Show Merry G Round Merry Round nd trade lm Mark MUir 8 Jy By DREW PEARSON and ROBERT ALLEN llEN I WASHINGTON With WASHINGTON With neutrality the dominant issue before congress a secret test of ot Roosevelt's neutrality policy is being made by the United Stat States s district attorney in New York Cit City And so far one foreign country has been able to throw a wrench into into the entire neutrality ma ma- chinery That country is Bolivia The case involves the alleged purchase of four Curtiss bombing planes by Bolivia in violation of the arms embargo against her and against Paraguay Paraguay Para guay The four planes left the United States on the pretense of exploring a new air rout route to Bolivia Bolivia Bolivia Bo Bo- Bo- Bo livia and were finally grounded in Peru at the order o of the state department J r The department of justice is is now attempting to prosecute su subsidiaries of the Curtiss Airplane company at Buffalo But company officials have refused to answer certain important questions on the ground that they would incriminate a friendly friend l I ly 1 government There is no secret that the friendly government government government govern govern- ment is Bolivia State department officials say that the trail leads directly to the door of the Bolivian Bolivian Bolivian Bo Bo- Bo- Bo livian consul in New York However the Bolivian consul so 50 far lar has been unwilling to t testify And under a 8 commercial treaty between the United States and Bolivia negotiated ne ne- ne- ne before belore the civil war there ther is no way that he can be compelled to testify r Justice and state department officials predict sensational disclosures if the testimony can be brought out Meanwhile they are at t a dead end Note Officials Note Officials consider this case extremely important important important im im- im- im as a precedent for en enforcing cing the neutralIty neutrality neutral neutral- ity act now before congress If foreign officials cannot be forced to testify it it will be difficult if not impo impossible ible to q prosecute prosecute American American firms violating violating violating violat violat- ing the act Ladies of the Fres Probably no president of the United States Stales has ever enjoyed such harmonious s relations with the gentlemen of the press as the wife of the incumbent incumbent bent has hal enjo enjoyed ed with the ladi ladies s of the press Mrs Roosevelt's weekly press conferences hitherto have dripped with honeyed words and endearing phrases es On an any possible slip of the tongue she was protected When she wore a costume costume cos- cos tume at the party for Wives of the Gridiron Dinner Dinner Din Din- ner which many felt would h have ve caused Republican can criticism not one one lady of f the press betrayed the secret But now a note of ot coolness has hu made its ith unwelcome unwelcome un un- un welcome entrance The ladies of the press are being scooped In h her r r regular gular daily column Mrs Roosevelt has become their competitor The situation was the chief topic of discussion at the last Jast meeting of the Washington Newspaper per Women's club The capitals capital's leading soci society ty editor Jean Eliot Eliot of of the Washington Herald rais raised d the issue publicly She She wr wr te Mrs Roos Roosevelt velt s sc scooped the newspaper women who cover her press conference yesterday In her first daily column in a local newspaper she spoke of a luncheon at the White House for 16 with Mr Regan of Groton School at her right She didn't tell teU the press women about it and and nothing could be learned from White House attaches Maybe she was holding out out maybe maybe she was just exercising a little license in the matter matter matter mat mat- ter of dates Anyway everybody in Washington is now reading reading reading read read- ing Mrs Roosevelt's d daily Uy column Note The Note The column mentioning Mr Regan Began was published the day after Mrs Roosevelt wrote jt t. t Not So Secret The securities s and exchange commission has pulled a quiet fast one on business executives who have been squawking to high heaven over the publication of their salaries and other financial financial financial finan finan- cial secrets It i is the contention of the S SEe E C that this in info information information in- in fo formation mation is is n not t really confidential on To prove this the commission recently launched a secret test It assigned one of 01 its experts to study Various va various various va- va rious financial rep reports published hed regularly by a number of corporations He fo found nd that in practically every instance he could uncover selling sealing costs and other pertinent business facts about the concerns which had claimed these were firm secrets r The commission did not stop there It sent a letter to some of the complaining corporations corporations' asking them for secret data about their comp com corn p In e every ery case the answering company disclosed that it knew all about its competitors competitor's affairs In other words the business secrets were secrets only in so far as the public was concerned N Note The otc The S E EO O plans to 0 reve reVeal l l. the findings of its iLs secret tests when it goes oes into court to de de- de fend end i itself eIl against suits filed by American Can and several other corporations S 1336 1036 by United Syndicate Inc |