Show weekly news analysis congress flees new tax issue after blostin boosting g farm budget by joseph W labine 1 EDITORS NOTE when opinions are expressed in ia these columns they are ara those of the news analyst and not necessarily of this newspaper CONGRESS Morgen thaus misery clad in an expensive new easter suit the 1940 41 farm appropriation bill was sent back to the house only a few weeks earlier dressed in threadbare tatters the house had sent it to a bighearted big hearted senate at that time it stood at well under franklin Roosevel ts bed rock figure now it was including tor for parity payments and there was an additional for agricultural loans blown blohm to kingdom come was the self righteous economy program which featured congress earlier weeks the house was certain to okay most of the enlarged farm bill nor was there much chance that defense and relief appropriations would be slashed substantially like pink elephants in a nightmare the ogre of too much spending appeared simultaneously before con V v TREASURER the time may come gress and secretary of the treasury henry anxious to spend but not anxious to raise the debt limit or levy new taxes in an election year many a legislator turned covetous eyes on the treas surpluses one possibility was the currency stabilization fund hearing about this treasurer protested the time may come when we will get down on our knees and give thanks that its still there another possibility was to take the farm bill increase out of the treas working balance treasurer shuddered at this toils pointing out gut that the working balance by next june will be only frankly worried treasurer protested again when congressmen hinted that the per cent gain in income tax collections might preclude new taxes next day showing that he was disgusted with the nations fiscal carelessness he ordered that baby bonds could henceforth be sold only to private individuals reason to hold bold sales at a minimum thus keeping the debt from mounting too rapidly while treasurer sweated the senate which had wreaked wrecked all this havoc began di discussing s the reciprocal trade ire treaty a t y bill and headed beaded for a close vote EUROPE haymakers Hay makers late march found neither european belligerent paying much attention to actual warfare the terrific north sea aerial attacks of a week earlier had settled into an allied blockade of scandinavian shores aimed at stopping shipments to germany in spite of norwegian and swedish neutrality protests britain and france were busy setting their houses in order the dictators were busy making hay in the balkans the allies premier paul reynaud appointed when edouard Dala diers french cabinet resigned got off to a humble start when the chamber of deputies gave him only a one vote majority in the first ballot later when reynaud stuck out his chin and announced his determination to fight the wars both at home and on the western front the chamber increased its majority to 17 frances political crisis had apparently patently ly passed but britaina Brit ains was just beginning to brew nobody knew who would be ousted but it was a virtual certainty that prime minister neville chamberlain would reorganize his cabinet to include a few laborites labovites Lab orites the dictators turkey only balkan friend of the allies was busy trying to patch up an agreement between london paris and moscow thus staving off a threatened expansion of hostilities into the near east but the dictators apparently bent on making the balkans benevolently neutral were playing every card in their deck germany with the most to gain worked for between italy and russia meanwhile she also pressed new demands on rumania chiefly concerning speedier oil and agricultural production there was every reason to believe combined russian german pressure made rumania the next finland I 1 given her choice between ing or being beaten to death JAPAN r eyes ryes V abroad for the nonce japans problems in china were settled gen chiang kai shek still had men in the field but nippon had made considerable sid erable progress puppet wang ching wei planned to establish his tokyo dominated government at about the first of april heartedly big granting autonomy to vast and rich north china which thus came closer within japans own orbit with these troubles resolved tokyo began watching the international situation for two successive days the diet fired difficult questions at premier mitsumasa and his cabinet yet each time the canny ministers fended bended them off like seasoned diplomats once a member asked foreign minister hachiro arita whether japan take some positive role in supporting germany and italy answered arita japan already knows how the european war will end but the matter is too deli cate to talk about DEFENSE warplane tempest ever since world war II 11 began last fall fail isolationists have argued that sale of U S warplanes war planes abroad is 1 blocking expansion of our own air force 2 exposing U S military secrets to the highest bidder 3 boosting aircraft prices because of the rush of foreign orders by late march this tempest seemed headed tor for a showdown both house and senate military affairs committees planned hearings bearings on the subject president roosevelt injected his two bits worth by debunking the military secrets charge he advocated mass sale of U S planes abroad to build up production channels next day an allied purchasing commission offered to place a billion dollar plane order if secret mechanism were included shortly thereafter the war department brought down congressional wrath by permitting foreign sale of some new m p h pursuit ships meanwhile the army had answers to the two other charges 1 it was maintained that sales abroad have helped development of newer and better planes for the U S 2 assistant secretary of war louis johnson denied that prices were being boosted example the aluminum company of america which cut its ingot price from 20 cents to 19 cents a pound notified him that mass production has resulted in a saving of 5 per cent on juggernauts JUGGER TAIL europe and back nonstop aluminum on one unspecified bomber the price would drop to army air experts more exciting than this argument was their purchase of the worlds largest airplane see cut a 70 ton juggernaut capable C of carrying c 28 tons of bombs nonstop non stop to europe and back double the size of the famous 41 flying fortress it will have a foot wingspread and fly more than m p h the first will cost subsequent ships in mass production will cost about each agriculture cotton woe last winter the U S saw a ray of hope in its cotton problem the 1939 crop of bales was