Evening Star Newspaper, March 6, 1935, Page 2

A2 %% JORNGON ATTACKS bserver Contends Fugl Added to Flame in Fight ‘on Priest and Long. BY DAVID LAWRENCE. A political bombshell, the like of ghlch nobody here can recall, has been xploded by Gen. Johnson in behalf of }he New Deal and against Senator Suey Long and Father Coughlin. % While the general disclaims any %revious consultation with the admin- Astration, his speech was plainly in She interest of President Roosevelt's %olitical fortunes and was obviously & ‘BePerate attempt to head off ‘the formation of new political blocs which might threaten the Democratic party in 1936. To the extent that the general as- sailed the economic fallacies of his two self-chosen adversaries, he was on sound ground, and that portion of his -listening audience which under- stands the complicated nature of our governmental system and economic structure will applaud him vigorously. o On Shaky Ground. ‘But Gen. Johnson opened up a line of attack that is not so sound when he questioned the right of Father Coughlin to preach his dectrine and remain & priest of the Catholic church. Ministers of the gospel in America of every faith and creed have expresgd themselves again and again from their pulpits Sunday mornings on political and economic subjects without divest- ing themselves of their church con- nection. Freedom of speech and freedom of political action is as much the right of Father Coughlin as it is Gen. John- sor’s. The attack on the radio priest will hardly succeed on that basis. It hats a better chance of success if some of the ideas which Father Coughlin «champions are defeated in fair and “open debate. ! "The eminent radio priest tells his udiences, for instance, that the right coin money rests in Congress and ithat hitherto the bankers have had “that control. This type of statement st happens to be in conflict with the ctual experience of the Government, ‘and what Father Coughlin proposes is +a control that would put in the hands ‘of the politicians the right to issue ymoney. ' Lt L T R L Little Comfort. Unfortunately for those who differ ith Father Coughlin, there is not wvery much comfort that they can take .from the views of Gov. Eccles of the Federal Reserve Board, who wants to ‘have the Federal Reserve Board chief subject to removal by the President tand its members under the control of 'political government. \ As between Eccles’ plan for a small {committee of five members to con- itrol the issuance of money and the Coughlin plan for 48 directors of a central bank elected by each of the 48 F UNUNSAFE BASIS What’s What Behind News In Capital Richberg Promise of No Inflation Earns Him Political Medal. BY PAUL MALLON. is some talk about tak- | ing up & New Deal collection to buy a political medal for Donald Richberg. The co- ordinator’s promise of no in- flation within six years was consid- ered that good. In fact, there has been nothing like it since Huey Long offered to withdraw from the next presidential race if the New Deal would share the wealth. In the first place, none of Presi- dent Roosevelt’s monetary advisers (of whom Mr. Richberg is not one) can see more than six months ahead right now. At least none is straining his eyes to see six years. In the second, the word “inflation” is obsolete. It has become like the word “love.” It describes so much that it describes nothing. ‘These factors create an ideal fog for the widest possible pplitical prophecy without hagards. New Deal Easing Credit. Yet down underneath the haze of loose talk you may now begin to see the bare outlines of the inflationary ceiling which the New Dealers seem to have in mind. Quietly they have gone about the business of building various little fac- tories for producing credit. One ex- ample is in the new bank bill. It is the mortgage discount phase. It means simply this: Whenever you get a mortgage on your house at the bank, that bank may pass the mortgage on through the Federal Reserve System, where currency may be issued against it. You might call it a currency backed by mortgages instead of by gold, sil- ver or whatnot. Your house stands for it. But Little Credit “Sold.” This little device supplements an- other depression arrangement, where- by Government bonds may be han- dled in the same way. That is, cur- rency may be issued against them. Theoretically, this sounds like big stuff. Actually it is not. The secret of its operating scope is that of all factories. It can produce only as much as it can sell. So far it has not sold very much credit, bechuse there is no booming demand for it. There will be no demand unless busi- ness starts rebuilding. Until then the interest cost of discounting bonds and mortgages will make such credit ex- pansion unprofitable and useless. States, there is much more in the| So the only thing it will do is to latter plan to commend itself than in |Prepare the way to meet credit de- the proposal of Mr. Roosevelt's own |mand six months, & year or two from appointee. now, when and if the country needs it. Both plans are unsound, however, Government Benefits, Too. and