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Show Weekly News Analysis AAA Supporters, Encouraged, Expect Little Change in Act By Joseph W. La Iline EDITOR'S NOTE When opinion! arm expressed in these columns they aim those ol thm news analyst and not necessarily ot thm newspaper. Agriculture U. S. cotton farmers having voted to impose taxes on any producer who markets more than his share In 1939, last spring's agricultural adjustment act seems destined for enforcement next year with little change. Not only the cotton election, elec-tion, but three other signs have given giv-en encouragement to AAA supporters: support-ers: (1) At New Orleans, President Edward A. O'Neal of the powerful American Farm Bureau federation told his convention that AAA, coupled cou-pled with the soil conservation act, the marketing agreements act and allied legislation "gives us the best all-around farm program we have ever had." Hitting criticism based on currently low wheat and cotton prices, he said: "Everybody knows v '' ' A J p, J Vt - U f . : FARM BUREAU'S O'NEAL "Compare . , then say candidly . . . the law was passed too late for wheat growers to comply . . . and everybody knows that the cotton surplus was produced in 1937, not 1938 . . . Compare the farm income this year with the 1932 figure, and then say candidly whether or not our programs have helped the farmer." The importance of Mr. O'Neal's statement is that Farm Bureau opinion opin-ion could be a mighty force against AAA abolition agitation. (2) At Winnipeg, AAA Administrator Adminis-trator R. M. Evans spiked rumors of drastic wheat acreage curtailment next year by pointing out that U. S. farmers could not be expected to accept such curtailment without similar action by other exporting nations. Hoping-' that government subsidized exports need be only a temporary measure, Mr. Evans nevertheless nev-ertheless defended it as a justified step to give the U. S. a fair share of the export market. (3) At Washington, F. R. Wilcox of AAA announced sale of 5,000,000 additional bushels of wheat to the United Kingdom, adding to the 20,-000,000 20,-000,000 bushels he had already sold. Having committed itself to sell 100,- 000. 000 bushels by next July, the U. S. was already well past the halfway half-way mark and had begun negotiations negotia-tions for additional sales to China and Mexico. Though such subsidized subsi-dized exports will help reduce the U. S. surplus, granaries will still be far too full when next year's crop comes in. Housing When first created, the federal housing administration was permitted permit-ted to make loans up to two billion dollars, partially insuring mortgage holders against loss. By December 1, all but 415 million dollars of the original fund was in use. With new applications arriving at the rate of 100 million dollars a month, Administrator Ad-ministrator Stewart McDonald took an extra step provided by the housing hous-ing law, asked President Roosevelt to increase FHA's loan limit to three billion dollars. Since losses from FHA loans are negligible, since 1939's projected housing boom would make big demands on FHA capital, Mr. Roosevelt approved the boost immediately. Almost at the same time, FHA perfected organization organiza-tion of its new branch to insure mortgages for building or repairing repair-ing houses and other farm structures, struc-tures, and to refinance existing farm housing loans. This was authorized by congress last February. Europe The initial thunder of Italy's demands de-mands for French colonies has died down, as has the German-inspired agitation for autonomy in Lithuania's Lithua-nia's Memel district. Although both France and Britain promise one day they will give no more concessions, the very next day they make gestures ges-tures in that direction. Probably recognizing some justice in Italy's complaint, France has reduced re-duced Suez canal rates to make Italian East Africa more accessible from Rome. Both France and England Eng-land remember that they promised to split African war spoils with Italy It-aly back in 1915 when the Treaty of London was signed. Since this pact was ignored at Versailles, and since Italy can now be a formidable enemy, ene-my, the two democracies are willing will-ing to make peace. British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain, in a speech defending his policy of "appeasing" dictators, has led Italy to believe he will work for territorial concessions on France's part. Italy's demands include in-clude Savoy, Nice. Corsica, Tunisia and the East African seaport of Djibouti. Thus Europe has apparently emerged from another war scare into another period of diplomatic conversations, to be followed probably proba-bly next spring by a German drive into the Russian Ukraine. Among the latest diplomatic moves is Germany's Ger-many's effort to consolidate its export ex-port trade position in the face of strenuous international objection to Jewish persecution. Seeking to kill two birds with one stone, Dr. Hjal-mar Hjal-mar Schacht of the Reichsbank has proposed several plans for permitting permit-ting German Jews to emigrate with a portion of their capital, in the form of German-manufactured export ex-port items. Dr. Schacht's recent trip to London on foreign trade business busi-ness emphasizes Germany's anxiety over the United Kingdom's redoubled redou-bled efforts to combat any Nazi commercial threat. Congress Last winter Texas' Rep. Wright Patman offered congress a measure to tax chain stores out of existence. Its gist: To levy graded assessments from $50 per store on small chains to $1,000 per store on large chains, each store tax to be multiplied by the number of states in which the chain operated. Sample: A chain operating in 48 states plus the District Dis-trict of Columbia would pay $49,000 per store annually on each store over 500. Though boasting 73 co-sponsors, Mr. Patman's bill failed. Also defeated de-feated was a New York state chain store tax, which signified that chains had more friends than their foes had expected. But an apparently dying issue was revived as congress adjourned, ad-journed, for Mr. Patman announced his bill would be introduced in January, Jan-uary, 1939, as House Resolution No. 1. Battle lines since formed presage a bitter contest next month, as chains and anti-chain agitators review re-view their cases; Anti-Chain. Supporting Mr. Patman