Show Wash i m Digest Jt 41 J Jm 1 r r i WASHINGTON It It is entirely possible that many people have failed to piece to to- Great Wealth gether several deOn deOn de- de On Grill G ill of national national national na na- na- na import lately lately lately late late- ly and may have missed the significance signifIcance significance of an action of congress in its closing days The two incidents to which I refer are the federal grand jury indictment at South Bend Ind of a number of automobile automobile automo automo- bile bite manufacturing executives es and the action of congress in adoption of a resolution providing for a gauge broad inquiry into big busi busl- ness The two when pieced together er spell spelt a n sensational drive against the malefactors of great wealth The result Well lets let's examine the scheme the pattern and the prospects There was a period in 1936 it will be recalled when business interests interests interests in in- felt that President Roosevelt was preparing to follow a middle middle- ml dle of road the the road policy as far as government government government govern govern- ment relations with business was concerned During that period there then was a considerable improvement in general business In that interim of time as far as any observers observer could reach a conclusion the President President President dent was relying on advice from many men in whom busin business ss had hac confidence But there came a sudden sudden sudden sud sud- den end Out of the clear sky Mr Roosevelt proposed reorganization of the Supreme court of the United States and the addition of six justices whom he could appoint alonce at al once once Through weeks of battle when It became apparent that one guess was as good as another whether er the President would win business businessmen men and women again became afraid That nat was when the present depression began It was also the time when Mr Roosevelt turned away from his previous close dose advisers advisers advisers ad ad- and began listening to the new brain trust which has come to tobe tobe tobe be known as the board of strategy As the depression became sharper sharp sharp- er and nd the numbers of unemployed increased with startling rapidity the board of strategy sought means to offset the condition The group also had to find a goat which goat which is always done when plans go awry There Ther followed then the vicious and intemperate attacks on big business business business busi busi- ness by the trust busting Robert H. H Jackson then favored at the White House as the next Democratic candidate for the New York gover gover- Secretary Ickes also let loose his vocabulary and none can deny the interior secretary's capacIty capacity capacity capac capac- ity for speaking biting words For weeks and weeks we were treated to a barrage of words in which big business was pictured as beyond the pale of good citizenry and ought I to be destroyed The trust-busting trust drive was not as successful in gaining public acclaim acclaim acclaim ac ac- ac- ac claim as had been hoped for The truth is that it failed to get the country excited at all and the profit to the trust busters did not materialize materi materia I alize as had been the case when Teddy Roosevelt was swinging a abig abig abig big stick of demagoguery m in the same field of political endeavor Indeed this drive flopped at the start whereas the drive by the earlier Roosevelt was good politics for several years It was here according to the best information available that the tactics tactics tactics tac tac- tics changed The change in methods methods meth meth- methods is th the real reason renson for the story Thus it can be said that the trust- trust busting drive is still going on as strong as ever but it is going on in sev several ral fields without any apparent connection because the board of strategy has lost none of its determination determination de de- de termination to convince the nation that it is being ruined by those same malefactors of great grent wealth toward which Teddy Roosevelt waved his fist and bared his teeth Now to put the pieces of the picture pic pie ture together The first section comprIses comprises comprises com com- the indict indict- How now the ment meat of the auto- auto Picture Looks mobile moguls Edsel Edsel Ed- Ed sel Ford Walter Waller P. P Chrysler Allred Alfred P. P Sloan and Wil Wil- William VilLiam liam Knudsen among some sixty- sixty I o odd d officials of Ford Chrysler and General Motors and the companies affiliated with them in the financing of ot motor cars bought on the installment installment install ment plan They are arc charged with wit h violation of the antitrust laws although al al- though how anybody can believe th the e Ford interests ever could or would woul d play ball with the other two I have ha been unable to see Anyway big news stories were carried b by the press services from South Bend and the department of justice here her e had much background information tion which officials were delighted d to hand to any inquiring reporter They did this in order to co operate e with the press inasmuch as th the e story was so sensational and s so o vast in scope that none of us writers writer S here ere could possibly be permitted t to o miss any phase of it The other phase of the continuing g drive against big b business siness takes take s the form of a great inquiry thinly Y disguised as a general study of busness business business busi bus i ness practices It is a somewhat at unusual type of Investigation and is to be managed in a very unusual manner The