The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1932-02-03
FOES Warned
ELECTION WILL
SEE RECKONING
La FoIIette'S Eloquent Plea
Stirs Hope for Success
of Measure.
SUBSTITUTE IS SOUGHT
Democrats Abandon Move
to Smother Plan for
u. S. Aid.
BY RUTH FINNEY
Times staff Correspondent


WASHINGTON, Feb. 3. - The
fight for federal hunger relief,
which seemed a hopeless cause two
days ago, had become a real battle
today. with the result in doubt and
vote not yet in sight.
During the two days in which
Senator La Toilette Rep., Wis., piled
up his mountain of evidence that
starvation confronts millions in this
country, from which there is no
escape without federal help, his
Democratic opponents grew more
and more reluctant to vote against
the La Toilette Costigan $375, 100000
relief measure.
When he warned, in closing, that
If you fail to meet this issue now,
you'll meet it later; you'll meet it
in the campaign of 1892" his words
carried real threat to those who
heretofore have been unwilling to
support federal relief bill.
Seek to Draft Substitute
Conservative Democrats have
abandoned their plan of moving
that the bill be sent back to COM
mittee. Instead, they worked Tues
day trying to draft a substitute
measure that would promise human
relief, but less directly. They are
continuing their efforts along this
line today with no agreement so
far, even among themselves.
Expenditure of federal funds for
immediate road building, instead of
or direct aid to the needy, has been
suggested. A second proposal would
increase the governments ex-
penditure to $750000,000, and pro-
vide for spending half of this on
roads and half in loans" to Gov
errors for relief.
Meanwhile, Senator Costigan of
Colorado, in a speech which is eX-
pected to last through today'S
session, was explaining to the
senate that all alternative sugges-
tons for relief Of distress have
been considered Thoroughly by the
senate manufactures committee and
eliminated for various reasons.
NOSO w A&N OOA0JN0
The committee made a careful
study of constitutional limitations
which would make loans out of the
question for a large number of
states. Members also have studied
the length of time required to get
relief to sufferers by means of made
work" and the proportion of suf-
ferers that could be relieved under
the requirement that they first do
heavy manual labor.
After Costigan has finished, a
number of other senators intend to
speak for the bill. This will make a
vote improbable before the end of
the week.
AS the debate has proceeded,
Pennsylvania and West Virginia coal
miners have described conditions of
shocking restitution to the house la
Dor committe, which is at work on a
companion relief measure.
Demand Eviction Halt
Newspapers have carried the story
of rioting in the Bronx over at
tempted eviction of penniless fam
lilies. Demonstrations in twenty
large cities and a number of smaller
ones, planned weeks ago by the I'M
employed councils organized through
out the country, are to take place
Thursday.
They will demand of city officials
that all evictions of unemployed
families be stopped, that wages"
be paid to those involuntarily out
of work, or that free food, clothing,
gas, coal and electricity be furnished
the unemployed.
La Toilette, after a siX-hour pres
entation of evidence, the accuracy
of which was not questioned, de-
manded that the senate consider
the effect of failure to act at this
time on a hunger relief bill.
Failing to act on this bill" he
said. would mean that the congress
of the United States, in meeting the
problem of unemployment, has ex-
tended government credit amount
ing to $3.50, 100000 to banks, rail-
roads and other corporations, but
has turned its back on millions of
outstanding -earners, who have
found themselves overwhelmed by
the situation"