Evening star. [volume], January 30, 1937, Page A-7, Image 7

About Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972

Image provided by: Library of Congress, Washington, DC

                
Letters Tell
of W. P. A.
Reveal Several Sources
of Financing March
on Capital.
BT DAVID LAWRENCE.
AN ORGANIZED drive to in
fluence Congress to maintain
the appropriations for W. P.
A. is in progress. Those who
are behind it are not necessarily re
lief workers alone, but small busi
nesses and Institutions which want to
see tne Denems
continued be
cause of the large
amounts spent by
the Federal Gov
ernment In the
local communi
ties.
Recently, when
the relief workers
staged a demon
stration in Wash
ington, this cor
rea p o ndent re
ported the exist
ence of a belief
In many quarters
that the source
D»Tl« LAwrtnee.
or the financing came irom pci owns
other than those on the P. W. A. rolls
and that there were rumors of com
munistic influence.
Letters received from various parts
of the country since then convey in
formation as to the financing, which
Is of Interest at the moment because
It may foreshadow even more in
tensive efforts to make Congress keep
up the expenditure. First is a com
munication from Chester Watson,
president of the Minnesota Workers’
Alliance: George Blake, State organ
iser of the Farmers’ Union or Minne
sota; Lee Casey, representing the
Farm Holiday Association of Wadena
County, Minn., and S. D. Davis, repre
senting the Building & Laborers’
Union, No. 563, of Minneapolis. It
says:
’’There Is no mystery about the
source of funds of the delegates who
came to Washington.
Contributors Named.
“With the exception of the writer
(8. D. Davis), whose organization
voted the funds to send him here, the
others were sent here through collec
tions of small amounts from the
members of the organization and W.
P. A. workers, but also by personal
contributions of such individuals as
Gov. Elmer A. Benson of Minnesota,
Mayor Thomas Latimer of Minne
apolis and other elected officials, as
well as small business men and pub
lic-spirited men and women who
realize the need of continuing and
enlarging the W. P. A. program.
“The Independent merchant Is
aware of the fact that his existence
depends upon whether those In his
neighborhood are employed or unem
ployed. He. therefore, is interested in
helping the W. P. *. workers effec
tively to present their problems to
Washington. Likewise, public officials,
finding relief for unemployed a prob
lem that they cannot solve alone, are
also interested in seeing W. P. A.
continued, as exemplified by the Con
ference of Mayors.
“In other words, financial support
given the Minnesota delegates was
similarly given hi the other 24 States
from which the delegates came.”
From Minneapolis comes a com
munication signed by G. W. Walde
man. who says:
“I can tell you who are the workers’
Alliance of America. They are made
up of Communists whose business it
is to stir up trouble. Communists In
this city are at the head of the or
ganisation and I have no doubt they
are everywhere else. They have gotten
possession of the labor unions here
and have instigated all the strikes
that have cursed this community.”
Communistic Idea Denied.
An indignant denial that com
munistic influence is in any way re
lated to the W. P. A. workers’ march
on Washington comes from Robert
Keller, who says:
“In my group we had 7 writers. 4
Artists, 4 musicians and 10 actors. We
each chipped In from our ‘splendid’
weekly salary of *21.57 a week to pay
for the cars. We also bought some
bread, cheese, sandwich meat and
some fruit, and coffee was purchased
on the way. How would you like to
subsist on that for one day, not three
As we have done? And today we have
exactly 15 cents to tide us over until
we get paid Friday of this week.
"Others came by truck, paid from
the funds of their own treasury after
selling ’on to Washington’ stamps.
In other cases, unions whose member
ship can’t get private employment and
are working on W. P. A. dug into their
treasury and contributed to the funds
to send theirs either by train on
excursion rate or else by truck. Yet
many of them, such as Indiana,
Illinois, Wisconsin, Montana, South
Carolina, Missouri, Tennessee, Texas,
Vermont. Maine, Massachusetts, Cali
fornia, Washington, Connecticut and
others came either by excursion or
freight.
"Many had little or no sleep, very
little food, scanty clothes to keep their
bodies warm while traveling In the
truck.” ,
From David Walker comes this
letter:
"Since when do Government clerks
parade the streets demanding Job6 and
making slurring remarks about the
President? If you noticed, after the
American flag they carried aloft a
large silk red flag. Why red. And
every placard they held in their hands
had a picture of a tool on It: the tool
was pictured by a clenched flst • • •
Holds Cheek Is Needed.
“After half the people become Com
munists, and they have Representa
tives elected to Congress, it will be too
late to make bills or laws to check it.
