Mr. Peabody still wanted the Committee of Public Safety to appear as the parent or controlling body, and a lot of valuable time was wasted over this tweedle-dee argument. A compromise was effected, and on April 15, 1918, the National Directors had advice that the Massachusetts organization was hiring offices, and assumed that the work had begun and that Boston would copy as nearly as possible the form of letterhead used by A. P. L., putting the names of the National Directors on the left-hand side and substituting the words “Protective League.” Underneath that was to appear the legend: “Organized by the Massachusetts Public Safety Committee under the Direction of the U. S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Investigation.” Boston expressed the belief that Washington would not be able to tell the difference between this organization and any other so far as loyalty and efficiency were concerned, although sensible of the Washington feeling that Massachusetts was starting a year late and might be suspected of lack in coöperation.
All concerned having thus been satisfied, Massachusetts began A. P. L. work a trifle late in the game, but none the less proceeded to show that it could produce as effective an organization as any other in the country. Assistant Chief H. E. Trumbull makes his report on the regulation A. P. L. blanks and letterheads, and adds the following data as to the later organization of A. P. L.:
Mr. Samuel Wolcott was appointed Chief, and we took two offices at 45 Milk Street, in the same building with the Department of Justice. Mr. Trumbull, then a volunteer operative with the Department proper, consented to help with the new organization, and Mr. John B. Hanrahan was appointed by the Department of Justice as a special agent to oversee the work of the new organization.
A few weeks later we found that the work was too great to handle in such small quarters, and about the first of May contracted for half of the eighth floor of the building, the Department of Justice taking the other half. At this time Mr. Trumbull was appointed Assistant Chief.
As a nucleus of the state organization, we took the names of the men who had been doing volunteer work for the United States Attorney’s office, and we proceeded to send out to these men the work that came in their territory, and as they proved satisfactory, appointed them as inspectors of a certain district and gave them directions whereby they organized.
About July first, the League took over from the Department the handling of all draft matters, the Department loaning to the League two special agents to supervise and the League furnishing all the men for the actual work.
We think the strongest recommendation we can give of our loyalty and interest is the approximate number of cases handled from April 11, 1918, to February 1, 1919, which number amounts to about 5,000, with about 4,000 draft cases under the Selective Service Act.
On or about October first, Mr. Wolcott resigned for the purpose of taking up active duties with the Army, and Mr. John W. Hannigan was appointed Chief in his place.
The relations of the League with the Department have been of the closest, and there has never been any friction. Special Agent Kelleher has stated that if it had not been for the activities of the League, it would have been absolutely impossible for his office to handle the great volume of work.
Once in its swing, Boston Division proceeded to do as Boston always does, and to work in thorough and efficient fashion. A detailed statement of the work for Department of Justice covers 525 cases of alien enemy activities, 292 cases under the Espionage act, one case of treason, seven of sabotage, eleven of interference with the draft, 128 cases of propaganda, twenty cases of radicals and socialists, seven naturalization cases, and other investigations amounting to 484.