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Show fs CAPITAL 4 I fir -Henry DworshakgS ! I - ... j YOUR CONGRMAM jJJJilLUllj ed a new deiense highway bill involving in-volving $170,000,000 and sent it '.0 , conference to adjust dillerences with the senate bill. The measure j authorizes the appropriation of $150,000,000 for the construction j and improvement of access roads to military and naval reservations, defense industries, and sources oi raw materials. It also provides $10,000,000 for flight strips along public 'highways and $10,000,000 for highway engineering surveys and plans during the emergency. As contrasted with the highway bill vetoed several weeks ago by the president and which provided for specific allocation to the respective res-pective states, the substitute legislation legis-lation gives discretionary power to the president to allot the funds. ' Idaho has several mines producing strategic minerals and, therefore, is eligible to receive funds for such highways. While the bill does not make any authorization for strategic strat-egic highways, it does provide that, during the emergency, the federal share of the cost of projects proj-ects on the strategic network paid from federal funds shall be 75 per cent instead of 50 per cent. Federal Loan Administrator Jones has announced the export import bank has agreed to loan Mexico $30,000,000 for national highway development. Chairman Martin Dies, of the house committee investigating subversive sub-versive activities, on October 19, submitted to Attorney General Biddle the names of 1124 alleged Communists or . fellow travelers now on the federal payroll. Congressman Con-gressman Dies stated: "Retention on the federal payroll of several thousand persons, to put it mildly, have strong leanings toward Moscow, Mos-cow, wil conferm the widely held suspicion that a large and influential influ-ential sector of official Washington Washing-ton is utilizing the present national nation-al emergency as a means for undermining un-dermining the American system of democratic government." The persons per-sons to whom Mr. Dies referred are not all employed as iclerks; five of them receiving $10,000 a year; eight, $9;000; 'seven, $8,000; , 24, $7,000; 25 $6,000; 55, $5,000; 96, $4,000, and 153, $3,000. The priorities system, under which thousands of small firms and concerns are finding it diffi- Tliese small n.nus i..i;a.iv ea.ploy li'iun a lev to sevc.al hundred persons, and their economic eco-nomic welfare and 'security is oi prime concern not only to themselves, them-selves, but to the entire nation. There is much evidence that small business men are not receiving just consideration. Typical of this is the attitude of Secretary Mor-genthau Mor-genthau of the treasury, who was quoted in the Washington News recently re-cently as having staled that he is not much impressed by the opposition oppo-sition to certain of his proposals on the basis of their effect upon the small businessman. This paper pa-per quotes him as having said: "I can't help but be amused at some of the crocodile tears that are being be-ing shed for the small business-I business-I men." Nearly half a million civilian workers have been added to the government rolls since the defense program began in earnest on June 1, 1940. At that time, there were 770,990 persons employed in (he executive branches, compared with 1.444.9S5 persons on August 31. 1941, or a gain of 466,995 in the fifteen-month period, according to the report of the U. S. Civil Set vice commission just released. Ot this increase, about 56.000 have been added in Washington, reflect ing the rapid growth of federal activity ac-tivity in the national capital. During Dur-ing August, there were 53,296 employes em-ployes added to the- entire federal service, and the August payroll reached another high, amouling to $217,772,054. The eastern seaboard states have been under a gasoline and oil rationing ra-tioning system for several months, with retail stations closed after 7 p. m. daily because Defense Oil Co-Ordinator Harold Iekes declared there was a critical shortage oi supplies. However, this week he discovered there was no shortage and motorists will no longer be restricted re-stricted in their purchases. Secretary Tckes also crashed publicity pub-licity this week when he delivered an address, declaring that America Ameri-ca should not be content mcrelj to play the role of arsenal of democracy, de-mocracy, but that the time had arrived ar-rived when "we must decide which is our side and take our stand irrevocably and determined- ly on it." He also called for out right repeal of the neutrality act as did Wendell Willkie, in a state ment directed to Republican mem hers of congress. cult to procure necessary materials and supplies to continue normal operations, is causing great concern. con-cern. Director Odium, of the OPM agency seeking to distribute subcontracts sub-contracts to small businessmen, asserted on October 23 that more than 20,000 small firms might succumb suc-cumb during the defense emergency. emergen-cy. Steps are being taken to prevent pre-vent this high mortality rate, said Odium, who has appealed to the 56 companies, which hold 75 per cent of the major defense contracts, con-tracts, to sub-contract some of their business. |