Show M. M Merry Merry Ro err o oun nd By DREW PE PEARSON ARSON AND ROBERT S. S ALLEN WASHINGTON WASHINGTON Most Most people dont don't know it but with the democratic world hungry for ships about 40 Norwegian ves vessels els are in French African African African can ports with the British unable to put their hands on them Around this revolves a highly interesting story which involves a fight between the presidents president's presidents president's presidents president's dents dent's famous brain ex-brain ex truster Tom Corcoran and Sol counsel of the Democratic national committee Both Corcoran and Rosen Rosen- blatt new now private attorneys have been trying to pry the ships loose but got into a lawyers lawyer's row while doing so The British haven't been able to get these vitally important ships because the Norwegians Norwegians Norwegians gians dont don't want to give them up Norwegian gian shippers point out that most of their ships al already already already al- al ready are are under the Union Jack that they arent aren't getting paid in ready cash and that more Norwegian Norwegian Nor Nor- Norwegian seamen now work for the British than there are sailors in the British merchant marine Therefore the Norwegians want to sell these vessels to the United States for operation in western hemisphere waters and their attorney Harold Deming has been working to this end 1 with with no success r I. I Democrat vs Democrat So Sol was brought into the picture picture picture pic pic- ture by Thomas Olsen of New York a member of the Norwegian shipping commission i iSol Sol came to Washington and had a talk with the president during which he proposed that the United States buy the Norwegian ships in North Africa for use in American waters Subsequently Subsequently Subsequently wrote a letter to Jack Dempsey Dempsey Dempsey Demp- Demp sey maritime commissioner to the effect that the president had virtually directed that the Norwegian ships be purchased by the maritime commission This letter giving the impression that the president of the United States was sending orders to the maritime commission through a Democratic lawyer caused a rumpus which had wide reverberations There were reverberations inside the maritime maritime maritime mari mari- time commission w where h her e r e Admiral Land the chairman took the matter up with the president And there were even more mere more violent reverberations reverberations reverberations in circles outside the commission namely commission namely in the breast of Thomas ThomaS' G. G Corcoran time one-time brain truster who is now a Democratic lawyer Corcoran protested vigorously at the tactics of No one he told maritime friends had a right to take liberties with the presidents president's word Some of these friends marveled at the Corcoran Corcoran Corcoran Cor Cor- coran wrath remembering how for many years he himself had quoted the president Later they discovered that Tom Torri was waS' close dose to Harold Deming the other lawyer for the Norwegian I shipping c commission important All-important objects of this lawyers' lawyers row the needed much-needed Norwegian ships still are in French Africa with Germany fast encroaching on that area finally was told by the maritime commission that the ships could not be purchased by the U. U S S. S A. A because they lacked proper baths and toilet facilities for American crews under the La Follette act Out of the Night t. t J Jan an Valtin reformed com communist author author- of Out of the Night has has' offered to make an anlin- anlin in interesting interesting in- in wager with Ralph Ingersoll p publisher of the New York newspaper P. M. M Ingersoll's paper has claimed that parts of oft t the e best selling autobiography raphy were pure fictIon fiction fic fic- tion and has argued that if Valtin were whipped in in the manner described in his hiS' book there would be scars on his face To this Valtin made made- the following proposal through his attorney attorney attorney ney Morris Ernst Tell Ingersoll to put up 1000 and I will let anyone he chooses lash my face 30 times times first first however wetting it After two wo months if therIS there ther is a sC scar r on my face he gets back the 1000 If there is no scar I keep the 1000 a Note Note New New York police say that if the skin is is wet before administering lashes scars eventually eventually eventually ally heal This is the practice of the nazi gestapo Banker Lobby The investment banking lobby one of ot the most agile is operating in in high gear again Members of congress are being bombarded by their silk stocking constituents with complaints because the securities and has ordered competitive bidding on public utility utility util util- ity stock issues Competition may sound reasonable enough since nce that's the way most business is done but but the he big eastern investment bankers dont don't dont like 1 it for it-for for a very special reason It jeopardizes their control of the huge utility holding com com- panICS If other investment bankers can come in and bid i on the financing of these companies there ISn isn't t much gravy left for Wall Street In the he holding company act congress congress directed the u S SEe E C to break up these banker controls and recently after several years of backing and filling filling fill fill- ing mg the S SEC E C cracked the whip The big in investment investment investment in- in vestment boys hurriedly reassembled their lobby lobby lob lob- by but so so far the pressure drive doesn't seem to be gettI getting g anywhere 1 |