Kvery country that has been touched
with communism has suffered greatly
for It. Only for communism there
Would be no war in Spain today.”
Other letters are in similar vein. My
awn impression is that the group from
Minnesota stated the case very fairly
and thAt while there may be in the
movement Communist sympathisers
here and there, the rumors of com
munistic financial aupport, while wide
ly current, are not borne out by the
statement of any of the delegates who
bsve volunteered Information.
What is more important is the fact
that persons are financing the relief
workers’ demonstrations because they
want the Federal Government to bear
'most of the burden rather than the
local communities. The question arises
whether the several States can finance
the relief of their unemployed, and
judging by the Improvement in tax
receipts In many States, the contribu
tions from the States to supplement
those of the Federal Government
might well be expected to increase.
Wont of all is the fact that co
operation between Government and
Industry has not proceeded to the
t> ■ h
News Behind the News
Strikes and Floods Curtail Trade, But Figures Belie
Great Harm.
BY PAUL MALLON.
STRIKES end floods have disrupted the Nation's business progress. The
figures in the month’s business chart show that. But they also show
the effect is probably exaggerated in the public mind.
Take the auto strike. No official figures on the effectiveness of
the strike are being published. There are none. But there are two excellent
private estimates which are dependable. You may accept them as semi
official.
These fix the car output of the big three in the pre-strike week of
December 19 and the strike week of January 23 as follows:
Pre-strike. Strike.
General Motors. 53,000 9,750
Ford _ 27,000 29,000
Chrysler _ 27,000 22,500
Totals . 107.000 61,250
It shows John L. Lewis has tied up General Motors rather effectively.
But more interesting is the point that Ford and Chrysler have not picked
up the business General Motors lost.
What has happened is the cre
ation of a deficiency of about
45,000 cars in weekly auto produc
tion. The market Is not being
filled. If the strike Is settled
within a reasonable time, it is
quite possible that accelerated pro
duction later will fill the deficiency,
very little change in total output
may be noticeable on the year as •
whole.
* At least. It is an cctmumu; /uu wm** m
new car* tfti* year toiZZ fail to buy them later this year if they can
get them. The only net loss in purchasing power seems to be among
the strikers themselves. Sven they may be able to buy their new
cars later by working overtime in accelerated production to meet
the deficiency after the strike is over.
* * * *
Take the floods. The best advance Indication of January ateel
output Indicates that the mills as a whole will turn out about as much
this month as they did in the record month of December. When water
flooded the Pittsburgh and Wheeling areas, all mills were operating at
top speed on backlogs and January orders exceeding those of last year.
They were hitting about 80 per cent capacity. The flood dropped them
to about 75 per cent for the past week. They expect to make It up
shortly.
Floods likewise have made about a 5 per cent dent in weekly freight
traffic, but this may be offset by rebuilding activities when the water sub
sides. So will activities in most other affected lines.
The main economic effect of floods is the destruction of wealth.
Buildings and factories are being ruined. But as far as the national
business activity and national income are concerned, the flood in
fluence may not be as far-reaching as it seems.
Substantially the same thing is true of strikes. If they are not general
and not prolonged, and there is virtually unanimous opinion on the inside
here that the restricted auto strike will not be prolonged.
Three well-informed Government economists were guessing about It
the other day. They agreed in the opinion It would not last six months or a
year. One guessed a settlement would come “within a month," another
“six weeks.” and the third "two months.” They just differed in estimating
how long the managers and labor leaders would piddle around in negotl
ations.
Note—They also were unanimous on who would win.
* * * *
The present position of business progress is disclosed in the following
figures, based on 1923-1925 averages as 100 and adjusted for seasonal
variations. (The single exception is prices, based on 1926 as 100 > Each
figure represents the percentage of business normality existing at the times
stated.
si
*1 s ss l! S3
i ' II 8 si s 11 ij
* ‘I : £1 II n l|
• §2
1929 average. 119 108. 109. 106 111 117 95.3
1932 average. «* 66- 47- ®® *® ®“! *
1935 average. 90 86. 71. 63 79 37 ,80.0
1936. January. 97 89. 74. 70 81 61 80 6
1936. September..- 109 94. 83. 72 88 59 81.6
1936, October. 109 94. 89. 73 90 58 81.5
1936, November. 114 96. 90.5 80 93 58 82.4
1936, December. 121 98.2 94.5 86 92 61 84.2
1937, January*.. 114 96. 92. 81 89 59 85.2
More" important than the strike and floods in the national business
picture at the moment is the change In price trend noted in the third week
of January. _ ...._. _
rvi U wnacvuwvt
that, prices had been rising. Sensi- |
tive price charts for the period are >
almost perpendicular. The more j
heavily weighted Government
chart rose from 81.3 at the first of
December to a peek of 85.7 the sec
ond week in January. The third
week ahowed a small drop to 85.3.
