Evening Star Newspaper, April 26, 1937, Page 9

Small Items Waste Big Sums Proposal of $150,000 Utilities Probe an Example BY DAVID LAWRENCE. HE old saying that if you take care of the pennies, the dollars will take care of themselves may still mean something to the people who work for a living in America, but it is beginning to be the most obsolete expression in the whole vocabulary of the administration. Volumes might be written on how money is wasted in Washington on useless activities but the trouble is * most everybody concentrates on the big items so 3 that when an ap- propriation for a few thousands comes up or even for a sizeable fraction of a mil- lion dollars, there : is a sort of free and easy attitude which implies that, of course, there is plenty of money for these “small” items. A case in point is the recommenda- tion by a Senate committee last week that $150,000 be appropriated to au- thorize the Federal Trade Commis- sion to investigate the public utilities and what they have been doing to fight public ownership, For seven years—from 1929 to 1936 ~—the Federal Trade Commission in- vestigated and issued periodical reports on how bad the utilities were. Every phase of utility “propaganda” and eflorts “to control public opinion” were thoroughly probed so that if there is anything bad about the utilities which hasn't been brought to light, it was certainly due to an oversight which nobody has yet pointed out. Findings Publicized. ‘What is more the commission’s find- ings were thoroughly publicized so that a considerable portion of the American people now believe the util+ ities are financial pirates and what not. The people who still think that maybe the utilities did accomplish something with the money they bor- rowed from the public and that maybe they did do something constructive in an engineering sense are not likely to be affected by any more Federal Trade Commission reports. As for the utilities, everybody knows that when the “death sentence” came | up in Congress, they fought for their | lives just as any criminal would have | a right to do. There is certainly no | news in the fact that the utilities do | not like public ownership and that they have been trying to influence public opinion against the use of pub- lic funds to destroy their businesses. If they didn't fight such tactics on the part of the Government, their stockholders would be justified in fir- ing the executives of the public ty companies and getting some- body else to protect their investments. Why, it might be asked, after seven | years of study is it desired to revive jp and continue the persecution of the | atility companies? Certainly if it| was really important to uncover any- thing that has not before been un- oovered, it would be much more eco- nomical to offer & prize or reward of | $5,000 for anybody in the United States who could reveal anything bad about the utilities which the previous investigations and sundry volumes of printed reports by the Federal Trade Commission has not revealed. This would save about $145,000 out of the $150,000 about to be appropriated. Motive Involved. The truth of the matter is that the new investigation is sought as a means of strengthening the hand of those who want to go into local situations and make a case for the destruction of the business of the local power com- panies 80 that more requests will come for money from the P. W. A. to help build municipal ownership plants as & threat to the existing companies. Unless there is more of a demand for David Lawrence. | remained imperishable in the minds News Behind the News INANCIAL elite are handing about what is supposed to be an official here, and reads in part: policy has brought to other countries. It is certain that * * * the perity of the Union of South Africa and consequently for the share Canada and India. * * *” THE EVENING U. S. Gold Policy Proves Boon to England, Com- mercial Counselor’s Report to London Declares. BY PAUL MALLON. British government document stating the American gold policy is just swell—for Britain. It is said to have been published in London as a report from the commercial counselor of the British Embassy “Much greater price advantages have accrued to the United Kingdom. * * * It is impossible to estimate the indirect profits and stimulation to trade and industry which the United States gold balance of advantage has heavily favored all British countries. The high price placed on gold and unlimited purchases by the United States of America are largely responsible for the remarkable pros- which the United Kingdom investments in and exports to South Africa have had in that prosperity. Similar triangular effects are traceable in the case of Australia, The quotations are authentic. The document was composed by H. O. Chalkley, C. M. G, C. B. E,, + British commercial counselor here. He says all this and more. In fact, he concludes, the early British fears that the United States would get any trade advantage over here, from gold devaluation, “have been disproved by the results.” * ok K X The