. That appeared both in the evening World-Herald and the Sunday edition of the morning World-Herald, did it not? Mr. JOHNSON. I could not say. I have seen that editorial. Senator DONNELL. You have? You have seen that editorial? Mr. JOHNSON. Yes, sir.

Senator DONNELL. I am going to offer that in the record in a moment. It starts out by saying:

Many Nebraskans are now aware that their attorney general, Walter Johnson, is holding two jobs-one as an elected State official, another as a highly paid lobbyist in Washington.

Are you registered as a legislative agent?

Mr. JOHNSON. I am.

Senator DONNELL. Does your registration indicate how long you are going to be employed, or have been employed?

Mr. JOHNSON. It does.

Senator DONNELL. How long does it say?

Mr. JOHNSON. Up to July.

Senator DONNELL. Up until July?

Mr. JOHNSON. Yes, sir.

Senator DONNELL. And beginning when?

Mr. JOHNSON. January.

Senator DONNELL. That would be 6 months.

Mr. JOHNSON. Yes, sir; including July. That was the possibility. Senator DONNELL. Depending on how long Congress is in session; is that it?

Mr. JOHNSON. We cannot rely on how long Congress is going to be in session. It depends on the amount of time required to put through this legislation. We hope soon.

Senator DONNELL. It provides, and your papers on file in Washington indicate, that you are to get 1,500 a month, and until that event occurs, but not later than July?

Mr. JOHNSON. That is correct.

Senator DONNELL. Reference was made by Senator McCarran to the attitude of the Governor of your State. Do you know how he personally stands on this particular legislation, S. 1988?

Mr. JOHNSON. I was of the impression he was for it. I know prior to the governors' conference he asked me for some material on it. I supplied him with some of the briefs that had been presented by the

attorney general in connection with the United States v. California

case.

He wanted to be informed on it.

He was present at the conference at Salt Lake City. That conference adopted a resolution favorable to the States, and, as you know, Governor-Senator Donnell, you were previously Governor of the State of Missouri-that a resolution cannot be adopted at the governor's conference if there is one vote against it.

Senator DONNELL. That is correct. So you think he was certainly not voting against it?

Mr. JOHNSON. He was present, and I was of the opinion that he was for it, because he called me at times and asked me as to the attitude of our Members in Congress concerning the matter, indicating his favorable interest in the matter.

Now, as to whether or not he changed his mind, I could not say. He should speak for himself. I know that he has not been personally present here. I do not know if he sent any message here indicating his attitude, since the matter has been pending in Congress.

Senator DONNELL. Has he sent any message to you for transmittal to our committee?

Mr. JOHNSON. He has not.

Senator DONNELL. Who is the present Governor of Nebraska?
Mr. JOHNSON. Val Peterson.

Senator DONNELL. Governor Val Peterson?

Now, this editorial continues:

But few Nebraskans are familiar with the kind of work Mr. Johnson is doing in Washington.

Do you think that that is true?

Mr. JOHNSON. He has not been back here, except their local representatives have been back here. I do not know if they know what kind of work I have been doing, or not.

Senator DONNELL. Do you think this tidelands subject, so called, has really been particularly discussed in the State of Nebraska? Mr. JOHNSON. I would say by informed people.

Senator DONNELL. What do you mean by that?

Mr. JOHNSON. I would say that I have discussed it with quite a number of lawyers in Nebraska.

Senator DONNELL. You have a population of how many in Nebraska?

Mr. JOHNSON. 1,300,000.

Senator DONNELL. I realize you have not made any poll, but about

Mr. JOHNSON. We have not had a referendum on it.

Senator DONNELL. What percentage of those people do you think have ever discussed this subject of submerged lands, based on the percentage of your acquaintances and friends that you have ever heard discuss it?

Mr. JOHNSON. I would say, with the friends I have discussed it with-I mean my personal friends-practically everyone has been favorable to it.

