Evening star., 1937-10-16
Educator Says Hope Lies in
More Goods at Lower
T. p,;oo.
: tt'1CS'
ASSAILS SCARCITY AS
"ECONOMIC INSANITY"
Business Group, at First General
Meeting of Falls, Hears Call
for Receipts Tax Repeal.

president Of the University of Wis.,
consin, last night called on industry
and agriculture to renounce price re-
striction and price raising as "eco-
nomic insanity" and organize for the
production of more goods at lower
prices.
Addressing all overflow audience at
the Board of Trades first general
meeting of the Fall at the Willard
Hotel, DR.. Frank criticized policies of
drastic crop reduction, declaring I'VE
must provide, instead OF prevent,
abundance if We are to realize the
abundant life for this whole people"
DR.. Franks address followed a re-
port by Edgar Morris, chairman of
the boards Municipal Finance Com
mittee, calling for modification or re-
peal of the business privilege tax at
the next session Of Congress. The
tax was described as inequitable and
an undue hardship on the business
man and consumer.
DR.. Frank, now editor Of the mag
azine Rural Progress, said that by
legislating crop scarcity you can
forcibly correct an abnormal lack OF
balance between industry and agri-
culture, but by no stretch of the
Imagination can scarcity as a perma-
nent policy be made socially helpful
to the people as whole"
Charges Policy Is Anti-Social.
"You can call 1t social minded,
progressive, liberal, what you will"
he said, but it remains, when seri-
ously considered as a permanent pro-
cedure, anti-social, illiberal, unpro-
gressive and reactionary."
He charged that some short-sight-
ed leaders Of American capitalism"
crippled the system of free enter
prise by: l. Fostering measures that
seek to guarantee profit to capital at
times. 2. Fostering measures that
have tended to fix prices at artificially
high levels. 3. Fostering measures
that have tended to keep alive special
compensation to the weak and in
efficient units of our economic life.
And 4. Fostering measures which, in
tended to stop the unfair competition
Of privilege, have tended to strangle
the fair competition of excellence.
mo system of national enterprise
can function effectively unless it is
truly believed in by the people," he
declared. II believe that if the deeper
will Of the American people is fol-
lowed We shall proceed on the basis
Of an intelligently modernized system
Of free enterprise.
Would Free Producers.
"The blunt, ungloved. brutal truth
Is that, except as justified means of
meeting an emergency, there is neither
- rhyme nor reason in the fantastic
notion that We can bring the abundant
life to the American millions by put
ting our productive genius in chains.
by producing less and charging more"
Frank Urges Policy Outline.
In an interview with reporters later,
Dr. Frank urged that the Republican
party offer the Nation restatement
of principles based on traditional
liberalism"
A Republican who was hired as
liberal to run Wisconsin University
and released after break with the La
Toilette Progressives. DR.. Frank said
that "the so-called Republican forces
are the only forces left to champion"
what he regards as real liberalism"
professional liberalism at the mo-
ment is moving toward the totalitarian
state idea" he said.
Referring to proposals by COL Frank
Knox and other Republicans for estab-
lished party leaders to try to frame a
statement of fundamental principles"
he added:
If this group can do it, I'd be all
for it.
1T would be tragedy if the two
political parties drift along until few
months before the next election and
then meet in smoke-filled rooms to fill
out crazy-quilt platform designed to
ALLEVIATE the fewest possible votes and
capture the most possible"
DR.. Frank, who sometimes has been
mentained as a Republican presi-
Dental possibility, discounted the pos
sibility Of mechanically arranged
coalition" against the Roosevelt ad-
ministration.
In his report on District tax legis-
lation, Morris. president of the board
last year, said he understood the
present tax program was an emer-
gency, and added: I'VE cannot agree
to allow this emergency to continue
indefinitely by sanctioning the spend
ing Of all receipts when, out of JUS
tice to the now overburdened tax
payers, all money collected over and
above budget requirements should be
rebated in the form Of reduced taxa
ton next year."
Pointing out the committee always
has endeavored to secure needed i'm
provements, Morris said, however,
that he believes the time has come
to apply the brakes until we know
exactly how these taxes are going
to affect the taxpayers and what
the yield Of new taxes will be-"
Col. Lawrence G. Crawford, chair
man of the Traffic Committee, out
lined the improvements which the
committee Is seeking to combat WASH
ington's high trafic toll. A film de-
picting causes Of accidents also was
shown.
SuEgests Program.
Col. Crawford urged an increase OF
i30 in the District police force, more
rigid enforcement Of the regulation
prohibiting parking within IS feet of
intersections, use Of District property
as parking lots, electric or rejecting
traf1ic signs, uniform system Of
lighted safety zones. changes in bus
stops and additional one-way streets
for the morning and evening rush.
hour trafic.
The board also heard an appeal
for membership in the American Red
Cross In an address by Col. Louis
johnson. Assistant Secretary of War,
and talks by Earl A. Nash, who
discussed the Young Mems Christian