The times-news. [volume] (Hendersonville, N.C.) 1927-current, 1934-07-10
GOING BACKWARD TO GO FORWARD


The Texas Weekly gives space to the
case of the Florida ice manufacturer who
is to be prosecuted by NRA for expanding
the capacity of his plant without permia-
sion from the code authority. The press
dispatch giving the news says that the
manufacturer is charged with violation ii
"basic principle" of NRA. ,. ...
Discussing this case, The Texas Weekly
asks the question, ''Is Progress to be He
gal?" The Weekly believes if this action
is founded on 'basie principle" of MIA
"Texas is in for a period of industrial III
action, if not actual decline" Continuing
the discussion, The Weekly says:
at is curious psychological fact that when
mon become adherents of a certain set of prem
ises they accept gravely and solemnly whatever
conclusions may follow logically from those prem
Uses, no matter how ridiculous those conclusions
NAV he in fact The adherents of the policy OF
restriction may see nothing ridiculous about this
ice factory episode but to us it is an a5surdlty.
For II is proposing as a measure of recovery and
an aid to the restoration of employment the pre-
vention of expansion of production and of in
creased employment, where individual manufacture
ers feel justified in investing their capital to such
ends. Absurd conclusions which follow logically
from snv given premises invadate the premises,
and it seems to us that this is precisely the effect
of this ice factory episode. And it demonstrates
that the policy which dictated it is mot liberalism
but reaction, not craftsmanship but surrender, not
creative advice but cowardly retreat"
"For it is the fundamental assumption of those
hot at
Those assumptions are that the level of consump-
ton that was attained during the period from
1923 to 1923 can not be restored in the near flu
ture that as matter of course it can not De sur
passed, and that there was something undesirable,
not to say evil, about the prosperity Of which It
was part. What these gentlemen assume IS that
for long time to come there is not going to be
enough business for the existing productive ca
pacity of the country, and that consequently II
enterprsng men are permitted to do such things
as this Florida manufacturer is said to have done
there will not be enough business for their COM
petitors AT bottom it is policy of fear, and If
applied generally must have the paralyzing effect
which fear always has
"But aside from all this, it is certainly true
that mo region would stand to suffer greater loss
than the Gulf Southwest IF policy of permanent
restriction were to be adopted Whatever else
may be said about the outlook certainly it is true
that if this ice factory incident is logical
quenee of NRA premises-if it is a basic princi-
Pile of the NRA, as the Associated Press says
then it is time for Texas and regions similarly
situated to wake up to what is ahead of them.
Apparently, they going to have to fight for
the right even to attempt industrial development
The foregoing throws a considerable
amount of light on the absurdity of the
crater part of the NRA or so-called re-
covery program. Much has been exposed
and more is being exposed daily; but it is
probable that the country can't have too
much in the line of exposure 1t looks like
it is going to require lots of it to enable
the country to throw off the incubus Of
NRA.
Here is an American citizen informed
that ne cannot spend his own money in his
own way to develop and build up his own
business-told that it is illegal to do this
If that sort of Socialistic control can be
forced on this country, the time for real
revolution has arrived
However, this is only one of thousands
of cases of bureaucratic tyranny undo,
NRA; which, of course, are always camou-
flaged with the assertion that citizens in
various lines of business have gotten to-
gether, formed codes, and what is being
done is being done by business men them,
selves and not by the bureauerats. No lad,
mission is ever made that Socialist gov