Evening star., 1932-09-06
WAGNER, IN FORUM,
HITS RELIEF DELAY
Warns That Construction
Program Must Be Begun
Immediately.

Asserting that the Federal Govern
ment. directly and through the Recon-
struction Finance Corporation, is to-
day the custodian of 100000 jobs and
$500 100000 worth of relief, Senator
Robert F. Wagner, Democrat, Of New
York, speaking in the National Radio
Forum last night scored the admins
tration's delay in bringing into full
operation the S2,000,000,000 relief and
construction act passed at the last SeS-
sion of Congress.
The National Radio Forum Is ar
ranged by The Washington Star and
broadcast over a coast-to-coast network
of the National Broadcasting system.
The speaker was introduced by Oliver
Owen Kuhn, managing editor Of The
Star.
Declaring that employment alonS
"will lift the pail Of anxiety which now
envelops millions of American homes
and smothers the spirit of enterprise
which is characteristic Of our people" 3"
Senator Wagner predicted that unless
the construction program authorized is
launched Immediately 1--WE shall expert
ence Winter of indescribable cruelty"
Senator Wagner said that to act on
the assumption that the problem of the
depression is now on the way to auto
matte solution, and to inactively await
the recovery, is to court disaster. THE
administrative lob remains to be done,
namely to supplement local relief funds
with Federal relief funds and to launch
the construction program with the speed
made necessary by the emergency" he
asserted.
The text of Senator wagner's ad-
dress follows:
To- s,,Ir r1n
fitting way to observe Labor day this
year than to devote it to non-partisan
and non-political consideration of our
national circumstances and to deter
mine upon policy of future action.
What do the next six months hold
in store for us?
THAT is the specific question which
should be candidly answered.
I'm my own mind I am completely
satisfied that the only intelligent way
to proceed, the only safe and patriotic
course to follow, is to face the facts
courageously and to report them frank
ly. I am an intense believer In the
efficacy of the uncolored truth. The
distortion of facts in an effort to create
tranquility and confidence leacS only to
defeat and despair.
This is especially true at the present
1A1C l4Nall PdDAAS 40 ASPeA~esA
of rose-colored promotional ballyhoo.
The people no longer believe that We
can talk or cheer ourselves into pros
perity. But they retain profound
faith that America can work itself into
prosperity. Employment, and only en-
ployment, will lift the pail of anxiety
which now envelopes millions of Ameri-
can homes and smothers the spirit OF
enterprise which is characteristic OF our
people.
"The most optimistic report which
can be truthfully given on the basis Of
available information is that very few
bright spots have begun to appear on
the otherwise somber picture of the
Nations business. The first and most
significant of these is that commodity
prices have stopped falling and some
have begun to rise. The second is that
stock market prices have moved up
ward. The third is that the European
situation has cleared a little. The
fourth is that Congress passed the re-
lief and construction act which had
introduced in the Senate.
Basic Factors Remain.
"These changes have without ques-
ton improved the tone of business con-
ditions. They have refreshed the
springs OF hope. The public mood Is
now conducive to the restoration of
confidence.
All that, however, does not change
the basic factors that We must deal with
during the next six months.
According to the American Fedora
tion of Labor, more than IL 900 600 men
are without jobs, and the latest official
figures show that this number has not
yet begun to decrease. These men,
weary and heartsick from the long
struggle, are dreading the approach of
Winter, praying for deliverance from
the torment of being unable to pro-
vide for wife and children.
out Of every 100 freight cars nor
mally loaded with the products of
mines, mills and factories Al are today