would lead to & repetition of the But there is more behind it than disaster which attended the political manipulation of the Bank of the|that. In this present credit hiatus, _United States just about a hundred | these little devices permit the Gov- ‘yelrs ago, in the administration of | érnment to borrow all the money it {President Andrew Jackson. But so|Wants. The Government is one buyer jlong as the Roosevelt administration Who is demanding more and more lencourages such unsound thinking, it|credit. The banks have no place else Swill hardly be in a position to ridicule | tc put their money and no excuse for i i »Father Coughlin or drive Senator Huey | declining to take Government bonds. yLong off the stage. . Attack Swells Audiences. + Gen. Johnson is an aggressive ispeaker and is a master of invective. iBut he has succeeded in providing \Senator Long with a big audience for ;’l'huxsday night and Father Coughlin iwith perhaps a bigger one next Sun- sday afternoon. Until the Roosevelt administration sets about creating sconditions which will make the pro- iposals of men like Senator Long and 'Father Coughlin unattractive to the 10,000,000 or more unemployed it jcannot hope to remove the seeds of ounter-attack and defection by mere «name-calling or bitter denunciation, 3 The two radio speakers may be ap- ipealing, as Gen. Johnson said, to remotions instead of reason; they may sbe ignoring logic and the experience jof sound economics, but their doctrine ffructifies in periods when there is !drifting and wavering in the national @dministration and when there is no ‘comprehensive plan developed here 4e bring recovery except to keep on' borrowing billions of dollars indefi- el ::; Right Waits Hopefully. }-_*amher of the opponents of the > mtnnon from the left wing Wil have more strength, but really “less influence, if the Roosevelt regime ¥th bring prosperity back. To do so <means to allow business a chance to - ver and to remove the experiments yehat impede business revival today. i This maey be called turning to the t, but it is rapidly growing ap- 5 ent that the left has swung too fwy away from Roosevelt policies, to him politically and that the - it is waiting hopefully for the re- 3 ding of business and industry ~ r sound economic leadership. The Johnson speech is an effort to blast the rebellion on the left, but it will only serve to intensify it while consolidating, perheps, many of the conservatives behind the President in the hope that he will see at last the importance of allying himself with honest initiative instead of wild experimentation. MYSTERY STABBING OF GROOM PROBED Lies in Hospital in Baltimore. Came to Washington on Honeymoon. In view of this, the inflationary debt become more and more remote. As long as the devices work, the Gov- ernment will not need a printing press. Silver does not rate more than a dime’s worth in this big affair. Cur- rency itself is only the loose change of business. Credit is the big thing, the way the New Dealers are handling the situation. This is the truth, the whole truth, etc., etc., as the best authorities here | swear it and see it. Retiring Gold Bonds. The Treasury is hastening to obviate any possible bad results from the ad- verse portion of the Supreme Court gold decision. This is one of the most important hidden implications behind the $1,300,000,000 of refinancing an- nounced a few days ago. Most of the bonds which the Treas- ury is taking up are gold bonds. The ones which will be issued in their place are not. The trick is for the Treasury to get all its gold bonds in before prices rise above the 1918 level. Then it will never have to pay out an extra cent of damages under the Supreme Court The way to bring the Government debt home to you is to calculate how much of it you owe. The present amount is $215 for every man, woman and child in the country. As few pay | taxes, the ones who do will have to pay for at least 10 who do not. So a more accurate way of saying it is that every taxpayer is now obligated for about $2.150. In 1931, each taxpayer would have owed through the Gov- ernment about $1,310, while, at the peak of the war debt, the amount would have been $2,400. A fair way to look at the debt is to compare it with the total wealth of the country, because. wealth is the source of taxes even if Huey Long re- distributes. Economists now put the total wealth at $300,000,000,000. The debt is less than 10 per cent of that. At the close of the Civil War, it was exactly the same. Little Saving in Refinancing. Much publicity ado is being made about all the money which the Gov- ernment will save by refinancing. 1 possibilities of the mounting public| By the Associated Press. The truth is the Treasury will save BALTIMORE, March 6.