Evening star., 1934-04-15

SOAAAS
get round to writing it with
detachment, will record that
measurable change took
place during the first two weeks of
April The change expressed itself
in several ways. One is illustrated
by single episode. President Roose-
welt, just before he went on his va
cation, sent message to Congress
calling for enactment of the stock
exchange control bill in the form in
which it then stood. CAT that stage
the bill had already been materially
modified from the original draft)
Such message from the President, at
almost any time during the first year
of the administration, would have
ended any notion of Congress to
modify the bill from the form in
which the President urged it. Ger
tainly the House would have re-
Trained.
For few days after Mr.. Roosevelt's
message, there was the old atmosphere
of assent. The administration forces
in the House went on the assumption
that the Presidents request must be
followed literally Critics of the bill
in Congress dropped their protests;
critics outside Congress gave up hope.
Questioning Resumed.
Soon, however, the critics resumed
their questioning of some features Of
the bill Hearings in committee went
on as they normally do. 1t became
apparent that material changes would
be made. All this has been step
in the revival of normal relations be-
tween Executive and Congress, the
normal functioning of Congress. Any
assertion that Mr.. Roosevelt is a die
tator in the sense of completely COM
manding Congress became an absurd
distortion of fact.
The same disposition of Congress to
exercise its prerogative was expressed
In several other actions, or failures to
act. One was related to the an
nouncement of N. R. A. Administrator
Gen. Hugh Johnson that he would
not ask for renewal of the licensing
provision of N. R. A. This particular
section, the teeth" of N. R. A, comes
to statutory end on June l6. If it
was to be renewed at all, the renewing
must be done by this Congress. 1t
could be that Gen. Johnson's self
restraint about asking for extension
of the power reflected judgment on
his part that the power is no longer
necessary. The common assumption
of Washington, however, has been
that Gen. Johnson's retreat on this
point was based on the common
knowledge of Washington-which is
that Congress would be unlikely to
renew this drastic section of N. r. A.
The general, according to the COM
mon Judgment, practiced the military
strategy of avoiding defeat by avoid
ing battle.
Normally Again.
There were other evidences of the
restoration of functioning as usual by
Congress. The House a little while
before refused by large majority, to
approve an appropriation to establish
a government-owned and government
operated furniture factory. which had
been proposed as an incident of re-
lief for unemployment. The action
of the House was taken Squarely on
the ground of principle, it was an
affirmation of the American tradition
and usage which says that the gov
ernment should not enter the field
of private industry in competition
with its own citizens.
About the same time the Senate
declined to ratify the treaty urged by
Mr.. Roosevelt providing for st. Law
renee waterway Mr.. Roosevelt's rec
concentration that this treaty be
enacted was based not merely on the
wish to have a new outlet to the sea,
but rather more on his wish to make
use of the dams to set up Govern
ment ownership and operation of
large source of electricity. His wish
for the st. Lawrence waterway was
related to his earlier and successful
project in Tennessee. The new deal
plan as a whole, on this point was
to have some four or five great elec-
trio plants under Government opera
ton in strategically located parts of
the country. Refusal by the Senate
to ratify the st. Lawrence treaty in
terferes with this part of the new
deal.
Veto Overridden.
Another conspicuous resumption by
Congress of its prerogative was the
passage by the necessary two-thirdS
majority of an appropriation bill over
the Presidents veto. The bill con-
tanned restoration of some of the
cuts that had been made earlier in
the pay of Government employees and
in the compensation of veterans.
Incidentally, the enactment by Con-
gress of this legislation over the Presi-
dents veto has been widely misunder-
stood-to the detriment both of Con-
gresS and the President. A wave OF
criticism of Congress for extravaganza
included the assumption on the part
of many who sent angry kilograms
that Congress had enacted payment OF
the soldiers bonus Actually the
bonus was not involved.
Another incorrect assumption was
that Congress had undone all the
economy that the President had pre-
viously brought about in the field OF
veterans compensation. The fact is
that the quantity of compensation
actually restored by Congress was
comparatively small. The essential
truth is illustrated by the fact that
today some 100000 veterans who were
on the compensation roll when Mr..
Roosevelt took Office are now off it.
That Mr.. Roosevelt took them of is
proof of the immense measure OF econ
omy in this field which Mr.. Roosevelt
achieved, and which still stands. That
Congress left off the roll these roughly
100000 whom Mr. Roosevelt had taken
off is proof that Congress did not seri-
ously impair Mr.. Roosevelt's economy
In the area of veterans compensation.
The Stock Exchange Bill.
The most illustrative incident of the
resumption by Congress of its normal
functioning was its proceeding to
modify the stock exchange control bill
after President Roosevelt had recon-
rlended passage of it in the form in
r41 Nf