Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-01-18
NEW POWER GROUP CHAIRMAN
is "STRICT SUPERVISION" MAN
Smith Likely to Become Even
Firmer as Result of King
Deal.
Federal Careerist Never Was
Expert for Either Side in
Controversy.
BY WILLIAM HARD.

The personal character of Dr. George
Otis Smith, chairman Of the new Fed
eral Power Commission, is the most
controversial political topic in Wash
ington today, but, at the same time, it
has some fairly clear and undisputed
points.
The first is that DR.. Smith is no
product of either side of the contro-
versy regarding power. That is, he has
not been an expert" either for the
anti-power people or for the pro-
power people. In the same year in
which he was graduated from Colby
College, in Maine, he became an as
sistant geologist in the United States
Geological Survey, and has since that
time remained continuously in the
Government service. He has served the
Government IS years. He is a profess
sional Government man." He is a
professional "bureaucrat."
Spurned Private Opportunities.
He rose in IL years from being a
novice in the Geological Survey to being
its head Ofncials capable of such
rapid advance in the service of the
Government invariably have incessant
opportunities to go into the service Of
wealthy private corporations at large
salaries. These opportunities have
never had for DIR. Smith any effective
appeal. He would rather study. He
would rather explore a tract of land
and state its resources enthusiastically.
He would rather compose regulations
for obliging the private renters Of that
land from the Government to develop
those resources conServattonally. He
would rather watch and worry those
private renters enthusiastically. AS di-
rector of the Geological Survey, his
policies influentially led straight oneto
the passage of the various numerous
Federal laws whereby our Federal land
ed domain has been in large part de-
voted to private operation, but to pri-
vate operation only under strict gov
ernmental supervision.
This is the next-and the central
point that sheds some light on DIR.
Smiths possible prospective policies in
his new post. A Government man, DR..
Smith is not a ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
man. He Is a private operation man.
Nevertheless, though a private-opera-
ton man, he is on his record a very
strong ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS man.
| He ardently believes in Government
supervision, not only for private de-
velopments on the public domain but
| for privately-owned public utilities in
| general
DemOnstrable From Record.
This is demonstrable from his record,
in spite Of his famous temporary fail
ure, as chairman Of the new Federal
Power Commission, to re-employ Mr.
William v. King, the chief accountant
of the old expired Federal Power Com
mission, and in spite Of his continued
| failure to re-employ Mr.. Charles A.
Russell, the expired commissions solic-
itor Those failures were regarded here
by all hands as having been what are
| cOY11efirnag called colossal errors Wl \
are sometimes otherwise called bone
head plays" This opinion is peculiarly
wildly shared by most Of the water
power interests.
They realize that Mr.. King and Mr.
| Russell were famouSly and favorably
known to the public as jealous en-
forcers of the letter Of the water
power act against resistant water
power companies. They realize that