Show weekly news analysis congress stalls on jap issue awaiting concessions by tokyo I 1 by joseph W la bine J EDITORS NOTE when opinions re expressed in these colu columns inns they are re those th 0 se of the news analyst and not necess airily of this newspaper CONGRESS embargo tokyo sat watching the U S like a spanked child awaiting forgiveness yet there remained enough lack of japanese unanimity to make forgiveness impossible abrogated was the 1911 trade pact paving the way tor for an embargo against arms shipments all this was the disastrous price japan might pay for flouting U S rights in the orient meanwhile the japs vented their wrath against britain storming the tokyo embassy and tightening the food blockade in retaliation against british seizure of 21 germans from a lap steamer it was freely admitted in some tokyo quarters that a U S embargo would hamstring wang ching weis new order government in china at washington neither the state department nor the senate foreign relations committee seemed in a hurry to take further action said SCH he would censure the U S one congressman the japs have made their bed with a long list of violations of american treaty rights now let them lie in it awhile but senators pittman barkley minton and austin to the contrary sen lewis bach had his own opinions whereas the original pittman embargo resolution would censure japan for violating U S rights senator scewel lenbach would censure the V U S and thereby avoid international complications cat ions NAMES in ui the fize diews HARRY HOPKINS ill most of the 13 months since he was named commerce secretary came back to work JOHN THOMAS gooding idaho banker was named U S senator to succeed the late william E borah KAISER WILHELM II 11 exiled german emperor celebrated his eighty first birthday in doom netherlands EDWARD S HARKNESS philanthropist who gave away more than of the fortune he got mainly from standard oil interests te died at 66 in new york J STALIN and A HITLER were deeded an unoccupied brooklyn apartment building just as a bank was about to foreclose on a mortgage against its owners JAMES R YOUNG U S cor respondent was still being held without explanation by tokyo police COL THEODORE ROOSEVELT was given the grand cordon bleu of the order of the jade highest honor china can bestow on a foreigner topic of the day wheeler and C 1 I 0 POLITICS labors candidate A new englander who corn comes es from montana went from hashii washington agton to columbus one day in late january indicating that sen burton K wheeler has been around enough to rate as presidential timber day before he left washington senator wheeler learned C I 1 0 s john lewis had told the united mine workers in columbus that president roosevelt would suffer er ignominious defeat if he sought a third term even earlier mr lewis had scored vice president jack garner and security administrator paul V mcnutt both presidential hopefuls moreover john lewis has always criticized republicans and since senator wheeler had been invited to address mr lewis U A W he ly became C I 1 0 s one and only candidate D despite e s p 1 t e law warnings that C 1 I 0 support was a kiss of death to any c candidate addid a t e S sen e n a ator t 0 r W wheeler h e e 1 e r s stepped t e p p e d LEWIS into the fire A kiss of death the method pass an embargo on the contention that the U S is violating the nine power treaty by furnishing 80 per cent of japans war material nor was the senator far wrong in suggesting the embargo as a means of complying with the wishes of 75 per cent of the people also in congress C L continued was the economy drive to avoid either new taxes or a boost in the federal debt limit having clipped from the presidents budget recommendations the house appropriations committee was expected to eliminate altogether more than for farm parity payments reasoning foreign developments might force prices up to a point where parity will not be needed so badly respite te spite treasury secretary Morgen thaus recommendation that the debt limit could be raised five billion even wheel horses like Kentuck ys sen I 1 alben barkley were getting behind a drive to cut the presidents pet 1940 budget item defense C also continued were hearings bearings on the reciprocal trade act which must be renewed this year after farm bureau president edward oneal pro and national grange master louis J taber con had differed on the measure chios rep thomas jenkins charged manufacturers were refusing to testify against the act for fear of government reprisals EUROPE the neutrals momentarily in the headlines was a report that the U S had asked all american nationals in sweden to leave for home the swedish foreign press department gave as a reason german troop concentration across the baltic but the state department in washington failed to confirm this ti is fear bigger neutral news came from rumania which suddenly found its oil resources resources both a curse and a bulwark of defense when germany insisted that rumania increase oil shipments to the reich king carol demanded that french british petroleum interests in his country cooperate since this meant that allied oil would be feeding nazi planes to bomb the allies both london and paris threatened to huspen suspend d economic relations with rumania though he was in a tough spot carol did not overlook the tem arriving at columbus he p publicly u b 11 c I 1 y hoped roosevelt president ej 54 seek a third V A 1 term nevertheless k 4 he I 1 T promised to support him if the president was WHEELER he did not ile he accepted agree with john lewis that the administration had broken faith with jabor labor that would be b ea too loo obvious bid for the labor vote but he did announce