Evening star., 1936-09-23
''Finney'' on the Taxpayer.

There is an ancient code among small
boys the country over expressed IN the
declaration "flnny" or "flnnie" or fins"
or "flnnies" on this, that or the other
thing. The words are various cor
ruptions of "fen," which is in turn
q corruption of "fend," and the
meaning is that the claimant to an
article or a privilege-such as occu-
pying the front seat during an auto
mobile ride-may establish his previous
right of possession by saying "flnney" on
whatever the prize may be. Honorable
boys with high standards OF ethics
usually regard the claimants right, so
established, as irrevocable.
The progress of the campaign Bug-
eests the advisability of adopting some
such procedure among the candidates.
1t would avoid certain amount Of con-
fusion among the voters and would pro-
duce and maintain a wide-awake, alert
attitude by all candidates on all public
questions. For instance: When Gov
ernor Landon sent his famous telegram
to the Republican National Convention
on his Interpretation of merit system
plank he might have opened it with the
caviat: Finney on putting the postmas-
ters under civil service! That would
have forestalled the President, about
month later, from covering all postmas-
ters into the civil service-with thought
full reservations-and stealing Gov
ernor Landon's thunder in that respect.
Again, when the President began his
tour of the drought States and made
public the recommendations OF the
Drought Committee, including the con-
struction of small ponds, ETC., for water
conservation, Governor Landon, instead
Of making public his 1884 recommended
tions could, in a perfectly dignified way,
have issued short statement declaring
that he had finney on the same water
conservation plans two years ago.
The crop insurance project now pre-
sents a very serious case in point. Who
had finney on crop insurance? Last
J. Taber, master of the National Grange,
visited the President at Hyde Park and
later said he had discussed the subject
of crop insurance and found the Presi-
dent sympathetic to the plan. He said
the development of the crop insurance
idea was a matter of years, and that 1t
presented some rather knotty constitu-
tional questions, in addition to the
actuarial problems, but it was some
thing that the country would have to
consider. His statement was compli-
Gated by his admission that he had dis
cussed the same thing with Governor
Landon, who was also sympathetic. An
unbiased observer might have concluded
that MIR. Taber had finney on crop
control.
But not 50. Monday morning Gov
ernor Landon made public two para
graphs of his last nights speech, written
several days ago, plainly showing that
he had thought favorably of crop insur-
ance before the President suddenly an
nounced, on Sunday night. the appoint
ment Of a committee. with Secretary
Wallace as chairman, to draft crop in
surance legislation for the next Congress.
The Department of Agriculture has been
studying crop insurance for several
months. But Governor Landon says
Republican farm leaders have been in
terested in it for long time. Who
had finney on crop insurance? Prob
ably the farmer. AS Governor Landon
and President Roosevelt both indicate,
the farmer has finney on about every
thing. He is in the happy position of
the man who cannot lose, no matter
who is elected.
But in this respect he is unlike the
average taxpayer. Listening to the tall
schemes of both parties, the taxpayer
Is beginning to feel that no matter who
wins, he is bound to lose. Modern ideas
of government have finney on the tax
payer. And let there be no mistake, or
future misunderstanding, about that.