Chalkley report is dated last December, but was made public in London only a few weeks ago. A British commentator surmises it might have been better if the United Kingdom department of overseas trade had delayed publication for a couple of years more. He shudders to think of what will happen when American Congressmen get hold of it. The official reply which will be made here is that, of course, American monetary policies have helped South Africa, where much of our inflowing gold has been coming from, but the United States has been helped also. Our trade with South Africa expanded 33 per cent in 1935, a large part of the increase being in autos, steel, oil, textiles and tobacco. Also our exports to the whole United Kingdom were 13 per cent greater in value in 1936. Nevertheless, Mr. Chalkley has presented the question of who is getting the most out of it. Treasury Secretary Morgenthau is buying South African gold by issuing bonds and increasing the Federal debt. This creates South African bank balances here which are being used for the purchase of American products to some extent. This (Federal Reserve Chairman Eccles has said) swells our gold stocks too much, encourages dangerous inflation, etc. The way it is going now, apparently, the American taxpayer loses and the American manufacturer gains, while Messrs, Eccles and Mor- genthau worry and pay. But for South Africa it's just ducky. She has found a new kind of gold mine in Mr. Morgenthau's check book. * % x x ‘The strangest of all strange congressional hearings was held recently by the House Ways and Means Committee. It concerned the Doughton bill imposing & railroad retirement tax. The committee opened the hearing by locking the window and barring the door. Then the witness, George Harrison, representing the railroad brotherhoods, was permitted to testify for two days with a committee stenographer at his elbow, but not a word of his testimony was taken down. * k% % The idea of these shenanigans is to fool the Supreme Court. The bill is to be broken up into two bills, one setting up the retire- ment system and the other carrying the tax. The tax bill is before the committee, but the system bill has not yet been introduced. Thus the Supreme Court may never be able to find out that the two bills are linked, and thus may hold constitutional whichever of the two comes to it. Some constitutional authorities doubt that such precautions are necessary, but. at any rate, no legislative record is to be made any- where linking the two together. * % ok It may be worthy of note that, when President Roosevelt had his White House conference on budget appropriations, the Senate appropria- tions chairman, Carter Glass, was not present. His colleague, the chair- man of the House Appropriations Committee, was. But the only member of the Glass committee there was Senator Jimmy Byrnes, sixth in seniority on the committee. Coincidentally, A. F. L.-er John Frey was not invited to the Perkins labor-industrial conference, although this is the first meeting of such type to which he has not been asked. Mr. Garner, the Vice Presi- dent, who hates to get dressed up in the monkey suits generally de- creed for afternoon wear in Wash- ington, finally decided the other day to give in. He was going down to Virginia with an official party and asked that his morning clothes and his tuxedo be taken out from the bottom of the trunk and packed in his traveling case. The concession really represented a great victory for Mrs. Garner, who has always tried to get him to dress up more, but, lo and behold, Mrs. G. this time ruled the morning clothes unconstitutional. She let the tuxedo go, but sub- stituted blue serge for the morning clothes. ‘The V. P. was last seen aboard the boat muttering something about there not being any liberty left anywhere these days. (Copyright, 1937.) revised to read: “If you take care of STAR, WASHINGTON, q'HE opinions of the writers on this page are their own, not necessarily The Star’s. Such opinions are presented in The Star’s effort to give all sides of questions of interest to its readers, although such opinions may be contradictory among D. C, MONDAY, APRIL of his countrymen. His memory can wait just a few more years to be | canonized by admiring citizens, cer- | tainly until there’s a balanced budget and the period of monuments for what the fathers of our country did or said | takes on more reverence and signifi- | cance than it appears to have today. | But what, after all, is $3,000,000? | It's only about 1 per cent of the average annual deficits these days which have | been running around $3,000,000,000. So perhaps, to be up to date, the saying { of pre-Roosevelt days will have to be of themselves.” (Copyright, 1987.) That means the themselves and directly opposed to The Star’s. Peace Movement Dilemma Students Firm, But Not Clear, in What to Do About War. BY DOROTHY THOMPSON. T 1S estimated that something like a million students demonstrated on Thursday in the high schools and colleges in behalf of peace. The rallies were put on by the United