Evening star., 1933-12-20
A Glowing Prospect.

Where, oh, where is that old slogan,
20 dear to many democratic hearts IN
the past, less government in business?
It seems, for the present at least, lost
IN the deepest obScurity. Government
agency after Government agency has
been set UP not only to regulate buSi-
ness but actually to do business which
In the past has been confined to private
agencies and activities. The Govern
ment today Is engaged in the mortgage
business, for example, on urban homes
and farms. It. has bought huge num-
bers of pigs in an effort to control
the prices of pork and corn. 1t has
undertaken the regulation Of the oil
business, the liquor business, directly,
and all business through the establish
ment Of codes under the N. r. A. And
now the President has announced the
formation of a million-dollar corpora
ton, "The Electric Home and Farm
Authority"
"The Electric Home and Farm Au-
thority" is to be a subsidiary of the
Tennessee Valley Authority. 1t is to be
incorporated in Delaware as a mort
gage-loan corporation, and its capital
stock is to be subscribed by the Public
Works Administration out of the So
300, 100000 fund provided for the
p. w. A. by Congress at its last ses-
sion. The purpose of the new corpora
ton is glowingly set forth by David E.
Lilienthal, general counsel of the Ten
nessee Valley Authority, as desire ito
make two electric bulbs glow where one
elowed before" There is something
reminiscent In the phrase. 1t calls
to mind that promise of the G. o. P.
in other days to place two automobiles
in every garage where one was placed
before, and to put chicken In every
pot. The new corporation will en-
deavor to accomplish this glowing pur
pose by making loans direct to farmers
and others in the Tennessee Valley 50
that they may purchase at much re-
duced prices-so 1t Is said-an kinds OF
electrical equipment, appliances by
which they may cook their meals, curl
their hair, freeze their ice and what
not.
Just how such laudable proposal
to reduce prices OF all this kind of
equipment Jibes with the announced
determination Of the Roosevelt admin
istration to lift commodity prices and
30 bring prosperity Is a little obscure
But consistency Is not always q jewel
in the eyes Of any administration, and
the Roosevelt administration Is no ex-
ception to the rule. Else why has it
been the policy of the administration
to cut the wages Of the S0o.0 900 Govern
ment workers throughout the land while
continuing to insist that all private
industry advance wages? 1t is difficult
always to walk in the straight and mar
row path, and indeed it is difficult, 1T
appears, not to try to walk in two
directions at the same time.
The new Electric Home and Farm
Corporation is designated as another
experiment" It is a modest experiment,
Is compared to some of the others which
have been attempted by the Roosevelt
administration. At the same time 1t Is
q natural corrollary of the establishment
Of the Tennessee Valley Authority, which
was set up to create more and more elec-
tric power for use throughout the vast
valley of the Tennessee River and in
States bordering thereon. If there is to be
more and more such power there must
be more and more consumers or else the
expenditure of the money by the Gov
ernment for creating this power will be
lost. Hence the Electric Home and Farm
Corporation, with its direct loans to con-
sumers.