OCR Text |
Show Secretary Ickes Would . Spike Guns of Land Brigands It is stated by Harold L. Ickes, Secretary of the Interior, that land speculators have obtained options j on land in the vicinity of the Bonneville power dam in Oregon with a view to boosting prices through a boom similar to that by which thousands were mulcted j near Muscle Shoals. He was asked, ask-ed, he said, by Senators and Rep-, Rep-, i esentative to issue a - proclamation proclama-tion that no electricity will be furnished fur-nished from the above power dam to lands which are sold at profiteering profit-eering prices. Though the Secretary desires "to spike the guns" of what he terms "these predatory land brigands" brig-ands" and thus protect their prospective pro-spective victims, he is powerless to do so, he declared. . The legal division of the Interior Inter-ior Department gave Mr. Ickes an opinion to the effect that a proclamation pro-clamation such as requested would be beyond his authority and would have no beneficial effect. Concluding, he averred: "I sincerely sin-cerely regret that It Is not possible for me summarily to halt the program pro-gram of land sharks," but, "Muscle Shoals should furnish a lesson to the unwary." |