Show WEEKLY NEWS ANALYSIS BY JOSEPH W labine bridi british sh soviet tension grows in wake of nazi red treaty I 1 british expedite aid to finns EDITORS NOTE when opinions are expressed in these columns they are those of the news analyst and not necessarily ot of this newspaper released by western newspaper union EUROPE i showdown ahead almost six months to the day after germany and russia shocked the world with their aggression non pact berlin paused to hail a new phase of nazi communist relations ratified with ceremony was a new and glistening trade treaty which was but one part of a complex but vividly clear picture of what is happening in europe today inevitably it is believed in most chancel lories a wedding of russia an and d germany of communism and will stack these military jugg juggernauts jugger arnauts against the rest of europe among the signs marxism writing in der andriff An griff nazi party chieftain dr robert ley showed how has grown in germany by using the marxian 7 ma P M 7 T DR LEY workers of the world unite communist cry workers of the world unite this war is a war of the mastery of money against labor therefore the working men and women must draw together allies in finland france and britain were actively protesting against scandinavians reluctance to let allied volunteers pass through sweden and norway en route to the finnish frontier indicating a stiffening attitude toward russian aggression even more pointed was parliaments lia ments decree permitting men over 27 to enter the finnish earn campaign near east arrival of british colonial troops in the near east coincided with an alarming growth of war talk the balkans led by turkey were forming a strong mutual defense frontier against nazi russian penetration russian frontiers of turkey iran afghanistan and india were strengthened either for defense against the reds or for a lightning allied stroke against russian oil wells the wars in the west quiet as usual but continued sea warfare in the north finnish troops retreated on the isthmus but dussias Rus sias gains were terribly costly in mid finland unreported for several weeks a united press correspondent spon dent found the reds have suffered casualties in the pit katranta kae ranta sector alone CONGRESS six weeks gone either the president thought he had congress well in hand or else he decided it was hopelessly rebellious at any rate he left see secretly etly on a 10 day fishing trip in caribbean waters his movements shrouded behind an army of secret service men his last acts were to 1 okay the emergency defense bill and 2 veto a bill to raise mail carriers salaries congress meanwhile began its sixth week with members of the american youth congress hissing from the house gallery at everything in sight still unsolved were such major problems as ec economy nomy foreign relations and the reciprocal trade act indicating another long session but plenty of legislation was in the mill neutrality passed by the senate 49 to 27 was a bill to boost the export import banks working capital by paving the way for foi nonmilitary non military loans to finland and china interest on foreign policy thus shifted to the house where the G 0 P expected to fight against loans to belligerents meanwhile the se senate nate foreign relations committee kept postponing action on the proposed embargo against japan congress watched with interest while secretary of state cordell hull laid at britaina Brit ains door the responsibility for a german threat to torpedo U S ships in the war zone reason britain has detained U S vessels and taken them to contraband ports in the war zone defense less than 24 hours after it had okayed oklyed i a navy supply bill cut under budget estimates the house naval committee repented and apar approved oved a fleet expansion program pro gram the latter bill would only authorize new construction actual funds must come from separate legislation primarily concerned about the big supply bill the house expected to restore part of the cut agriculture the house agriculture committee okayed oklyed a bill to expand scope of the farm tenancy act insuring mortgages of tenants who want to buy their own farms labor chairman J warren madden of NLRB told the house labor board committee that reconstruction finance corporation has agreed to withhold loans from firms found by NLRB to be violators of the wagner act this created a rumpus WHITE HOUSE c missy in trouble several days after president roosevelt appointed state undersecretary sumner welles to make a european peace junket arch republican papers like the chicago tribune published a juicy story its gist the peace mission was conceived by welles himself who slipped in through the white house back door one day and outlined his idea in glowing terms before marguerite erite missy cehand the presidential secretary who is rated to have more influence in the throne room than anyone else said the tribune story missy thought it a grand ti w 41 MISSY A favorite in the throne room idea and laid it before the president mr roosevelt who was in a most t receptive mood for a new peace drive beamed and called in mr welles and commissioned him on the spot to set out upon the great adventure whatever the facts the presidents two ace diplomats showed up in washington next day and were reportedly displeased up from miami came joe kennedy ambassador to britain horne home from paris came bill bullitt amb ambassador assado r to france why y they allegedly asked did the president prefer mr W welles elles unseasoned opinions on europe to their own painstaking studies udies r at apprised of the gossip secretary of state cordell hull and white house secretary steve early took pains to deny any rift said mr hull 1 I do not think a more cap able person could be sent upon the european Eu rovean mission BUSINESS insurance quiz under the temporary national economy conomy committees spotlight in washington went U S insurance companies om panics when the examination was finished this thriving enterprise had acquired a lot of unpleasant publicity first witness was leon henderson securities and exchange commissioner who charged that life insurance companies hold a first mortgage on U S business he went on to prove it SEC had studied 26 of the largest firms finding 1 that they seem to be drifting from their original ina object D of writing life insurance to han ban HENDERSON adling invest first p mortgage ments and 2 that their tremendous concentration of assets is probably robbing business enterprise of funds facts were interesting from 1929 to 1938 SEC found 26 companies took in billions of this 1012 billions was not disbursed but went into reserve surplus and contingency funds still more interesting was the fact that SECs 26 subjects increased their assets by 63 per cent from 1929 to 1935 yet life insurance in force went up only 10 per cent next day john A stevenson president of the penn mutual life insurance company surprised and the nation by advocating a modernization of the 60 year old mortality statistics asserting that amounts collected for mortality have been too high in recent years but he added it makes little diff difference arence in in co cost st to the policyholder si since nce excess income is returned in dividends COURTS 3 decisions in washington the U S supreme court made news by three decisions 41 on Lincol ns birthday it saved four florida negroes from death ruling that murder confessions were obtained by secret inquisitorial police methods after five days of continuous grilling which violated the negroes constitutional rights C it created a furore by ruling that federal courts have no right to change national labor relations board decisions on questions of disputed facts in labor controversies C it enjoined arkansas from imposing a tax on gasoline in excess of 20 gallons carried in fuel tanks of interstate busses when the gasoline is intended for use in other states three justices frankfurter black and douglas dissented claiming the trade barrier question is a matter for congressional ac action tion agriculture parity for 40 while the farm bloc was busy trying to wheedle for 1941 parity payments out of an economy bent congress the agriculture department part ment began using the authorized but not provided for last year payments would be made this year it was ruled by the last congress if 1939 average farm prices were less than 75 per cent of parity which is the 1909 14 average as related to farm purchasing power since prices were belo below w parity the agriculture department announced 1940 payments of cents per pound on cotton 10 cents a bushel on wheat five cents a bushel on corn and 17 cents a hundredweight on rice AVIATION bown boom when europe went to war and especially when cash and carry neutrality took effect everyone knew the U S aviation industry was in for boom times after six months of war the boom had surpassed expectations in southern california alone there was a backlog of some in orders for the U S and foreign powers but within 30 days a survey indicated mass delivery will begin on thousands of ships already filled since the boom began last summer have been orders for 1450 combat planes still uncompleted are more major foreign sales have been to france and britain which ordered 0 ships but only about craft have been delivered of the ordered by the U S army and navy meanwhile however the U S is profiting on more recent designs hence will get the best of the new ships typical is the th e ardys new four motor bomber q carrying four tons of bombs and a n nine ineman ine man crew at m p h the ship will give any enemy a run for its money |