| Show j i A J f V-J. V l r r To J 1 J i j fI 1 i v. f. f 0 vo 10 5 J 1 PA j i i 1 Y a p- p Y r Y 4 Jt- Jt s rJ i r f. f ro Ri l' l g. g h ht t. t I. I n tort W. th S Sh hY h e s f 0 oJ 1 Nf I f or of HERBERT HOOVER I. I Out u 0 of 01 Civilian Life Almost coos r 1 t i t J r f 2 I Sa f 1 t r l olla a Moments Moment s N Notice once Into n a Cabinet 1 r v nt r i j i Portfolio Portfolio and the Job Held D Down own wn 4 Successfully for Eight Years ears by the e y J f A y 4 tr t t J c r N I t j President President That's t That's s What at T 1 f. f Happened led to Robert P. P Lamont f Secretary o of Commerce f y yI f f r Y w Yr At Y 1 S 43 iw s1 f l d rr 4 Jf If Y ft I fI f- f I t J w. w K j mo Ly f. f Y I f y rp w fl T i I i i Il b bY i b. b Y Y Id a 7 I I L a F FI j u ur a r r t 4 J I RC A n i M C RY I i a R 1 r Sa f S N r MJ O L. L wY Ri a 4 l Y 3 a f k 1 W 4 54 1 7 n r ri w n x 6 C r G r t T Y N e n y h. h I 7 v. v I V I o oJ L g. g h. h r tt J I Y R. R Following the hiis Mississippi l disaster in 1927 Secretary y Lamont he headed ded A fi the Flood Control Committee of the United States Chamber of Commerce Com Comb 5 merce coerce and its plan was substantially that adopted by Congress and 1 i app approved by President Coolidge 1 f i By Y Robert B. B Smith How OW would you like to be called upon P. P suddenly suddenly- fill out of a a clear sky to Herbert Hoovers Hoover's shoes That's what happened to Robert P. P Lamont when he was asked to become becomeS y S Secretary of Commerce Commer e in the Hoover Cabinet It was the post Mr Hoover himself himself him him- self had filled except for a brief InterS interval interval inter inter- 4 Mr S val val- throughout the Harding Hardin and CoolIdge Cool Cool- Idge Administrations In it Mr Hoover had distinguished hi himself as as one of the f 4 ablest Cabinet members in the history of j the National Government and made a record which had much to do with his elevation to the presidency It is not a place for dramatic showing off one must have the stuff to make good be bea because because be- be a cause slapping back-slapping does not work in that department Mr Hoover f t had set up a standard of or efficiency In the administration administration of the of-the the Commerce Depart- Depart J Sf v went ment me t th that t would be difficult for his suck successor successor suc suc- k cessor to onti on carry J ti Mr Hoover must have have done a good bit bitof of or thinking as he weighed the qualifications r of the various men suggested for forthe r 1 the Commerce portfolio He knew more about what wa war n needed heeded eded for that particular 1 Y 1 I lar Job than for tor any other post in hi the Cabinet To be offered that position Implied Implied Im Ira- plied ped a a. special compliment I r. r Political Washington f feverishly speculating J lading lating about the personnel of th they the new nw Cabinet last February was taken entirely by surprise when it learned of Lamonts Laments r appointment Who is this Lamont Wast was r t echoed around Capitol Hill the executive 2 departments and newspaper offices Few could answer the q question stion and Who had to be r widely consulted From Fromi x i it lt Washington learned that Mr Lamont Jamont J was as an engineer and a manufacturer with s- s Interests in num numerous rous large corpor corporations corporations' 1 but beyond that the capital obtained littie littie lit- lit littie tie satisfaction ASHINGTON S surprise however was hardly to be compared to to that of Mr Lamont himself U Up p to two weeks h before the Inauguration he had not the thet t remotest notion that he waS was even b being ing 0 considered for a Cabinet post Entering public life fife re was f far r from his th thoughts He 5 was Immersed in his flung far-flung business affairs As president of a huge foundry company arid and a director in about thirty other ther large concerns he had plenty to to R. R think about Moreover he had Just en enS enI en- en S I J into new commitments greatly enlarging en- en the scope of or his business ties He had been elected a director of or orthe the Baldwin Locomotive Company only a few few days days dayss before Mr Hoover Invited him into the Cabinet a and d he had become interested interested In Interested in- in in other projects which he was eager to push And strangely enough he scarcely knew Mr Hoover He had met the new President only once In his life and th then n under rather formal circumstances DurIng During Dur- Dur Dur Dur- ing the war he had headed the Procurement Procurement Procure Procure- ment Division of the War Department In Wasl Washington ington while Mr Hoover a few blocks away was functioning as Food Adm Administrator But both were busy men in those hectic days and they never met during the war period It was not until about eighteen months ago that they were brought together and then largely by ac ac- ac Mr Lamont had headed the Flood Control Control Control Con Con- Committee of the United States Chamber of Commerce which In 1927 made a three weeks weeks' to tour of the devastated devastated devastated devas devas- regions in the Mississippi Valley following the disastrous flood of 1927 The committee returned to Washington to write its report and make its During its stay In Washington Washington- the committee went to the Department