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Show Weekly Nevs Analysis Congress Speeds U. S. Defense: Okay A rmy Bill, Plan Big Ships lly Joseph W. La IJiiie EDITOR'S NOTE When opinions are expressed tn these columns, they are those of the news analyst, and not necessarily ol the newspaper. Defense On January 1, 1936, Japan scrapped her 5-5-3 naval treaty with the U. S. and Britain. Subsequently an arms race started on both land and sea, precipitated each time Der Fuehrer or II Duce made an aggressive ag-gressive step. In the U. S., even loud-mouthed congressmen were loathe to think of defense in terms of actual invasion until self-righteous Germany swiped Czecho-Slo-vakia and Memel. Two weeks later congress got down to talking cases, passing an unprecedented $513,188,-000 $513,188,-000 army appropriations bill in jig time after war talk like this in the senate: Oklahoma's Thomas: "Every nation na-tion must be ready every moment ... to defend itself." Utah's King: "The only possible danger is from Japan, and . . . Japan is beating her head against a stone wall in China. Even if Ger- V" & ' 1 SENATOR LUNDEEN He favored Hitler technique. many should defeat England, I haven't the slightest idea that would endanger us." Indiana's Minion: "Germany might obtain Bermuda or part of Canada." Minnesota's Lundeen: "Then let the United States seize Bermuda and Britain's West Indian possessions posses-sions to force payment of her war debts. Andrew Jackson set a precedent prece-dent in collecting a debt from France by threatening to seize French territory in this hemisphere." hemi-sphere." Indiana's Minton: "That would be adopting the technique of Hitler." Hit-ler." Having boosted army funds $52,-987.000 $52,-987.000 over the current year's appropriation, ap-propriation, congress had next to consider navy news from the White House. Admitting Japan's secret naval program was one reason, President Roosevelt approved two 45.000-ton super super-battleships to cost $95,000,000 each, bigger than any yet conceived and capable of squeezing through the Panama canal with two feet to spare on either side. One good reason: By showing that the U. S. is able to out-arm any other nation, Japan might be forced back into a limitation treaty. Present U. S. strength includes 15 capital ships (one nearing obsolescence) ob-solescence) ranging from 27,000 to 33,000 tons. Six more are authorized. author-ized. Britain has 15 capital ships in the same category, plus the 42,-000-ton Hood and nine other boats underway. Last Japanese report (in 1936) showed 10 capital ships, none over 33,000 tons, and three under un-der construction. Vague rumors since then indicate about five new super dreadnaughts of excessive tonnage. ton-nage. Treaty or not, both Britain and the U. S. feel obligated to maintain main-tain a 5-5-3 ratio even though th world's third largest sea power sets the pace. Agriculture Though the house approved an $816,513,000 agriculture appropriations appropria-tions bill ($499,500,000 of which is for soil conservation benefit payments) the measure was far more significant signifi-cant for two exclusions: (1) Parity. Not included in the President's original budget, but tossed in anyway, was a $250,000,000 grant for parity payments. But no financing was provided, and the house seemed economy bent. Rather Rath-er than resort to unpopular processing process-ing taxes the house voted against parity, winning disfavor of the potent po-tent farm bloc and a victory for the President, who insists extra-budgetary extra-budgetary needs must be met with definite taxation. Agriculture leaders lead-ers hoped the senate would restore parity; even so, an embarrassing situation apparently lay ahead. With no money, glum dirt farmers saw only one way to pay oft the government govern-ment loans on which they have pledged 81,000,000 bushels of wheat. The way: To default, making the U. S. the world's largest wheat owner. (2) Cotton. Another rejected amendment called for $60,000,000 "to develop domestic markets and subsidize sub-sidize foreign exports." This obviously obvi-ously referred to the plan President Roosevelt broached a few hours earlier: ear-lier: To spend $15,000,000 between now anl August 1 by paying producers pro-ducers $1.25 a bale (on 8,000,000 bales) for releasing their government-held loan cotton for sale on the world market. Though the 1939 crop will otherwise swell government-held surpluses to 13,000,000 bales, congressional economy apparently appar-ently won. Said Virginia's Rep. Clifton Clif-ton Woodrum: "We might as well repeal the budget and the accounting account-ing act, and let pandemonium and chaos reign." Meanwhile, far in the future, southern cotton farmers saw relief in the revolutionary "cottonless" cotton developed at Texas A. & M. college's experimental college. Said to produce an over-large, oil-rich seed without detracting from the grade of the lint, the new product made farmers wonder if cotton couldn't be raised exclusively for oil, whose price is fairly constant. Trans portation Among other things, U. S. railroads rail-roads blame high taxes, bad business busi-ness and unfair competition from other media for their present plight. Labor blames the railroads themselves. them-selves. Most people blame a mixture mix-ture of geographical, economic and political factors, in which everybody's every-body's hands are partially soiled. When railroading reached a crisis last autumn and congressional aid became imperative, a flock of panaceas pana-ceas arose ranging from the Hastings Hast-ings "postalizing" plan to the substantial sub-stantial bills of Montana's Burton K. Wheeler and California's Clarence F. Lea. Both management and labor la-bor pressed their particular cases and after two months of haggling the issue seemed little nearer a solution. so-lution. The latest voice is that of Joseph B. Eastman, interstate commerce l- - A i . v. , - i f, si ICC'S COMMISSIONER EASTMAN A guiding hand? commissioner, who told the house interstate commerce committee that "the government must at least assume as-sume leadership and apply some form of