committee that will do the job Is made up of three senators senators senators sena sena- tors and three representatives and anda a representative from each of a 3 number of executive departments and commissions And the important important tant fact in addition is that the which the investigation will cost will be expended under the direction di di- direction of President Roosevelt To bring it down to simple terms when congress adopted the resolution resolution resolution tion for the inquiry the board of strategy was able to turn on enough political steam to force adoption of an amendment placing the funds under under under un un- der the direction of the President rather than under control of congress congress congress con con- gress as usually is done when congress congress congress con con- gress participates In an tion That action means that investigators investigators investigators for the committee will beable be beable beable able to rely upon laws covering inquiries inquiries in in- quirles and searches made by the department of justice the federal trade commission the securities and exchange commission and the national labor relations board I among others The The combined powers powers powers pow pow- ers will wilI be all aU To explain further the full meaning meaning meaning mean mean- ing of these broad powers it is necessary necessary necessary essary to cite constitutional provisions provisions provisions provi provi- prohibiting illegal search and seizure The investigators for the committee must be able to dig deep d into private records of any bank or corporation or individual If they are areto areto areto to accomplish fully the desire of the board of strategy for complete for for- complete exposure of all the secrets of busi busI- ness When they get all of those records of course they can analyze them and place their own construction construction construction tion on the business practices That is today by inference and innuendo hint or open charge the investigators tors can smear anything or anybody any any- any I body body and and Elie newspapers wi will spread the information It being an official investigation it will be followed closely by the press andl and as usual there will be little chance for the individuals to reply When they are marked to be smeared they will be smeared whether justly or unjustly It is a deplorable thing that our government stoops to that sort of thing but it has done so in a number of instances Now as to the main objectives Every indication is that the guiding hands in the pro pro- Hit Morgan And DuPont Hon tion are determined determined determined deter deter- mined to destroy two great masses of capital I 1 mean they intend to b break eak up the combination of men and money in two instances The banking house of J. J P. P P Morgan and company and the huge industrial setup of the DuPonts are marked Whether they like it or not those two groups are areto areto re reto to be made the goats of the depression depression depression depres depres- sion of 38 1937 and those on the Inside recognize that it is a fight to the finish There will be other corporations other individuals whose business lives will be laid bare but the Morgans and the DuPonts Du Du- Du Ponts Pants are arc the real targets The board of strategy believes the Morgan Morgan Mor Mor- gan bank and the DuPont interests are chie chiefly responsible for the refusal refus refus- al of business to yield on many of the crackpot ideas of the professors and so it is inevitable those two groups will be cast as the villains There arises next the question whether such an investigation and such a prosecution as has been started started started start start- ed at nt South Bend will do the country any good One ought not prejudge It may be that the motor magnates and their corporations are guilty as pups It may be that the Morgans and the DuPonts and scores of others among families with great fortunes have set about to wreck the New Deal But the question in my mind is why has it not been discovered before It seems to me that if there was so much corruption corruption ti tion n so much Improper influence being being being be be- ing exercised and such Illegal use of moneyed power as is represented represent represent- ed by those who were pushing the investigation it should have been found out at least suspected suspected- several years ago Mr Roosevelt has bas been in office five years and it appears strange that there was no effort to uncover these demons until the business of the country as asa asa asa a whole lost confidence in hi the policies policies poli poll cies des of the national administration These developments have come along as the depression grew worse They reach their climax of preparation preparation tion at a time when another federal federal federal fed fed- eral agency the board of governors of the federal reserve system says that the industrial depression In the United States now Is the worst in inthe inthe the world Neither England nor any other industrial country abroad has experienced a n depression that has been as precipitous as the United United Unit Unit- ed States is experiencing the board said In an official statement The power is not given to me to determine the numerous and varied facts but the processes of deduction deduction deduc deduc- tion eliminate many possible causes for our nations nation's condition most condition most of them Indeed excepting excepting- f governmental govern govern- mental meddling and the b. b slag of busin business ss big and little e 0 Western Newspaper Union |