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- e Office of the Attc Sa nshincton Septenber 9, 1052. The President, The "hite House, Sir: Immediately following the riot by the so-called Fonus army on July 23th, you directed that en investivation and report thereon be made in this Department. ‘le have completed it, and I submit herewith ea summary of the result. A vast amount of material in the form of reports, affidevits, end documentery evidence has been accumulated. It is only possible here briefly to summerize the conclusions. 1, The entry of the Bonus army inte the District of Colunbie. The first contingont of tho Bonus Army arrived about iy 27th. On June 3a, infonantion reached the Derartment that a contingent from Cleveland led by C. R. Cowan and enother from Detroit led by John, T. Pace, comprising about 1300 men, gathered at the Pennsylventa Railroad yeerds at Cleveland and had held up 6 mail train and attempted to commendeer trensportation to Tashington. Cowan, one of these leaders, has a long police record; he has been convicted and sentenced . twice for forrery in Ohio and was sentenced to 13 months for robbing the mails to the United States Penitentiary at Atlenta in 1°28. Pace, a well krown Communist leater, hes an extended police record. Ry one means and another these groups and others obtained trats~ portation to “leshincton, By the middle of June they had congregated here in large . They entered into possession of veérious tracts of government property, on sone of which were old buildings. In some instances permission to do go wes given by the police euthorities with the acquiescence of the Treasury, with the under- stending that the occupaney vould be temporary end would be dis- continued at request and when Congress adjourned. Other government trects vere seized without permission snd oceupied by members of the’ he number of Bonus Army marchers in “ashington at the adjourament ef Congresa on July 1¢th has been variously estimated at from 8000 to 15,090. Sevoral thousand left shortly after Congress ud journei, but other proups came in, and at the tine , of the riot the b ectirates are that there wero from 6000 to 6000 bonus marchers in the city. The quality of the Bonus Army. To understend the conditions causing the riot it is necessary to know somethinr of the character of the mon in the Bonus army. {e) Nunkor of marchers who mere not ez~service men. A con- siderable number of the marchers were hot in militery service during the Yorld “lar. an approximation of the nunher is impossible, but two itoms of reliable information throw some light on this question. A yrtor to the riot of July 28th, 541 members of tho Bonus Army hed been arrested at vorious dates for a veriety of offenses, in- cludine disorderly conduct, perading without e permit, assault with 8 danzerous weapon, destruction of private nroperty, trespess on private property, and soliciting alms. 17 “ere arrested ty “he police on July 2th, end 4 on July 29th, making © total of 362. Unfortunately the police did not fingerprint all of these persons for identification, but £1 of them, including those arrested for disturbing the peace near the “ite Nouse, were fingerprintod. Of those, 1C, or approximately one-third, had no ‘forld ler service record. Trior to June 12th, 3656 of the morchers who were orrivine at “eshincton recistered on the muster rolls of the Bonus Army, siving their nenes, Army numbers, and other date respecting their ‘lorid “ar service. These muster rolls enme into the lands of the pol:ce end ultinstely to the Yeterans' Bureau, which commenced to check the nemcs to escertein whethor the marchers were ex-service men. Learning what use wes being made of the muster rolls, after June 22th the marchers discontinued the practice of registeriny,. These firct 3656 registered errivals had been checked by the ‘fer Depertinent end the Veterans’ Buroeu egainst their records of orld ‘lar service men, with the result 4. that of the total of 3656, 877, or a little more than one-fourth,, »~. gould not be ideatified in cither departmest as having hed ‘orlé Jar service, It is rossible th:t some of the 697 vere ex-service men yy