Evening star., 1937-03-31
S|BLEY ADVOCATES
BALLOTS ON COURT
Tells Diplomats That People
Should Determine Shift
in Rights.

Emphasizing the right Of the
American people in . democracy to
fix their own destiny, instead Of being
dictated to by . dictator" Harrer
sibley, president Of the Chamber Of
Commerce of the United States, last
night predicted that II the proposal
to retire Supreme Court judges at the
age Of ITO or IS" were put to = vote
of the people 1t would be approved.
sibley spoke to diplomats and men,
bers of the foreign colony ut American
University. He said he had come to
the conclusion on the Supreme Court
issue after extensive travelling through
out the country and sounding out
public opinion. He did not mention
President Roosevelt, nor touch on the
rest of the Roosevelt court reform
program.
If we are to give more power to
the Federal Government and take
more away from the States" he said,
such proposals should be put to a
vote of the people"
Would Preserve Initiative.
Discussing the subject of Govern
ment and Business" the speaker in
sisted that American initiative and
enterprise must be preserved, an
American must be free to enter any
forward in its development" But, he
indicated, the complexity of modern
life was leading to necessity for more
regulation. Business, he thought.
should have a hand In writing such
regulations. The Government should
be kind of umpire he thought, in
business and labor controversies of all
kinds, but we want to make sure that
the umpire doesn't grab the ball and
play on one side or the other"
Referring to the spread Of the
labor movement throughout the
county, Sibley said that heretofore
the great mass Of the workers were
not organized, did not belong to
any kind of labor union. His own
city of Rochester, N. Y, he said, was
not widely organized, the bulk Of
labor working for high wages, and
with satisfaction. But he predicted
the labor movement would grow, that
management should recognize the
right Of labor to organize. Business
however, he thinks, will insist on more
responsibility" on the part of labor.
Business management now, he said, Is
subject to suit for breach of contract,
but organized labor, so far he charged
hoH MT hooV eo srocyNorcih1a ohor
leaders too often, he said, live in
some other State from the place where
labor trouble happens.
Backs Unionization Right.
Workers should be given the right
to join local unions, he said, and if
they want to ito join national union
like John L. Lewis"
Government should keep out of
business. the president of the National
Chamber insisted. Recognizing that
in some countries represented by diplo-
mats in his audience, certain public
utilities were government-owned and
operated, Sibley said the American
Government should not try to own
and operate the railroads. telephone,
telegraph, electric light and power or
any other business. Some regulation
Of public utilities was needed, OF
course, to guarantee a fair rate to the
public.
Questioned about Government hous-
ing such as that at Greenbelt, Md,
Sibley said that the trouble with most
Government construction was that
taxpayers money was wasted. When
told that the Greenbelt project was
supposed to return sufficient in rents
to pay for itself, he admitted that
If this were true, business could not
logically object. But he had discov-
cred, he said, that in personal in
vestigation of 10 or IL such projects
that "they are wiping OF IS per cent
Of the cost before they begin to figure
on the rent giving fair return. This
is not fair competition with private
contractors who have to furnish all
the costs"