Evening star., 1934-09-30
BY OWEN I. SCOTT.

bCoOAAlS NC" oCdIcIS are LdklIlR
lesson from the note book of expert
ence compiled by Gen. Hugh john
son. They have learned that a loud
bark. if not backed up by an equally
vigorous bite, can lead quickly to dis
aster. Out of that lesson is coming
different approach to the problem
Of governmental relations to indus
try. That approach apparently is to
include more bite and less bark.
Gen. johnson was convinced, when
he took hold of N. r. A. and hit upon
the idea of a Blue Eagle, that he
could stampede the Nation into pros
perity. Few deny that he made a
valiant and dramatic attempt He
cajoled. he argued, he threatened and
he promised until he had most of in
dustry herded into line and ready
for the big push back to good times
But there came time when Gen.
johnson was compelled to back up
his words with decisive action. His
bark had frightened many who diff
fered with him, but gradually more
and more people faced that bark and
found that 1t was supported by a
feeble bite. He had threatened "eco-
nomic death" to chiselers. But CHS
elers soon were prospering, unpun-
ished. Blue Eagles were withdrawn
slowly and, for the most part. from
small employers.
Gen. johnson had made broad de-
mands on big employers in the form
Of Nd do
tice requirements. But these employ
ers soon found that the general was
ready to bargain. From that time
forward N. r. A. really was on the
decline. Today the problem is to
rebuild from the wreckage. The
most ambitious OF the New Deal
projects is adrift, with President
Roosevelt admitting that its future will
be matter of evolution.
Gen. johnson probably will always
be of the opinion that his program
would have achieved success if only
he had been given authority over the
$4,000, 100000 public works fund, as
well as over N. r. A. The two are
included in single act Of Congress.
They were separated in administra-
ton. But the johnson drive behind
a spending program might have
yielded quick recovery gains. Such,
at least, is the contention of the gen.
erals friends.
Yet there are striking contrasts in
results when the experience of Gen.
Johnson with N. r. A. is compared
with experience of administrators in
other New Deal creations, where the
policy has been one of speaking softly
while welding big stick. In the
Agricultural Adjustment Administra-
ton, the Federal Emergency Relief
Administration and the Tennessee
Valley Authority there has been a
minimum of barking, but some high
class biting.
One Of the first johnson efforts was
to induce Henry Wallace, Secretary of
Agriculture, to make show of the
A. A. A. comparable to that of the
N. R. A. during the days of the Blue
Eagle drive. Mr.. Wallace failed to
accept the suggestion and decided to
stick to his own knitting. There then
developed one of the underlying con-
trasts of the entire New Deal. In
volved was a clash of policies and of
personalities that had much to do
with the upset of the fortunes of Gen.
Johnson.
One of the early difficulties grew
out of codes. Originally the A. A. A.
was to draft and administer codes for
all industries that process farm
products. The N. r. A. was to draft
and administer all other codes. Gen.
johnson turned out these documents
of industrial self-government on a
mass production basis. He quickly
approved grants of authority to in
dustry that always in the past had
been resisted by the Federal Govern
ment.
But it was different with Mr. Wal
lace and the A. A. A. They insisted
that If industry were given the right
to operate outside the antitrust laws
1t should grant to the Government
new and real powers Of control. In
return for a code, the A. A. A. de-
| manded the right to inspect industry's
books; it demanded power to establish
standards of quality of goods, and it
demanded other important conces-
sions. The result was that months of
effort produced no important code
| The food industries saw what was
| happening in N. r. A. and demanded
the same rights. Finally President
Roosevelt took code-making away
from A. A. A. and gave it to N. r. A.,
except for few groups.
The industries got their codes, but
now they face the prospect Of controls
such as A. A. A. first proposed if they
wish to retain the rights that N. r. A.
extends.
Not only in this instance but In
many others the A. A. A. and the