Students’ Peace Committee, which is a federation of some dozen students’ organizations. As a symptom of the hatred of Ameri- can youth for ° war, the demon- stration was im- pressive. But it was not at all clear, actually, what youth pro- poses to do about it. At the rally at Columbia Uni- versity, attended by 2,000 students, approximately half of them raised their hands and took the Ox- ford oath against war: “I refuse to support the Govern- ment of the United States in any war it may conduct,” and the very same audience voted by acclaim to send a cablegram to ‘Spain pledging support for the Spanish Loyalists. In other parts of New York students listened to Rockwell Kent, the artist, assail Hitler, Mussolini and Franco as the most serious threats to present- Dorothy Thompson. day peace, and fascism was denounced | from one end of the country to the other. Senator Marcantonio pled for 2 “militant pacifism”; Senator Gerald Nye told Princeton &tudents that America’s entrance into the World War was “futile and unnecessary.” Atmosphere Not Neutral. The whole dilemma of the peace movement, was brought to light in these student demonstrations. De- spite the presence at Princeton of Senator Nye, who is an advocate of mandatory neutrality, the intention of which is to remove our ships from the seas and limit our trade in time of war, with ahsolute impartiality toward all belligerents, the atmos- phere of these meetings was anything but neutral. Speaker after speaker assailed fascism and the Fascist na- tions as the world enemies of peace. The atmosphere of the meetings was belligerent in defense of democracy— provided, it seemed, that the democ- racy was Spanish or French—a bel- ligerency accompanied by the Oxford oath. Well, the students are not to blame. A New York newspaper which has consistently supported the Senate bills for the strictest mandatory neu- trality published an editorial the other day attacking the cowardice | | | world today lies in the Fascist na- tions and in Fascist philosophies. But believing that, I wouldn’t swear the Oxford oath in public demonstra- tions which will be reported in the press of the Fascist countries. As I write this column the reports have not come back from Germany and Italy, carrying the comments of the press over there, but I already know what the controlled press will say. It will talk about the soft-headedness and cowardice of the liberal democ- racles, and use these demonstrations as further evidence that although the democracies are full of hatred and enmity toward the Fascist na- tions, one really need not fear them because they are “rotted through with vague and weak humani- tarianism.” Actually the Fascist states would never have gone as far as they have if they had not become convinced that there was nothing for which democracies would fight. They have seen the League of Nations and the signatories of the Kellogg pact retreat from position after position, in Man- churia, Ethiopia, when the Locarno treaty was unilaterally broken in the Rhineland, and in Spain. Slowly the democracies are waking up to the fact that it does not take two to make a war. But they are waking up belatedly. Since the Ethiopian affair the people of England of all classes have come to the bitter realization that war is not prevented in this world by pious words, and that nations on the march are not deterred " by appeals to their better natures. If the youngsters in our colleges really believe that democracy is being challenged by aggressive Fascist states they do no service to the cause of peace to advertise that they are not prepared to defend it. More Prosperity Needed. Unquestionably the greafest thing that this country can do for peace and | democracy is to work out upon this continent a form of life more pros- perous, ordered, free and just than the dictators can even claim to offer. With that goal in mind, it is rash to deny the lessons of recent history. The | fascism that we hate is the result of the class struggle and a result not foreseen by Marx. The youth of the universities, the youth which has education, needs to think twice before it throws itself with zeal into any movement which will exacerbate that struggle. Fascism also is a political movement far more than it is an eco- nomic one, and it represents the irrationalities of peoples harassed into | unreason by internal struggles. Its | enemy is not bolshevism or the class | war. Those'are its collaborators. Its | of the British in yielding to Gen. enemies are reason, knowledge, science, Franco's blockade of the port of Bilbao. That editorial position was, it seems to me, impertinent, and had I been an Englishman I should have been thoroughly sore. tude is: “We want strict neutrality regardless of who is attacked, or where the ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ may lie, and in case of war we shall provision only such nations as are rich enough and have the ships, to buy our goods in our own ports, pay cash for them, and carry them off. But you wretched cowards, over there, your business is to defend democracy even if it might involve you in war” It's crying “sick ‘'em” from the other side of the street. That, of course, is what the students were doing. | | For the atti- | good will, tradition, common sense and | principle, through the exercise of | which the economic struggle may be | mitigated, and social peace achieved and not imposed. (Copyrigh; 1937.) AIR CRASH HURTS 3 WETHERSFIELD, Conn, April | 26 (#).