Evening star., 1933-03-15
Strike While the Iron Is Hot.

President Roosevelt has impressed
the country and the Congress with his
legislative proposals. The Congress has
acted and is acting promptly to carry
out the emergency measures which
have been put forward by the Chief
Executive. Yet there continues a de-
mand in some quarters for an early
recess Of the Congress for two or three
weeks, ostensibly to give the President
opportunity to whip into shape his
program of more permanent legislation.
The President seems we'll able, with his
advisers, to frame his legislative pro-
posals while the Congress is in Wash
ington. There are other proposals
which will impress the country As
emergency measures demanding atten-
tion, among them the farm relief pro-
gram, the program for relief of the un-
employed and reform of the banking
system. Why not tackle these now as
well as the emergency banking bill, the
economy bill and the beer bill?
Indeed, there is every reason why
the farm legislation or farm program
should be expedited. To wait until
later In the year might make it far
worse for the farmers Indeed, a farm
program should have been put through
early in the Winter. But, because of
the makeup Of the old Congress and
the feeling that former President Hoo
yer might not have been willing to ap-
prove the kind of q bill President
Roosevelt will support, the matter was
not pressed vigorously, although the
House put through . domestic allot-
ment" plan farm bill, and the Senate
Committee on Agriculture undertook to
whip this House bill into shape. Presi-
dent Roosevelt's new Secretary of Agri-
culture, working with the farm leaders,
already has made progress toward a
farm program and, while this program
is said to be not entirely satisfactory
to the President, 1t may yet be whipped
into satisfactory shape at a compare
lively early date.
The unemployment relief bill, too has
been given long and earnest considera-
tion by the President and by those Sem
ators and Representatives who have
taken leading part in seeking unem-
ployment relief through government
assistance. The bank reforms needed
were discussed at length in the Senate
during the last session of the Congress.
At that time the Glass banking bill was
put through. Surely the President and
his advisers, including Senator Glass
and other members of the committees of
the Senate and House dealing with
banking, are familiar with the need OF
reforms. The present banking emer-
gency through which the country has
been going grew out of a foolish panic.
But that panic feeling in turn grew out
of long series Of bank failures and the
wide publicity given to the need of
banking reforms. Subsistence of the
panic does not mean that there should
be any further delay than is absolutely
necessary in making these reforms. 1t
is true tha- the Congress has given to
the President practically dictatorial
powers to deal with the banking situa-
ton until permanent legislation shall
have been enacted. But why delay?
The Congress is here and is in a mood
to deal with speed and promptness with
the program of the President. The iron
is hot. The time to strike is here Why
run the risk Of cooling the iron with
several weeks recess of the Congress2