—Stabbed | about $30,000000 & year in interest under the heart with an ice pick,| payments under the current refinanc- Henry Hemmerling, 29, of Warren|ing. It has available another $3,300; Point, N. J., bridegroom of one day,| 000,000 which could be similarly re- was in a hospital here in a serious| financed in the next six mcnths, with condition. Authorities declined to|a saving of no more than probably comment on the stabbing. $30,000,000 annually. This means a Hemmerling was accompanied on a' total possible savings of $60,000,000. It honeymoon to Washington by his wife| is not even a blue chip in the no- Anng, 26, to whom he said he was| limit poker now being played with the married Monday night in Monroe, | public debt. Total 'annual interest N. Y. His automobile crashed through | charges are $827,000,000 each year. 8 guard rail near Halethdrpe, on the| The savings from refunding would be Baltimore-Washington Bodlevard, and | about 7 per cent for the present. dropped down an embankment. The British treasury saved $130,- Neither Hemmerling nor his wife! 000,000 a year by its refunding and was hurt seriously. Patrolman Nor-|the French about $40,000,000. man Reinhart of the Halethorpe police (Copyright. 1935.) said Hemmerling went to a nearby — garage to make & telephone call and Storm Kills Locusts. a few minutes later stumbled from the building, bleeding from the chest! A swarm of locusts was destro; by wound. The dce pick was found a storm recently while nearby. Vryheid, South Africa. s 4 THE EVENING 1 | | “UPTO PRESIDENT” Swanson Thinks Roosevelt Will Take Hand in Travel Allowance. Secretary Swanson predicted today that President Roosevelt would inter- vene in the controversy between the Navy Department and Controller Gen- eral McCarl. Swanson sald at a press conference the issue was simply whether “the courts or McCarl” should determine payment of travel expenses of de- pendents of officers ordered home for retirement. He added that, although he had not discussed the controversy with the President, “I reckon he'll take it up himself.” He said the issue might be settled by Congress, an executive order, or by a court order. McCarl made public Monday a letter to Swanson severely criticizing the Secretary's order that the expenses be paid. McCarl held they were im- proper and insisted that an opinion by Attorney General Cummings uphold- ing them was merely “advisory.” His department, he said, should be the judge of whether appropriations were being expended legally. Swanson acknowledged that his order, issued in January, had not yet been made effective, and declined to say whether an attempt would be made to make the payments pending settle- ment of the issue. In a formal statement, Swanson de- clared such payments had been up- held by former Attorney General Stone in 1924 and “numerous deci- sions oI the Court of Claims.” The Secretary hinted that the Navy might seek & mandamus from the courts to compel Controller General McCarl to o. k. the accounts of the naval disbursing officers. Swanson's statement follows: “Criminations and recriminations between high officers of the Govern- ment are neither conducive to good government or good business. “I think that all matters of im- portance in the administration of the Government and business should be determined without either prejudice or passion. Began 12 Years Ago. “The present controversy, which has been released to the press, com- menced about 12 years ago, when Congress passed legislation in regard to travel allowances of dependents of officers and men of the Army and Navy ordered to make a permanent change of station. In the case of | retired officers ordered home to await orders, the controller general has held that this does not constitute a per- manent change of station within the meaning of the law; Attorney Gen- eral Stone in 1924 and numerous de- cisions of the Court of Claims have held to the contrary. “Last May it became necessary to issue instructions to disbursing officers of the Navy what course should be followed in connection with such cases—should the decisions of the controller general interpreting the j basic law be followed or should the | law as interpreted by the courts be | followed. “I referred this matter to the At- torney General for his opinion, as that officer is the chief law officer of the Government and is designated by | law to prosecute and defend litigation. | The Attorney General advised me the opinion of the Attorney General and the decisions of the courts should be followed. Paramount Agency Question. “The real question at issue is what agency is paramount in the interpre- tation of law. Do the courts inter- pret the law or does the Controller General? “The Government conducts a huge business and it is obviously necessary that it be conducted along business lines. This cannot be done if there is a constant difference of opinion as to whether the interpretation by the courts shall or shall not be followed. “I think this matter should be clari- fled and definitely settled—whether the Controller General is the agency for the final interpretation of the law or whether tHe courts of the United States are. My only effort is to con- duct the business of this department in an orderly, efficient and business- like way.” Meanwhile, it was reported that the Navy can circumvent McCarl's ruling barring the payment of travel allow- ances to dependents of officers ordered