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Show Merry-Go-Round By DREW PEARSON and ROBERT S. ALLEN WASHINGTON Behind the flurry of White House conferences and masterminding on plans to reverse the downward economic trend are the following personal views and secret strategy of the president: 1. He is greatly disturbed over business conditions con-ditions and is fearful that tlicy will become much worse before they get better. Roosevelt has told intimstes that the administration faces the most difficult period of its existence. 2. Despite his economy policy and sincere desire to- balance the budget, he agrees with the contention of his liberal advisers that the cessation ces-sation of government spending was a major cause for the sudden business recession. 3. He is pretty well convinced that a new "pump-priming" program will be necessary, but he will not openly take the initiative in advocating advo-cating it. 4. It is his fixed deermination to force congress, con-gress, and the business elements that have been clamoring for a balanced budget and drastic curtailment cur-tailment of government expenditures, to take the lead in asking for more money. 5. Roosevelt believes that before the winter is over such a movement will develop. 8. If and when it does, he is prepared to recommend rec-ommend that it be channeled chiefly through armaments, new railroad equipment and building build-ing construction. 7. Meanwhile he is bending every effort to launch a large-scale, privately-financed housing boom: also to induce the utilities to undertake long-delayed expansion and modernization. To start the ball rolling he will make some concessions con-cessions on the capital gains and undistributed profits tsxes. ' Inner Council Conflict Sentiment in the inner White House council is overwhelmingly for a resumption of spending. This includes Chairman Marriner Ecrles of the federal reserve board. Secretaries Wallace and Ickes, W P A Administrator Hopkins, Dr. Isador Lubin, head of the bureau of labor statistics; sta-tistics; Dr. Leon Henderson, WPA economist, and Laurhlin Currie, reserve board economist. Even Chairman.Joe Kennedy of the maritime commission, one of the most earnest budget balancers, recently has changed his tune and now believes new spending may be necessary. Only adviser still standing grimly by his guns Is Secretary Morgenthau. To him. Slashing expenditures ex-penditures and balancing the budget are the alpha and omega of every issue and problem. He measures every policy by this yardstick. In the inner council deliberations his unvarying cry is: "When are we going to make good our promise prom-ise to balance the budget?" This objective has become a fixation with the treasury head. He considers his personal honor, his standing in history to be at stake. Unless the budget is balanced, Morgenthau is convinced that he will lose his chance to go down in the record as a "great" secretary of the treasury. treas-ury. Owl Bosa As an old friend and Dutchess county neighbor, neigh-bor, Roosevelt is personally fond of Morgenthau. Morgen-thau. But Young Henry's counsel does not carry (rest weight. Roosevelt has disregarded him in the past and will do so in the future. Tha treasury chief will have to take it and like it. If he doesn't, his resignation will be snapped up in a flash. The truth is that Young Henry ranks with Attorney General Cummings and Miss Perkins as the rabineteers whose exit would please Roosevelt privately. In recent weeks he has shown sharp impatience with them. He will never ask them to resign, but if they ever hint they want to go, they certainly will not be begged to stay. 17. S. A. Folklore AH over the country, W P A's unemployed writers are scratching for folklore to set down in their federal books. They turn up oddities everywhere. Here are some of them: The city of Marshall, 111., wants to show a bright face in the night. The city treasury pays for illumination of the front porch of anybody's home. Fresno, Cal., profits from the Chinese belief that eating raisins will ensure male children. Its Raisin Growers' association prepares small packages pack-ages of 1 or 20 raisins each for sale in China. In Hollywood, Cal., a lady named Miss Aline Barnsdall donated land to the city for establishment establish-ment of Barnsdall park. She retained an encircling en-circling strip of land, however, on which she sets up signboards to proclaim her social and political views. , The Tree That Owns Itself is in Athens, Ga., where Colonel William H. Jackson bequeathed be-queathed to a white oak in fee simple all land within eight feet of its trunk. When a cyclone struck a settlement near Joplin. Mo., the place took the name Cyclone. Population four persons: the postmaster, his wife, and two children, tcopwtnt, 1I7, by tailed Feature BmoMcate. Inc.) |