Evening star., 1935-02-09
PLAN TO SEPARATE
AID FUND FROM
WORKS IS DROPPED
Couzens Abandons Move
When Hopkins Finds An.
other so Million.
ADMINISTRATION BUSY
ON PAY PROVISION
Roosevelt Calls Glass on Phone
in Effort to Eliminate
Wage Section.
BY the Associated Press.

By the Associated Press.
Moves to separate the $3.50 900 900
direct relief authorization from the
administrations s4,S8O 100000 work.
relief bill. today we're reported aban-
doned upon receipt of word that the
Federal Relief Agency had found an
other $4,000 900 it could use.
Harry L. Hopkins, relief administra-
tor, had informed the Senate Appro-
priations Committee that existing
funds would become exhausted by
tomorrow. When the committee be-
came entangled in a long controversy
over the measure. suggestions were
made that the $3.50 ,000,0 900, to come
from unexpended balances Of appro-
priations already made, be incorpo-
rated in a separate bill and rushed
through.
Senator Couzens, Republican. of
Michigan. one of those who was plan
ming such an amendment. said today
he had abandoned the idea because
s50000,000 of public works money had
been dug up for the relief admins
tration to carry on until Congress
acts.
Other Reserves Available.
Couzens added the emergency was
not as great as at first thought since
the relief administration had other
reserves to tap if its funds ran low.
The Appropriations Committee, in
the throes of a controversy over the
McCarran amendment requiring pay
ment on public projects of wages pre-
vailing in private industry, planned
no meeting today.
The week end was expected to be
utilized by administration forces in
an effort to muster strength to re-
verse the 12-to-8 vote by which ap-
proval was given the wage provision
against President Roosevelt's wishes.
Glass Is Called.
The Executive has been in touch
with Chairman Glass, Democrat. Of
Virginia by telephone in an effort
to have the wage provision eliminated.
One report today was that Mr.. Roose.
welt had sent a written communica.
ton to the committee TO be read at
Mondays session, but Glass said he
had no information to that effect.
At his press conference late yester-
day, the President said all he knew
about the differences in the Appro-
priations Committee was what he read
casually in the papers.
HLr;eAtn, naAFNloe
Treasury procurement chief who Is
slated for an important post in the
new relief set-up, had told the Appro-
priations Committee
This IS an emergency measure to
put the dole-relief people to work;
make them work for their wage, at
a less rate, Intentionally so. than the
prevailing wage. so as tc compel the
individual. or form an inducement for
him. to seek work when he can find
it elsewhere in private employment"
On the other hand. Peoples said,
the permanent public works program.
for which the President has asked
Congress to appropriate $500, 100000,
will be done under contracts provid-
ing prevailing wages.
McAdoo Seeks Reconsideration.
Senator McAdoo, Democrat, of CAL
ifornia, voted for the McCarran
amendment. but now seeks a recon-
sideration. Administration leaders ex-
press the belief the amendment can
be deleted. but McCarran said today
he would be very much mistaken"
if it does not win. Whatever the
committee does with it. he intends to
carry his fight before the whole Sem
ate.
My primary motive" he said. lis
to sustain the wage structure Of
America Inclusive in that
thought is that the greatest employer
of labor, namely. the Government,
should not lend itself to tearing down
wage structure which eventually
might bring us to the point where
our toilers will be in competition with
Russia and ''lc Orient and the other
countries where there is no estab-
lished wage structure"
Meanwhile, the United States Con-
ference of Mayors took fling at pri-
vate contractors for asking that all
the public works be done by contract.
This, said Paul V. BetterS, director
of the conference, runs counter to
the practice in many cities which,
ever since this country was founded.
have carried on public Improvements
by force account-that is by their
regular city forces and personnel"
These cities, at any rate" he
added, would never countenance any
work in their communities under a
system which has been outlawed by
them for over hundred years."