Letter from Washington

The President’s appointment of L. Patrick Gray III as acting head of the FBI put a quick end to the regime of the late J. Edgar Hoover. After Hoover’s sudden death, Clyde Tolson, who had been kept on after retirement by Hoover as his number two man, headed the law enforcement agency for a few hours. But Tolson’s resignation was requested and received just a day after the funeral.

Meanwhile the President installed Gray in Hoover’s place, much to the annoyance of Hoover aide John Mohr. The White House is said to fear an invasion of Hoover’s files by the Jack Anderson staff, and the installation of Gray and removal to the Justice Department of Hoover’s personal files were designed to protect the internal security as much as to assert immediate executive control over the organization.

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The President’s appointment of L. Patrick Gray III as acting head of the FBI put a quick end to the regime of the late J. Edgar Hoover. After Hoover’s sudden death, Clyde Tolson, who had been kept on after retirement by Hoover as his number two man, headed the law enforcement agency for a few hours. But Tolson’s resignation was requested and received just a day after the funeral.

Meanwhile the President installed Gray in Hoover’s place, much to the annoyance of Hoover aide John Mohr. The White House is said to fear an invasion of Hoover’s files by the Jack Anderson staff, and the installation of Gray and removal to the Justice Department of Hoover’s personal files were designed to protect the internal security as much as to assert immediate executive control over the organization.