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Show SOLDIERS' BOHUS MWBEOEBHTED LEGION CHALLENGES CHAMBER OF COMMERCE OF THE U. S. TO DISCUSS BILL Series of Debates Proposed as Means of Putting Matter Squarely Before Be-fore People of Nation Says Legion Leaders Washington There may be a series of joint debates throughout the country coun-try on the soldiers' bonus bill between officials of the American Legion and the Chamber of Commerce of the 1'nited 'States. In an open letter to I be chamber of commerce Sunday the legion, through its national legislative committee, challenged that body to send its officials and representatives to meet legion officials "in any city in the country or in every city in the country where there is a hull available avail-able and r.n audience interested." "You sa3' that the adjusted compensation compen-sation or bonus bill is not generally understood," says the legion challenger. challen-ger. The American Legion is 'willing and anxious to do its share in making it understood and to abide by the consequences. con-sequences. Is the Chamber of Commerce Com-merce of the United States like-minded or is it determined to continue its pussyfooting campaign of pamphleteering?" pamphle-teering?" Explaining why the legion was asking ask-ing the chamber of commence to take part in a nation-wide joint debate on adjusted compensation, or a .bonus for veterans of the world war, John Thomas Thom-as Taylor, vice chaiarman of the national na-tional legislative committee of the legion, le-gion, said Sunday : "The Chamber of Commerce of the United States, through resolutions adopted at its last annual convention at Atlantic City, April 27-29, went on record as In favor of 'such constructive construc-tive measures as may be directly calculated cal-culated to enable ex-service men to cultivate the soil, build homes, or obtain ob-tain vocational education, tout as opposed op-posed to 'a chash bonus.' Since that time its publicity bureau here In Washington has been bombarding the country with hand 'bills and pamphlets pamph-lets attacking the- adjusted compensation compen-sation or bonus bill now pending in congress, "Representing, or supposedly representing repre-senting big business, the chamber of commerce has made itself spokesman for not only the opposition to the cash payment feature of the bill, but to all other features of it, including even those features which the national nation-al convention expressly approved. "It is therefore, for the purpose of carrying 'the issue to the country, for it to decide whether the ex-service men or the Chamber of Commerce of the United 'States is right, that the - American Legion has challenged officials of-ficials of the chamber to a series of joint debates throughout the country. Pitiless instead of pitiful publicity we -usk the chamber of commerce to throw on fhc issue." |