to their homes for retirement by order- ing these officers to a nearby naval station, waiting a short while, and then retiring them. When an officer is anenlng under official orders to a new station Uncle Sam the wi for his dependents. G gt Even under the present set-up, when officers serving outside the United States are ordered to their | homes for retirement the Government pays the transportation for their de- pendents. The crux of the present controversy is that dependents of of- ficers stationed in the United States are deprived of travel allowance, { | Congress in Brief By the Associated Press. TODAY. : Senate. Takes up Army appropriations bill. Agriculture Subcommittee conducts hearings on farm tenantry bill. Interstate Commerce Subcommittee | studies motor transportation act. Post Office Committee studies Farley investigation proposal. Interstate Commerce Subcommittee { resumes coal conservation bill hearing. House. Takes up miscellaneous business. Banking Committee hears testimony on omnibus bank bill. o;:ur;ur lComrnerce Committee conducts hearing on hol m| regulation. i ey Agriculture Committee hears wit- nesses on A. A. A, amendments, Merchant Marine Committee opens hearings on safety-at-sea legislation. Ways and Means Committee meets on call, probably on bonus. YESTERDAY. Senate. Heard Senator Long denou: Se.pl.vohnmn and Senator neemlln\lthm reply. Confirmed nomination of John H. RuAssell as major general of Marines. ppropriations Committee approved $4,880,000,000 work relief bill. o PFinance Committee heard that 80 per cent of N. R. A. codes will .be junked by sdministration. House. Transacted general business. American Legion warned Ways and Means Committee it would accept no compromise on bonus. Governor Eccles of Federal Reserve Boeard told Banking Co mittee banks must resume lending. Agriculture Committee continued hearing on A. A. A. amendments. Interstate Commerce Committee con- er ducted hearing on holding company regulation. 4 STAR, WASHINGTON, NAWM’BARL R[]w .- Advertising Club Guest of The Star at Luncheon D. C., WEDNESDAY, MARCH 6, 1935. 3 Members of the local Advertising Club, who were guests of The Eve- ning Star yesterday at a luncheon, pictured in The Star club room, where the affair was held. Norman Kal, president of the Advertising Club, pre- sided and introduced Col. LeRoy W. Herron, advertising manager of The Star, who formally welcomed the guests. of 20 were taken on a tour of The Star Building. | : I Following the luncheon groups —Star Staff Photo. AIR OF ESPIONAGE SEEN IN CAPITAL Young New Dealers Disturb- ed by Fascist Methods, Jackson Says. This is the fourth of a series of five articles in which the inside story of the recent A. A. A. “purg- ing” is told by the deposed senior assistant to the consumers' coun- sel, presenting the viewpoint of the “young New Dealers.” BY GARDNER JACKSON. The insecurity of their political po- sitions felt by leading members of the New Deal's official family is illus- trated by their extreme sensitivity to news leaks and to the views of per- sons with whom their subordinates associate, even out of office hours. These officials exhibit anger when newspaper stories appear without of- ficial sponsorship and they have late- 1y been known to show concern about the places their assistants visit and the telephone conversations they hold. An atmosphere of suspicion and espionage similar to that in war times has been created Take the case of Victor A, Christ- gau, farmer and former Republican Representative from Minnesota, re- cently deposed as assistant adminis- trator of the Agricultural Adjustment Administration. Mr. Christgau, & courageous progressive, who was forced to resign by Administrator Chester C. Davis, was charged by the latter with lack of frankness because he had not told Mr. Davis of various telephone conversations he had had with me since my dismissal from the A. A. A. These conversations were held when Mr, Christgau was in his office. No- body knew of them except Mr. Christ- gau and myself. How Mr. Davis learned of them one can only sur-| mise. Women’s Press Club Satirizes New Deal as First Lady Watches Mrs. James Roosevelt, Cabinet Wives | 5 Night Last Night's Dinner, age B-3.) | BY GRACE HENDRICK EUSTIS. The annual dinner and stunt party of the Women's National Press Club took place last night at the Willard Hotel, and, during the course of the evening, provided a good show with | several uproariously funny acts. The party was attended by some 500 women, headed by Mrs. Pranklin D. (Pictures of P | Roosevelt, Mrs. James Roosevelt, the | | cabinet wives and a list of notable | honor guests. | Jackie Martin was master of cere- | | monies. With wit and a competent stage presence, she introduced the dif- ferent stunts beginning with an act cepicting the world under Huey Long | as emperor. Aida Rainey, who took the part of the Kingfish, issued proc- | lamation after proclamation elimin: |ing anything and everybody who stood in his way. “I want a law pro- hibiting Al Smith,” he bellowed to his !cringing secretaries, Celeste Walker Page