The rapidity of the rise was
almost sensational and could not
be maintained forever. No one will
guess the trend of the Immediate future, out apparent!) a penuu u*.
settlement and solidification is generally expected.
(Copyright. 1937.)
Air Headliners
Domestic.
! 1:45 p.m.—WMAL,. "Siegfried-’
by Metropolitan Opera
Co.
3:30 pm.—WRC, Week End Re
vue.
6:00 p.m.—WMAL, Evening Star
Flashes.
Evening Programs.
7:30 p.m.—WRC, Question Bee.
S:00p.m.—WRC. Saturday
Night Party; WMAL,
Ed Wynn.
9:00 p.m.—WRC, Snow Village
Sketches; WMAL, Na
tional Barn Dance;
WJSV. Speed Show.
9:30 p.m.—WRC. The Chateau.
10:00 p.m.—WJSV, Your H11
Parade.
10:30 p.m.—WRC, Irvin 8. Cobb.
11:00 p.m.—WMAL, WOL and
WJSV, President
Roosevelt.
Short-Wave Programs.
.5:30 p.m.—GENEVA, League of
Nations News; HBL,
31.2 m.. 9:65 meg.
6:30 pm.—LONDON. Musical
Program, GSD, 25.5
m.. 11.72 meg.
8:30p.m.—CARACAS, Cuban
Orchestra, YV2RC, 51.7
m., 5.8 meg.
9:00 pm.—LONDON, Musical
Program, G8D, 25.5
m., 11.75 meg.
point where enlargement of pay rolls
in private employment can take on
the bulk of those on W. P. A. rolls.
The W. P. A. workers can hardly be
blamed for wanting to continue to re
ceive Government support if jobs are
not available to them in private em
ployment, and there is as yet no census
of unemployed nor comprehensive data
as to where shortages of labor exist
which, with Federal aid for transporta
tion expense, could be filled by W. P. A.
relief workers.
tcoprrtsbt. 1837.)
LEGION TO GIVE MEDAL
Emblem to Be Presented Outstand
ing Private of Guard Unit
Special Dispatch to The Star.
KENSINGTON, Md., January 30.—
Arnold Wilburn Post, No. 30, Ameri
can Legion, has voted to present a
Legion medal of merit to the outstand
ing private or private first class of
the Howitser Company, Maryland
National Guard.
The award is to be given for the
most efficient and outstanding work
as a guardsman for the year ending
July 31, 1937. It will be made on the
recommendation of a committee of
three officers.
k
Local Radio Stations to Pick
Up Broadcasts From
Many Points.
AMESSAGB from President
Roosevelt and an Interna
tional parade of 14 famous
dance bands will feature the
President’s birthday ball broadcasts
tonight at 11 o'clock on all the net
works. The program will be carried
by WMAL, WJSV and WOL.
The President and leaders of the
national committee for the birthday
ball will speak briefly, and dance mu
sic will be heard in a gala parade of
orchestras, ranging from pick-ups in
Bermuda, many cities in the United
States and the Hawaiian Islands.
Dance bands scheduled to take
part include those directed by Eddy
Duchin, Guy Lombardo, Hal Kemp,
Benny Goodman, George Olsen, Ted
Fio Rito, Horace Heidt, Leo Reisman,
Glen Gray, Ted Weems and Gus
Amheim.
Preceding the 11 o’clock broadcast
WJSV will make a special tour of
the seven Washington hotels where
birthday balls are being held, pre
senting interviews when possible with
Jean Harlow and Robert Taylor, two
Hollywood stars, who came to Wash
ington to take part in the event.
T UPE VELEZ, fiery star of the stage
and screen, and Walter O’Keefe,
radio and stage .» median, will assist
Floyd Gibbons in presenting the
“Speedshow” on WJSV at 9.
Dr. William Martson, inventor of
one of the lie decettors, in which
crime experts have been interested,
also is to take part in the broadcast.
VflRS. SARA DELANO ROOSE
velt, mother of the President,
will be the guest of **• •” ^ during
the Chateau ”■ ...» WRC at
9:30. Other .uests Include Clyde
Beatty, far ^ animal trainer; Bozo,
the wonder dog, a talking canine;
Evelyn Tyner, pianist, and the Three
Marshalls, a comedy and song trio.
