Evening star., 1935-06-26
PUBLISHERS SCORES
AAA.LEG|SLATION
interference" OF Wallace
in Advertising, "Vast
Power" Hit.
BY the Associated Press.

BY the ASSOCldIeQ FIeSS.
NEW YORK, June 26.-J D. Bar
mum, president of the American
Newspaper Publishers Association, TO-
day attacked an attempted defense
by Henry A. Wallace, Secretary Of
Agriculture, Of "the vast powers
sought in the pending legislation for
the amendment of the agricultural
adjustment act"
Barnum stated his criticism in a
letter to the Secretary. 1t was a
reply to Wallace's communication,
wherein the Secretary rejected an
amendment proposed by the publish
ers' association, at his own request.
preventing governmental regulation
Of advertising.
Referring to earlier correspondence,
Barnum reminded Wallace that the
Secretary had recorded himself as
having no objection to an amend
ment specifically providing that moth
ing in the act shall be construed as
giving any authority to regulate ad-
vertising."
Interference" Pointed Out.
I'm my reply" Barnum's letter
said. Il pointed out to you that your
department has interfered with ad-
vertising. Not only have you and
your associates on various occasions
referred to advertising as economic
waste, but, as I stated, you have
interfered with it. I cited specific
examples Of such interference - ."
Barnum mentioned the depart
ments restrictions, "one of which, as
approved by you, was declared uncon-
stitutional by the Supreme Court in
the Schechter case"
Now" the letter continued, "you
state that, while you agree with the
position taken in the (PublishersJ
Bulletin that this legislation should
not give ethe Government authority
to regulate advertising, you object to
the proffered amendment on the the
ory that it will compel governmental
regulation of advertising. If thought
it would give such power I should
have been the last to suggest 1t.
Asks Amendment Submittal.
But since you say 1t does, I now
ask you to submit for consideration
of the Congress an amendment which
will make it clear beyond all perad-
venture of doubt that those admins
tering the act are without the power,
directly or indirectly, to prohibit, reg
ulate, restrict or interfere with adver-
tising, whether contemplated by con-
Germs upon their own initiative or by
number Of concerns comparatively.
Only by such an amendment may the
situation be adequately met -" ..
note your expression of the
opinion that reither the present law
nor the proposed amendments can be SO
contrued as to make possible the levy
ing OF processing tax on newsprint
paper, and that you have no objection
to the approval by Congress of the
amendment which proposed, for the
purpose of making certain that no
future order can classify newsprint
paper as subject to the processing tax.
I trust that in the light of your
statement you will notify the Senate
Committee on Agriculture and For
estry of your position.
Tax Refund Opposition Hit.
In my letter TO you I set forth
other objections to this measure of
fundamental importance. expressed
my personal opinion. to which ! ad-
here, that the provisions of the bill
| seeking to prevent the restitution of
taxes illegally assessed and collected
are offensive, unjust and unfair. You
attempt to defend these provisions on
the theory that the refund of illegally
| collected taxes would constituted one
OF the greatest raids ever perpeuated
upon the Treasury and upon the tax
payers
:" Carried to its logical con-
clusion, this method of taxation simply
means that the Government at any
time could knowingly and Illegally
assess taxes Of any kind or descrip-
ton, collect them and then retain
them after its acts have been held to
be unconstitutional by the courts, and
as fast as one set of such taxes is
held invalid impose another set, know
ing it to be invalid as a substitute for
he fret