Evening star., 1934-01-19

ture. The real difference between
critics and the administration Is that
they think industry can never do II
and we, at least, are sure 1t will.
Even Shorter Hours Coming.
"Take you retail dealers, with your
worries about increased costs to you
individually consequent to N. r. A.,
our insistence on shorter work hours
and we are going to insist on short
Ones-and q minimum wage for your
vArious branches Of service. How shall
you compensate? There are two ways
q fiat mark-up and q more or less sta
tionary price, relying on increased vol
ume to take up the difference. On those
questions you again have a direct presi-
Dental request. Let me read once more
from our Bible and yours-dated June
16-the President speaking:
ct am fully aware that wage in
creases will eventually raise costs, but
I ask that arrangements give first con-
sideration to improvement Of operating
figures by greatly increased sales to be
expected from the rising purchasing
power Of the public"
Will Oppose Repeal Effort.
Saying there was an effort under
way to repeal the recovery act. he
promised to oppose 1t "as long as breath
within me lies"
Some of this will be by a Senator
whom I love for his intestinal fortitude
perhaps more than any Senator other
than Carter Glass, but shall oppose
him in this paradox" he declared.
1T will be an attempt to put into
the act about three lines forbidding ac-
ton by an industry in unison. and IN
effect substituting the Federal Trade
Commission for the N. r. A."
johnson said the commission had been
created to do what the N. r. A. Is now
to do, but against the background
Of law saying to industry, II you act
in unison you will be hung, drawn
and quartered'
Industry naturally asked. What can
we do?' And the reply to that is,
in effect. That Is a secret. Go ahead
and act
II N. r. A. oppresses anybody it
does not do SO by monopolistic tend
ency. 1t may do so for another rea-
son. I can tell you the single reason
and then prove it to the smoking hilt.
1T oppresses people who are not will
ing to accord decent wages and proper
hours to human labor, and 1 am willing
to take any man to the hustings on
that Misunderstanding these profes-
sional dialecticians. But they will not
dare 60 there with me-none OF them. v
Accompanied by Secretary.
The recovery administrator did not
arrive at the banquet until few min
utes before he was to speak. He was
accompanied by his secretary. Miss
Francis Robinson. whose activities in
the N R. A. he defended against
critics in his first remarks.
In his vigorous defense Of the N. r
A. and its personnel Johnson pointed
out that he would soon bring into the
recovery administration John L. Lewis
the international president OF the
United Mine Workers He said he felt
confident that Lewis. who will serve
as a divisional administrator. would be
satisfactory to both capital and labor
johnson formed bitter phrases as he
and gentlemen keening around the
moorlands wailing that N. r. A. op-
presses small enterprises.
Il thank God that the strength OF
my official position here Is that l am
without political ambition and am free
to close the window, whistle to the dog
and finally walk out the private door
of my ONCE any day that this kind OF
despicable thing becomes too much for
my sef-respect to bear"
johnson admitted blunders and also
that possibly in the hurly-burly. some
body has tried to put something over,
but challenged anybody to find col
lusive and fraudulent errors of policy.
He turned directly to the radio audi
ence with an appeal to support the
Blue Eagle. demand its display by
manufacturer and merchant.
To the audience Of retailers before
him he said:
Your part in helping the President
/ to bring back recovery is not to kill
/ the goose that lays the golden egg
The recovery" he said, lis on its way
1 The missing link has been supplied by
| the Presidents monetary plan for
/ stabilization and. with that. there is
nothing left to croak about
think that what was needed was conf
dence and that 1t has come"