Pat-man is a once-potent national trend (now questionable) which caused 21 state legislatures to enact chain store taxes. Another state, Colorado, last month rejected a referendum to kill a similar levy. Having won passage of his Robinson-Patman act, also an anti-chain measure, Mr. Patman bases his new attack on familiar charges that chains (1) force independent inde-pendent merchants out of business; (2) cause low farm prices; (3) take money out of the community. Pro-Chain. U. S. census figures show a decreasing number of chain stores and more independents, while federal trade commission statistics credit chains with distributing $8,000,000,000 in goods at an average 10 per cent saving to consumers. If the Patman bill passes, resultant taxes (with the Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea company, they would total more than half 1937's gross ! A 4. j i ' I ' ' 1 WRIGHT PATMAN Fewer noses than last year. sales) would destroy practically all chains, would reportedly wipe out 30 per cent of the farmer's market, throw nearly 1,000,000 chain employees em-ployees out of work and force a sharp rise in retail prices. Chains point proudly to their two-year campaign cam-paign of helping farmers move surplus sur-plus crops like lamb, beef, walnuts, apples, and canned grapefruit juice. Anti-Patmanites include the American Amer-ican Federation of Labor, speaking for its 5,000,000 members (who charge the measure would increase living costs and unemployment), and the National Association cf Retail Boards, which termed it "vicious." Counting noses on the eve of congress' con-gress' opening, Mr. Patman finds his 73 original co-sponsors dwindled to 32 through electiun defeats, while another (New York's Caroline O'Day) has withdrawn support. If the Potman bill succeeds in reaching reach-ing (he house floor, political observers observ-ers wonder whether continually mounting sentiment will not bury it in a protest vote. Asia ' The possibility of a major Far Eastern crisis involving Japan, China Chi-na and Russia becomes more imminent immi-nent each week. Far from denying it, Japan has taken new hitches in her economic belt and settled down for a struggle which may begin shortly after January 1. Having made supplementary army-navy appropriations ap-propriations of $1,634,400,000, Japan faces a probable Russ-Chinese alliance alli-ance forcing her to desperate measures meas-ures to protect what gains she has already made in Manchuria and China. Having penetrated deep into the vast Shansi province, Jap troops are confronted with guerrilla attacks which in 10 days cost 6,000 lives. Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek, who is already getting supplies from Russia, promises the guerrilla warfare war-fare will continue. That Japanese are at a disadvantage fighting so far from their base of operations is evidenced by Chinese recapture of several key towns near Canton. Two clashes with Russia form the basis for a new war scare. The first concerns Japanese fishing concessions con-cessions in Russian waters. Though Russia refuses to renew the concessions, con-cessions, which lapse January 1. Tokyo threatens to continue fishing even though an armed patrol is needed. The second dispute centers cen-ters on Sakhalin island, where the Japs charge Russia is seeking to expel Nipponese oil workers. For her part, Moscow is demanding Japanese Jap-anese payment for the Russian interest in-terest in the Chinese eastern railroad, rail-road, seized when Japan took Manchuria. Man-churia. Meanwhile Japan has substantiated substantiat-ed the belief held by observers for many months, that China's "open door" guaranteed by the nine-power treaty is about to be closed. Seeking to liberate Japan and China from dependency on foreign markets, mar-kets, finance and raw materials, Tokyo has virtually dictated what Great Britain and the U. S. can henceforth expect in the way of trading privileges. Shrugging its shoulders over still another treaty broken in 1938. the U. S. state department de-partment has called home Nelson T. Johnson, ambassador to China, to see what can be done about it. Since Ambassador Joseph P. Kennedy Ken-nedy has also been called home , from London, it is thought the U. S. may solicit British support for a unified uni-fied protest against Japan's economic econom-ic activity in China. Probable result: re-sult: nothing. Espionage In New York, Hairdresser Johanna Johan-na Hoffman and other members of a Germany spy ring had just been sentenced. In the Panama Canal Zone, the government was busy trying try-ing four other young Germans accused ac-cused of photographing fortifications. fortifica-tions. Commented their attorney: "I venture to say that there is not a single construction or equipment for defensive purposes in the Canal Zone, details of which are not now in the possession of any foreign government gov-ernment desiring the information and willing to pay." Hardly had this shock penetrated before the West coast, hotbed of espionage, reported its latest spy scare. In Los Angeles government agents arrested Mikhail Gorin, a Soviet So-viet tourist agent and Hafis Salich, native Russian who became a Berkeley police officer and was lent to the naval intelligence because he could speak Japanese. The charge: That Salich supplied Gorin with confidential navy department information infor-mation regarding Japanese military affairs. How the U. S. (which claims to operate no counter-espionage agency) secured its Japanese secrets, se-crets, was not told. While a New York Soviet vice consul rushed to Los Angeles to help defend the prisoners, pris-oners, the government built its case against 21-year-old Karl Drummond, Los Angeles aircraft factory worker work-er accused of peddling military secrets se-crets to Japan. Miscellany Invalidated, by the North Dakota Supreme court, that state's $40 minimum min-imum old age pension plan approved in the November election, because 1937 legislative appropriations cannot can-not be used to pay pensions more than $30 monthly, also because the measure exceeds "reasonable assistance" as-sistance" as outlined in the state constitution. Sold, by Franklin D. Roosevelt, 1,000 Christmas trees from the farm on his Hyde Pari: estate. Taken, by Mrs. Franklin D. Roosevelt, a non-paying job as director di-rector in Sim Jamos' insurance business, busi-ness, Roosevelt & Sargent of Boston. |