of Commerce to to call caU upon Secretary Hoover who had done considerable travelIng traveling travelIng travel- travel Ing himself in the flooded region Mr Lamont outlined to Mr Hoover what the committee had seen and what It thought should be done Briefly the committee re recommended that the Mississippi flood- flood control problem be treated as a national project with the Federal Govern Government paying payIng pay pay- Ing the entire cost It was substantially the plan later adopted by Congress and nd approved with some reluctance by President President President dent Coolidge Mr Hoover liste listened 1 d at attentively attentively at- at to Mr Lamonts Lamont's report a short conversation ensued and nd the committee departed That was the only time Mr Lamont ever ever met Mr Hoover up to the time he came to Washington a few weeks ago to bec become me Secretary of Commerce He must have made a a. lasting impression upon Mr Hoover Perhaps It was a case of or orthe the meeting of two engineering minds of Mr recognizing Mr Air Lamonts Lamont's ability by the character of his S report on t the Mississippi flood situation 1 a and d. d then quietly indexing him In the back backof of his head for the day when he would be looking about abou for a capable assistant Mr Lamont was was' born in hi Detroit on December i 1 1867 and was graduated as asa asa asa a civil engineer from the University of Michigan in 1891 His first fust important mp Job was engineering the construction of buildIngs buildings buildings build build- ings at atthe the Chicago World Fair His rise in the industrial affairs of the Middle Middle Middle Mid Mid- dle West w was s rapid He became first vice president of the Simplex Railway Appliance ance ance Company In 1897 and in In 1912 was yas elected president of the American Steel Fo Foundries a concern which h. h employs more than men At the time of his ap appointment appointment ap- ap p- p he was' was a director in such corporations corporations corporations cor cor- cor- cor as the International Harvester Company CompanY the B Baldwin Locomotive Company Company Com Company Com Com- pany Montgomery Ward Co Armour Co the American Radi Radiator tor Company the First National Bank of Chic Chicago go and the Illinois ois Bell Telephone Company His wealth is reputed t to run high high- I into to the millions millions- mons With With the exception of Secretary Secretary Secretary Secre Secre- tary of the of the Treasury M Mellon Mellon Mellon-it it is doubtful wh whether ther any one o one e with s such ch large corporate corporate corporate cor cor- holdings has' has ever before been c called 1 Into the public service at Washington Wash Wash- ington Under the law he resigned from all aU of them when he accepted the Cabinet Cabinet Cabi Cabi- net appointment t. t D DURING the th e W World orld War he lie served with th the rank of colonel as as s head of the Procurement Division of of the Ordnance Department In th that t capacity bought ha-bought ordnance supplies for the army In- In France and passed upon contracts amounting to more Ulan than As a result of his observations during dUing that period of service he be bec became me a strong advocate of what is known as educational war ord orders for which a bill to man manufacturers f has been introduced in Congress by Representative Rep Rep- r Morin M Morin of Pennsylvania chairman chairman chair chair- Corn Corn- man of the House Military Aff Affairs irs Com Com- It is proposed to split plit up contracts contracts con con- tracts for military supplies In peacetime manufacturers in among a number of order to educate them and anci prepare them for producing munitions on a large scale Lamont believes that 1 if in II wartime Mr this Industrial preparedness plan could 5 Business and Government nt t fc oW HoW can the theE the E federal eral 1 1 Government e c est s t Kelp help ne 1 p A American business b 1 fas' fas the thc question put to the he n new new w United States SecretarY Secretary Secre Secre- tary i ry of f Commerce Robert p P. P Lamont By peeping beeping out of it so eo f far faras r as P po possible sible came his reply I I believe that business business busi busi- ness ness ies can be depended upon to t to do its own reforming It IS' IS is doin doing constantly it constantly and it does its b best st without pressure from the the- G Govern Govern- ver ment mente In my opinion opinion fully 95 pe peg per cent of or American business is clean The biggest biggest big big- gest pest pr problem blem before American Amer Amer- American ican can business today is is' how io to oclean clean up up that remaining g 5 per cent be p put t In to effect It w would uld a repetition rep repetition rep rep- of the enormous enormous waste and costly delays which a attended tended the efforts to p put t American Industry Into quantity production production production tion of munitions In ha the early days of the war In r recent c nt years Mr Lamont has taken takena a prominent part In hi the activities of the the- United States Chamber of Commerce When the last Federal tax revision took place Mr Lamont went before the House Ways and Means Committee and crossed crosse swords w with th the Coolidge Administration by advocating a more drastic reduction than the President and Mr Mellon thought