Evening star., 1932-08-28
BY WILLIAM HARD.

1ne CdHpdiSu begins 10 lnulCaCe tnat
the American economic system will
have a new dose Of more governmental
supervision and regulation and assist
matter who gets elected President.
Both Mr.. Hoover and Mr.. Roosevelt
proclaim themselves passionately de-
voted to "individualism." Both say,
nevertheless, that they desire certain
sorts of governmental leadership" in
order that this "individualism" may
flourish. Both thereupon project that
leadership" along avenues that can
end only in further legislation and fur
ther bureaucracy"
Mr.. Roosevelt was at first expected
by Washington to ground his candidacy
on the Power Trust" issue. He was
then, later on, expected to ground it
on the issue Of relief of unemploy-
ment distress" He now, after incidental
illusions to the power" industry and
to relief" measures, has grounded his
candidacy really on the detailed ad-
m1nistrative reform of the country'S
whole money and credit" structure.
Washington perceives in this move
on his part genuinely high stroke of
political strategic capacity.
In power" Mr.. Hoover and his Fed
eral Power Commission have repeatedly
demanded new Federal bureaucratic"
regulation Of the interstate aspects of
power development. They. have de-
manded it so completely and so con-
cluSively as to leave to Mr. Roosevelt no
great chance of differentiating himself
from the administration except through
perilouS advocacy of vast schemes Of
outright governmental ownership and
operation, which would, indeed, be dif-
fcult to reconcile with " individualism !"
In relief" Mr.. Hoover can exhibit
the Red Gross, with it's distributions Of
Farm Board Wheat and cotton gratis,
and the Reconstruction Finance Cor
poration, with its approaching alloca-
tions OF approximately S1,500,000 600
OF Federal credit for relief" through
public gifts and for relief" through
public works. He has thus carried Fed
eral expenditures and Federal credit
advances SO far as to deprive Mr. Roose-
velt OF all opportunity to suggest their
drastic enlargement except at the cost
OF abandoning the Democratic platform
pledge for the reduction of Federal
governmental total outlays by 25 per
cent.
In money and credit" however, the
situation for Mr.. Roosevelt was entirely
different and altogether more open to
action. The Republican platform
pledges for reform in money and
credit" are for the most part as vague
as the Democratic pledges in that field
are stringent and precise. Here is seen,
In the Democratic platform, the power
full personal influence Of Senator Car
ter Glass, Democrat, of Virginia That
influence will continue and will have
a wide persuasive effect upon Repub-
lican as well as Democratic votes in
the Congress next Winter, even If Mr..
Hoover and not Mr. Roosevelt should
win the White House in November.
Mr.. Glass bill for the reform of our
Federal banking laws is the main meas
ure to that end now before the Senate
Since the Senate is a continuous body,
this bill Of Mr.. Glass will confront
1t automatically in December. Much
of the bill has the firm support of de-
termined elements in the Federal Re-
serve Board. In the mind OF Washing
ton there is little doubt that the lines
IIlc plil puISutS are lilies WHICH
eventually will be written into the Fed
has been fortified into being a GER
tainty by Mr.. Roosevelt's money and
credit" utterances at Columbus, Ohio.
Mr.. Glass, as one Of the prime authors
of the Federal Reserve system, has long
been fixed upon the idea that Federal
Reserve credit should be segregated as
much as possible for commerce" and
should be sundered as much as pos
sible from Speculation" He followed
with interest the warnings which three
years ago were issued in that sense to
national banks by the Federal Reserve
Board. The slightness of the effect
produced by those warnings confirmed
him in his conviction that measures
more decisive would be necessary.
The then Secretary of the Treasury
Andrew w Mellon. was the political
symbol of loose and easy rein upon
Federal Reserve credit. Mr.. Glass be-
came the political symbol of a strong
and tight rein upon it. The difference
has persisted into the national party
platforms of this year and has indicated
a gap between the two party view
points. But this gap-it is now to be
roted-has been closing, and it has
been closing toward a victory for Mr..
Glass.
Both parties now advocate, through
their candidates as we'll as through their
platforms, a more rigorous supervision
of national banks. The purpose behind
this proposed projection of Government
into the deeper details of banking is
no. only an increased security for de-
positors, but an increased scrutiny of the
nature Of the loans made by the bank
ers to borrowers.
X 4
That latter point is the ultimate point
The Republican platform vaguely prom
ised that the speculative credit excesses
of the years Immediately preceding the
depression would be investigated and that