bales short of domestic and export demand thus supplies in storage under loans were withdrawn to supply the market meanwhile great britain took bales in the seven months ending march 1 compared with only bales in in the same period a year earlier then came the blow at washington british trade officials announced that united kingdom purchases of american cotton must be curtailed to save foreign exchange A second reason is that british cotton ships have frequently come to the U S empty by turning to south america for cotton the british hope to fill their ships with english made goods which can be sold to pay tor for the cotton unhappy agriculture department officials predicted the U S would again be asked to advance large loans on unmarketable surpluses also received was talk of a new export subsidy program next tall fail communications chaos teletypes pounded out gibberish easter telegrams were delayed and radio stations found their transmission distance cut to 50 miles or less european cables were completely out and long distance telephones barked with static such were the manifestations of mother earths worst electrical bombardment since 1907 when the U S was isolated from europe three hours studying the phenomenon astronomers figured a solar cyclone had created a gigantic sun spot many times larger than the earth much stronger about volts than normal transmission power volts the bombardment came into conflict with normal directions of the eart earths h s own electric currents result temporary chaos miscellany I 1 it I 1 immoral bath at los angeles pretty 17 year old joan aveline lawrence complained because she thought mass bathing in her high school gymnasium shower room was immoral next day the schools attorney announced a private shower room would be arranged C L into effect on eastern railroads went new low 2 cents a mile one way coach rates with round trip reductions due duct ions meanwhile major bus lines cut their rates to keep pace some as much as 30 per cent cat disney okla gates on the federal grand river dam clanged shut and water began rising in a acre reservoir which gov leon C phillips charged would cause damage to state owned property but a federal court ruled against his protest fl L at st louis circuit court judge thomas rowe took under advisement a contempt citation against the post dispatch and three staff members whose editorials and cartoons criticized the dismissal in judge rowes court of defendants in an extortion case CANADA Al bertan credits five years ago william aberhart won the premiership of alberta on a social credit platform the provincial supreme court outlawed his debt reduction proposal and a settlement act affecting private debts but premier aberhart never got around to introducing the chief feature of his monetary scheme NAMES in the le news C e at gibraltar british authorities stopped the conte dl di savoia bearing undersecretary of state sumner welles home from europe reason to look for hjalmar schacht nazi economic expert thought to be aboard 4 fl at paris died dr edouard branly 96 credited by many with discovering C 0 the principles of wireless telegraphy fl from baltimore to his winter home at miami beach sped ex gangster al capone A physician said he was considerably weakened by the trip 41 L at tokyo jap authorities convicted james R young U S writer on charge of spreading false rumors A six month sentence was suspended C L at berlin another son was born to prince louis ferdinand grandson of ex kaiser wilhelm and the former russian grand duchess kira daughter of the late czarist pretender fl 41 at helsinki finnish field marshal baron mannerheimo Man became the first to win the nations highest military honor a diamond studded liberty cross C e at rockleigh N J died anna 39 year old theatrical prop horse used by rudolph valentino valentine in the sheik and by caruso in the opera aida fl at vatican city pope pius XII addressed to the world an easter homily pleading for peace concord and unity among nations C e at washington franklin roosevelt spent easter at home with a cold aw TREND UTILITIES the federal power commission reported that proposed construction work by electric utility firms this year would cost boosting installed capacity by 47 per cent WOMEN the department of labor figured the average U S woman spends almost one eighth of her 55 annual clothing budget on stockings MIDDLE AGE at albany new yorks legislature heard employers are rapidly relaxing prejudices against middle aged workers TAXATION rep august andresen R minn urged a 20 per cent tax on war material purchases by foreigners to take c cy of farm benefit payments wi after four years his discouraged followers were still waiting for the monthly credit dividends of 25 which every adult Al bertan would spend to banish poverty and unemployment in late march alberta went to the polls again forty eight hours later when the provinces complicated election machinery had reported premier aberhart was back in office with a greatly reduced majority still promising credit dividends POLITICS farle parleys y s inning most important political announcement no of the year was postmaster general jim Far parleys leys statement in boston that his name would go before the democratic national convention this year and thaes that overnight observers began testing Far parleys carleys leys strength wondering if t he could be president or second mate they forecast a positive convention breach between parley farley and president roosevelt either third ANY MINUTE NOW lensen jensen in chicago daily news termites will be incensed if parley farley is nominated or parley farley will take a walk if franklin roosevelt or his personal candidate is chosen in late march just as new dealers were beginning to fear Far parleys leys tremendous following among democratic state and local leaders the postmaster general left on a business trip into the politically important border and southern states it was obvious that political discussions could not be avoided there ther tore fore observers expected candid Candida jv parley farley to tell his followers tha taso 0 should begin lining up behind someone like secretary of state cordell hull for himself parley farley was thought to be satisfied with the vice presidency denzy watching these goings on many another democratic hopeful became worried In dianas sen frederick van nuys a staunch supporter of candidate paul mcnutt suggested frankly that jim parley farley should retire as democratic national chairman said he 1 I do not think it is fair that parley farley should capitalize on the prestige which that office entails released by western newspaper union |