compulsion." Whether Mr. Eastman's will be the guiding hand remains to be seen, but his comments com-ments were at least clarifying. After attacking the apparent reluctance to consolidate or co-ordinate as "wasteful "waste-ful practices," and after refusing to recognize any benefits from greater freedom to increase rates, the ICC member outlined a few high points for rail recovery: (1) The government should give concessions in taxation and relief in connection with grade crossing elimination and reconstruction of bridges over navigable waters. (2) Elimination of rate concessions conces-sions to the government would save about $7,000,000 a year. (3) All important forms of transportation trans-portation should receive "equal and impartial regulation," preferably under ICC direction. While the house sped passage of a bill to facilitate voluntary rail reorganizations, re-organizations, Mr. Eastman pointed out that creation of a new reorganization reorgani-zation court would delay rather than facilitate matters. His alternative: Give ICC charge of reorganization duties. People Douglas Fairbanks, ex-movie star, has been ordered to return $72,186 refunded by the U. S. on inconie tax payments in 1927-28-29.- Europe Few observers doubt that Adolf Hitler's ambition is restoration of the pre-war Hapsburg and Hohen-zollern Hohen-zollern empires. Most agree, also, that his next step will be capture of the Free City of Danzig (now under League control) and the adjacent corridor which is Poland's only outlet out-let to the Baltic sea. That Germany Ger-many will get these concessions without a fight is further evident because Danzig is already 90 per cent Nazi; Poland, moreover, apparently ap-parently recognizes her futile position posi-tion and is ready to move into the German orbit rather than join a French-British-Russ alliance permitting permit-ting Soviet troops to cross her soiL Though German Ambassador Hans von Moltke has assured Po- I DANZIG ml Baltic Sea Juthuania v Prussia GERMANY y ppHt POLAND corridor"! DANZIG AND POLISH CORRIDOR Next on Hitler's list? land of Germany's good intentions, Nazi press notes like these sound suspiciously like the start of another campaign: Field Marshal Goering's Essener National Zeitung: "Polish attacks on Germans (in Pole territory) are an intolerable strain on the German-Polish German-Polish treaty of friendship democracies democ-racies pull the strings!" (Similar allegations regarding German minorities mi-norities preceded recent Nazi invasions inva-sions in Austria, Sudetenland and Czecho-Slovakia.) Deutsche Diplomatisch-Politische Korrespondenz: The paper advised Poles to continue collaborating with Germany and not to listen to "foreign "for-eign sirens" lest the results not be "advantageous." The "foreign sirens" si-rens" are obviously France and Britain, whose failure to back up protection promises the past year will undoubtedly force Poland to seek German mercy. Labor The unhappy plight of U. S. employer-employee relations may be due either to (1) the Wagner labor relations act, or (2) American Federation Fed-eration of Labor's battle with Congress Con-gress of Industrial organizations. Like an impatient school teacher, both congress and the White House have resolved to end this squabble, the White House by sponsoring A. F. of L.-C. I. O. peace talks, congress by amending the Wagner act. When April 11 was chosen starting start-ing date for senate committee hearings hear-ings on Wagner amendments, labor peace talks were in full bloom. But so strong are the workingman's feelings feel-ings about the proposed changes that many a peace advocate thought hearings might have been delayed until labor's warring factions either make up or draw swords. To amend the Wagner act, congress con-gress can pick from four sets of proposals, pro-posals, all opposed by C. I. O., three of them submitted by coherent factions fac-tions with special interests: (1) By Massachusetts' Sen. David I. Walsh, obviously favored by A. F. of L., which opposes all other proposals: pro-posals: Curtail the national labor relations board's power to invalidate union contracts; require NLRB elections elec-tions by craft rather than by industrial in-dustrial units; permit employer petitions pe-titions for elections; permit appeals in representation cases. (2) By Nebraska's Sen. Edward R. Burke, and supported by the potent, po-tent, strike-weary National Association Associa-tion of Manufacturers: Require that NLRB have representative from labor, la-bor, management and the public; outlaw deduction of union dues from pay envelopes; outlaw "coercion" by either employers or unions; establish es-tablish code of "unfair labor practices" prac-tices" for unions as well as employers; em-ployers; forbid strikes unless a ma jority of employees approve; require all union officials to be U. S. citizens; citi-zens; permit transfer of "unfair labor la-bor practice" charges from NLRB to federal district court. (3) By Oregon's Sen. Rufus Hol-man: Hol-man: To split NLRB's duties. Administrative Ad-ministrative and investigatory power pow-er would be vested in a labor relations rela-tions commissioner. Final decisions would be made by a nine-member labor appeals board. (4) By Kentucky's Sen. M. M. Logan, Lo-gan, supported by the National Grange and other farm groups: To extend exemption of agricultural workers under the Wagner act to processors and packers of farm produce. Miscellany Figured, by New York's Rep. Bruce Barton, that the stock market usually gains when President Roosevelt Roose-velt goes fishing or vacationing, usually usu-ally falls when he goes on a speaking speak-ing tour. Willed, by the late Chicago Jew, Harris Goldman, that his 32-year-old Congregational daughter will receive re-ceive one-seventh of his estate (valued (val-ued at from $300,000 to $500,000) if she marries in the Jewish faith within with-in a year, that otherwise she will receive only $5. Scheduled for congressional approval, ap-proval, the highly controversial governmental gov-ernmental reorganization bill, compromised com-promised to remove most of last year's objection. |