WALTER HAMPDEN, celebrated
actor, and Mlscha Levitski,
world-famous concert pianist, will
contribute to the Saturday Night
Party on WRC at I. Hampden will
have the leading role In a dramatic
sketc'
A SPECIAL trans-Pacific broadcast
from Japan, featuring the new
Symphony Orchestra of Tbkio, is
scheduled by WJSV at 12:30 a.m. The
chorus of the Ueno . .cademy also will
take palb
i
CTHE opinions of the writers on this page are their own, not
necessarily The Star’s. Such opinions are presented in
The Stafs effort to give all tides of questions of interest to its
readers, although such opinions may be contradictory among
themselves and directly opposed to The Star’s.
Strike Technique in Court
Revolutionary Decision 1
Battle
BY MARK SULLIVAN.
THE Court of Genesee County,
Mich., will make history
Monday. General Motors has
asked the court to enjoin the
leaders and strikers of the United
Automobile Workers’ Union from con
tinuing to occupy General Motors’
property. The hearing is set for 3
p.m., and what- imw> .. >.. m—
ever train of ac
tion ensues on the
part of courts and
law enforcement
officials, will de
termine the stat
us of the "sit
down” type of
strike in Ameri
can law.
The action
which General
Motors has asked
the oourt to take
is of a kind which
permits the labor
Mark Sullivan.
leaden to state their side or tne case
in court. If the arguments bring out
the far-reaching consequences of in
corporating this type of strike into
American usage the public will realize
the importance of the event.
The hearing Monday, and what
follows, may be dramatic or not.
It is desirable it should not be dra
matic. But in either event, mere lack
of dramatic Incident will not reduce
the elevation of this court action. It
would be true to say this is as extraor
dinary as the famous Scopes trial in
Tennessee in 1925. Yet one hopes
that saying this will not attract to
Flint, Mich., the host of volunteer
lawyers and other outsiders, including
publicity seekers, who flocked to Day
ton. Tenn. Part of the essence of the
dignity of Monday s event at Flint
lies in the spectacle of an ordinary
American court in a typical American
community passing on a question of
great national Importance. Indeei
the question Is of more than national
Interest. It has a bearing on the con
troversy between conflicting concep
tions of society.
Many Side Issues.
For understanding of the funda
mental issue, it is desirable to trim
away all aspects of the hearing and
of the strike, except one. Whether
Itoura In General Motors plants should
be shorter is not here material.
Whether pay should be higher is im
material. Whether the "assembly line"
In automobile factories moves so fast
as to put excessive strain on workers
is immaterial. Many other questions,
as to which much Is to be said for the
labor side, are not here material. To
the principle of collective bargaining
there is almost universal assent in
America; the platforms of both po
litical parties last Summer Indorsed
that principle. Whether or not Gen
eral Motors in the present case is re
sisting "collective bargaining" is im
material here. All these are ordinary
issues familiar in any strike. All these,
in the present care, are matters for
negotiation and decision. But they
are issues in a wholly different cate
gory from the fundamental one.
The fundamental issue can be put
in the form of two questions. Are the
"sit-downers” trespassers on private
| property? If they are trespassers, will
i the courts and agencies of law en
i forcement eject them? The first
question is hardly a question at all.
Hardly any partisan of the strikers
denies that the "sit-downers” in this
strike are trespassers. The real ques
tion is whether the courts and law
enforcement agencies will remove
them.
May Be Revolutionary Change.
If the courts should hold the ait
down type of strike to be legitimate;
or if at any point in the chain of
iaw and enforcement there is refusal
to eject the sit-downers; or if the sit
downers successfully resis' attempts
at ejection; in short, if this sit-down
strike is successful in law or in fact,
then a material change, indeed a
revolutionary change, will have oc
curred In aeveral areas. If the sit
May Come From Auto
Case.
down strike Is declared legitimate, or
if without being legitimate It Is never
theless successful, then the sit-down
will become the practically universal
technique of striking. It Is far more
effective than any other method. It
puts power Into the hands of very
small groups of workers, for half a
doaen men or less, located at atrategic
spots, can paralyze not merely a whole
plant, but, as In this case, practically
a whole country-wide Industry.
If this Flint strike Is successful. It
will give momentum to John L. Lewis
and his Committee on Industrial Or
ganization. It will promote his plan
to get all the 20,000,000 or 30,000,000
workers of the country Into a tingle
great organization. If Lewis achieves
his one big union and If the sit-down
type of strike Is Installed In American
usage, Lewis or his successors will
have more power over the economic
life of the country than any other
Individual has ever exercised.