and Helen Petter Cook. Finally a group of winsome vestal virgins, hailing from the Virgin Islands, por- trayed by Esther Prager. Helen Essary. Virgilia Stephens and Evelyn Condon, reduced him to a weak pulp by their dancing and singing. | Press on Crutches. the high spots of the evening, a rest room for exhausted newspaper women. Three worn out, crippled and punch- drunk ladies of the press, Bess Fur- man, Ruby Black and Emma Bugbee. were seen prostrated on sofas and and Other Notables Attend Stunt " | loons. She was followed by Corinne This scene was followed by one of | Party. ing and acting the part of the carica- tured old lady, she simpered and gig- gled her affection for the President. | Then came a scene called “The | Cabinet at Home.” Ruth Jones and | Helen Essary impersonated the vaguer | of the cabinet ladies coping with the exigencies of Washington society. | | They decried the insistence of the press, but admitted they would be lost | without them, and while they moaned { about the newspaper women behind | | their backs, they were luscious to their faces. | The dance of the New Deal, which | followed, brought down the house. | Pirst came Depression, danced by | Julia Bonwit. Then came Helena Hill | Weed, vast and utterly ludicrous as ! Inflation. She had & green back and | | a silver skirt and lollopped around the stage, scattering wheezing bal- | Prazier as the Gimme Girl, and YCE 15 BETTER. DOCTORS REPORT i Girl Is Near Normal After Operation—Family Optimistic. By the Associated Press FALL RIVER, Mass, March 6.— The condition of Alyce Jane McHenry, | Omaha, Nebr., girl operated on Mon- day for diaphragmatic hernia, was re- | ported as “better” today by doctors attending her at Truesdale Hospital. A bulletin signed by Dr. George C. King said the child’s temperature was 100.2; pulse, 124; respiration, 24 The bulletin said “Alyce had her | first bowel movement since the opera- tion. An enema was used for the first time in her life. Previously when at- tempts were made to use an enema it | caused great distress and she turned | George blue.” Dr. King's report showed the girl's temperature, pulse and respiration ! were nearer normal today than vester- | | day when she was very uncomfortable. | 5q)ydge the acquisition of the Pan- Those watching Alyce’s battle for COLUMBIA GAS (0. INJUNCTION ASKED U. S. Requests Order Under Anti-Trust Laws in Federal Court. By the Associated Press. WILMINGTON, Del, March 6.— The Federal Government today filed injunction proceedings in U. S. Dis- trict Court under the anti-trust laws against the Columbia Gas and Electric Corp., one of its subsidiaries and eight individuals connected with the two corporations or with the Panhandle Eastern Pipe Line Co The Government's suit charged that the defendants have conspired % re- strain commerce in natural gas and that the defendant subsidiary, the Co- lumbia Oil & Gas Corp., through tiock and bond acquisition of the Pan Han- dle Eastern Pipe Live, dominates that company and has caused Pan Handle to refuse to sell ard deliver natural gas to many municipalities and private corporations in Kansas, Missouri, Il- linois, Indiana anc Michigan The individual defendants named are either voting trustees of the com- mon stock of the Pan Handle com pany or officials of the two defend: corporatious. Panhandle Losing Money. Panhandle has been losing money through the alleged domination, the Government charges, and cannot pay its debts. ‘The defendant companies, the bill of complaint continues, acquired stocks and bonds of Panhandle so that Columbia Gas could acquire “complete, absolute and permanent dominion and control” of Panhandle | and its property and commerce in natural gas This situation. the Government continues, prevents Panhandle from | competing with Columbia Gas & Electric in the natural gas industry. Individuals Named. The individual defendants are | George H. Howard, PLilip G. Gossler and Edward Reynolds, jr.. all of New York: Charles A. Munroe, Chicago: W. Crawford. Thomas B. | Gregory and John H. Hillman, jr.. all of Pittsburgh, and Burt R. Bay, Kan- | sas City, Mo. ‘The Government asks the court to handle stock and bonds in violation | finally Lora Kelly pranced out with |life since her stomach and other | i (ne ‘Sherman and Clayton anti- | complete street cleaning paraphernalia | as a White Wing. | Bogus Farley Talks. | After this came & very clever mono- |logue by Lily Likes Shepard, who, | dressed as Gertrude Stein, but im- personating J. M. Farley, gave a talk on jobs and patronage in the true | Stein fashion. The tenth stunt was a crueity to animals ‘rial, with the donkey and the elepheant as complainants. The cast was, judge, Violet Libby; att- orney for the deferdant, Lee Kreisel- | man; defendant donkey, Martha Stray- ‘er—Jnne Ruby; bailiff, Helena Hill Weed; court clerk, Alice Fox Pitts. chairs, praying for rest. On the wall organs were taken from her chest avity and returned to their proper lace in the abdominal cavity were | more optimistic over her chances to- day. They said, however, her condx-‘ tion still was