Chapter Thirty-Seven: Plotting against Hoover
"I've heard that a lot of charitable organizations have come to my door recently?" John asked as Adele helped him straighten his belt. Pen, fun, pavilion www. biquge。 info
"yes, almost every day." Adele is also distressed by this. She has always been soft-hearted and does not know how to refuse others, but she has recently been upset by these so-called charities and public welfare organizations that have flocked to her door to seek support.
"Ignore them in the future and concentrate on helping Alfred do a good job of the Education Foundation." John didn't mean to ban Adele from doing charity entirely, but just wanted to remind her that not all charity activities could be participated.
"Is that good? They didn't all come to ask for money, either. Some of them just invited me to attend events. Adele was a little hesitant, and in her opinion, there was nothing wrong with spending a little time and energy on her own to care for those in need.
"It's not about the money." John patiently corrected Adele's erroneous view: "Just like the last time you weren't allowed to attend Father Dajeleiu's meeting, many of these charitable organizations are controlled by political interests. ”
When it comes to not letting her participate in the "Free France" fundraiser, Adele is still a little worried. "That's Father Dajean Lieux, and most of the French Americans in Washington have attended. I really don't understand why you didn't let me participate. ”
For Adele's little emotion, John can still understand. After all, Father Dajeanlieu was no ordinary priest, who was a nationally known naval hero during the First World War, became a Carmelite whitefriar, and in 1939 was elected archbishop. After the surrender of France, the archbishop, appointed by the high levels of the Church as the chief priest of the French navy, fled to England to join the "Free France" and became a chaplain of Charles de Gaulle.
These legends and the good reputation of the years have given Father Dajean Lieux a high prestige among French people all over the world. Even Vichy France, when it declared that de Gaulle and other high-ranking "Free French" were guilty of treason, did not say a word about Father Dajeanlieu, but hastily appointed a new archbishop in his diocese.
Although Adele had converted to Protestantism after marrying John, it did not prevent her from having a deep respect for Father Dajeolieu. After receiving a letter from Yvonne (Madame de Gaulle) that her eldest son, Philippe, would be coming to the United States with Father Dajelieu, Adele had been looking forward to meeting them. She and some of the French ladies who often come to the house for afternoon tea even organized a charity sale to help Father Dajean Lieu and his family raise money.
However, these were all stopped by John. The reason is simple: Johan, while not minding to support the French resistance, did not want to tie himself to de Gaulle too tightly. In his eyes, de Gaulle, the Great Franciscologist, was not the kind of person who would obediently obey after taking advantages, and sooner or later he would become a problem for the United States. Adele's previous "patriotic" behavior had already made many people mistakenly believe that he was a die-hard supporter of de Gaulle, and John did not want to further deepen this delusion.
So John called his father-in-law, Mr. Degarno, and after paying some "price", Mr. Degano rushed to Washington with a group of southern French businessmen, and took over from Adele the reception of Father Dajeanlieu and his party. Mr. Degano was much harder than John, and he confined Adele for several days on the grounds that he was unwell, until Father Dajelieu and the others left Washington.
"Alright, dear. Please understand that I am now an active soldier and cannot get too close to the "Free France". After all, the Vichy government is the legitimate government of France recognized by Washington, and we cannot openly contradict the country's foreign policy. John also knew that Adele had been wronged in this matter, so he patiently comforted her: "And I didn't let you support them, didn't you ask Degano to hand over the $5,000 check?" You can continue to donate to them in the future, as long as it doesn't make a lot of fanfare. ”
Adele sighed, she was not a very unreasonable person, knowing that John had a point, she could only reluctantly accept this fact: "You say, can we still drive the Germans out?" ”
"Of course, dear." John took his wife in his arms and kissed her on the forehead: "Great France will finally be restored to its freedom and glory." ”
"By the way, do you know a man named Joseph Rahi?" John gets back to business again.
Adele thought for a moment, "Is that Mr. Rahi from the Secretariat of the University Students' Union?" I attended an event he organized last week, and I had a few brief conversations. ”
"That's right, it's him." John nodded: "You'd better not have any contact with him in the future." ”
"Why? Mr. Rahi is a very nice person, and he has been campaigning for the children of poor families for so many years. I also donated $500 to them. Adele had a good sense of the secretary of the American College Student Association, and was very puzzled by John's request.
"This person is suspicious of red, and he has been targeted by the FBI." In those years, the U.S. government was not as frantic in its fight against communism as McKinseyism, but it was also unrelenting.
"You mean, he's a Trotskyist?" Adele was taken aback. Although Trotsky had been killed with an ice axe in Mexico the previous year, the bourgeois governments of various countries were still wary of the Trotskyists who advocated world revolution. Originally, Adele thought that Mr. Rahi was just a slightly radical social democrat, but she did not expect him to be such a "dangerous" figure.
"Not really. As far as I know, he should be a Socialist leftist. John continued, "But you'd better stay away from him in the future. ”
"Okay, I'll pay attention to it later." As the wife of a big capitalist, Adele knows very well that she should not be involved with people like Rahi. However, she was also a little puzzled: "How did you know that I had contact with him?" ”
"The F.B.I. kept an eye on him. After you have contact with him, they also become suspicious of you. Melvin got the news from his former colleague and called me. John's words are half-true. Ever since the last time Reilly was investigated, he had been quite wary of Hoover. Not only did he keep Melvin, the former FBI ace agent, up to date with the inside of the FBI, but he also secretly supported Donovan in launching a secret investigation into Hoover.
As soon as the FBI targeted Adele this time, John got the news. Fortunately, he was quick to find a super shield for Adele, which led Hoover's attention away from her.
This super shield is President Roosevelt's wife, Anna-Eleanor Roosevelt. Eleanor, the strong woman who stood behind Roosevelt, has always had dealings with many leftist politicians. In 1939, the Congressional Committee on Anti-American Subversive Activities subpoenaed several of Eleanor's leftist friends. At that time, the first lady appeared in court to defend her friends. And this Mr. Rahi happens to be one of her close friends.
As far as John knew, Hoover had been dissatisfied with Eleanor since the 1939 hearing. He even publicly complained: "The reason why I have never married is because God created a woman like Eleanor." Historically, Hoover has monitored and wiretapped Eleanor for decades, and even photographed her nude.
This time, through Donovan, John revealed to President Roosevelt the installation of a bugging device in the restaurant where Eleanor met with Rahi. At this time, Hoover, who had not been able to cover the sky with one hand like later generations, was suffering the wrath of President Roosevelt, and the position of the first person in the FBI was already in jeopardy.