Johnston

Appellant, while confined in a federal penitentiary at Lewisberg, Pennsylvania, killed another inmate. When brought to trial he was represented by appointed counsel, pleaded guilty to the crime of second-degree murder and was thereupon sentenced to a term of twenty years imprisonment. See United States v. Lynch, 3 Cir., 132 F.2d Ill, certified denied, 318 U.S. 777, 63 S.Ct. 831 , 87 L.Ed. 1146 . Being presently confined under that sentence in the penitentiary at Alcatraz Island, he petitioned the court below for a writ of habeas corpus. That court denied the petition without issuing an order to show cause, and appellant appealed.

Where, as here, no order to show cause is issued and no return is made or hearing had, the law requires that all of the allegations of fact contained in the petition be treated as true. Williams v. Kaiser, 323 U.S. 471, 473 , 65 S.Ct. 363 , 89 L.Ed. 398 , House v. Mayo, 324 U.S. 42, 45 , 65 S.Ct. 517 , 89 L.Ed. 739 ; White v. Ragen, 324 U.S. 760, 763 , 65 S.Ct. 978 , 89 L.Ed. 1348 . If a petition is clearly insufficient upon its face, it is proper to dismiss it. 28 U.S.C.A. § 455 ; Walker v. Johnston, 312 U.S. 275, 284 , 61 S.Ct. 574 , 85 L.Ed. 830 ;…