Evening star., 1935-05-05

Offices with a $4,000, 900 or $4,000, 900
public-works allotment, to provide
badly-needed room, has rested In
Ickes' Office for months, despite ap-
proval by Treasury, Fine Arts Com
mission, Park and Planning Commis-
sion and the expenditure Of approx
mately $4,000 for drawing plans.
1t was in this same m-clearance
decision that McCarl set forth in sue
cinct fashion his attitude toward New
Deal-ism in general. He had blocked
the proposal as contemplated; by re-
fusing to countersign the warrant to
transfer the money involved from
Treasury to public works. First inti-
nation of what had happened, came
from an Ickes press conference. The
next day there was made public at the
controller generals office his letter to
Ickes, under circumstances that indi-
Gated McCarl thought it would be q
good idea to get the whole story in
the record. Ickes had charged that
McCarl had gone directly counter DO
an Executive order authorizing the
program as a recovery measure.
Plans Changed.
Said McCarl: This Office, wishing
to avoid placing any unnecessary re-
straint upon those administering the
law (national recovery act) has felt
justified in Withholding objections
thereto when there seemed no serious
danger involved" In other words. he
would go along where he could The
corporate organization proposed to
administer the act was the particular
object of McCarl's fire, however, and
he said fatty that there would be no
Slum clearance pending further ad-
vice from you showing the legality Of
the course proposed" The plans were
changed.
The automobile episode verged on
the ridiculous. By general statute
Congress must appropriate specifically
for motor cars and, where the price
is not specified, the cost Is limited to
$3.50. Ickes allowed an investigator
to get car for $845, sans legislative
authority, and when the voucher came
through, McCarl not only turned 1t
down, but said he would retain it in
his files as Ickes wouldn't need 1t.
Ickes went to the White House. and
the result was an executive order, per-
mitting such purchases, but holding
the cost thereafter to $3.50. This order
was decidedly unusual, but 1t was ac-
cepted. It Is very noticeable, how
ever, that the new $4,8S0, ,o00, 900
work-relief bill specifies that motor
vehicles may be acquired as needed.
The johnson Episode.
There was another celebrated set-to
in the early days of the Roosevelt
administration, but it didn't get pub
licity, for the reason that those con-
cerned were discreetly silent. Involved
was Gen. Hugh johnson, the N. r. A.
head, and the occasion was his tub
humping invasion Of Detroit to line
up the motor industry behind the
Blue Eagle. johnson tossed a party
there that was reliably said to have
cost $2,500. When the bill got to
McCarl he returned 1t with the advice
that Government employees were
limited to IS a day for expenses.
johnson almost had heart failure, as
he figured to end up about $2.495 in
the red. More chagrined than angry,
he insisted that something had to
be done. No doubt it was, but as a
betting proposition McCarl is an odds
on fayorite to win any argument like
that.
AS a matter of fact, the only New
Dealer who Is known to hold a clean
cut decision over McCarl Is the ir-
repreSsible James Aloysius Farley. A
few months ago the Postmaster Cen
eral asked McCarl to allow an ex-
penditure Of $75 monthly for news
ticker service for his private ONCE.
In a few hundred well chosen words
McCarl said no. Farley, he ampltned,
was allowed $3.50 yearly for news
papers; $75 q month, according TO
his figures, was about six times that,
and anyway, he was not certain that
a news ticker was newspaper.
So, Big Jim took his pen in hand
again. The Post once Department,
he pointed out, has a contingent fund
for crime detection, and certainly Q
news ticker would help In such worth
while enterprise by putting head
quarters in closer touch with field
operatives. McCarl nodded on that
one, for he didn't ask the muchly
travelled Postmaster General when he
intended to stay in town long enough
to watch the ticker. He simply
answered If the machine was to be
used in investigative work the ex-
penditure was legal.
It was inevitable that these dis
agreements, sooner or later, would
foment. decidedly hostile sentiment to
McCar1 in administration ranks, mas
much as some admirers, without con-
sulting his wishes. have pressed his
availability as q Republican presiden-
tial nominee In 1885, and the oppo-
sition has no desire to see his record
CONTINUED on Tsnth Pase)