Evening star., 1935-04-01
Mill
BY g. Could Lincoln.

When the administration tucked its
tail between its legs and ran out on
o test OF the constitutionalfty Of the
N. Il. A. IN the Belcher case, II
started something. In the first place
It put itself in q ridiculous position
In the second place it stirred the
whole lumber industry, whose code Is
involved In the case brought against
William e. Belcher, Alabama lumber
manufacturer, as q violat0r Of the
| code, particularly with relation to
wages and hours Of labor. Indeed, 90
mcenSed became the lumber people
that the Code Authority has announc-
ed through its officials that it Is going
to quit. As the lumber code covers
one of the biggest industries and q
huge number of operators and workers
the situation has become quite serious
Furthermore, this hide and 60 seek
game which the Government has been
playing with the Supreme Court and
the constitutionality of the N. r. A
Is not helping the administration any
with the people generally. It has be-
come increasingly evident that the
Government has sought to avoid q
final test on the law.
X \ II +
The Supreme Court can aid and
abet the administration in its effort
to shove aside test Of the N. r. A.
law by agreeing to the request Of the
Department of Justice to dismiss the
appeal brought by the Government in
the Belcher case. The Government lost
the case in the lower courts and took
an appeal to the Supreme Court. 1t
mad to go that far or admit that the
lumber code was unconstitutional last
October when Federal Judge Grubh
decided against the Government in the
Belcher case. The disruption of the
Lumber Code Authority would have
happened then, instead of now.
But the Supreme Court does not
have to dismiss the appeal In the
Belcher case, unless it wishes to agree
to do what the administration wants
it to do. The court has full discre-
ton to grant or to deny the request
OF the Government in this matter
The matter may be settled today
The court comes back into session
after recess. and the Government
II 1t is going to ask dismissal, as the
department has announced will not
wait, it is believed, until the last
minute. The case has been set for
hearing April 8.
An assault on the administration
attitude in the Belcher case is being
made today by two members of the
Senate Finance Committee, now con-
sidering the extension of the N. r. A.
for another two years. Senators Clark
OF Missouri and Hastings of Delaware
a Democrat and a Republican, are
asking the Senate to raise its voice in
protest against the administration
unwillingneSs to have the constitu-
tionality Of the N. r. A. settled by a
decision of the highest tribunal in
the land. A resolution requesting the
Attorney General to stick to his guns
and go through with the Belcher case
before the Supreme Court was today
offered in the Senate by the two Sen
ators.
There seems very sound reason,
| from the point of view of Congress
| for a test before the Supreme Court
OF the conStitutionality of the NJ R. A.
II has been called upon by the Presi-
dent to pass another N. R. A. law, ex-
tending the life of that agency and
the code system for another two years.
In the light Of the bill which has been
sent to the Senate Finance Commit
tee by Donald r. Richberg, chair
man Of the N. r. A., and which has
just been introduced In the Senate by
Chairman Harrison Of the committee
the constitutional questions should be
settled. II Senator Borah and other
members Of the Senate are right, the
| new bill is more full of holes, con-
stitutionally. than the present law.
v y X
The administration, through Mr..
Richberg, has sought to speed up the
passage of a bill to extend the
N. r. A. after June Is, when the
present law expires. by warning the
members of Congress that strikes in
many industries will be sure to ma
terialize unless something is done
The N. R. A., however, has not
proved wholly successful as an
averter of strikes in the past There
was. for example, the textile strike
last year, which operated on a big
scale in . big industry. The truce
reached in the coal industry by the
workers and the operators has tended
to reduce some of the alarm on Cap
itol Hill, however. Senators are not
1 fn hn 81, .~,&-
passing an N. r. A. law until they
have had time to find out what II Is
all about. The testimony before the
Senate committee reveals many con-
tradictions on the part of persons ir
industry from the statements made
by Mr.. Richberg regarding the opera.
ton Of the N. r. A. and its alleged
success.
It looks as though another show.
down might be coming very soon ir
the administration over the matte,
Of spending money. The spenders-
those who wish to shovel the money
out as fast as poSsible-are ap.
parently in the saddle. Those whc
are at least conservative enough tt
wish to see that the Government get,
value received, to be sure that thu
money designed for relief goes TO,
relief and to see that politics is kept
rs far away as possible from the dis.
bursement of the money, are perhap.
in eclipse. The question of speed ir
spending is made paramount. Gel
the money out. is the shout. If thai
is to be the policy, the administra.
ton had better watch its step. I,
may put money in circulation, but
that money may find its way into
pockets that have nothing to do with
relief rolls.
| 4 4
Senator Long of Louisiana is all
thority for the statement that Presi
dent Roosevelt would have headed
Q third party ticket in 1882 if he hac
failed to win Nomination at the Demo
cratic National Convention in Chi
cago. If the President had done So
for example, after the nomination O.
Al Smith by the Democratic conyen.
tion-he would scarcely have gotter