| Show WALL STREET VIEWS VI I 11 By James McMullin un Financial Observer I NEW YORK High YORK High New York sources get word that the military military mili mill tary clique which controls Japan is in a quandary They rushed the capture of and Canton Canton Canton Can Can- ton in the hope of forcing the collapse of Chiang shek's Kai-shek's government government government gov gov- before the western powers powers powers pow pow- ers could get organized to interfere interfere interfere inter inter- fere with their ambitions in South China This hope has not been realized Although Chiang has lost most of the tho key Chinese cities to the invaders Invaders invaders in in- and has had to retreat deep into int the Yangtze valley his army remains a nucleus of stubborn stubborn stubborn stub stub- born guerilla resistance to a final Japanese triumph Japanese leadens leaders leaders lead lead- ers ens know that they cannot consider consider con con- sider aider their victory safe and decisive decisive decisive de de- de- de unless and until Chiang is captured or compelled to der den No amount of bl bluster ter about an Asiatic Monroe doctrine can altogether conc conceal l the chagrin of Japanese authorities at their failure failure fail fail- ure jine to achieve this objective Worse yet they dont don't know I what t to do about it They can take more Chinese cities but that wont won't do them much good as long longas as Chiang's forces are still at large Nor is there any percentage percent percent- age in chasing him up the Yangtze valley He can retire for hundreds of miles if necessary There is no way of crowding him into a corner where he has to fight a pitched battle against overwhelming odds B Besides such sucha a a. campaign would not only be extremely expensive but would stretch the Japanese lines of communication com corn to a a. point where they would be very vulnerable to guerilla guerilla gue gue- rilla rilIa attacks Japan now commands the entire entire entire en en- tire Chin Chinese e seacoast Chiang Kai- Kai shek can no longer get supplies and munitions by water but still them by overland routes from Indo-China Indo in the south and Siberia in the north Probably the next Japan Japanese e move will be bean bean bean an attempt to cut his remaining railroad connections and to block the roads over which he gets needed needed needed need need- ed materials They may be able to do this but its it's a terrific undertaking in inan inan inan an area as vast as inland China Meanwhile the Japanese conquest conquest conquest con con- quest is still incomplete and stringent economic pressure on Japan is steadily increasing Elmer F. F Andrews administrator tor ton of f the wage-hour wage law will wilI soon have to face the first serious test of his authority A number of employers whose staffs have been working more than 44 hours a week have asked whether they cannot cut wages wages provided provided they do not cut them below the legal minimum minimum and and apply the saving to payment of overtime wages above 44 h hours urs The result would be to maintain pr present ent w working schedules with no net increase e in I. I payroll expense V 4 j Mr Andrews Obviously ha has n no power to prevent wage cuts cut as ai such as long as the minimum I standard is observed However the law says that cutting wages wage i as a result of the act shall not b be be justified So the administrator has ruled that overtime must be b based on existing wage scales noton not noton i ion on a new scale that has been revised downward l' l j Legal sharps claim that the 1 phrase quoted above is merely 1 the expression of a a. congressional wish and cannot be enforced They further insist that c congress ha has has' no constitutional authority to legislate leg leg- legislate II against wage redu reductions So So this ruling is likely to be stream o ly challenged in the courts j I The question of nazi infiltration of South America may not be o othe iii on the official agenda of the Pan American conference at Lima bu but you can bet all aU the coffee i in ii Brazil that it will be a topic o of animated discussion behind the thi scenes i Secretary of State Cordell Hulland Hull Hulland and his fellow delegates from the the- United States will do everything in their power to promote a a. west western western ern era hemisphere united front to td resist the growth of f fascist in r fluence in the American conti 1 l 1 Special efforts will be made to to- to persuade Argentina and Brazil to to- share active leadership in such a a ai movement so as to disarm possible ble suspicions of smaller Latin na nations nations that the is proposal a Yankee Yankee Yan kee kec imperialist trick f I New dealers and New York bankers rarely agree but both 1 were privately pleased by the elec l election tion of P. P D. D Houston as secondi second ij I vice of the president American Bankers association According w I I to A. A B. B A. A custom the second I vice president automatically becomes be- be t be-t I comes first vice president the following following following fol fol- f T lowing year and president a year yearn year later so the only cont contest t is forthe for the lower office I Mr Houston is head of the American National bank of Nashville Nashville Nash Nash- ville vilIe Tenn The R F C owns preferred preferred pre pre- pre pre- stock in this bank The anti new deal wing of the A. A B. B A. A contended that no one should be elected an officer of the org organization organization ni- ni who was by implication subject to R F P C influence They I put up a rival candidate but he I Iwas was beaten in a backstage battle in the nominating committee The big city bankers favored Mr Houston because he represents represents seats their viewpoint on centralization centralization centralization branch banking etc as against that of the small independent independent inde lade pendent state banks which consistently consistently con con- oppose attempts to in integrate in the banking system S So Washington and Wall ValI street for once are happy about the sam sarna thing Copyright 1938 for forThe The |
