Evening star. [volume], December 11, 1939, Page A-8, Image 8

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

Image provided by: Library of Congress, Washington, DC

                
Telephone Control
By F. C. C. Faces
Delay Another Year
Body Will Discuss
Budget Bureau's Action
In Refusing Funds
By WILLIAM J. WHEATLEY.
Regulation of the telephone in
dustry by the Federal Communica
tions Commission appears headed
for postponement for another year
as a result of the action of the
Budget Bureau in wiping out the
commission’s request for $329,000 for
this purpose, it was learned today.
This action, together with the
Budget Bureau’s allocation of an
increase of $300,000, divided half
for personnel and half for radio
equipment, is causing some concern
among the officials of the regulatory
body.
The commission is expected to
give considerable time to this prob
lem at its meeting tomorrow. The
commission is to have a hearing
Wednesday before the subcommittee
of the House Appropriations Com
mittee which handles its funds. In
View of the fact that the full com
mission had not yet been formally
Apprised of the action of the fund
fixing bureau, Chairman James
Lawrence Fly said yesterday that
he was unable to state just what
the commission might want to do
About the matter. The fact is, he
•aid, that the question has not yet
Completed the administrative stage,
$nd added that he was not certain
what, if anything, could be done
Ahnnt, it.
I- It is said to be the practice of
the Appropriations Committee when
hearing officials on their recom
mendations for funds to ask, “off
the record,” what funds they have
requested which were denied by the
Budget Bureau. There is a possi
bility that the fact that the commis
sion’s work in telephone regulation
which is required by its organic act
is made largely nugatory because
It never has been given funds may
get an airing under this opening.
President Approved Request
Officials are pondering the latest
Act of the Budget Bureau in re
jecting the current request, in the
face of the fact that the President
toward the end of the last session
of Congress approved a request of
the communications body for a sim
ilar amount. However, Congress did
not provide it, although that body
is said to be fully cognizant with
the lack of regulation, not only as a
result of its own investigation, which
resulted in including regulatory pro
visions in the Communications Act.
but was again fully informed in the
commission’s report on its investi
gation, which it conducted for Con
gress at a cost of more than a mil
lion dollars.
The commission informed Con
gress that it has become apparent
as a result of the telephone investi
gation that the issues involved in
the regulation of interstate telephone
rates are broad and intricate, and
that highly organized effort will be
essential to any adequate or effective
permanent regulatory procedure. It
was asserted that efficient machin
ery for the gathering, digesting and
presentation of all necessary facts
must be devised and brought into
continuous operation, and a care
fully developed administration must
be set up in order to perform these
specialized functions.
It was added that the Splawn
report of 1934 disclosed that Federal
attempts to regulate interstate tele
phone operations prior to that date
had proved largely ineffective be
cause of (1) the lack of adequate
statutory background, and (2)' the
lack of adequate funds to carry on
the effort. The commission pointed
out that the first of these two ele
ments was supplied by Congress
through the enactment of the Com
munications Act of 1934, and added
that in order to enable the com
mission to carry on and properly
develop the exploratory work of the
telephone investigation and to create
the necessary machinery to carry
out this mandate of Congress, pro
vision for the other element must
be made.
Research Machinery Lacking.
Without the necessary funds to
carry out the mandates of its organic
act, the commission’s functions so
far as telephone regulation is con
cerned is largely that of providing a
place where its tariffs may be filed.
Although the small force which it
uses for this purpose is able to detect
inconsistencies in tariffs from time
to time made efforts to regulate in
chinery for research whereby the
tariffs and their background may be
thoroughly examined, to determine
the fairness of the various charges.
State commissions have from time
to time made efforts to regulate in
tra-State rates, but even they are
hampered, it was pointed out, by
the setup of the telephone industry,
which prevents State units from
assembling sufficient information.
It was asserted that the Communi
cations Act provisions were intended
to close this gap, by making it pos
sible for the Federal body to get the
information and supply it to the
State organizations, and to co
operate with them on regulatory
matters.
While the commission is merely
trying to perform its duty when it
asks for funds for telephone regu
lation. it realizes that the matter
is fully up to Congress, and there
is the belief that the failure to ob
tain the funds may be due to the
activities of the company in the
halls of Congress.
The commission informed Con
gress of this when it said that the
flies of the American Telephone and
Telegraph Co. disclose that the ob
jective of legislative activities of the
Bell System is to foster and retain
every possible protection for its pri
vate ownership, service, rates, flnanc
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ing, labor relations and every other
element of its business which it re
gards as desirable and conducive
to its own well-being.
Through the persistent and co
ordinated efforts of its Nation-wide
organization and friendly contacts,
under the guidance and suggestions
of the parent company, the com
mission informed Congress, it has
sought to prevent the introduction