critical. Mrs. Luella McHenry, Alyce’s mother who accompanied her East for the operation she hopes will restore the smiling girl's health, was frankly en- couraged this morning by the apparent improvement in her daughter's condi- tion. ing to the second bulletin, issued at 10:30 am. Signed by Dr. King and Dr. Willlam Mason, is said: “Alyce is slightly improved. Her temperature Alyce maintained her gain, nccord-l | trust acts, enjoin the defendants from controling and interfering with Pan- | handle. and to order Columbia Oil to | divest itself of its Panhandle holdings. On September 17, 1930, the Govern- ment complaint alleges, Columbia Oil | & Gas obtained 50 per cent voting | stock of Panhandle and a large part | of the share capital of Panhandle—to | the extent of $20,000.000 in bonds with !a first-mortgage lien. Enabled to Dominate. | The acquisition of the stock, the | Government continues, enabled Co- | lumbia Gas and Columbia Oil to dom- | inate the policies of Panhandle, On the same date, the bill con- was a sign which read, “One bell | means Mrs. Roosevelt goes by train; | wwo bells means by plane; three bells i means by auto; four bells means by | foot.” This was explained to the The iast act concluded the search of Uncle Sam for the Constitution. All during the preceding stunts, this | hunting figuré would ramble ucross | | the stage, searchiug everywhere for | something, unable to explain what it 124 OTHER GIRL IMPROVING. Physicians Encouraged in Pennsyl- {is 100.2; pulse, 128, and respiration, | | tinues, the Missouri-Kansas Pipe Line | Co. contracted to buy from Panhandle | a quantity of natural gas, to be sold | at_Indianapolis. The defendant companies, the Gov- | ernment charges, prevented Panhan- Invitation to Trouble. | latest arrival, Bess Furman hobbled in Under the reorganization following on crutches, saying that Reedsville the ousting of Jerome Frank. genersl et her there. After a few minutes counsel of the A. A. A., and several rojgxation, however, the bell rings others, Mr. Christgau was to have had | fye times, a number not listed on the charge of the egricultural laber prob- ; sign and at the same moment a flash lem, an increasingly pressing issue re- | the news ticker reveals Mrs. lating particularly to the industrial| pooeevell was shot to Mars in & farming areas of California, Colorado, | roepet ship. At this the cripples New Jersey and other States and fio-n.n" to their feeble legs and like the tenant farmer and share-cropper troubles in the cotton South. Having discussed the problem with Mr. Christgau from time to time prior to my dismissal and having met cer- | tain persons at the University of Cali- fornia and elsewhere during a recent trip to the Pacific Coast who had made a study of conditions there, I invited Mr. Christgau to come to a Sunday evening buffet supper at my home. We would there talk with one of the University of California pro- fessors, who chanced to be in Wash- ington, and with other New Deal of- ficials who were interested in agricul- tural labor. ‘This invitation was extended to Mr. Christgau by a telephone call to his A. A. A office. The purpose of the gathering was stated and the names of some of those who would be present were mentioned. The fact that Mr. Christgau attended this discussion was cited by Administrator Davis as one of the reasons why Mr. Christgau would not be allowed to handle the agricultural labor problem, after all, and why he would be taken off the operating council of the A. A. A. and be demoted in rank and salary. Up until & few months ago, the A. A. A. was relatively free from such a condition. Some of us working there compared notes with fellow workers in National Recovery Admin- istration and Public Works Adminis- tration, for example, and, finding that the mail addressed to them at their offices, even their personal mail, was often opened before it reached their desks, we boasted that we were work- ing in a department which still hon- ored the bill of rights for its employes at least. Guard Against Graft. Of course, the P, W. A. espionage under John Glavis reflects Secretary Ickes' passionate intention that not a nickel of Government money under him shall slip out as graft. Tall tales are told by P. W. A. workers about the scrutiny to which they and their actions are subjected by Glavis and his staff, in pursuit of Mr. Ickes’ laudable aim. But such a purpose can scarcely be advanced in other emerg- ency agencies, and there has been considerable restiveness among young New Dealers on account of intrusion upon their privacy. Certainly no worry about graft could have caused Administrator Davis of the A. A. A. to make inquiries about a farewell dinner 20 or more of us | the old troupers that they are, stag- | ger off in pursuit. | The next stunt was a double mono- | logue by Dorothea Lewis, depicting first a languid cabinet lady visiting one of the Washington alleys and then the lady in the alley returning the call on the cabinet wife. breaks in this act went to the alley lady. Corinne Frazier, dressed as Miss Democracy. with the usual