—Three persons, including the | pilot were injured yesterday in the | crash of an airplane oh the Wethers- fleld Country Club Golf Course. Howard L. Hartman of West Hart- ford, the pilot, suffered lacerations | to the face; Mrs. Mildred Hartman, | his wife, suffered contusions, and I would agree with the students that | Harold Holcomb of Hartford, the other | the greatest danger to peace in the | passenger, a sprained ankle. the millions, the billions will take care | This Changing World Goering Rushes to Rome to Learn What Happened Between Il Duce and Schuschnigg. BY CONSTANTINE BROWN, OERING has not waited long to see Mussolini. Hardly has Chancel- lor Schuschnigg beer. whisked out of Venice that Goering is rush- ing to Rome to find out what exactly has happened between the two men. Mussolini, once the patron saint of Austria, has handed the little republic on a platter to the Nazis. He did not do it with an easy heart, but there is no room for sentimentality in international politics. Now Il Duce and Hitler's No. 1 adviser will discuss the question of 8pain and economics. Franco is not doing so well. There is a lack of cohesion among his senior offi- cers and the Germans have let the Italians bear the brunt of all the recent fighting. It may be that in exchange for a hands-off policy in regard to Austria, Hitler might be induced to intenstfy his efforts in Spain. The French military authori- ties are keeping step with the prog- reas of civilization. Movie theaters have been built in the sectors where there are large troop concentrations such as along the Magonot line and in the Pyrenees, where the general staff has recently dispatched a con- siderable number of men—for any eventuality. Although the political barometer is now moving once more toward peace, the British are continuing their war preparations. Not only is production, training and recruiting being intensified, the government is taking no chances regarding the dangers of an air attack. The royal palaces—there are several official residences of the King—are being made bomb and gas proof. The air au- thorities seem to think that in the event of a war the enemy sqftadrons would try and bomb the royal residences Nrst. * x x x Despite the protestation of permanent love and friendship heard at the Buenos Aires conference, the situation in South America is not quite as happy as one might think. Argentina s viewed with suspicion by her neighbors—Brazil and Chile. The reason for this suspicion is the fact that its Foreign Minister Saavedra Lamas has the idea that his country should not be satisfled with being one of the foremost South American states, but a world power. He himself was elected last Summer president of the League of Nations and has been dined and wined by Edward when he was still King of England, Although the chances of a conflict in South America are very unlikely, Argentina has gone on a rearmament race on a grand scale —for that continent. Despite difficult financial conditions, the republic has spent no less than $2,000,000 in the month of March alone on armaments. i The Argentine Navy has become air-minded. 8o far it has added to its strength 3 naval transport planes, 15 bombers and 8 amphibians which cost the Argentine taxpayer between $35000 and $60,000 each. Another 22 war planes are under construction for the Argentine government in this country at a price ranging from $100,000 to $120,000. The army will be provided with 23 heavy bombers having a service ceiling of 21,500 feet when fully loaded at the price of $120,000 each. Since Saavedra Lamas believes that his country has as close ties with Europe as she has with the Western Hemisphere, some of the neighboring statesmen believe that he might have become infected with the war ideas of his European eol- Jeagues. Their suspicion has been aroused not only because of this unexplainable rearmament pro- gram, but also because the Ar- gentine foreign secretary seems to want to dominate economically the continent. It more or less controls economically the Republic of Paraguay Now there is an Argentine mission in Bolivia endeavoring to take over for the account of Argentine capitalists the concessions the Standard Oil Co. has in that country. The result of this policy of armament and economic expansion has been that Chile, looking with dread at the Argentine bombers which c cross the mountains with ease, decided to place important armament orders in Germany, where a military mission has been sent recently Brazil, which is strongly in favor of a policy of “no entanglements with Europe,” is also rearming. In order to meet any possible challenge, the Brazilian government has not only decided to improve its aviation, but is also organizing its own navy yards, where warships could be built without depending on the good will of any other power, PASTOR DIES AT 64 Presbyterian Church, died yesterday of cerebral thrombosis. He came here from Huntington, W. Va., in 1928 Mr. Mauze, born February 2. 