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Show GDI10UtjD IJXi lr0 ROBERT ALXEH Washington, D. C. PARITY PAYMENTS Farm legislation for the new congress con-gress is still chiefly in the "talk" stage, but one thing can be put down as definite: The parity payment program pro-gram at best is due for a big slash. In the new budget now being framed, parity payments are not entirely en-tirely eliminated, but they are cut to the bone. Instead of the $212,-000,000 $212,-000,000 voted last spring, the figure under consideration is only $50,000,-000. $50,000,-000. And even this isn't certain. It Is entirely possible, under the policy of holding down all "normal" expenditures to the bone to provide more funds for defense, that the parity item may be eliminated entirely en-tirely before the budget is finished. Some congressional farm leaders are making no secret ot their desire to supplant parity loans with a more financially sound plan. Chief among them is Rep. Hampton Ful-mer Ful-mer of South Carolina, new chairman chair-man of the house agriculture committee, com-mittee, who is a strong advocate f the "income certificate plan." This is a modified version of the old AAA processing tax under which processors would pay growers the difference between the market price and parity, In certificates purchased from the government. VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS , Secretary of Commerce Jesse Jones wasn't exaggerating when he predicted that this would be the most prosperous Christmas in history. his-tory. Economists of the federal reserve board, commerce and labor departments depart-ments estimate a Yuletide business season surpassing even the peak in 1929. According to their private figures, fig-ures, dollar sales will about equal 1929, but business volume will be considerably heavier (1940 price levels lev-els are nearly 20 per cent lower). That is, each dollar spent will buy about one-fifth more than it did in the last of the boom years. This is the way the experts forecast fore-cast the Christmas season: Employment Because of the vast defense program, employment will be greater this month than at any time since 1929, with more than 37,-000,000 37,-000,000 (excluding temporary Christmas Christ-mas employees) on private payrolls an Increase of 1,400,000 over December, De-cember, 1939. Payrolls Manufacturing payrolls will be 12 per cent greater than last December. That means $25,000,000 more a week will be paid in wages to industrial workers. Retail trade Sales generally will be from 8 to 10 per cent greater than 1939. Department store sales will be 5 per cent more than last Christmas, but still under record-breaking record-breaking 1929. On the other hand, mail order and variety store sales will be the highest In history. A very Merry Christmas, indeed. WILLKIE AND NEW CHAIRMAN There is a sputtering of ire among Republican national committeemen when they heard that Wendell Will-kie Will-kie considers it his right to name the successor to National Chairman Joe Martin, who wants to quit in order to give all his time to bossing the house Republicans. Willkie picked Martin, and now takes the position that he also is entitled to select Martin's successor. But to the hard-headed, political professionals, a candidate running for office and a defeated candidate are horses of entirely different colors.' col-ors.' The first is a potential incumbent incum-bent who may have patronage and favors to dispense, and therefore commands the right to call the tune. But a defeated standard-bearer is a has-been, and the boys are not interested in-terested in faded hopes. So Willkie's claim to continued party leadership is meeting with very glacial response. When he told some of the national committeemen that they should name the man he wants, the boys tactfully, but pointedly, point-edly, replied that the national committee com-mittee is an elected body and alone has the power to fill a chairmanship vacancy. MARTIN'S SUCCESSOR Martin is very eager to shed himself him-self of the chairmanship. The undercover maneuvering for the strategic place already is hot Tom Dewey, Governor Bricker of Ohio, Sen. Bob Taft, Senator Van-denberg Van-denberg and others, with 1944 in mind, each is determined that no one hostile to him shall get it The situation calls for a neutral, or someone acceptable to a combination combina-tion of the leaders. Martin privately is afraid that it won't be possible to find either and that to avoid a battle-royal he will be stuck as national chairman for some time to come. MERRY-GO-ROUND William Reuther, young, red haired executive of the United Auk Workers, has submitted a plan tc defense authorities whereby, by us ing the entire auto industry as one plant, it would be possible withir six months to produce an all-metal, single-motor pursuit plane at th rate of 500 a day Under Reuther'j sensational program the planes no' only would incorporate all the lates' developments of Britain's famoui Spitfires but would cost only one third their present price. |
