Real threats: Prevented and Actual Sabotage

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The following is a note from of a phone call made to the Council of Defense.
"Mr. Alsop
Mr. Luddy
Mr. Albert H. House of Windsor reports the name of Mr. Lewis Meher who resides on Pine Swamp Road which runs off the main road at Station 8.
This man is an employee at the Colt Works. In the recent Campaign for the Y.M.C.A. Funds in Windsor he treated the representative very discourteously and damned the president up and down and everyone else connected with the United States Government and its war preparations.
Additional information regarding this man shows that early in the summer he brought some dynamite to Windsor without a license. Investigation at the time showed that he did have a license obtained in New Britain. I understand, however, that the dynamite was taken away from him.
He is very active and loud in his talk against the war in the trolleys and it is his opinion of a great many people in the vicinity that he is an undesirable neighbor.

The above information was received over the telephone from Mr. Albert H. House of Windsor."

There were many reports to the Connecticut Council of Defense from alert civilians of potential espionage. Many reports did not merit a full investigation and were quickly dismissed as posing a real threat. The mass suspicion of Connecticut foreigners of German heritage was not unfounded, as real threats emerged and had to be addressed. The case of Lewis Meher, an employee at the Colt Works, was one of these threats was posed to Connecticut’s wartime industry.

While Mr. Lewis Meher was active in speaking out against the war and his disenchantment of the United States Government, there is no record of his arrest. Rather Meher was simply disarmed of his dynamite and mostly likely kept under further investigation by agents working for the Navy or Council of Defense. This potential threat was stopped by an alert citizen calling the authorities with a tip of an unsettling observation.

The letter states,
"Dear Madam:
The Federal investigator for the committee on the Conservation of Food supply informs us that you have a surplus amount of canned fruits, vegetables, jellies, etc. over the above the number permitted for a family consisting of ten persons.
As the number in your family is even less, this act will come under the law against hoarding. No doubt you did this work with the most patriotic motives, and are commended for your energy and zeal, and I regret to inform you that under Article 23 of said act thirty-three and one-third per cent. (33-1/3%) of your supply is liable to confiscation. You will, therefor, have packed, and ready to be called for on or before December 15th the above stated proportion of your stock of canned fruits, vegetables, jellies, etc.
Yours truly, Hoover By B.S."

While an unknown saboteur faked this letter from Herbert Hoover, it was a successful instance of the sabotage of food rationing by stealing the rations. The saboteurs took advantage of the strong sense of people's patriotism and willingness to comply, since they were thinking they are aiding the war effort. The damage done by the saboteurs was minor, as only a few families were fooled; nevertheless, it had to be addressed by the Council of Defense, as it was an act of sabotage against the Food Administration.

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The images include the press release the Council of Defense recommended and the corresponding article.
The Information for the Press states,
"Hartford, November 11--- The attention of the Connecticut State Council of Defense has been called on what is presumed to be Pro-German propaganda conducted by men who are trying to hamper the work of the United States Food Administration in this State. They have sent letters bearing forged signatures of Herbert Hoover to a number of housewives telling them that 1/3 of their accumulated supplies of preserved fruit, vegetables, etc. is liable to confiscation. The Council has issued a warning to all housewives not to give up any of their provisions if they are asked to do so but to let the nearest police authorities know the full details of any facts they may learn. If agents approach a house and seek to confiscate any goods the persons approached are urged to hold the agents and turn them over to the police authorities. No such action as is threatened in the letters has been authorized or even considered by the Federal Food Administration or by the Food Committee of the State Council.
Two women in New Haven have letters of this sort, mailed from Hartford and dated November 2. A woman living in Alington is reported to have been visited by a fake agent who took away part of her preserved fruits."

While there is no record of the saboteurs being caught, it is possible the public warnings and alerts dissuaded these fake agents from trying again. It is important to recognize the press release as a close collaboration between the Council of Defense and the press correspondents. In order to avoid sedition charges by cooperating with the Council, housewives were given a mandate to help with the war effort by detaining or holding these fake agents should they approach.