1873, was educated in Hampden Sydney | College and Union Theological Semi- nary, then became pastor of small churches at Fairfield and Timber Ridge, Va. Dr. Mauze, Kansas City, Formerly | of West Virginia and Virginia. KANSAS CITY, April 26 (#)—Dr. J. Layton Mause, €4, pastor of Central Headline Folk ¥ Duchess of Atholl. is and What They Do Duchess of Atholl Is Behind Running of Bilbao Blockade, ’ BY LEMUEL F. PARTON. HE ultra-conservative Duohess of Atholl sponsors $oday’s blockade-running venturs, ss three British members of Parliament ride the freighter Baok- worth with food and medicine for beleaguered Bilbao. The voyagers also expect to use the ship %o evaceate women and eohil- dren %0 a place of safety, The duchess has been a vehe- ment foe of rad- lcalism in any and all forms, and her tierce and riposte with Lady Astor has been & serial enecounter of great interest in England, with the . duchess taking the Tory end of the argument, But she is unpre- dictable, highly original and indepen- dent, and enjoys unique distinctions and privileges. For instance, ¥ the duchess should be hanged, she eould demand a gallows 30 feet higher than any ever built for any other eitizen of the realm. This special attention was obtained for her by her husband's hard-fighting ancestors of the four- teenth-century Murray elan. Bagpipe Composer. Another rare distinction s the duchess’ fame as a composer for the bagpipe, which she plays with great skill and virtuosity. She speaks Celtic with great facility and is a writer and authority on that ancient language. Her family owns and operates its own cathedral in Perthshire, an idea that once engaged the interest of Andrew Carnegie. The duchess is one of the few persons in England who may main- tain an armed bodyguard. At the time of the World War, she had a | snappy little army of 1,000 highly trained Murray clansmen, but now it is down to a few old men, kept on | to hold the franchise. i i In her family reposes the ancient secret of “Atholl brose” a high- voltage drink of which all who cross the Atholl threshold of their ocastle must partake. It's innocent base home-distilled whisky, honey and cream, but there are hidden ace- kickers in the recipe which are apt to dump anybody but a Murray clans- man. The way guests take their “brose” fixes their rating at the grim old Scotch castle overgrown with | White roses—this particular flower be- | cause they hold the castle on a pledge | to give any visiting sovereign a w rose, or else forfeit it. Sovereigns d visit it and the duchess hands each white rose. Went to Parliament in 1924 She 18 & tiny woman, happily s because the ancient law provides t! the duke must carry his bride ir the castle. Her big husband cou have put her in his pocket when | married the eighth Duke of Atholl 1 1899, but ne just carried her on on | arm. She went to Parliament in 1924 | (Copyright, 1937.) Remodeled and Befurnished with NEW Features the use of power from municipalities, the big Federal projects, like the T.| V. A, will not find it easy to| V37 G Since 1824 justify their existence throughout the‘ country. | q * IN FOOD' So the taxpayers are about to be MAKES HUBBY HAPPY ssked to spend $150,000 to help Free Cook Book of Prize Recipes destroy a $12,000,000,000 mdustry; Angostura-Wuppermann Corp., Norwalk, Conn. oo s e s e s ) which has in it the makings of a con- R, — His Hair Roots BELLEVUE- STRATFORD MODERATELY PRICED CENTRALLY SITUATED “Best Food in Philadelphia™ Clande H. B ¢, Man " Te NATIONAL LiMiTED Te CINCINNATI, LOUISVILLE and ST. LOUIS The National Limited —the only train to the Southwest with Individual Re- clining Seat Coaches—now offers many other exclusive advantages to coach passengers. 14-POINT structive program, this very year, for | the re-employment of workmen and | the purchase of much durable goods. If the purpose of the investigation is | to tell Congress something it needs to know in order to write future legisla- | tion—that’s the official excuse for all investigations—somebody might also offer another prize of a few thousand dollars to learn what has been omitted | from the present public utility holding company act, passed a year ago, that should have been included. The “death sentence” for holding companies is in the law notwithstand- ing the desperate efforts of the utility | companies to eliminate it, and 80 are to | be found in the statute vast powers over the utility industry by the Fed- eral Power Commission and the Se- curities and Exchange Commission, which have authority themselves to eonduct continuing investigations. Then there's another authorization of about $3,000,000 for a memorial to Thomas Jefferson. 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