◆ SpookStack

. ‘ ee ‘ te fam ere ey ' . aVase Ske Nore ree The subject of “eavesdropping” by the Federal Bureau of Investigation flared tnis month into a public feud between FBI director J. Edgar Hoov- ‘er and Sen. Robert F. Kennedy, the forme: Attorney General of the Unit- ed States and Mr. Hoover's former i boss. It's an old subject, buf wnat hos puzzied us is Senator Kennedy’s pre- tense at ignorance that such practico , existed while he headed the Dept. of Justice. Since the subject has come tp : again, the FBI has released to the . press (this newspaper included) oiii- cial documents to show that Mr, Ken- -: nedy aid, indeed, know about what . the bureau terms “microphone sur- ' veitanees” and, moreover, he ap- proved the practice. _ Among the documents is a mine orancum irom tne PBI daied Aug. 17, 1541, asking the then-attorncy General's parmission to use leascd ice . lephone lines in connection with such surveiilances. The memo read: “li we are permitted to use the leased icle- phone lines as an adjunct to our mi- _erophons surveillances, this type of _ coverage Can be materially extenccd “both in security and major criminal _ cases. Accordingly, your approval of - { Guz utilizing this leased line arranze- - not t eee a i ee a / a ? - “4 aA, eh. EXCLOSURL 7 dl Me. Kenn 1SE _ signed by Mr, Kennedy. . i . . are wie re aM . FFP — “ LJ ‘ f + ment is requested.. " At the bottom t is typed ihe word “approved,” fol- - LO : lowed by Mr, Kennedy's signature. _ Mr. ‘Sennedy, during the controver- © eo, sy, has used one Courtney A. Evans as _ ; his back-up man. Mr. Evans, aretired - FBI special agent, was the assistant director in charge of the division in- veslizaling organized crime and rack etecring during Mr. Kennedy’s term - as attorney general and he served a . . 7 _ = liaison between the FBI and Mr. Ken- : £ > nedy, ot ‘ _ Well, among the documents fur ; -, from Mir. Evans, datcd Aug. 17, 1961, j on the subject of “microphone sur= veillances’’ in waich he discusses the procedure of obtaining leased tete- phone lines and concludes with this sentence: “Tne Attorney General ap- proved the proposed procedure in this . , . rogard and personally signed the at- : a tached memorandum evidencing such : . approval. ” The “attached memoran- : . one aforementioned, *, Ca ERT OR Ey STE Tia a ark bt EAS Ce er dum" is the ‘tis apparent that since Mr<«Kenne-:- dy Iefi the Cabinct to become a sena- tor he has changed his attitude on s eavesdropping as‘a method to fight : crime. It is apparent, tno, that his “ memory is short. | :; . . * ¥ fie mE aS