| Show 1 6 r. r National T Topics o p ics Interpreted by William Bruckart National Press Washington D D. D C. C I- I J Y Washington Most Most observers and r thinking citizens have haye been Inclined 7 to take little stock r Long a and d talks of 01 in the J Coa g hlin Senator Long and t Father Coughlin 1 the radio priest concerning plans for redistribution of wealth The consensus has hns been that their plans sooner or later Inter would fall of their own weight But It can be denied no longer that Long and Coughlin Lave have e developed a gigantic following of or people who lack Jack Information as asto asto to the fallacies of ot the arguments however logical they sound thata that a have been spread by these politically political political- ly y smart showmen One reason that serious attention to their proposals Is now necessary Is that some of ot their arguments are areV aret being advanced from high places In Inthe inthe V t the tIle federal government I refer to the tho testimony before the Ule house committee on banking and currency by Marriner S. S Eccles governor gov gov- r or of ot the Federal Reserve board and as such the titular head of or the nations nation's banking system Mr Eccles did not quite take a leaf out of ot Huey Buey Longs Long's book He approached 1 the position of the Louisiana senator senator sena sena- I J tor however when he proposed a a redistribution of Income whereas Senator Long has hns urged a redistribution button of wealth Mr Eccles suggested In his testimony testimony mony In effect that It would be all aU allright allright right for a man with say ten million dollars In capital to keep that sum provided his Income was redistributed ted Mr Eccles went back to the theda da days s 's Immediately following the World war to Illustrate his argument argument argument ment and showed that at the top of ot the war post boom one lIone tenth of ot one per cent of the families at the top of the Income receIved as ns much as 42 per cent of the families at the bottom of ot the list Furthermore he said that the single average family in the big Income class got as much muchas as four hundred families at the bottom bottom bottom bot bot- tom of the Income list This tenth one-tenth of ot 1 per cent was unable to use all aU the Income In consumption consumption consumption con con- ho continued They therefore had to find an nn outlet In Inthe Inthe the Investment field As a result the capacity to produce Increased out of all nil proportion to the capacIty capacity capacity capac capac- ity to consume So Mr Eccles took the position that a n solution of ot the depression j was a redistribution of ot this income with the Idea that it would Increase purchasing power In the lower lover brackets The governor offered no explanation ex of ot how those In the lower Income class were going to obtain possession of the redistributed redistributed Income of the rich because his argument stopped at the point where the government would take money by taxation That Is the reco recognized g weakness of ot the programs advanced by Senator Senator Senator Sena Sena- tor Long and Father and Governor Go Eccles show showed d no ability to solve sole the problem On top of the outbursts by Long and Coughlin and the serious testimony test test- mon mony by bv Gov- Gov Proposes E Eccles c c l I e s s1 1 Central Bank comes Senator N ye i e the North j Dakota Progressive with a bill In Intha Inthe inthe the tha senate to create a central bank Senator N Nyes Nye's es action has caused many humorous expressions Here we have a senator who has fostered even boasted about progressive Ideas and has called himself a libera lib lib- lib lib- era eral It Is necessary only to recall that the father of the central bank Idea was the ultra conservative Alexander Hamilton the first secretary sec secretary secretary sec sec- of the treasury Senator Nye advances a bill with the thought that the central bank would would avoid hamstringing of ot credit I think financial experts all agree that this Is true The thing which Senator Nye overlooked however Is that Mr Hamiltons Hamilton's central bank collapsed and brought ruin and grief grIet to thousands The reason It collapsed was because In removing control of the banking facilities from experienced bankers the whole thing had been turned over oyer overto to the control of ot politicians who generally speaking are experienced only In politics It teems seems paradoxIcal paradoxical paradox paradox- ical teal that the North Dakota senator houM advance as ns a liberal scheme r the creation of ot n a central bank which one hundred and fifty years ago was the height of conserva conservatism sm Th The Nye legislation was offered In the same week that Governor Go Eccles had proposed In his testImony testimony test test- mony on the banking bill In the house that the Federal Reserve board should have Jave complete control of ot tile the credit expansion and contraction contraction contraction con con- traction In ha this country I believe most persons will have difficulty In considering the two schemes as t se sep cp- separate p. p arato arate and distinct It Is to be noted note that there are oro areat arent nt at least radical members members mem mem- bers hers of ot the house of ot representatives who are convinced that the tho federal federal reserve system has failed of ot its pur pur- poses Most of them have havo been repeating repealing re re- re- re pealing without rhyme or reason t the e accusation that bankers are ore refusing reto re fusing to make loans They think therefore that If there Is a D. central centra bank or If credit control Is ie Placed place In n the reserve e board and taken away from Crom the federal reserve banks anks where It now reposes there will be additional loans forced out of