Coulee City dispatch. [volume] (Coulee City, Wash.) 19??-19??, 1937-04-01

The highly interested politicians
read into the Presidents words
much more of a threat than a
promise. They regard it as almost
an ultimatum-the President gets
what he wants in the way of SUI
preme court enlargement, regula-
ton of wages and hours in industry,
salvation for the farmers, etc., or
else!
The ''else," of course, means to
their minds that he will go to the
country again in 1910, demanding
an endorsement of his policies and
a mandate to carry on-not because
he wants to do that, but because
that may be the only way in which
he can be sure that his ideals for
this country are made to come true.
Many are pointing out that the
public reception of Calvin Coolidge's
intimation that he would not run
again was far different. Perhaps be-
cause of the peculiar New England
phraseology-the words 81 do not
choose" 1t is astonishing to look
with hindsight on the reactions to
that statement, made in the early
summer of 1927-practically year
before the convention would meet
which would nominate his successor.
Yet He Might Run
Politicians and editors alike con-
strued that phrase to mean that Mr..
Coolidge did not want to run, but
that if there were enough clamor
for it, or enough demonstrated need
for it, or something else which might
appeal to his mind, he would make
the sacrifice.
The truth is that a great many
people believe to this day that pre-
cisely that construction was in Mr..
Coolidge's mind. Lots of leaders tell
strange stories, and some Of them
have told them publicly, of Mr.. Cool
idge's irritation at he 'Boy Won
DER after Herbert Hoover was
nominated. The then head usher of
the White House, Ike Hoover, told
in his memoirs of the bad hunor
Coolidge was in up in Wisconsin,
right after the move to stampede
the Kansas city convention for draft
ing him failed to materialize.
But be that as it may, very few
politically astute persons in Wash
ington attach much Importance to
what Mr.. Roosevelt has said about
January, l941.
Battling Question
San Francisco's congressman, and
the Roosevelt administration as well
are baff1ed as to what is to be done
about the electric power situation ir
the Golden Gate city. In the recent
municipal election, despite every
possible effort by the national adj
ministration, and despite the re
quirements of law and various com
| plications, the voters again refused
to approve bond issue for the pur
pose of the city taking over the loca
electric system.
The trouble is that the law under
which San Francisco obtains the
power from the Hetch Hetchy prof.
ect requires that the power must
never be sold to any private utility
but must be distributed solely by
governmentally owned agencies. Sal
Francisco has ignored this law
passed back in the early days o
the Wilson administration. It ha.
never provided it's own distribution
system, and has repeatedly votet
down every proposal made with ;
view to complying with the law.
Just before the election on Marcl
9 the Pacific Gas and Electric com
pany, which now buys the Hetc]
Hetchy power and sells it to Sal
Franciscans, reduced it's rates t.
customers ten per cent.
One apparently simple answer t.
the dilemma would be for congress
to pass bill repeating the restric
ton in the original Hetch Hetch
bill. The San Francisco members @
the house, however, feel that this
impossible.
Comes an Impasse
So the situation becomes some
thing of an irresistible force and a
immovable body. The San Francisc
voters simply will not agree to spen
their money-or approve bond
which will saddle the cost on ther
for the future-and the governmer
will not agree to remove now
prohibition which San Francisco i
self asked for nearly a quarter {
a century ago.
It is expected that Secretary of tn
Interior Harold L. Ickes, unde
whose jurisdiction the situation il
and who is himself a strongly pr,
government ownership man as fs
as the electric field is concernet
will consult Attorney General Home
S. Cummings about the next ste
) with the possibility that the govern
: ment will bring suit to compel So
Francisco to comply with the Law
and stop selling Hetch Hetchy pr
duced power to a privately owne
: utility.
} Which may mean, of course, TIL
the electric company in San Franci
CO would merely install a stea