Evening star., 1934-06-24
HOPKINS to Hold the Center OF
Washington Stage This Summer

program. At that time the appear
ance of graft by local politicians
caused the junking Of the enterprise.
A favorite expression Of Admins
traitor Hopkins is:
THOSE are Just so many words.
Words don't do anything. We can only
be interested in results"
Another is:
You want to remember that am
not so important. I am just hred
hand"
But right now, so far as the recov-
cry program Of the Roosevelt admin
istration goes. youthful Mr.. Hop
kins Is to become increasingly i'm
portant. He has hold of the real
Frankenstein of the depression in the
unemployment problem. One OF the
reasons for giving him leading part
in the forthcoming drive for house re-
pair and home rebuilding is the chance
to tie up job-creating with unemploy-
ment relief. If he must deal with the
problem of caring for the destitute,
the theory is that he should have
SOQcLll1IlB W say hDOu6 1CASA oA SA4o1 70
at work creation.
The relief problem is q growing
worry to oficials. The country Is en-
tering the Summer with 100000
families on relief rolls. The cost Of
caring for them is running around
Sic, 200, 900 a month. Included in
that cost is work relief for 1,000,-
900 heads Of families, and it is Mr..
Hopkins idea that more and more the
Government should require work in
return for relief, instead of granting
straight doles.
But the problem that stands out
most glaringly is that of Washington
itself. Right here in the home Of the
Federal Government, in a city that
has enjoyed something of boom dur
ing the past year. owing to the influx
Of new Government workers and to a
vast program of Federal construction,
the number of families on relief COM
pares in extent with that Of indus
trial cities Of similar size. Yet WASH
ington is not an industrial city, and
the mass Of its workers have suffered
relatively small salary cut, with
most of that now being restored.
If Washington is an example, the
country now can have a clear con-
ception of the difficulties that may lie
ahead in the process Of separating
people from relief roles with the re-
turn Of better times The experience
here suggests that for many years to
come this country will have to make
huge outlays to care for its unem-
ployed Those outlays, now at the
rate of about 81 800 ,0o0, 900 a year,
will, in the opinion of Mr.. Hopkins,
have to be paid from taxes that are
not now being levied.
Today the chief hope to reduce that
load Of relief lies in the new housing
program. This program in turn calls
for very little Federal expenditure.
The Government lends some of its
credit and supervises the program Of
mortgage finance reform. but it leaves
the actual spending to the private In
dividuals and the private lending
agencies.
If that doesn't work, Harry Hopkins
expects that the country will 20 into
next Winter with relief problem as
big, II not bigger, than ut present.
Then would come another program Of
spending somewhat along the lines Of
the former Civil Works Administra-
ton. Even now heavy spending out
in the Middle West Is counted on to
prevent the drought from having q
generally depressing effect on busi-
ness.
In this whole show, Administrator
Hopkins is the chief actor.
(Copyright, 1934.)