Of course, they are friendly to me, and naturally they would be, possibly, expressing themselves favorably in view of my interest.

I know that I have received some letters, I have even received a letter the other day with reference to the attitude of the World-Herald and they said:

We are trying to get an impartial viewpoint now.

At first they only got one side of it. That was the expression of one individual from Nebraska.

Senator DONNELL. The one side of it was which side?

Mr. JOHNSON. As expressed in this editorial, which was based on the wrong assumption, that the intent of this bill was in any way to interfere with the Pick-Sloan plan to develop the Missouri River. Senator DONNELL. We will come to that in a moment.

Mr. JOHNSON. Yes, sir.

Senator DONNELL. At any rate, General, would you say that the submerged lands question has been an active subject of discussion among the people of your State in the last 6 months?

Mr. JOHNSON. There have been quite a few stories in the papers about it.

Senator DONNELL. I am not doubting that, but I am asking you whether you think that has been a subject of discussion all over the State of Nebraska for the last 6 months.

Mr. JOHNSON. I could not say as to that.

Senator DONNELL. Of course, you did not take a poll. You could give us your opinion.

Mr. JOHNSON. My opinion is that it has been actively discussed for the reason that friends of mine who know of my interest in the matter-naturally I would say that 95 percent of my friends are informed on that matter for that reason.

Senator DONNELL. The people of Nebraska generally

Mr. JOHNSON. And therefore I would not be a proper criterion to tell you what percentage of the people of Nebraska are discussing this matter. On that basis I would say 95 percent, talking of my friends. Senator DONNELL. You do not contend that 95 percent-Mr. JOHNSON. No, sir.

Senator DONNELL. You would not contend that 50 percent of the people of Nebraska ever heard of it; would you?

Mr. JOHNSON. I could not figure or fix the percentage. I would not have any way of doing it.

Senator DONNELL. As a matter of fact you contend that 250,000 people of the State of Nebraska had discussed this matter during the last 6 months at all.

Mr. JOHNSON. I think maybe more than that, by reason of this publicity.

Senator DONNELL. The publicity in regard to yourself?

Mr. JOHNSON. Yes, sir.

Senator DONNELL. Now, the editorial continues:

He has said he is "working for the welfare of Nebraska” in fighting for State control of tidelands.

Have you said that?

Mr. JOHNSON. I have.

Senator DONNELL. The editorial continues:

This is really a fight between the Federal Government and the States with ofl-bearing coastal lands, principally California and Texas, as to which shall own the offshore oil fields.

73335-48- -68

Mr. JOHNSON. That is their statement.

Senator DONNELL. I say, that is what they say in the editorial.
The editorial continues:

In the Supreme Court and in Congress, the interests which Mr. Johnson represents he is employed by the National Association of Attorneys General-are trying to get these lands into the hands of the States. Obviously, this issue does not directly concern Nebraska.

Do you happen to know who the editor of the World-Herald is? Mr. JOHNSON. The publisher of the Omaha World-Herald is Mr. Henry Doorly.

Senator DONNELL. And the editor is Hitchcock; is it not?

Mr. JOHNSON. No. Mrs. Doorly is the daughter of ex-Senator Hitchcock. The editor in chief, I believe, at the present time, is Mr. New Branch; I believe the active editor is Mr. Walter Christenson. Senator DONNELL. The editorial continues

Mr. JOHNSON. I would not mind at that time, as long as you have mentioned this editorial-I will do that after you get through with

your comments.

Senator DONNELL. No; go right ahead.

Mr. JOHNSON. It was rather of interest. About 2 days after this editorial appeared, I received a letter from the Committee for Constitutional Government. I do not know anything about this particular organization, but this letter was addressed to Walter Richard Johnson, Esq.-it was not written from the paper-State House, Lincoln, Nebr., and forwarded on to me here in Washington. Among those listed in the advisory board of this Committee for Constitutional Government is Mrs. H. Doorly, Omaha, Nebr.

