Evening star., 1935-03-06
JOHNSON ATTACKS
! ON UNSAFE BASIS.
observer Contends. Fuel
! Added to Flame in Fight
3 on Priest and Long.
RY DAVID LAWRENCE.

A political bombshell, the Ike OF
(which nobody here car recall has been
Exploded by Gen. johnson in behalf OF
the New Deal and against Senator
Auey Long and Father Coughlin.
' While the general disclaims any
arevious consultation with the admin
sstration, mis- speech was plainly in
4he interest of President Roosevelt's
political fortunes and was obviously a
desperate attempt to head of the
formation of new political blocs which
might threaten the Democratic party
In 1886.
To the extent that the general as
sailed the economic fallacies of his
two self-chosen adversaries. he was
on sound ground. and that portion OF
his listening audience which under
stands the complicated nature of our
governmental system and economic
structure will applaud him vigorously.
-. On Shaky Ground.
But Gen. johnson opened up line
of attack that is not so sound when
he questioned the right Of Father
Coughlin to preach his doctrine and
remain priest of the Catholic church.
Ministers of the gospel in America OF
every faith and creed have expressed
themselves again and again from their
pulpits Sunday mornings on political
and economic subjects without divest-
ing themselves of their church con-
nection.
Freedom Of speech and freedom OF
political action is as much the right
of Father Coughlin as it is Gen. john
sorrs. The attack on the radio priest
will hardly succeed on that basis. 1t
has a better chance of success If some
of the ideas which Father Coughlln
champions are defeated In fair and
open debate.
The eminent radio priest tells his
audiences, for instance, that the right
to coin money rests In Congress and
THAT hitherto the bankers have had
that control This type of statement
4just happens to be in conflict with the
.actual experience of the Government,
and what Father Coughlin proposes Is
a control that would put in the hands
of the politicians the right to issue
,money.
Little Comfort.
Unfortunately for those who differ
with Father Coughlin, there is not
very much comfort that they can take
from the views Of Gov. Eccles of the
Federal Reserve Board, who wants to
shave the Federal Reserve Board chief
subject to removal by the President
land its members under the control Of
political government.
AS between Eccles' plan for a small
committee Of five members to con-
,trol the issuance Of money and the
,Coughlin plan for 48 directors of q
lcentral bank elected by each of the 48
Estates, there is much more in the
Halter plan to commend itself than in
the proposal of Mr. Roosevelt's own
appointee.
Both plans are unsound. however,
and would lead to o repetition of the
disaster which attended the political
manipulation of the Bank of the
United States just about a hundred
syears ago, in the administration of
president Andrew Jackson. But so
llong as the Roosevelt administration
encourages such unsound thinking, it
Twill hardly be in a position to ridicule
Father Coughlin or drive Senator Huey
Long of the stage.
Attack Swells Audiences.
Gen. johnson is an aggressive
sspeaker and is a master of invective.
but he has succeeded in providing
Senator Long with big audience for
Thursday night and Father Coughlin
with perhaps bigger one next Sum-
,day afternoon. Until the Roosevelt
administration sets about creating
conditions which will make the pro-
sposals of men like Senator Long and
Father Coughlin unattractive to the
100000 or more unemployed it
icannot hope to remove the seeds of
scounter-attack and detection by mere
sname-calling or bitter denunciation.
+. The two radio speakers may be ap-
tpealing, as Gen. johnson said, to
emotions instead of reason; they may
,be ignoring logic and the experience
,of sound economics, but their doctrine
ifructif1es In periods when there Is
drifting and wavering in the national
administration and when there is no
comprehensive plan developed here
70 bring recovery except to keep on
Borrowing billions of dollars indefi-
pitely.
SIS Right Waits Hopefully.
.ss Neither of the opponents of the
administration from the left wing
.swJ3l have more strength, but really
sless influence, If the Roosevelt regime
atah bring prosperity back. To do so
3 means to allow business a chance to
$recover and to remove the experiments
s,that impede business revival today.
x This may be called turning to the
fright. but it is rapidly growing ap-
s pafent that the left has swung too
stfAt away from Roosevelt policies. to
~help him politically and that the
sYasht is waiting hopefully for the re-
.bHilding OF business and industry
under sound economic leadership.
The johnson speech is an effort to
blast the rebellion on the left, but it
will only serve to intensity it while
consolidating, perhaps, many of the
conservatives behind the President
in the hope that he will see at last
the importance of allying himself
with honest initiative instead of vild