Evening star., 1933-07-13
RECOVERY SLOGAN
IN NEW PHILOSOPHY.
Reconstruction, Favorite
Word Under Hoover Regime,
Dropped With C,hers.
BY DAVID LAWRENCE.

The Roosevelt administration has
adopted the word recovery" as its
slogan First there was the National
Industrial Recovery Administration
and now there's super-cabinet to be
known as the National Recovery
Council.
For long time the word "reconstruc-
tion" was the favorite here. but it went
its way along with other phrases of the
Hoover administration. There is still
a Reconstruction Finance Corporation.
of course, and it has 4 billion or more
to spend, but its functions are to be
gradually diminished and its work
taken over by specific agencies OF the
new recovery" machinery.
Under the broad powers of the
President a good deal of transferring
and rearranging of Government agen-
cies can be accomplished by executive
order Somewhat the same powers
were vested in President Wilson during
the war in what was known as the
Overman act. Under its authority the
President created the War Industries
Board.
New Kind of Council.
So Mr.. Roosevelt. If he wishes, can
make the National Recovery Council
something more than an informal
grouping together of various Govern
ment agencies plus the cabinet Secre-
taries. AS a matter of fact, while the
President has said nothing about it.
we are about to establish new kind
OF cabinet council which will last long
after the depression is over.
For many years it has been apparent
that Congress has created important
executive positions which were known
as independent offices. Usually these
have been commissions but under the
recently applied ideas of concentration
of power in single administrator. in
stead Of a commission, the Govern
ment under the Roosevelt adminiStra-
ton has given BIRTH to the equivalent
OF many of the Hoover commissions.
But with this administration as well as
with its predecessor thu problem of CO.
ordinating these outside agencies, SO
to speak, with the regular Government
departments has been a serious one
Not Cnly have cabinet officers retained
a sort of unofficial power over the
other agencies Of Government by virtue
Of their seats at the Presidents table.
but it gave room for plenty of petty
jealousies and red tape and bureau
cratic pride as between subordinates of
the high governmental officers.
Posts May Become Permanent.
Under the new plan. the President
gives an equal opportunity to all his
associates who hold high positions to
say what they have in mind at the
cabinet table. 1t may be that some of
these posts will develop into permanent
portfolios. The British cabinet, in fact
all European cabinets, have become
more flexible than the American be-
cause they can readily add or subtract
ministers, depending upon special re-
QuirementS and emergencies
BY putting all the co-ordinators,
administrators, cabinet secretaries and
managing directors together in single
group, the President has provided a
means for the application of uniform
personnel policies. especially in the
discharge of political appointees and
the maintenance of those who have
rights under the civil service.
The administration hopes its RE
covery" Council will be as successful as
the war council which Mr. Wilson
maintained. The word recovery is
1mbedded in the Roosevelt philosophy
and program. Incidentally, speaking
of words, a corporation president who
was here the other day said to me
that he was sure we would recover
from the depression, but he was be-
ginning to wonder if the country would
recover from the cures being applied.
So, having passed through the re
construction" stage into the drive for
recovery" we may some day reach
the point not of prosperity" for that
has an ill-fated political connotation,
but of "sociaized happiness" which
Is intermittently mentioned hereabouts
as the goal of all friends of the new
deal
(copyrisht, 1933)