wis wise Business men Den throughout the country will be interested in the fact jac that he urged d cutting the corporation tax t to 10 per cent cent- centa a a. proposal which found considerable support in n both houses After a a. rather spirited tilt between the Administration and the Chamber of or C Cpm Cpm- lm- lm merce the reduction n to 10 30 per cent was rejected as s too drastic i and a compromise mise was was effected In the course of his testimony before the Ways Ways' and I Means Committee Mr LamOnt La La- mOnt mont called d was upon upon for for an expert opinion ion on a much debated question of ot widespread wide wide- widespread s spread read Int Interest rest to business and the public generally Can the corporation tax be passed on to Jo the consumer ti ties s widely differ on the answer r. r Mr Mr Lamont said I that wherever w ere er It Is t Secretary of of Commerce RobertP Lamont President President Hoover Hoover 1 to the post so recently relinquished by himself Typically an American business man Mr Lamont appreciates the value the value of Mr l Hoovers Hoover's organization organ 71 and vision sion for the functioning of the the Department of Commerce and declares he will Swill adhere t to to those poli policies i s t ble for the manufacturer to pass the tax tax- on it Is done But he added It Isn't always possible As a a- matter of fact he said said it is very difficult in many cases to pass the tax on n. n For instance e a a. pub pub- service lic-service corporation whose rates are regulated is not able to pass the tax on Prices are determined by market conditions and by competition and the nian manufacturer and the corporations corporations' generally generally generally gen gen- are getting what profits they can if they get any in competition Soon after Lamont took the oath of office it became known In ill Washington that he was a director In the Association Association Association tion Against the Prohibition Amendment Dry sp spokesmen gasped Here was was a militant militant mili mm- tant wet in do what was supposed to be a a. dry bone-dry Cabinet Newspaper correspondents correspond- correspond hastened hasten d to interview Mr Lamont He met them frankly Oh t that at cats cat's come back has it he laughed when they asked him about his membership on the wet directorate If Mr Lamont was embarrassed by the situation situation situ situ- he he did not show it He did no beatIng beating beating beat beat- ing abo about t the bush He He did riot not believe in the prohibition law he said and he considered it his right to work work for its repeal But in order to avoid any controversy controversy con con- ab about ut the the matter matter during his term termas as a C Cabinet bine member r he had tendered his resignation as a director in the asso asso- cla Ex Excitement over the Incident soon died Ue down M j MR R. R LAMONT LAMONT h has ha s' s no no sounding high s Gove Government ent to uplift business H How w c can can n the Federal Feder l Government best help elp American business 1 I asked him out of it so f far ar as p possible sible he replied I 1 believe tb that t business c can n be depended ed up upon n to do its own reform reform- ing It Is is doing it constantly and it does It best best- without pressure from the Gov Government In my opinion fully 95 percent per percent cent of American business is clean The biggest problem before re American business tod today y Is A how to cl clean an up that remaining 5 per cent cent cent- Much of that 5 per cent is composed Sed of f fm m men trying to cre create te for themselves themselves' what we call nuisance value They are trying to fo make themselves s soOl so oOl obnoxious that th the others in desp desperation ration will buy them out at a price beyond their real w worth rth Just to get rid of them In Inthe Inthe Intile the tile long run i it seems reasonable to b believe be- be have lieve that 95 per cent of our Business men will have the intelligence and the e capacity to take care of that other 5 per cent Its ts t's a safe bet that tha Mr Lamont t will dono do dono dono no radical reorganizing in hi the Department of Commerce Mr Hoover himself spent nearly eight years building bunding up an organization organization organization which was the envy of all the other de departments in the Government The President knows it from top to bottom He is personally acq acquainted with many of its employ some of whom are o scattered all over the world on the lookout lookout lookout look look- out for opportunities to to expand American Ameri AmerI- can trade Mr Lamont does not misunderstand misunderstand misunderstand misun misun- the situation This department he said was or organized organized organized or- or by a man who was unusually Uy en en- dowed He knows more about it than any one else eIse I 1 want to find out what his ideas and policies are what vision he had in hi mind when he was Secretary of or Commerce and as nearly as I can to carry carryOut carryout carryout Out those policies t Mr Lamont Is a man of few words One of his pet aversions is making speeches but he is scheduled to make one soon Just before he was tendered the secre secre- of commerce he participated Ina in ina ina a meeting of the United States Chamber Chamber of Commerce called for the purpose |
