Evening star., 1937-05-30
Is the New Deal Troubled
By Too Many Bachelors?
BY OVEN L. SCOTT.

by one of the widely read, high priced
and influential services that 20 out Of
Washington to business executives Is:
Too many bachelors.
Bachelors, without family obligations,
without children or grandchildren whose
futures they need to worry about, and
selfish In their modes Of living, are, ac-
cording to this service, having great in
fluence on Government policy as advisers
to President Roosevelt. Without children
OF their own, so the advising service re-
ported. they regard the Nations economy
as their stepchild. The attending results
supposedly are apparent on every hand.
To which the White House can reply:
Important, II true.
How important the answer can be is
influenced right now by the fact that
the Supreme Court, after seeming to
block the Presidents path for two years,
is stepping aside, temporarily at least,
under the guidance Of Chief Justice
Hughes. In turn, Mr.. Roosevelt appar-
emily intends to allow his court change
plan to rest In peace, handy for possible
later use, but valueless at the moment.
At the same time. orders are going out
for full steam ahead on new experiments.
There will be more OF the sort of legis-
lation that came during the early years
Of the Roosevelt administration, with
slight prospect that the judicial arm OF
the Government can be counted upon
to upset that legislation
II self-seeking bachelors are gambling
with billions Of the peoples money, ex-
perimenting with dangerous forms of
government activity that can lead to an
end to democracy. and using their new
found power to get a thrill from daring
adventures OF kind that might leopard
ize the future Of government to be
handed on to other peoples children,
the country has something to think
about.
bachelor hunt, consequently, is In
order.
Starting with the White House, the
President, as every one knows, is head
OF a large family of now grown children
and Is grandfather several times over
as we'll His three secretaries, James
Roosevelt. Marvin Mcintyre and Stephen
Early. all are married and fathers Of
families.
A search through the cabinet fails to
reveal single bachelor. Daniel Roper
leads the list Of fathers with seven chill
dren and Harold Ickes comes next with
four. Several members Of the cabinet are
grandfathers. Frances Perkins, Secretary
Of Labor is mother. So this important
group OF close advisers to Mr.. Roosevelt
is without bachelor influence.
The search then is broadened. Harry
Hopkins, the Nations champion spender,
is the father Of three children. So is
Mariner Eccles, who guides the coun-
trys credit and money policies. James NJ
Lands, the Governments Wall Street po-
liceman. heads family containing two
children. The leading trouble shooter of
the administration and its chief defender
among business men is Joseph P. Ken
nedy, now head Of the Maritime Commits
sion and holder Of the New Deal record
as father of nine. DR.. Rexford Tugwell,
who formerly got so much attention as
White House adviser, is married and
the father of two children. Donald Rich
berg, another unofficial adviser, is mar
ried. Prof. Felix Frankfurter holds the
same classification. And John L. Lewis
has two children in his family.
4
Where, then, are the bachelors?
They are discovered in the persons OF
WV PAOlAtLLCu yOulls llcll. 4UIIl
Corcoran and Ben Cohen-tUo bachelors
in government Of fathers and grand
fathers. And the fact is that there exists
much legitimate doubt about the in
fuence that these two men have on basic
Government policy.
Corcoran is full of vim and vigor and
possesses an Irish wit that delights the
President. He is sort of spark plug,
ea1cinp oyr1ociorc Loo,, ~o~
gressmen and other officials on the Jump
so that they will not lose interest in the
things the President wants. Cohen is a
quiet. studious individual with a bent
for philosophy, who puts the ideas of
other advisers into the form of bills
for introduction into Congress. Both
have the passion for anonymity" SO
much priced by Mr.. Roosevelt, and
neither, so far as can be discovered, has
much influence on farm policy, relief
policy. money policy, labor policy or other
policies Of the Government.
II the bachelor explanation Of the
present administrations fondness for ex-
periments cracks up on inspection, how
about the one that officials who shape
policy are men In a position to try any,
thing once because they have nothing
much to lose if the experiments 60
wrong?
On that score, bit of investigation will
disclose that something more than the
usual quota of wealthy individuals is to
be found among the Presidents advisers.
Mr.. Roosevelt himself Is not far from
the millionaire classification. Among his
close counsellors are at least three multi
millionaires and a number of other
wealthy individuals. Nearly all are men
Of property
What, so far as can be determined, is in
the back OF their minds as they set about
to remake the experiments started in
1888 and somewhat roughly handled
since then?
Principally, the idea is that the ma
chinery Of government should be used
in some way to bring about more even
division Of the income of industry and
Of agriculture so that there will be fewer
very rich and fewer very poor people.
But being practical men with incomes Of
their own, the New Dealers have done
most of their experimenting with bor-
rowed money instead of with money
taxed away from those who have it. The
effect to date has been rather pleasant
for all concerned, just as it is-tempo-
rarily-for any light-hearted individual
who undertakes to run through the fam
uy fortune.
Signs now appear that the spending