The Lexington advertiser., 1932-12-08
WASHINGTON
SNAPSHOTS
The Helm News Service
Taken By

Faced by an inability to frame bal
anced budget for the fiscal year beglh-
ming July next, President Hoover pre-
pared to recommend to Congress man
ufacturers' sales tax with the essentlals
of life-food and clothing-exempted'
This became known as the President,
after struggling with the budget for two
weeks and after searching everywhere
for possible economies, found that the
! budget he will send to Congress would
contain a prospective deficiency OF sew
eral hundred millions of dollars. I'm
der the law in such an event the Presl-
dent must recommend sources of new
revenue to Congress.
The contest for Speaker of the next
House to succeed John N. Garner, Vice
President-elect, is becoming so sharp IN
its preliminary stages that some DEM
ocratic leaders believe Governor Roose-
welt, the Presdent-elect, will be COM
PEELED to exert his influence to prevent
discord in the unweldy Democratic
House majority in the Seventy-thlrd
| Congress. With the contestants in
tensely active and the campaign assum-
ing a personal aspect, the enlarged DEM
ocratic repre- resentation from the North is
demanding that it be accorded recogni-
ton The contention of the hundred or
| more Democrats from States above the
Mason and Dixon line is that the party
must relieve itself of sectionalism by
making a Northern man speaker. Their
argument is that all the important
charmanships will go to the South un-
der the seniority rule, and that the
North should inherit the Speakership.
In 2 5000 word note which was vir-
tualy an appeal to the reason of the
American people over the head of Con-
gress, the British government protested
to Washington that there can be no
substantial start toward world economic
recovery unless America reconsiders it's
insisuence upon the British debt pay
ment due on December IS, and consents
to a review of the whole system of in
tergovernmental debts with a view of
eradicating them. The note, although
carrying no direct refusal to make the
December payment of S95, 100000, en-
phaszed that it could only be made at
the cost of vital shock to business gen
orally. Rejecting President Hoover's
suggestion of a temporary payment in
sterling, the communication pointed out
that the installment must be paid in
gold, ii at all, and that the British gold
reserves were barely sufficient to salts
fly London's requirements as an inter-
national financial center
Congressional action to repeal the
Eighteen Amendment within the next
four months moved measurably closer
as House Democratic leaders expressed
confidence of obtaining the required two
| thirds majority for the Garner resolu-
| ton, and Senator Robinson, or Arkansas,
| Democratic floor leader, declared the
Senate should also vote on repeal dur
| ing the coming short session. After the
House and Senate have passed the re-
peal resolution, if it is passed, the power
| of Congress on this issue will be ex-
| hausted and the fate of the measure
will be in the hands of the individual
states with the approval of thirty six
required to complete ratification.
A second assault on governmental ex-
travagances, one Of the many efforts
under way or pending toward effecting
balanced Federal budget, will begin
on Capitol Hill. The Senate Economy
Committee, under guidance of Senator
Bingham, Connecticut, will start its ar
duous task of prying into every concei-
vable corner of Government activity for
savings The economy committee which
succeeded last summer in saving from
$150,0G0,000 to $175,000, 100000 has an
even more difficult task this session
with continuously mounting deficit
But it will bend to its work with Col
onel Rcop, director of the budget as
first of many witnesses asked to assist
In the light of most recent informa-
tion and using measuring yard the full
air strength that this country could en-
| ploy ir an operation where armies, ma
vies and air forces would be used, the
United States today stands fourth
among world powers in relative air
strength. Assistant Secretary of War
F. Trubee Davidson, in charge of army
air activities, discloses in his report to
the Secretary of War On June 80, this
year, the air strength of the United
States Army, the National Guard and the
| organized reserves was 1914 airplanes,
of which about 210, of all types, were
temporarily unserviceable
Plans are being discussed at Geneva,
with the approval of the State Depart
ment, for the General Disarmament
Conference to consolidate through a
treaty or convention the gains already
made and leave the adjustment of re-
naming questions to negotiations among
the various governments or to recon-
Vened conference at Geneva made up,
perhaps, of only one delegate from each
country. This much was disclosed on
authority, although it was stressed that
the arrangements now under discus
SION haG not crystallized sufficiently for
N1NSSSsQraIuu1sRGF,sss. su,sessss. -