| Show 8 NATIONAL 2 AFFAIRS t Reviewed by byr r f CARTER FIELD Sidelights on a poll of oj Washington Wahington correspondents favoring Roosevelt for the Democratic nomination U. U S. S gold buying power t proposed as OJ a tear war preventive tine tile Government agen agen- agencies i f ties cies are centering on a drive driveL i L against public utilities I f f L Ina W WASHINGTON In In a recent poH poM r- r of Washington correspondents by r Newsweek it Jl was disclosed that a 1 heavy majority of the news writers in the capital think that President Roosevelt will be and that Sen Arthur II of Michigan will be the Republican j L nominee 3 i The poll poU was confidential as to toI I i the views of ot any Individual corre- corre So that the writer for the f most partisan Republican organ P could express his view freely that Roosevelt would be nominated and elected whereas the correspondent tC if- if for or the Daily Dally Worker could predict the nomination of John Nance Garner Gar ner net by the Democrats and of James W. W v. v Wadsworth by the Republicans if it tV that is 11 what he wanted to say There f would be no repercussions This makes the poll a most Inter Inter- H t esting topic for conversation and andt t presumably a fair cross section of the views of the men whose i tion It itI Is I to be expert observers r Anyway they are being paid for it Furthermore this writer takes no exception to the list of correspondents correspond selected by Newsweek for this polL He lie lieI Is I rather effectively barred from such luch criticism because he was waa t. t one of those polled T Yet the odds of the only bets the writer has heard about as to the thet k t nomination of Roosevelt for a third term are three to one against r Whereas Where It Is 11 almost most Impossible to toI tot I t conceive events between now and next July which will make Senator j stand against repeal repeat of the arms embargo in the extra 4 session helpful to his hll chances t 4 e. e A Actually the writer agrees agree with rf r the majority of correspondents t polled that the nomination of Roosevest RooseLl Roosevelt Roose Roose- Ll velt vest by the next Democratic convention conven- conven tion Is 11 likely del despite pile the third third term term rv r Issue Yet there Is il no denying that most recent indications especially i the swing of the left win wing New Dealers Deal i- i ers era to Paul V V. McNutt are to the contrary f Convention Situation t f Might t Force Roosevelt The question Is whether the convention con- con situation will not be such that Roosevelt will have to take the thede de' de nomination himself or see lee It go to toi i some lome candidate who might not cart carry car car- t 1 ry on the New Deal Dea policies The smart money is apparently on the side of his stepping down But some lome of that smart money Is known to tobe tobe I Ibe be Garner money and this writer Is far tar from being alone in saying laying that if tl It Ills is to be Garner Gamer or a third term Roosevelt would go for the third term As to there Is no doubt that personally he is s better known and liked by the Washington correspondents polled than any other other oth er candidate Personally ally the writer writ er agrees again but the cold Jl logic lc r would woud indicate that at least three men have a better chance These are Thomas Thom E. E Dewey of New NewYork York Gov Coy John W W. W Bricker of Ohio d 1 and Sen Robert A. A Taft of Ohio At the present moment moment subject subject to change without notice downtown New York Is for Bricker and probably probably ably unalterably strongly against Dewey This Is something td to be reckoned with for downtown New NewYork NewYork NewYork York is very potent In two ways Its It's where the big campaign contributions contri buttons come from and socially it U UV V ramifies through the country Big frogs from hinterland pools are Impressed beyond all rhyme and reason when little frogs in the New York pool confide their political opinions And when the lady frogs in New York emit words of political wisdom sound lound or unsound it has haa an even greater effect on the theady lady ady frogs from the hinterland pools V U V. V S. S Gold Cold Buying Buying Power Seen as War fear Preventive Use of 01 this nations nation's gold-buying gold power might have stopped Soviet aggression on Finland in its ill tracks If a suggestion recently made to President Roosevelt by an interns Internationally known financial authority had worked out according to his formula It It was waa based on the fact that the Soviet produces a very large portion por lion tion of all the gold god that the United States treasury Is buy buying In from the c. c rest of the world Actually Russia t stands second in the list with the thet t f rS British empire lempire first but Russia has haa i been g gaining and hopes to become tt k No l I eod J producer before long tong o But the Uie only purchaser for this Y gold running well Into the hundreds e f 4 of millions of dollars is Uncle Sam J lie He pays paYI 35 an ounce for It Nobody Nol No No- l body else practically Is II buying any Jt The proposal of this expert was f that President Roosevelt Roosevell with no fanfare of publicity so SJ that the Soviet Soviet So So- viet authorities be embarrassed embar tJI sassed d. let the StUn government know that if ii the Soviet govern overn- overn k f t ment attacked Finland this government govern ment would stop buying gold from the Soviet Not only that but this government would serve notice on all the other