and passage of legislation adversely
affecting its interests or activities.
Continuing, the commission said
that the company has secured the
modification and amendment of
legislation in such a way as to defeat
or to emasculate the main purpose,
or has been able to exempt the Bell
I----—
System or the telephone Industry
from its provisions of such bills.
The Inconsistency of congressional
action in providing a statute requir
ing regulation, and at the same time
refusing to provide funds has been
hard for the commission to recon
cile, and this too in relation to the
report of the congressional commit
tee which the commission quoted as
follows:
“The importance of the telephone
industry calls for actual and not
nominal regulation. Telephone busi
ness is a monopoly—it is supposed
to be regulated. Thus far regula
tion, particularly by the Federal
Government, has been nominal
largely because Congress has not
made appropriations sufficient to
give effect to existing statutes."
Train on Exhibit
Four cars of the Vacationer were
placed on exhibit today at the Union
Station prior to going into service on
the Atlantic Coast Line run to. Flor
ida Friday. The cars Include two
de luxe coaches, a diner and a tav
ern-lounge car.
Businessmen to Meet*
The Columbia Heights Business
men’s Association will meet at 12:15
p.m. tomorrow at Sholl’s Cafe, 3027
Fourteenth street N.W.
Derrick Urges Approval
Of Milk Agreement
Approval of the marketing agree
ment and order for the Washington
area was urged on Secretary of Agri
culture Wallace today by the Mary
land and Virginia Milk Producers’
Association in a statement Hied with
the Secretary by B. B. Derrick,
secretary-treasurer of the organiza
tion.
"The association, believes that the
original marketing agreement pro
posed by it will serve the best in
terests of farmers and the con
suming public. We do not agree to
the proposals of the milk dealers
In the Washington area that our
fanners should take a reduced price
for their milk beginning May 1,0940.
Most of our farmers are in deperate
circumstances now and any de
crease in prices would be ruinous to
them,” Mr. Derrick declared.
The marketing agreement pro
posed by the association provides
for an individual handler pool;
class I price of $3.17 plus premiums,
class II price of $1.98 plus premiums
and class III price on a formula
basis.
Eight eggs-are equal to one quart
of milk In energy.
A Traveling Cot
If you are going to visit where
your host or hostess has a very
small apartment, or perhaps a
family that fills every bed, there
Is a folding cot that has been
designed to fold into a suitcase.
There are so many places it can
be taken—on picnics, at the beach,
or for use while traveling In the
automobile. And between times,
the lawn and porch are good places
to make use of it. This folding
cot Is just the thing for camping,
too. It is simply a lightweight metal
framework on which a piece of
sturdy canvas Is stretched from end
to end, hammock style.
"CHOICE
OF MILLIONS
who buy St. Joseph Aspirin every*
where. There’s none surer, none
faster, none, more dependable. It
gives you publicly-recognized assur*
ance of every desirable quality
impossible in a product less well*
known, less well-accepted. Try It
«
"Recognizing women’s pen
chant for purchasing stock
ings, a State decree limits
purchases of all stockings—
silk or cotton—to six pairs a
year for women."
-UNITED PRESS DISPATCH
Over here there are 745 different makers of
hosiery. You can buy as many pairs as you
can pay for. And there are 232 makers of
soap—each brand different in shape, style,
tint or perfume. Typical drugstores offer
over 100 different brands of cosmetics, over.
40 different brands of tooth paste. All of
these represent some manufacturer’s
attempt to please you.
ratories where thousands of products are
tested so you can be positive they’ll do
, what is claimed for them.
One out of five of all the products tested
fails to pass the initial Good Housekeeping
tests. And, of course, only those that pass
are advertised in Good Housekeeping
Magazine or permitted to use the Good
Housekeeping Seals of Approval.
Is it any wonder so many women over
here guide their purchases with these seals?
* * *
In a dictator State you’re told
what you can buy. One egg a
week—no butter—no coffee. And
even when not at war you shop
under the eye of the State.
OVER HERE WE HAVE A DIFFER
ENT IDEAL.
WHICH ARE YOU GOING TO CHOOSE?
If you’re puzzled by this amazing variety
of merchandise—if you want shopping ad
vice, creative household suggestions, new
ideas and protection from substandard or
misfit products, you’ll find pages and pages
of it in this month’s issue of Good House
keeping.
At your service you’ll find the Good
Housekeeping Institute and Bureau—labo
BUT WHAT ABOUT THE WOMEN IN
A dictatorship? They have no
use for such seals. Instead, they
have their own ration cards. And,
so far as we in America are con
cerned, they can keep them!
•••4 HovMkaapin* is in open book for anyone
who has an eligible product to sell. There is
only one condition: the product must perform
what is promised and do what is claimed in the
manufacturer’s advertisement.
as pradacti advertised in the magazine are care
fully examined to this end by Good House
keeping’s technical staff. If any one of them
proves defective, or not as advertised, it is either
replaced or the money refunded.
la eMMss m this, any manufacturer whose prod
ii
«
uct comes within the testing scope of Good
Housekeeping Institute or Good Housekeeping
Bureau can bring in his product and have it
tested free, whether he advertises in the maga
zine or not, provided (1) he is established with •
good stability and (2) his product is sold with
reasonably wide distribution.
• • •
TMi mtvIm, which has cost the magazine over a
million dollars in the last five years, is dsslgned
to protect the consumer, without in any way
interfering with Ijer freedom of choice.
A