Now, I would like to read the attitude of that committee
Senator MCCARRAN. Who is the lady?

Mr. JOHNSON. She is the wife-that is, the daughter of the deceased Senator Hitchcock, and the wife of Henry Doorly, the publisher of this paper. Senator Hitchcock owned this paper. Mrs. Doorly inherited it from her father.

It is rather interesting to note that Mrs. Doorly is one of the advisory board of the Committee for Constitutional Government. It says: DEAR FELLOW MEMBER OF THE BAR: You and I have solemnly sworn, when admitted to the bar, to "support the Constitution of the United States.

Senator DONNELL. Is she a lawyer?

Mr. JOHNSON. No. I did not know she was a member of the bar, but this is addressed as "dear fellow member of the bar."

I wanted to note that she is one of the advisory board of this committee. The letter continues:

You and I have solemnly sworn, when admitted to the bar, to "support the Constitution of the United States." We have, I believe, therefore, a special obligation to help correct, as was done in the portal-to-portal case by legislation, the dangerous precedent set by the United States Supreme Court in the Tidelands decision.

This decision made possible the biggest land grab in American history by the Federal Government in taking away from the States, without compensation, an area equal to that of all the New England States. Under tideland waters are deposits of coal, salt, petroleum, magnesium, and other metals. The rights of the bast fishing industry are involved-oysters, clams, shrimps, sponges, etc.

This party agrees with Congressman Hobbs in that respect― also docks, wharves, parks, amusement pavilions, city extensions. But even more ominous are the new constitutional legal theories enunciated by the Supreme Court. These theories would give the National Government full domination over property-if a Government official asserted a "paramount need" with the power to confiscate without compensation, as in this Tidelands case. This strikes at the keystone of our political and economic order. If property rights go out of the window, we are on the way to a different social order.

They have a lot of other material here. It goes on and suggests that we write to our Members in Congress, and lists the bill on the back

of it.

I suppose I ought to call this a secret letter from the wife of the publisher of the paper of their actual opinion.

Senator DONNELL. Do you think that is a secret letter?

Mr. JOHNSON. I do not know. I get an expression of a newspaper editorial one way, and get a letter personally addressed to me stating what a dangerous bill this is.

They send in a pamphlet which I would like to show you, entitled "Octopus on the Potomac," that was incorporated in this letter. Senator DONNELL. May I see the page that has Mrs. Doorly's name on it?

Mr. JOHNSON. I would like to offer this in evidence, if I may, for the record.

Senator DONNELL. General, is this letter that you have just read signed by Mrs. Doorly?

Mr. JOHNSON. No; it is not. If you will give it to me, I will tell you who it is signed by.

Senator DONNELL. It is signed by Sumner Gerard.

Mr. JOHNSON. I did not say it was signed by her. It is from this committee, of which she is an advisory board member.

Senator DONNELL. There are about 29 members listed here as a partial list of the advisory board.

Mr. JOHNSON. Yes, sir.

Senator DONNELL. You do not know what her personal opinion is at all, do you?

Mr. JOHNSON. I would presume, if I were a member of the advisory board, I would not want my name to be on any statement in connection with a matter of that sort, unless it expressed my personal opinion. I would have to answer your question by saying that I do not know. Senator DONNELL. You do not know what the vote of this board was whether they voted, whether the vote was taken, or what her personal opinion was?

Mr. JOHNSON. All I know about it is that I received this in the mail. Senator DONNELL. You know nothing about this, other than that you received it in the mail?

Mr. JOHNSON. That is correct.

Senator DONNELL. The officers, Dr. Willford I. King, chairman, and Sumner Gerard, treasurer, national headquarters, Washington, D. C., at the National Press Building.

Then we have as a partial list of the advisory board, Mr. Samuel Pettingill, of South Bend, Ind., and Mr. Edward H. Moore, of Tulsa, Okla.