governments In the world including especially Japan and the nations now supplying Russia with war materials materi als that If they took look any Russian gold In payment for their products or In any other way the United States would no longer buy gold from them The expert in question Is absolutely absolute absolute- ly confident that If H this had been done Stalin would not have dared proceed against Finland He lie points out that there might be some embarrassing em consequences In that the thenet thenet thenet net result might be to freeze gold and thus add another handicap to world worM trade But this he Insists would be worth the cost Scheme Would Not Cost U U. S. S Government a Dollar One attractive part of the scheme he explains is that it would not cost the United States government a dollar dol dot lar tar or the risk of one life All it would cost would be such exports as this country Is now able to make to Russia and for which Russia Is paying in gold This country could still sliU sell to Soviet buyers all aU that they could pay for in goods The only complication would be that it would woud no longer take gold The worst complication about the plan Is that it would require considerable considerable consid erable crable scrutiny to prevent any Russian Rus sian scan gold finding its way Into our hands and yet at the same time lime not Interfere with the British selling us usall usall usall all the gold god they could produce While there is no disposition to change the present gold policy under under un un- der which the United States alone and virtually unaided Is pegging the price of gold at 35 an ounce even if It were suddenly decided that this program should be abandoned It h would not be topped stopped until after alter the present war Is over This is the first time lime that any suggestion sug lug has hu been made to use the enormous subsidy power of this gold buying to coerce other nations into a line Une of conduct which the United States could approve Government Agencies in Drive Against Utilities The antl utility anti drive is II under way again A gullible reporter in Washington Wash ington will be told by all aU sorts of public power functionaries that it doesn't mean a thing thing that that it was a apure apure apure pure coincidence that Dave Lilien that thai John Carmody John Rankin George Norris and Harold Ickes have been laying down a barrage against the electric companies No one In high command it Is asserted by the underlings pressed any button that ended the truce which many neutrals neutrals neu neue had hoped would woud work a permanent per manent peace But It does not take a very cynical mind to conclude that there are Just too many individual actions and Impending impending im pending actions and that they all fit together too precisely into a pattern pat tern for the whole conglomeration lion to be banditry instead of an organized organ zed military operation The timing timing tim ing also Is Important It Il came cameon on the eve of the final date for Integration integration In of the holding companies under the death sentence being administered ad ministered now by Jerome Frank of SEC It Il comes Just a few weeks before belore the scheduled beginning of the monopoly committees committee's probe Into Investment trusts tied up with the utilities From this last incidentally Incidentally Inci dentally the utility batters hope for great publicity from the big names associated in the public mind with Wall street which they expect will willbe willbe willbe be flashed on the front pages of every newspaper In the country The strategy is even clearer when one realizes that the new congress will meet in January right January right after alter the public has hu been thoroughly shell shell- shocked by first the wickedness of the power barons via the T. T N N.E. N. N E. E C. C investigation and second the shameful from a military standpoint as Mr Ickes Ickes' lieutenants assure him will be dem demo ons tra ted Colossal Sl Shifting ting i o of 0 f Business Equities Planned SEC is guarding Its strategy with witha a secrecy so intense that one wonders wonders won won- ders if anybody except Jerome Frank himself knows the details of its plan which It Is admitted will shortly be sprung and involves a forced integration system which will be the most colossal shifting of business equities In history T T. N. N E. E Cs C.'s plans are fairly obvious obvious ob aimed only at whipping John Q Citizen into line behind what the public power group wants from con gress But there Is a curious indecision In the general staff of the utility anti-utility forces as to what to ask congress to todo do how do-how how to cash In quickly on all this tremendous barrage and drive the country further down the road of complete socialism In the electric Industry As AI a matter matter of fact there are a few pinks amon among the reds The pinks would leave all existing steam operations in private hands only Insisting that all hydroelectric power should be public But the indecision Is caused by lack of conviction that congress will willbe willbe be as amenable as when It was handing out TV TVA A appropriations loan and grant authorizations for tor Ickes to use in subsidizing municipal electric plants The biggest factor worrying the public power group Is II the coal Industry not only the mine owners but the United Mine Work ers era They dont don't want any more water power plants plant and they are getting more potent on Capitol Hill Hilland Hilland and aggressive all the time |
