HARRY ANSLINGER'S GORE FILE OKLAHOMA CASE FILES

“In 1934 a US Marshall in Tulsa, Okla, wrote to the FBN, describing marihuana as a most dangerous and crime causing drug which gave its users the feeling that they had "superman and superwoman" powers. ." ---The History of the Marihuana Tax Act of 1937 By David F. Musto, M.D., New Haven, Conn.

Tulsa, Oklahoma,
December 18, 1934

Hon. H.T. Anslinger [sic]
Commissioner of Narcotics,
Washington, D.C.

Sir:
I attended the Crime Conference at Washington and had the pleasure of hearing part of your address but was called out and failed to hear it all.   I also called at your office personally but you were out and I also telephoned you once or twice and failed to get to see you.   I was very anxious to discuse [sic] with you the “marihuana” proposition, as we are suffering greatly from that in this section at this time.

There is at resent no National Law against this weed, either against the sale of it or transportation across state lines, and from the information I have received, and the investigation which I set in motion indicates to me that it is one of the worse drugs, if it can be so termed, with which we will have to contend in the very near future.   It is being used throughout this section very extensively.

The weed grows very prolific and readily on vacant lots or back yards or anywhere the seed happens to drop, having perhaps been blown around by the wind or carried by the birds, and my information also brings about the fact that it is also being cultivated in this section and has been sold very readily through this city and other parts of the country, usually for 15¢ or two cigarettes for a quarter, smoking the cigarette being usually the common method of using the drug.   From what I have been able to ascertain through doctors and others in connection with the weed, and from what I have seen demonstrated in the person those who have used it to excess I am construed to believe that it is the most dangerous, as far as crime is concerned, of any drug with which we will have to contend.   As you are no doubt aware the use of this weed causes the user to have hallucinations of various kinds, and among others that they are super-men and women, and blessed with the belief that there is nothing physical that can withstand them, and then also following this super-man idea of their mind the suggestion of violence is given to them; suggesting that with their super-man powers and physical ability that any violence that they may undertake in killing or kidnapping, or otherwise, is easy for them to accomplish and also the idea comes to them that in accomplishing these things that they are sufficiently wise to be able to escape any punishment or arrest that might be laid out for them.

You have no doubt been reading the papers of the trouble we have here now, in which young men of many good families are perhaps connected in someway with the killing that occurred here in which two young men lost their lives, and it seems from a quiet investigation that has been put on, that these people were perhaps users of this weed “marihuana” and that the trouble that is now on us, which perhaps may be much larger before the bottom is reached, has been brought about by the use of this weed.   Some information has reached us that there is quite a traffic of this weed between here and other states, and more especially with Kansas city.

There is a statute, on the books of the State, against the traffic of this weed but no attention evidently has been paid to it, and so far no arrests have been made or cases presented to the State Courts in connection with this traffic.   I was very anxious while in Washington to discuss this matter with you because I think that the coming Congress should pass some measure that will enable the government to take hold of it and try to stamp it out, at least before it gets too strong a hold, because the prevention of inter-state traffic in it would keep it from being spread to other states.

I have been giving some attention to looking into this matter and have had it pretty well stirred up here, and the Tulsa World, after several interviews with me by correspondents of that paper, sent out a reporter to investigate about it and had quite a lengthy article the other day concerning the traffic of the matters connected with it, and inasmuch as this may be of some interest to you I am enclosing this clipping.

I am very anxious indeed that some National Law could be enacted, because from the investigation I have made I find that it has quite a strong hold here and perhaps has a stronger hold than any other place in the country.   If you think such a law could be enacted and you are preparing to have it done I would be very glad to aid you in whatever way I could with our Congressmen and Senators, and aid you in anyway possible in getting information that would be of benefit in bringing before a committee, to whom this act may be referred, so that some favorable action could be taken on it.

I would be very glad to hear from you, and very glad indeed to assist you in anyway possible in these matters.

Thanking you, I remain.
Very sincerely

Jno. P. Logan, [note Jno is short for John]
United States Marshal
JPL/d

Original Memo [National Archives, Collage Park, MD] digitally doctored somewhat to keep file size small.

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