Show Round Merry By DREW PEARSON and ROBERT S. S ALLEN WASHINGTON WASHINGTON There There was a fiery debate inside the national defense commission regarding regarding regarding regard regard- ing the right of othe the government to control munitions munitions munitions muni muni- factories built with the help of federal tax concessions It indicated that there is is going to tobe tobe tobe be more and more conflict ct between the government government government govern govern- ment and the big business year dollar-a-year men on the defense commission It all happened at a confidential session at which the commission and Secretary of the Treasury Henry were discussing taxes on munitions plants contended contended contended con con- tended that if the government were to give airplane airplane air airplane air air- plane and munitions manufacturers hundreds of thousands of dollars in tax benefits quick amortization of new plants then the government govern govern- government ment merit should have some say regarding future disposition of those pla plants ts Behind this was the fact that the United States today faces a drastic shortage of vital necessities such as powder all because it permitted permitted permitted per per- private industry to tear down emergency munitions plants after the first World war So the government now wants the right to say whether new munitions plants built through government aid shall be demolished after the emergency o or preserved against future emer emer- Secretary wanted the secretaries secretaries secretaries secre secre- of war and navy to be empowered to d de decide decide de- de cide whether factories built under tax concessions concessions conces concessions should be preserved for the future with future with reimbursements of course to the private owner S sh Military Secrets Secrets' But members of the defense commission led by John Biggers h he head e a d of Toledos Toledo's Libby- Libby Owens Owens-F Owens Ford rd Glass company objected He said that this was was too severe on private industry that if insisted on the provision private industry would not cooperate the na national national national na- na defense program would become bogged downAll down i All right replied who was anxious not to to have hav an open break with the defense commission well take out the provision provision provision provi provi- sion if you'll specify that the national defense commission shall be consulted regarding future disposition of the plants Also provided that these munitions contracts be made public Oh no argued Biggers The contracts cant can't be made public They're military secrets Baloney countered the secretary of the treasury There are no more military secrets in the financial part of those contracts than there are in my eye Furthermore he continued you on the defense commission will find that it is far better better better bet bet- ter to let the public in on the facts now rather than wait for future congressional committees committee to pry into your work work work-as as they are sure to do The public ought to know exactly how much the government is paying for these new plants plants' in tax concessions and also in outright grants and and they ought to know it immediately In the end the defense commission agreed with on the question of publicity However it disagreed with him on the right of the war or navy departments to say whether a private manufacturer should tear down or convert his plant if he secured tax benefits And the tax bill as report reported d to the senate provides provides provides pro pro- vides for only the scantiest safeguards regarding regarding regard regard- ing the future of these new munitions plants Note Note How How serious is the present position of the United States is illustrated by the explosion o of the New Jersey powder factory a serious disaster to defense plans Powder factories were torn down after the World war so now the nation has a powder capacity of only pounds instead of a n needed eded capacity of at least half a billion pounds Whether the New Jersey explosion was sabotage may never be known but it is a fact that if nazi agents wanted to aim at the heart of U. U S. S defense their easiest blow Would be in a powder plant thus putting out of commission machinery which takes months to rebuild Distributed b by United Feature Syndicate I wf Jj 7 |