Opens Wide Door.
Apart from the economic effect, If
the sit-down type of strike Is sanc
tioned by the courts. If trespass of
this kind Is legal'zed, such a decision
would become a legal precedent
affecting all kinds of property. It
would work a serious reduction In
the prerogatives of ownership of every
Individual everywhere — farm-owners,
home-owners or what not.
The clearness of the one issue In
which there is a paramount public
Interest—the Issue of trespass—Is
clouded by the length and detail of
the application which General Motors
has made for an Injunction. Doubtless
the General Motors officials and
lawyers knew best what Is called for.
But their application Is a sprawling,
omnium gathering of many kinds of
complaint and many reasons for In
junction. They recite that the strikers
use automobile seats and cushions for
sleeping, thus “wearing, discoloring
and otherwise rendering the same un
suitable for use In new automobiles."
They recite that since the factory was
not built for housekeeping, strikers
are creating unsanitary conditions.
They recite that most of the strike
leaders come from outside the State.
The application for injunction, ac
cording U> newspaper accounts, In
cludes a request that the court pro
hibit “picketing." Picketing, within
limits, has long been an accepted fea
ture of strikes, not outlawed by
courts. A request for prohibition of
picketing Injected In the same plea
with a request for Injunction against
trespass, weakens the lstter. Worst of
all. It makes the fundamental Issue
less clear to the public.
(Copyright, 1837.1
U. S. WON’T APPEAL
BIRTH-CONTROL RULING
Decision Permits Physician to
Transmit Information on
Social Question.
BJ the Associated Press.
Justice Department officials said yes
terday the Government would rest on
a decision of the United States Cir
cuit Court of Appeals for the Second
Circuit upholding the right of physi
cians to transmit birth-control infor
mation.
Notice that there would be no ap
peal by the Government to the Su
preme Court has been sent to the
United States attorney In New York,
officials revealed.
Mrs. Margaret Sanger, birth-control
advocate, whose office telephoned the
! news to her in New York, said:
“The decision accomplishes more
than any bill ever introduced.”
As a result of the Justice Depart
ment's decision not to appeal, Mrs.
: Sanger said. "7,000 hospitals through
out the United States can begin at
once to give birth-control advice where
It Is necessary, and doctors can give
such advice not only in their private
practice, but in all hospitals and dis
pensaries as well."
CAPITAL’S RADIO PROGRAMS
THIS AFTERNOON’S PROGRAM JANUARY 30, 1937.
P.M.I WRG 950k
12:00 A Capella Choir
12:15 Harold Nagel's Orch.
12:30 Rex Battle's Ensemble
12:45
1:00 i Whitney Ensemble
1:15 !
1:30 Camegie Tech Orch.
1:45 1 _
2:00 Democratic Forum
2:15
2:30
2:45 Campus Capers
3:66 Logan's Muslcale
3:15
3:30 Week End Revue
3:45 _
4:00 Sundown Revue
4:15
4:30 Spelling Bee
4:45 _
6:00 Spelling Bee
5:15
6:30 The Kindergarten
5:45 _
WMAL 630k
Call to Youth
Genla Fonarlova
Farm and Home Hour
H ««
Farm and Home Hour
•• u
Listening Post
Metropolitan Opera
Metropolitan Opera
•« M
M N
« M
Metropolitan Opera
«< N
« M
M M
Metropolitan Opera
« M
M «•
M M
_ _
Metroplitan Opera
M «l
N M
M M
WOL 1,310k
Studio Orchestra
News—Music
Organ Recital
Howard Lanin’s Orch.
Salon Music
Child Welfare
In the Music Room
•S SS
Wakeman's Sports Page
SS SS
International House
as as
Sammy Kaye’s Orch.
SS SS
Miami Handicap
SS SS
Miami Handicap
* SS SS
Sports Page
SS SS
The Pied Piper
SS SS
Cocktail Capers
Canary Concert
WJSV 1,460k
H. B. Den
News Bulletins
George Hall’s Orch.
Emma Ruschner
Afternoon Rhythms
Dancipators
M H
Los Angeles Symphony
Loe Angeles Symphony
m ss
at m
as sa
Down by Herman’s
SS SS
Commerce Department
ss ss
Ice Carnival
ss ss
Ann Leaf, organist
Andre Kaminker
The Dictators
M SS
Evening Rhythms
Safety Program
P.M.
12:00 '
12:15
12:30
12:45
1:00
1:15
1:30
1*5
2:00
2:15
2:30
2*5
3:00
3:15
3:30
3:45
4:00
4:15
4:30
4:45
5:00
5:15
5:45
5:30
P.M.
