Evening star., 1932-07-27
B0NUSLUNKLAD
TO CONGRESSMEN
Election Considerations Seen
Responsible for Men COM
ing Here
BY MARK SULLIVAN.

The Bonus Expeditionsry Force"
seems, though it is not yet sure, to be
coming to what is perhaps its best pos
sible end namely, dissolution by kind
of evaporation, with absolutely nothing
accomplished and therefore no incentive
to repeating this kind of performance.
An incident SO potentially dangerous
ought not to end without public en-
lightment as to its cause.
The cause and the blame is not fair
ly to be found among the eight or ten
thousand e-i-soldiers who composed the
expedition. Nine out of ten were good
natured, deluded men engaged in what
appealed to them as an innocent COM
bination of adventure, picnic and as
sertion of rights. To go among them
was to recognize instantly their COM
plete harmlessness. A child or a lost
pocketbook would be safer among them
than among any average cross-section
an easy-going, dreamy type of men not
very resourceful in self-help, and pecu-
liarlv helpless in hard times.
When hard times came. they ren1em-
bered that the happiest period of their
lives lad been when they were in the
Army, when they had no need to give
thought to food, and when the initiative
they lacked was supplied by the officers
and the system. Vaguely and rather
pathetically they dreamed of re-creating
Army conditions. That gave rise to the
organization of groups all over the
country which converged On Washing
ton. What has been said applies to ct
least nine out of ten of the men. A
small fraction was frankly Communist,
frankly out to make trouble. These as
a rule herded alone, and were kent at
arms length by the main body.
Well Intentioned Leaders.
The leaders who brought the expe-
dition together, though of course of a
different type from the men. were, as
rule, equally harmless and well in
tentioned. What the leaders wanted
was the fun of being leaders and they
eXulted In that like a drum major at
an Armistice day parade. The leader
of the radical group was, Of course
radical.
The harm and the danger, and the
expedition itself began less with veter-
ans than with members of Congress
There is no evidence available that
specific members of Congress brought
about the march to Washington. There
is abundantly justi1able inference that
the idea of the march was originally
planted In the minds of the men by
violent and provocative speeches made
in Congress. In such speeches the
veterans were told, in effect, that they
were entitled to the bonus and were
advised to organize and demand it.
During two years there has been much
organization for the purpose of circulat-
Ing petitions. The idea of a physical
demonstration in Washington was the
outgrowth of this.
There is some fallacy In the practi-
cally universal assumption that veterans
IL congressional districts band together
to elect or reject Congressman. That
has not been the whole picture. 1t is
as rule, the Congressman or the can
didate for Congress who takes the
initiative. It is a disagreeable fact of
preSent-day politics that some scores of
Congressman are in the business of
making living by getting themselves
reelected and that their technique for
reelection is to line up the veterans
In their districts by offering more and
more money from the Federal Treasury.
Soak the Rich" Basis.
It is difficult to find exact lines of
sectional or party division among Con-
greSsmen who do this. Prevailingly,
however, the demand for more money
to veterans In its more demagogic form
comes from Congressmen representing
States or districts that pay little taxes
to the Federal Government. The most
vociferous leadership of the bonus
movement within Congress put the de-
mand frankly on the basis of soaking
the rich" to give TO the veterans. The
two most conspicuous leaders of the
IN Cnr1 frOE0
Mississippi and one from Texas The
a wound stripe on Andy Melons purse
that could be seen from Washington
to Pittsburgh
The Texas author Of the bonus bin
put in form which would have re-
suited IN some two billion dollars of
fiat currency. Both these Congressmen
frankly and publicly approved the pres
ence Of 10000 or more veterans in
washington. The Mississippi member
declared he would oppose any adjourn
ment of Congress until the bonus bill
becomes law" While these individuals
were the most outspoken, q full ma
jority of the House is on record as hav-
ing voted for the bill at a time when
Congress was under what amounted to
physical intimidation. The Senate,
more courageous, cast a large majority
against the bill. Some of the Senate's
courage may be explained by the fact
that only third of that body is up
for reelection, while the whole Of the
more supine House is up. The scene
for four days when thousands of vet
Grams were on the lawn and steps Of
the building in which Congress was
voting, was one Of the least agreeable
In recent history. The danger in the
situation has not wholly passed with
the adjournment of Congress, and the
retirement Of about half the bonus ex-
pedition to their homes. Some 5000
already here contain inevitably the
menace of explosion.