The Washington times., 1924-03-19
Of AIR
|ND0RSED BY
MILLIONS
Congress Flooded With Letters
Urging Passage of Legis-
Iation This Session.
BY JOHN 4. LAMBERT,
Cosmopolitan News Service.

Cosmopolitan News Service.
A demand for national control Of
the radio monopoly, and for effec-
tive Federal laws to rout the lair
hogs who break in upon the enter
tainment and instruction of the mil
lions of radio fans throughout the
country, has struck Congress with
a force second only to the push be.
hind the Mellon tax cut.
Thousands upon thousands Of let.
tiers, kilograms and petitions for
radio regulation are borne in each
days mail to the House Committee
on the Merchant Marine and Fish.
cries.
All of them plead for drastic &C.
ton to stop the monopoly of the
air. All of them condemn the care.
Jess broadcasters who are moved oy
peSttferous mania to send their
own 1nconsequential messages not
wlthstanding the nuisance their
own arbitrary practices imposes
upon the convenience of millions.
Have Wholesome Effect.
All pr them breathe a sincere
spontaneity which has left it's
wholesome effect upon Congress-
The messages have come from the
four corners Of the country.
Many have come from venerab BILE
couples to whom the radio has
brought entertainment which other.
wise would have been unavailable.
Others have come from the children
or the poor, who, with 80 cents
worth of wire and tin and a head
rull OF boyish Imagination, have
Drought the 'children's bedtime
stories to their own homes.
Churches. clubs, theaters and all
manner Of civic societies have
united in the Overwhelming insist.
ence for protection against the air
monopOlists.
Nearly all the messages speak for
the Immediate passage OF the White
DILL whose short title Is ITO regu.
iate radio communication and for
other purposes"
The White bill. in short, vests
ample power 10 control the radio
In Secretary Hoover's Department
OF Commerce.
Must Have Licenses,
1t provides that every operator
must obtain a national license.
Every station must be licensed. Mr..
Hoover will be permitted TO pre-
scribe the nature of the service 10
be rendered by the stations. He
will assign them their frequencies
and bands Of wave length. He will
assign prior right to the subject
matter which they may broadcast.
He can put them out of business
by his order.
What the radio fans want to know
Is the protection the bills contains
against unwarranted interference.
One provision is that Government
stations shall use only the fire.
quencies and wave lengths as may
be assigned by the President.
All such stations and ships at sea
shall conform to such rules and
regulations designed to prevent in
reference with other radio stations
and the rights Of others as the
Secretary of Commece may provide.
All vessels will use only the wave
lengths assigned them except when
in distress. Messages for help shall
always have the right of way.
Ban Put on Aliens.
No license shall be granted to
stations controlled by aliens. A
license shall be refused Ito any
person, company, or corporation
which is unlawfully monopolizing
or seeking to unlawfully monopolize
radio communication, directly or in
directly, through control of the
manufacture or sale of radio ap-
paratus, through exclusive traffic
arrangements, or by other means"
Licenses shall be withdrawn from
persons who fail Ito provide reason
able facilities for the transmission
of radio communications, or make
any unjust and unreasonable charge
or prescribe any unjust and I'M
reasonable classification, regulation
or practice All existing laws az
fecting monopOlies are applied to
radio.
Amy operator may be punished
who disobeys the regulations, who
refuses the lawful orders Of a mas
ter of the vessel, who transmits
superfluous or obscene messages
cor has wilfully or maliciously in
terfered with any other radio COM
munciations or signals"
Hearings Are Concluded.
Some or the powers proposed to
be conferred upon Hoover are pos
sible Of being enforced in a highly
dangerous manner. Over 10000
radio sets are now in use In this
country. The bill gives him unlim-
tied, unrestrained authority to i'm
pose a censorship over all Of them.
1t may be that Congress will reduce
some Of those proposed powers.
The Committee on the Merchant
Marine and Fisheries has concluded
the public hearings on the White
bill. 1t Is now under consideration
by a subcommittee consisting Of
Congressman Wallace H. White, jr,.
of Maine, Frederick r. Lehlbach
of New Jersey. Arthur H. Free of
California, Robert l.. Bacon Of New
York, Edwin l.. Davis of Tennes.
see. Schuyler. o. Bland of Virginia,
and William w. Larsen of Georgia.