the tho commercial banks History IndIcates however howe that this Is fal- fal lacious No business Is going to borrow money when it doesn't need It t and neither Is any person In his right mind going to make a n loan Jonn unless uness unless un- un less ess he has at least reasonable assurances assurances assurances as as- of ot r repayment payment It will be recalled that President Roosevelt at nt one time spoke disparagingly disparagingly of or the refusal of the bankers bankers bank banle- ers to make mako loans The President subsequently learned that attempts to o pump money out of banks must fall fail for lack Jack of borrowers I think everyone acquainted with conditions must agree that the Eccles Idea and the he N Nye e legislation means absolutely nothing In the time way of recovery aids for or It has always been true tru you rou can lead cad a horse to water but you cannot cannot cannot can can- not make him hm drink The fallacies being put forward by iy Senator Long and Father Coughlin Cough Cough- lin ha and now being Stop and nibbled at nt by Gov- Gov Consider Eccles and Senator Nye have been accepted by thousands thousands thou thou- sands ands of or people Senator Long claims that at least six sic million persons persons per- per i sons ons are arc supporting his scheme It would seem to be the time therefore therefore there- there fore ore for citizens to begin to analyze the he trend of events If they are Influenced In- In by such leadership In connection with this trend ItIs Itis it its Is s Interesting to observe how much trouble rouble Senator Long and ond Father Fattier Coughlin already have caused for forthe forthe the he administration It must be bo said franJ rankly frankly l Mr Roosevelt and ond his advisers advisers ad- ad thus far have ha not found a away away awny way to deal with It iL They have hove tried fighting back and each time they have ave succeeded only in furnishing fresh resh ammunition for the Long- Long Coughlin team Senator Robinson of f Arkansas Democratic leader In Inthe Inthe the he senate made one of or his greatest speeches peeches of ot criticism of Senator Longs Long's schemes but the result was only a fresh outburst by the LouIsiana Louisiana LouIsi- LouIsi ana ana na senator who took Robinsons Robinson's own wn words and converted them to toils his ils u use e. e I reported to you previously that the lie administration had prepared at atone atone one ne time line to take tale action against Senator Senator Sentor Sen- Sen ator tor Long Lang on income tax questions But nut apparently the powers that be beave behave bel l have ave ae decided that such a course Instead instead In- In stead tead of putting Long back In his place lace would make male a martyr of ot him Among the fhe observers here the belief belle that the only way Longs Long's attacks attack can be stopped and his tactics tac- tac tics Ics broken up is by ridicule S The administration has told congress congress con- con gress ress that thu It t wants to keep leep the Through Donald R R. R New P Pans Tans ans s so some some- o m e- e for N RA times called the tho assistant president the he administrations administration's position was aid laid before the senate committee on finance the other day with the suggestIon suggestion suggestion sug sug- that the proposed new NnA should hould be confined to matters of ot Interstate interstate in- in commerce That is the time administratIon administration administration ad ad- ministration proposes that In extendIng extending ex- ex tendIng ending the NnA for two years from the he coming June 0 a expiration date It t would apply only to industry engaged engaged engaged en en- in lines of commerce and endeavor endeavor en- en deavor leavor that carries across some state lines Unes By the same tok token n the proposal would eliminate the time codes of ot f fair lr practices from application to the he called so-called service Industry and could not therefore apply even to hours and wages In those local plants now under codes Mr statement Immediately Immediately immediately Immedi Immedi- provoked pro discussion which certainly can be expected e. to Increase In n volume because it Is In the nature nature na nn- na- na ture of ot protests from those who claim to speak for labor S Sidney human of 01 the NnA high command immediately protested as did William William Wil WIl- liam Green president of ot the American Amer- Amer ican can Federation of ot Labor Each of these hese Individuals contended that the theNnA STRA NnA would be he a worse failure than It Is now If 11 It were confined to the narrow definition of ot Interstate commerce commerce commerce com com- merce and applied only to those In In- Mr Hillman who Is labors labor's labors labor's la In- la- la bors bor's representative on the National Industrial Recovery board when he learned of Mr statement promptly struck back with an emphatic emphatic emphatic em em- observation that the co country would not permit such action It Is unthinkable he said that congress will withdraw the only protection protection pro pro- that the three million or OJ four tour million underpaid overworked and helpless workers In tho the service service- trades now have Some of them as asa asa asa a result of the NIlA are ore for the first time In their lives getting one day of rest a week and something a littie lit lit- tie the better than the tho coolie wages they y have been paid In the pastI past pastI I III am not Interpreting the I leave that to the Supreme Court of the tile United States But I have havo been Impressed by opinions given by outstanding members of the bar that a n condition of ot keeping millions of ot workers at starvation wage levels does afre affect t Interstate commerce O. 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