C I 1 0 support would be welcome if he decided to run at ai the convention senator wheeler practically tossed his hat in the ring bands blared and 2400 delegates roared as he mounted the rostrum in an atmosphere reminiscent reminisce sc ent of a political conclave there he outlined an economic social and legislative program which would have been out oia of place had he not been really presenting his platform planks 1 strict neutrality 2 increased ased south american trade 3 aftin advancement cement of organized labor 4 jobs in private enterprise 5 relief 6 solution of unemployment which he be called americas no 1 problem horary value of this double pressure much though he disliked acquiescing to to german demands it meant that germany would have to defend defelic rumania against russian alms aims in his eastern province of bes be s sarabia but for long range purposes po 1 es he be decided to ask the balkan entente meeting at belgrade for greek turkish yugoslavian an military militar y support against both russ russia 1 a and germany russo finnish war I 1 just as they failed miserably to cut finland at its waistline a few weeks ago so did the russians suffer horrible defeat when they tried to skirt the north edge of lake ladoga cadoga and attack the mannerheimo Man line from the rear after a week of desperate fighting four soviet divisions were put to rout five thousand were reported killed outright with an extra casualties including several thousand wounded who froze to death on the battlefield before aid could be brought only russian successes came in the air but even this form of attack proved ineffectual over helsinki where antiaircraft anti aircraft fire drove off planes which tried to strafe church bound civilians allied german war rumors of an impending blitzkrieg continued filtering out of paris london and berlin paris heard that vast quantities of guns and materials were being moved into the mountains sector of the western front to back up men whom adolf hitler will soon hurl against the maginot line london tearful fearful called for registration of its fourth conscript class on february 17 in both allied capitals there we were re reports that germany was turning out U boats at the rate of one a day but on the western front it was quiet as midnight JUSTICE christian front in 1917 the russian czarist government was overthrown by 23 men early this year the U S justice department arres arrested ted 17 christian frontera Fron in new york equipped with a smaller smalle r and more crude arsenal than dussias Rus sias 23 but their aim said J edgar hoover was the same revolution more over he charged they were anti ant jewish though he roundly disavowed any aff affiliation illation to the christian front when first quest questioned ione d oits rev charles E coughlin later late x labeled himself as a friend of the accused alter after mulling over this admission for a week the justice department part ment sent its assistant attorney general 0 john to investigate vesti gate oil for japan until europe went to war mexico sold some of its expropriated U S and british oil output to germany the blockade stopped that leaving mexico with much oil and little money but since the U S announced abrogation of its trade pact with japan president lazaro cardenas has made overtures to the tokyo government japan fearful lest the U S clamp down an embargo on war materials S see ce CONGRESS was reported in late january to be ready to invest capital for dredging a pacific port in mexico and improving petroleum storage facilities there WOMEN dressiest Dress iest ten when husband james cromwell was named U S minister to canda eda doris duke cromwell richest riche st girl in the world ordered a new wardrobe delivered from paris via atlantic clipper three weeks later when united press took its annual poll of paris dressmakers mrs cromwell got her reward for the first time she was named one of the worlds 10 best dressed women the other nine all of whom have wardrobes worth more than each duchess of kent and windsor tied for first place mme ame antenor patino south american tin princess begum aga khan mrs gilbert miller wife of a new york theatrical producer baronne eugene de rothschild mrs harrison williams of new york countess barbara hutton five and dime heiress queen elizabeth britaina Brit ains queen like mrs cromwell was a first timer on the lists though she buys no clothes in paris 1 W though she prefers crinoline eff effects acts for formal dress the dress dressmakers makerE admitted they had to include her neutrality notes V U S and the war made these headlines C A gallup poll showed 66 60 per cent of the nation thinks it would be best to consult the public before entering another war last september only a bare majority 51 per cent favored a war referendum fl 41 under wars impetus U S arms exports soared from in 1938 to in 1939 major items aircraft and air parts fl president roosevelt said americans are free to fight in foreign fore igny wars provided they take no oath afi 1 allegiance to a belligerent power but foreign nations cannot campaign for enlistments here britain france and finland all require an oath of allegiance and since norway sweden and italy permit ne nc foreigners to enlist C L still fighting britain over over seizure of U S air mail the government banned parcel post packages and all materials except sealed letters and copyright articles from air mail addressed to belligerent countries C state department british embassy and a large aircraft corporation denied reports that american made bombers were being flown across U S territory to newfoundland in violation of the neutrality act and then across the atlantic to france and britain |