New Britain herald., 1929-07-06
COSTLY EDUCATION
 PLAN ABANDONED
Proposed Prohibition Teaching Very EXtenSiVe-Until Killed
NEA Service


 Washington must be realizing that we are living in an age of propa- ganda and that there is worse and more of it from week to week.
 President Herbert Hoover, how ever. seems to be one who doesn't altogether approve of it-at least as far as the federal government is concerned
 Within the last few days he has knocked out two very extensive propaganda plans, One of them he killed completely; upon the other he simply frowned sternly, but a presi- dential frown can be whitening blight, and this second plan IS weak and pallid right now.
 The government, of course. has been propa gandizing for some tim" In one way or another, with the war and navy departments laying down the heavest barrages: but the recent announcement that the prohibition bureau was going to spread propa- gands in favor of prohibition in the public schools goes beyond them all.
 \ Widespread Program
 Mir. Hoover lost very little time In coming down on this scheme with both feet. He put the clamps or it so effectively that even the namphlets that were drawn up 10 aid in the good work are not to see the light of day. But, even though dead. the plan is worth examining inst as an instance of the extent Of the propaganda machinery that could, under certain conditlons' be put to work by Uncle Sam.
 The prohibition bureaus educa- tional campaign in the schools was bv no means to have been limited 10 preaching the virtue of law ooseIV- ance and law enforcement. me bureau went so far as to outline methods by which to inject the rropaganda into classes in arith- n,etic. English, history. drawing current events and various other subjects. and all of this propaSanda was designed to prove that prohi- hilton was correct in theory and sue cessful in operation.
 Good or bad, this was certalIl'! a drastic step for the government Nothing like it had ever been pro- nosed before. The navy and war departments have porsistently tired 10 convince the public what line things armies, navies and pre- narodness are. but attempting to prove to school children the Wis dom of one specific law is, for the federal government. something new.
 Had No Authority
 There is, of course. no federal law under which the federal gov ernment could have made courses in prohibition compulsory. School children in most places are taught the desirability of law observance and some states provide for teach- ing them the evils of alcohol; but no state law to date has provided that the young idea shall be ln'- pressed with the goodness or the badness of any given statute.
 However. the scheme is thor oughly dead-killed by half dozen words from the White House.
 The other proposition was less formal and direct It consisted ot sn appeal from the National Re- rublic magazine for funds to com bat "radicalism" and support the policies of President Hoover. This seemed to be something new, too, and it would be considerably fun
 of Q nier if some of the Republican leaders such as Chairman Work and Senators Watson of Indiana and Burton of Ohio hadn't been pictured as giving the movement their end The preten- sion was made that President Hoover himself was behind it. but the White House promptly un- nounced that he wasn't in sympa- thy with the drive.
 The National Republic is q monthly magazine devoted to pub fishing patriotic articles, pro-ad- ministration propaganda and ma terial apparently designed 10 prove that the country is in some danger of a communist revolu- tion.
 The propaganda effort of the power interests has been perhaps the major scandal uncovered herr in the last year This was still another type of propaganda, the effort of an enormous industry to educate children and newspaper readers against public ownership of utilities. public regulation and anything else which might ham, per monopolies in making huge profits. This great propaganda effort, affecting public schools, colleges. newspapers and nume- rous other channels of reaching the publis, is being uncovered by the Federal Trade Commission, by direction Of the Senate.
 Lots of Tariff Propaganda
 The tariff revision now in prog ress has produced the greatest flood of propaganda ever released here in peacetime. The largest single lot of it has been provided by Amer lean sugar interests in Cuba. as- sisted by the manufacturers Of hot- tied carbonated beverages. who have put up terrific battle against the sugar tariff increase voted by the House. Sugar propaganda has been released here hy the bale
 Importance of continued propa- ganda has also finally been realized by the Democratic party, which has expanded its publicity staff here and is now issuing public blasts at the Republicans every day or so - q performance which will probably continue up 10 and past the next presidential election.
 The Republicans. of course, have the machinery for the world $ greatest propaganda factory by