6:00 The Top Hatters
6:15
6:30 Dinner Dance
6:45 The Stars Arrive
7:00 Jimmy Kemper
7:15 Hampton Singers
7:30 Question Bee
7*6 " _
8:00 Saturday Night Party
8:15
8:30
8:45
8:00 Snow Village Sketches
8:15
8:30 The Chateau
8*6 _
10:00 The Chateau
10:15
10:30 Irvin 8. Cobb
10:45
11:00 News—Night Owl
11:15 Night Owl
11:30 Midnlte Frolics
11:45 _
12:00 Gus Amheim’s Orch.
12:15
12:30 Ben Bemie’s Orch.
12:45 ,
1:00 Sign Oft
1:15
1:30
■ A
THIS EVENING’S PROGRAMS
Evening Star Flashes Tony Wakeman
Dinner Club Dinner Concert
" “ News—Editorial
The Stars ArriveThe 8tars Arrive
Message of Israel Spelling Bee
S4 44 it ti
Evening Album “ "
Rep. Fish of New York _
Ed Wynn Central Union Mission
it ti u a
Meredith Wilson’s Orch.
44 44 M 44
National Barn Dance Howard Orchestra
« “ Chicago Symphony
mm 44 44
44 44 MM
News Bulletins Chicago Symphony
Ice Carnival “ ”
Strickland’s Orch. “ “
44 44 MM
_
President Roosevelt President Roosevelt
Birthday Ball Birthday Ball
M M 0 MM
MM MM
Night Watchman Shep Fields’ Orch?
44 44 MM
“ H * Dick Jurgen's Orch. .
MM 44 M
iNight Watchman (I hr.) Stirling Young’s Orch.
4* 44
I * Ted Flo Rlto’s Oreh. J
A1 Roth'* Orch.
Arch McDonald
A F. G. E. New*
The Star* Arrive
Swing Session
Labor News Review
Glenn Carow
WJSV Varieties
Concert Hall
— ••
Columbia Workshop
ss **
Speed Show
II M
Saturday Serenaders
*< ft
Hit Parade
«* s*
Birthday Balls
M ff
President Roosevelt
Birthday Ball
M M
m a*
Hal Kemp’s Orch.
<« il
Toklo Symphony Orch.
aa as
Sign Oft
j -
P.M.
6:00
6:15
6:30
6:45
' “iToo
7:15
7:30
_7i45
8:00
8:15
8:30
8:45
"“*00
8:15
9:30
9.45
' 10:00
10:15
10:30
10:45
11:00
11:15
11:30
11:45
12:00
13:15
13:30
13:45
1:00
1:15
1:80
•
We, the People
Strike Battle Pushing Roosevelt Into
"Left” Position.
BY JAY FRANKLIN.
DURING the panic of yesteryear, whenever a ruined speculator fell
from a twentieth-atory window, the police—ever charitable In
the face of suicide—used to report that the deceased "jumped or
fell.” Recent developments on the strike front suggest that the
Roosevelt administration, far from indulging in a deliberate "swing” to the
"left” of radicalism, is being "pushed” to the “left" by the scuffle of the
great antagonists.
Take, for example, the rising Indignation against the "sit-down"
technique of contemporary strikers. The conservative press ominously
refers to It as ”a French Importation," because It was first used on a big
1
scale in France when M. Leon Blum
took power, and there is little rea
son to doubt that John L. Lewis’
hasty trip to France last Fall was
for the purpose of learning how
this particular trick was worked.
Yet the real objection to the
"sit-down” Is not that It Is French,
but that It is effective. There Is
something Inexpressibly charming
In the picture of our wistful Tories
sighing for the good old-fashioned
American way or sirures—wun picaei lines, sirise-oreaicers, not cans ana
bloodshed.
And there is something a bit ridiculous in the picture of General
Motors’ solicitude for ’’the right to work.”
All this, however, is incidental. What is really happening is that
the heaving and the grunting, the wild cries of "Foul!" which arise
from the industrial matmen are forcing Mr. Roosevelt out of his
position of neutral umpire into one where he must, act against Gen
eral Motors.
* * * *
Sovereignty is not debatable. So far as Federal and State authority
is concerned, Alfred P. Sloan, Jr., is rapidly putting his corporation out of
court. The G. M. officials walked out of Gov. Murphy s conferences in
Michigan, on the plea that the union had violated the agreement. Sloan
also walked out of the Secretary of Labor’s conference in Washington be
cause Lewis had Issued a truculent appeal of President Roosevelt to side
with the C. L O. politically, rather than deal with the situation impar
tially and in the public interest.
