Evening star., 1935-02-24
BY OWEN L. SCOTT.


Washington. It centers in Congress,
but Is felt all through the Govern
ment. Congressman are worried over
evidence of STRINGS Of dissatisfaction
among the people back home. Their
worries coincide with sudden dis
covery on their part that the New
Deal Is wobbly In more than one
joint and badly In need Of patching.
Only Congress can do that needed
patching. But Congressman. seeing
one after another Of the alphabetical
creations falling into something akin
to distress. are inclined to ask whether
they should continue to follow orders
that call for additions to old grants
Of power and creation Of new ones.
The concern at the White House
and elsewhere in the New Deal grows
partly from the new show Of inde-
pendence in the Senate There the
Presidents five billion dollar works
program had a cold reception. His
plan to continue N. r. A., instead OF
being received with whoops Of Joy,
actually caused groans. Little gen.
uine enthusiasm Is displayed for his
old-age pension or unemployment in
surance program.
Il i 4
Back In 1888 two laws, embodying
four plans for stimulation Of recovery,
were advanced with presidential back
ing. They were to turn the trick and
start the country moving toward
prosperity. Those two laws were the
national industrial recovery act, with
an appropriation Of $4,000. 100000 for
public works attached, and the agri-
cultural adjustment act, which con-
tanned a grant Of power to the Presi-
dent to devalue the dollar.
What Is the status Of those expert
ments at this time? And what re-
suits have been realized by F. H. A.,
by F. E. r. A., by tariff bargaining,
and by other recovery plans?
A glance down the list discloSes
the shifts that have taken place:
N. r. A.-Once offered as a depres-
sion cure-all, the Recovery Admins
tration during recent months has re-
Quired a pulmotor to keep 1t alive.
The idea had been that industry, In
return for release from antitrust
law restrictions, would agree to
shorten hours Of work and raise
wages. As wages went up, buying
power would increase and the road
would be open to recovery.
Actually, while wages were In
creased somewhat and work was
spread in some industries, N. r. A.
afforded industry the machinery for
price control. So price rises accom-
panied wage rises and the one can
celed out the other. The net result
has been another impasse. But PreS-
dent Roosevelt wants the experiment
continued for two more years.
And In Congress, where the fate OF
N. r. A. now rests, there again has
risen q well-organized drive to place
a fiat limit Of 80 hours on the indus
trial work week. Two years ago
drive Of this kind gave the country
the Blue Eagle. That bird was to
do all that q limited work week would
do, and more besides. It's success
soon may be measured by the strength
mustered behind Senator Blacks 80
hour-work bill.
p. w. A.-Under the original plans,
N. r. A. was to start up the country's
industrial machine. Then the Public
Works Administration, provided for in
the N. r. A. act, was to come along
with $500 100000 and prime the
pump" to keep the industrial machine
rolling.
Today few in Washington ever speak
Of "priming the pump" In fact, few
speak Of p. w. A. and its billions as
an agency of recovery. Mr.. Roose-
velt's latest plans include no new bill
lions for the Public Works Admins
tration. The projects authorized are
being pushed to completion and money
Is rolling out rapidly, but the 5000, 900
Jobs promised by p. w. A. seem not
to have materialized.
Rather, New Dealers frequently are
heard to remark that this agency, by
putting q prop under the prices Of
building materials and by putting a
Drop under artificially high hourly
wages Of building trades workers,
actually has served to retard private
construction.
P. w. A. is fading from the New
Deal picture, to be supplanted by q
new national works program handled
on an entirely different basis, resem-
bling more nearly the Civil Works Ad-
nainistration Of last Winter.
A. A. A.-Along with N. r. A. and
p. w. A. in the industrial field, there
was provided an Agricultural Adjust
ment Administration to correct dis
PARTIES In the field Of farming.
The A. A. A. set out to obtain .
larger slice Of the national income for
farmers. Under the realistic direction
Of Henry wallace, Secretary Of Agri-
culture, and Of Chester Davis, A. A.
A. administrator, it has accomplished
that purpose. ...
Through processing taxes levied on
consumers Of food and clothing and
through Q program Of managed
scarcity, the A. A. A. has syphoned
money from the cities to the farms
and has given Q decided boost to