horn-rim- | med spectacles, bustle and dank hair | and accompanied at the piano by Mary | Routt, did a dance to the tune of | Look- “The Object of My Affections” ‘The | | was he was looking for. Finally, how- | ever, the curtain at the back of the | | stage opsned and there was the Con- | stitution, portrayed by Aida Rainey, | being competently done up in a beauty | | parlor. The beauty parlor operators | were Virginia Price, Helen F. Cook, ‘Ilslbel Story and Lily Shepherd. They | manicured her, curled her hair and turned ner out better than ever. | Before the show itself and during the dinner, Genevieve Forbes Her- | rick, president of the Woman's Na- tional Press Otub, introduced the honor guests who were seated around | the room. Besides the cabinet ladies and various members of the Housp of | Representatives, these guests inchused Amelia Earhart, Georgia O'Keefe, Grace Zaring Stone, Judge Florence Allen, Mary Beard, Mary Howe, Blair Niles, Ruth Suckow, Miss Josephine Roche, Miss Katherine Lenroot, Miss Phoebe Omlie, Mrs. Vernon Kellogg. Mrs. Mary Breckinridge and Miss Eleanor Carroll. | | gave to R. K. Froker, senior econo- | mist in the dairy section, after he | was dismissed in January by Mr. Davis and Arthur H. Lauterbach, chief of the dairy section. At tais dinner, held at the University Club, a number of us told how deeply we | admired the character and ability of the gaunt University of Wisconsin economist, who had labored night and day for months to perfect the revised milk policy for Secretary Wal- tor Peek and Dairy Chief King in December, 1933. Not susceptible under any wrench- ing of the truth to interpretation as a' radical policy—its broad purpose being to promote efficiency of distri- bution by eliminating consumer price- fixing and yet maintain equitable prices to producers—Froker’s ideas and his steadfastness of devotion in carry- ing them out, together with what we had said about them at the dinner, | became to Administrator Davis “a revolutionary conspiracy,” according to his words to one of us who was subsequently fired. 3 Evidence of Jitters. Coupled with the kind of espionage indicated by these episodes, there is much other evidence of the bad case of jitters afflicting high New Deal of- ficials these days. Labeling them as abnormally thin-skinned puts the matter too mildly. Items critical of them or indicating division of opinion within their administrations lead to the expenditure of a vast amount of energy in trying to ferret out their source. If by chance the items appear imr signed newspaper columns the col- umnists are taken to lunch or dinner or called on the telephone by officials and cajoled or threatened in an at- tempt to make them reveal the The Evening Star Offers Its Readers lace after the removal of Administra- | This Worth-While BOOK It explains the permanent departments of the Federal Government and the Alphabet | Bureaus of the New Deal. Every American should read it. Order today. Oflcr l'oru-—-——-' . 5 | Neme . & Price $1 at The Evening Star Business Office, or by mail, postpaid C¥Y. ceseesscncensnnnas State. ... ll sources. Donald Richberg's famous advance threat of libel prosecution, | which he made to Gen. Johnson be- | fore publication of the latter's book, | is truly symptomatic. Naturally, if the items appearing are laudatory of the officials and their activities, gratification is expressed. In truth, judging by the build-up of Administrator Davis and his assist- ants, Howard R. Tolley and Jesse W. Tapp, as “strong, practical men” in contrast to ‘“visionaries” such as Jerome Frank and others, and the ac- curate prophecies of events in the A. | A. A. which have appeared in certain | news letters circulated among busi- ness men over the past several months some New Dealers wonder whether the high officials are carrying on a news-disseminating enterprise of their own. The growth of espionage activities within the last year is particularly disturbing to those young New Deal- | ers who have given some thought and | study to the development of the| Fascist governments in Italy and Ger- many. They are wary of what they | say over the telephone in their offices, | lest their wires ,be tapped by agents ing machines. The young idealists | reflect that similar things happened | in Italy and Germany. So they warn | their friends to keep any private thoughts, opinions or plans to them- selves until after office hours and for | other places. (Cupyright. 1935, by North Newspaper Alilance, Tne.s o ea? —_— PAY BILL OFFERED Dickinson Measure Would Reim- burse G. 0. P. Workers. Senator Dickinson, Republican, of Iowa has reintroduced in the Senate the resolution which was pending last year to pay Government Printing Office employes for earned leaves which they did not receive during the fiscal year 1933. The resolution would make avail- able for this purpose the money re- turned to the Treasury as a result of furloughs and pay reductions in the Printing Office under the economy act. | Lenten Service Under the Auspices of the Washington Federation of Churches Epiphany Episcopal Church Today at 4:45 p.m. Preacher: Dr. Z. B. Phillips. ‘The public is invited. vania Case. | dle from delivering gas to Missouri LEWISTON, Pa., March 6 (P).