The President's "rebuke” to Lewis reaffirmed the administration's
impartiality in the fight and Miss Frances Perkins, who is the President's
legal representative in labor matters, formally Invited Sloan to return for
a further conference. This Sloan refused to do, because he said it would
not serve any useful purpose.
General Motors' refusal to confer with the political authorities of this
Nation amounts to a denial of American political sovereignty. For the
first time since the controversy began, the great corporation is clearly in
the wrong.
To such a challenge there can he but one answer; a vigorous
effort on the part of our Government to subdue the pretensions of
Sloan and his colleagues to the purposes of self-government.
There are, of course, the courts. Property rights, ‘‘due process," the
fourteenth amendment, as interpreted by the Federal Judiciary, have
habituated such economic potentates as Mr. Sloan to the idea that they
can ignore me wm oi tnose
political authorities whom they
cannot control.
So Sloan Is not altogether to
blame. He finds himself in much
the same position as the French
nobility whose hereditary fortresses
were being blown up by Cardinal
Richelieu and whose feudal
privileges were being transferred
to Louis XIV.
This column earnestly desires
XTi OP
To You '
MX V-l/j,
'-ft
peace and hold* no particular brier for Leais methods or personal
ambitions. It sympathizes strongly with the desire of labor to stabilize
employment. Income and collective security. And It advises Sloan—and
those like him—not to snub the President of the United States, no matter
how distasteful the New Deal may be to the great magnates who opposed
It at the polls.
(Copyright, 1837.)
OF D. C. POLICE
I -
Members of Boys’ Club Tell
Social Group How They
Benefit.
Maj. Brown’s policemen are just a
‘‘swell bunch of fellows” to four mem
bers of the Metropolitan Police Boys'
Club who volunteered to tell the
Social Corrections Committee of the
Council of Social Agencies about it
yesterday at a luncheon meeting at
the Harrington Hotel.
“I grew up among boys who were
all fellows of the streets and cops
were considered our natural enemies.”
Charles Maimone, 19, of 759 Sixth
street southeast, declared earnestly on
a program devoted to activities of the
i club.
‘‘It was difficult at first for me to
; understand the teachings of the fine
• people connected ith those clubs.” he
: continued, ‘‘but I asked permission to
speak here today because I’m trying
to learn to help jthers as I've been
helped.”
Between trumpet duets rendered in
the style cultivated at the Boys’ Club
by Maimone and Lawrence Kidd. 3111
Twelfth street northeast, and a har
monica solo — the "Maj. Brown
Chorus”—given by 12-year-old Ed
ward Lincoln of 421H Sixth street
southeast, praise was heaped on the
police force, which sponsors the club.
The climax came when El Brook
man of 1423 D street southeast, a
Golden Gloves champion boxer and
winner of the Cornwell placque for
the club member contributing most
to sports, explained that his boxing
career began when he was sent to
Club No. 5 after he found member
ship fee* In other organizations too
expensive. Brookman told also how
the club helped him during an illness
of his father and concluded:
"They help you with all your
troubles and make you a good citizen.”
Sergt. John E. Scott director of the
Boys' Club, in his turn, declared that
the police know boys are good in
herently—that they only need an op
portunity to prove It. The clubs here
enroll some 4,000 members, he de
clared. and are open every day except
Sunday. None has adequate facilities
to care for their membership, how
ever, he said.
The Social Corrections Committee
accepted an invitation to hold its
next luncheon meeting at Lorton Re
formatory’. in the first of a series of
visits to District penal institutions.
-- •
GAMBLING EQUIPMENT
IS SEIZED IN ARKANSAS
jA> the Associated Press.
HOT SPRINGS, Ark., January 30 -
State revenue department raiders
stripped palatial Hot Springs night
clubs and other establishments of
gambling equipment last night under
Supreme Court warrants.
Commissioner Dave L. Ford and 17
officers swooped down on the world
famous resort city at dusk, loading
roulette wheels, dice tables, chucka
luck games and other equipment Into
moving vans.
Only two weeks ago State Rangers
paid a surprise visit to the night clubs
and establishments to summon offi
cials and employes before a legislative
committee investigating alleged law
lessness at the national park health
center.
