Coulee City dispatch. [volume] (Coulee City, Wash.) 19??-19??, 1937-05-20
SEEN
HEARD
around the
CAPITAL
Carter Field =.
HC Carter Field .

Observation-Disclosures business men
are gathered together, whether
there be only a few at a bridge
party or an annual meeting of the
Chamber of Commerce of the Unit
ed States, there will be few kind
words, privately, for congress. One
would think to hear them that sena-
tors and representatives are moth
ing but a lot of cheap quacks or
demagogues, dealing in platitudes
and contradictions.
One might also suspect, if he did
not look too closely, that if this
country could only be run by a
congress of business men-particu-
larly successful, shrewd business
men of the character who would be
sent to an annual meeting Of the
Chamber of Commerce-it would be
a far better run country. Economy
would be the watchword. Expendi-
lures would be cut to the bone.
Taxes could be reduced, individual
initiative encouraged, etc.
But if the same gullible Pollyanna
would just examine all the resolu-
tions adopted at the recent meeting
of the United States chamber, he
would be sadly disillusioned. For
the same brand of contradictions
that makes congress what it IS
that brings down criticism on the
head of congress from these sue
cessful business men-runs through
the chamber resolutions in about
the same proportion that it runs
through the acts of congress.
And runs through-strange to say
without the excuse that senators
and representatives have for doing
the things they are criticized for
doing. For presumably the men
who are sent to chamber meetings
do not have to worry about politics.
They do not have to stop to think
what the electorate back in their
home towns might think of this or
that action. They do not have to
worry about what the Roosevelt
Farley political machine might do
to them in the next primary if they
do not vote regular" No-pre-
sumably they can vote for just what
they think is right, with nothing in
mind but the best interests of the
country, understanding, of course,
that what is good for business men
is good for the country.
So what did they do, at this re-
cent, meeting?
What They Did
First of all they were for rock
ribbed, Coolidge type economy.
Business men and organizations
were urged to throw their influence
to obtain reductions in expenditures
and to refrain from requesting new
government expenditures for any
purpose in the interest of budget
balancing.
Just what one would expect!
But-the chamber in subsequent
resolutions requested congress to
appropriate funds authorized by the
flood control act of 1886 to expedite
work. This might be understood,
but the chamber also urged aid by
the federal government to enable
farm tenants to become owners of
farms.
This is the little project which
Senator John H. Bankhead of Ala
bama has been fighting for, and
which he estimates would cost the
federal treasury one billion dollars,
but which others estimate would
cost much more.
Then the chamber, as though this
were not a pretty fair assault on
budget balancing and federal econ
omy, actually voted to approve a
system whereby a liberal percent
age of loans made by local private
institutions should be guaranteed by
the federal government!
Congressman were not voting for
this. There was no politics in it.
They were just hard-headed bust
ness men trying to show the govern
ment how to balance the budget.
Sensitive About Gold
After the disastrous experience in
being the sucker for the worlds
silver producers for a couple of
years, the Treasury is rather sem
sitive right now about gold, with a
fair possibility that the rest of the
world is selling us something at a
price which is going to be reduced,
sooner or later.
1t is an obvious fact, Lionel D.
Edie, well-known New York econ
omist, told a group at the Cham
Der of Commerce meeting, that the
rest Of the world has already dis
counted a reduction in the price of
gold from $35. His point was that
such a reduction would make no
particular difference so far as
shocking the financial capitals of
the world is concerned.
1t vas pointed out to Mr.. Edie
that to mark the price of gold down
would play hob with the financial
statements of the Treasury. Re-
duction to a price of $50, for ex-
ample, would cost the Treasury,
as far as it's paper balance is con-
cerned, $1,650, 900 900 - something
like $13 for every man, oma and
child in the United States.
Mr.. Edie could not agree with
fhic Hic mint was that tho Trooc