—An | except on condition that Missouri- edditional drop in her temperature “ Kansas would agree to make, sell and today gave new encouragement to |deliver gas at certain points. Mis- physicians watching over Sidney ' souri-Kansas refused to make this Isenberg and her rearranged stomach. agreement, the Government points out. The oxygen tent used to restore | the left lung. which collapsed under | HOUSING SPURT pressure of her upside-down stomach, intestines and appendix, was removed Her temperature was announced by hospital authorities as 99.1 degrees more than two degrees lower than yesterday. BISHOP ON BOARD Right Rev. James E. Freeman Takes A. A. A. Advisory Post. Bishop James E. Freeman today ac- cepted an appointment to serve on the new Advisory Board of the Amer- ican Automobile Association and the District Motor Club. The board will hold its first meet- ing March 13 on Washington's traffic problem. Tax Oddities Simple List Gives Principal Exemptions in Income Levy Law. y Can I deduct the cigarette tax I pay? The answer is “no.” Can I deduct the gasoline tax? ‘The answer is both “yes” and “no.” One can deduct the 2-cent District of Columbia gas tax, but not the 1-cent Federal tax. These two typical questions asked by income tax payers making out their returns for 1934 have given rise ; to this further question: “Wry doesn't the Government get | out a simple list of what can be de- | 800,000.” ducted, and what cannot ducted?” ‘The Government never has prepared be de- \ for the reason that there are many complications and reservations. But here is a simple list, prepared by advice of a Government expert, giving some of the principal things which can be deducted, and some which cannot be deducted EXEMPTIONS. $2,500, married. $2,500, head of family, even if single. $1,000, single. $1,000, married, but not living with husband or wife. $400 for each dependent under 18, or over 18 only if physically or men- tally defective. Ten per cent earned income credit. DEDUCTIONS. ‘Taxes, Federal taxes, including ad- | mission, club dues, check tax, safe de- | posit tax, calls, etc. long*® distance telephone . SEEN BY MOFFETT ;Administrutor Predicts $2,500,- | 000,000 Will Be Spent Pri- vately This Year. By the Associated Press Federal Housing Administrator James 1,\. Moffett predicted yesterday that two and a half billion dollars of private capital would be expended this year for building and repairing houses under the program of F. H. A. He predicted further, that if Con- gress grants the authority for the insurance of loans for modernizing industrial plants, office and apart- ment buildings, there will be another billion or more dollars added to that figure. MofTett sketched figures on a yellow inote pad to show the generation of | work through loan insurance was !cheaper than doing the same job through public works “Our estimates show that in a year of operation we will havg put haif a billion dollars of private funds into home building and repairs. It is generally figured that 75 per cent of this money goes for labor. That means that $375,000.000 of this has | been spent for labor. The cost to | the Government for administration will be about $1.800,000. “If we spent half a billion dollars for public warks, that might be es- timated at providing $375,000,000 for labor, but at a cost of $500,000.000 to the Government instead of §l1.- | i i | { | Ferl;r‘unr‘yfi Circulation of officials above them or by record- | such a simple list, probably never will, | . Daily.. 127,674 Sunday 132,058 1 THE EVENING AND SUNDAY AR, does solemnly swear that the ac- tusl riumber of copies of the paper named sold and distributed during the month of Pebruary, AD. 1035, was as follows: g Copjes. f rTEE PR Local taxes, real estate, personal property, dog tax, automobile tax, |4 fdiustments local District of Columbia, Maryland Total net daily circulation. and Virginia gasoline tax, but not the | 1-cent Federal gasoline tax. Interest paid, except that paid on borrowed money used to purchase tax | exempt securities. i Contributions, to organizations op- erated exclusively for religious, char- itable, scientific, literary or educational purposes, or for prevention of cruelty to children or animals, but not to in- dividuals. Net losses, by fire, storm, or theft, not covered by insurance, less salvage. Depreciation on business property only, but not on homes and dwellings. Do not deduct—Manufacturers’ ex- cise taxes of any kind; liquor taxes; tobacco, cigar or cigarette taxes; auto- mobile manufacturer’s tax on new cars; Federal gasoline tax: cosmetics tax; fuel ofl tax; jewelry tax, etc. A Copies. 135,187 135,418 24 Copies. 135,155 882 Less adjustments Total Sunday net circulation id Sund Average net tion . Averaze service Average Sunday net circulation. ., S. H. KAUFFMANK. Asst. Business Manager. and sworn te before me this arch_AD. 1935, ELMER F. YOUNT. ry Public. Subscribed 6th_day of M (Seal) Nota '