You Can’t Afford NOT to Renovize The Eberly Way
®The Definition of
Eberly-ize:
I Performing some 35 or more
different, distinct types of
renovizing and modernizing—
An Out* with artisans skilled in each trade
Standing and employing a technique that is
Physician consistent—under supervision that
writes: ;s meticulously critical—and at a
been* e'nUre'fy moderate cost possible only through
satisfactory. concentrated organization, which
ISTTS shares its earned economies.
t *fn We he only too glad to send
prompt in
attending to an Eberly Plan Supervisor to
“me” consult with you—no matter how
_ _—ml small a repair is needed or how
elaborate a change you have in
mind.
A. Eberly’s Sons'
Our 88th Year
1108 K N.W, DI. 6557
One Standard—One Responsibility—One Modest Profit
A '
Headline Folk
and What
They Do
Troyanovsky Repudia
tion of Communism
Is Sincere.
BY LEMUEL F. PARTON.
GETTING down to the nub of
Alexander A. Troyanovsky's
address at the Hotel BUtmore
dinner. It is a repudiation of
communism. He said:
"I want to emphasize that the
Soviet Union is not a Communist
state.”
When a lot of people are going to
Alex. TrerxBfxskr.
get snot over
something or
other it ceases .to
be merely aca
demic.
Dr. Taraknath
Das. lecturer on
International af
fairs at the Col
lege of the City
of New York, has
been ding-dong
ing to this chron
icler for the last
few months an
apparently plaus
ible theory of
Russian goings
on, into wmcn tne smiling, cryptic
Ambassador Troyanovsky would lit ad
mirably. In capsule form, the theory
Is that, forgetting doctrinal wars, Rus
sia was going to get in close with
the nations which have credit and
raw materials to dispense, and It hap
pens that these, Incidentally, are the
democratic powers—England, Prance
and the United States of America.
Therefore, these unbelievable con
spiracy trials and confessions amount
to a show-window repudiation of world
communism and a fervent embrace
of the democratic ideal—with a snappy
follow-up by the Ambassador to the
country which has the most and best
of these requirements for modern
statehood. It is straight, 190-proof
Machiavelli.
M. Troyanovsky has the most win
ning smile in Washington. He is Just
about the best chess player there, too.
He is one of the old Russian aristoi.
the son of a colonel in the Czar's
army. Since his incumbency the dis
tance between the grand salon of the
old rococco Russian Embassy and
Union Square has widened immeas
urably. The swank of his opening re
ception sat tea-cup juggling Washing
ton back on its heels.
As a youth he was an officer in the
Russo-Japanese War. With other of
ficers he became involved In anti
czarist conspiracies. After the war he
was sent to Siberia. He came Under
the influence of Lenin. Hiding in
Paris, at 11 Rue Vale de Grace, he
corresponded with Lenin in invisible
ink, and wrote pamphlets for circula
tion through the European under
ground.
Woodrow Wilson's 14 points came
from one of Troyanovsky's pamphlets
—it is all there, "peace without vic
tory,” "the self-determination of peo
ples” and all the rest of it, written
several years before Wilson gave It his
world imprimatur. He was as immune
from the fumes of proletarian dogma
as if he wore an ideological gas mask.
On the night of January 19, 1918.
the great hall of the Tauride Palace
was filled' with soldiers and sailors,
flourishing guns and thirsting for the
blood of the oppressor. A stocky man
in uniform, with Mongoloid features,
deep-set eyes and jutting eyebrows
shouldered his way through the ruck
and mounted the platform.
"The Russian Revolution,” he said,
"will triumph in its foreign as well as
its domestic future only through
democracy. Those who talk about the
necessity of beginning to build at once
the kingdom of Socialism are blind."
That was Troyanovsky. It still is.
Later, in 1918, he was arrested as a
Menshevik, one of the now increasing
number of Russians who have been
jailed by both Czarists and revolu
tionaries. In 1922 he was reinstated
as a member of the Communist party,
but he is nowhere on record as be
lieving in Communism. Before Lenin's
death, he had come in close touch
with Stalin, and the two were firm
friends.
Prom then on, his place in the
"macht politlk” wing of Russian
diplomacy was fixed. He spent five
years at Tokio. Before going to
Washington, in 1933, he remarked to
a friend: "Communism? Why the
government wouldn't allow me to even
speak to a Communist.” Years ago,
he turned his controversial guns on
Trotzky. There is nothing casual or
desultory in his repudiation «of doctri
naire Communism at this moment.
(Copyright. 1937.)
Gives $1 to Save Kitten.
CHICAGO (£•).—Nine-year-old Molly
Garvas earmarked the *1 she con
tributed to the Red Cross for floo:;
relief.
'T am sending the dollar to save
the kitty,” the Aurora, 111., girl wrote.
She had read of a cat marooned in
a tree.