Evening star., 1936-05-03
Hopkins or Ickes.

1lobhuuS O1 1ShSOs
Congress within a short time will be
called upon to determine whether all
the public works money for the fiscal
year 1896 shall go to the w. P. A., gov
erned by Harry L. Hopkins or shall be
divided between that agency and the
P. w. A.. which comes under Harold L.
Ickes, Secretary of the Interior. AS
matters stand today, the President has
sent estimates to Congress for $l,500-
OOO0O0 for Mr.. Hopkins. And in that
way the appropriation for public works
will be written into the deficiency bill
unless the President or the Congress de-
termines otherwise.
Mr. Hopkins has been the relief ad-
ministrator the speedy spender, He was
early given the task of handling the c.
w. A.. which was set up to put money
into the hands of the unemployed for
doing odd Jobs. When the Works Prog
ress Administration was evolved for
the purpose of taking all workers from
relief rolls and giving them jobs-to the
extent of at least $500 000-that, too
was handed over to Mr. Hopkins. AS
q spreader of Government money Hop
kins has it over the rest of the New Deal
And now apparently. he desires not
only to handle relief works, but the
public works programs of the Govern
ment as well.
When Congress scratches it's head and
goes to work on the works appropria-
tions for the next year it may well
hesitate before in a burst of generosity
to Mr.. Hopkins it places all of its eggs
in one basket The Public Works Ad-
miniStration under Mr.. Ickes has certain
fundamental advantages which the boom
doggling W. P A. has not. The P. w.
A tackles works projects of real and
permanent value. Furthermore, it has
been the rule of the P. w. A. and Mr..
Ickes to see that the Government re-
ceived full value for the money it ex-
pends. Under the system of the c. w. A.
and the W. P. A. no such principles
have applied. The object in those Or
ganizations has been to distribute money
That was the first essential.
The Public Works Administration,
through the money it has put up in
Federal and non-Federal projects-by
far the larger number of the projects
are on-Federal-has brought into the
field more money from the States and
municipalities for the work undertaken.
This money, expended in part for ma
terialS, has given employment to many
workers outside those directly engaged
on the projects. 1t has helped to bring
back the so-called heavy" industries,
which produce the needed materials.
machinery, etc Indeed, when it comes
to aiding real recovery with a chance
of permanence, the P. w. A. has been
the agency of the Government which
has stood foremost.
The w. P. A. has been run on the
Idea that the Federal Government is TO
make all the contributions for the work
in municipalities and States-except for
n p4OpOl GlOil Oll SUluc pIUJGClS.
What could be better if the Federal Gov
ernment wishes to encourage the munich
palities in the future to look to the
Federal Treasury whenever they have
improvements to make? Improvements
which, under all rules and all precedents,
should be cared for by the municipall-
ties themselves,
In the Public Works Administration
an efficient organization has been
erected, capable of handling the huge
public works programs, involving large
projects. To scrap it now in favor of
the w. P. A. would not be good business.
1t would be bad business To turn from
the administration of Mr. Ickes, which
has leaned over backward to keep Gov
eminent works out of the hands of poll
ticians, to the administration of Mr..
Hopkins, which has been charged with
playing into the hands of the politicians
on countless occasions, is not good iudg-
ment, even if it should be good campaign
politics, which it is not in the long run.