The Washington times., 1938-04-18

pletely the entire social and
cultural life Of the United
States.
This pleasant prospect is
wrapped up in a bill proposed
by Representative Coffee, of the
State of Washington, to be
known as the Federal Arts
Act" At present the measure
rests in the House Committee
on Education.
For Justification of the pro-
posal, the sponsors first start
out by declaring the Nations
culture is in the hands Of Tories
and is "predicated too much
upon the ability of the individ-
ual to pay" Therefore, they
claim with sophistry intended
to disarm the innocent, sit is
the obligation of the Govern
ment to recognize. that culture
is q social necessity con-
Sistent with democracy.
"Tt is therefore the declared
policy of the Government of the
United States that Congress
appropriate funds out of the
United States Treasury for the
establishment of a permanent
Bureau of Fine Arts"
Scope of Plan
Nov, consider the scope Of
~ this proposed Federal Blu
reau: Under Sec. S it shall have
power to control, supervise and
regulate "the creative, interpre-
tative, research and teaching
aspects of (a) the theater and
it's allied arts; Cd the dance
and its allied arts: (c) music
and its allied arts; Id literature
and its allied arts; (e) the
graphic and plastic and their
allied arts; 81 architecture and
decoration and their allied
arts"
Thus, if such an act were to
be passed into law, the Govern
ment would dictate the type of
plays the public could see; could
enforce upon young citizens the
same kind of inspired propa-
ganda dancing that is forced
upon German youths by Goeb-
bells propaganda bureau, which
controls the arts of Germany;
could dictate the kind of music
to be played-music that might
be best calculated in the minds
of the culture dictators to emo
tionalize the masses into a faster
drift toward a Socialistic state.
Under the subdivision of liter
AZURE, the Government would be
enabled to control all magazines,
book publishing, newspapers,
text books for Schoolchildren
and every form of literature.
Likewise, the movies could be
covered and brought to heel to
serve the Government propa-
gandistS.
Plan Explained
NOV WHO would operate this
~ socalled Federal Bureau Of
Fine Arts? The planners care
fully explain the reason for
their bill is because they believe
the cultural life of America is
in the hands Of private control.
They are most careful, however,
to lay the foundation for a mag
nificent pork barrel" for more
jobholders to be saddled on the
taxpayers backs.
The bureau would be domi-
mated by a commissioner (dicta-
tor-in-chief) and six fellow COM
missioners. The President is to
appoint the commissioners from
a panel of names submitted by
Organizations representing the
greatest number of artists EN-.
ployed in each of the arts under
the bureau" In other words,
the President could set UP his
own straw men, hand-picked, to
dictate the social and cultural
life of America.
The chief commissioner is to
draw a salary Of $12,50O a year
and his pals in the bureaus
board, $4,000 each; their terms
Of office to be two years dura-
tion and they may be reap
pointed" Under q centralized,
omnipotent government, these
minor dictators could be per-
petuated in office.
To enable the Bureau of Fine
Arts to get away to a running
start, it is ordered that all the
functions, powers, duties land
appropriations now under the
WPA, governing existing Fed.
eral art, theatrical, music and
literature projects, be, trans
ferred forthwith to the Pine
Arts Bureau"
Copyright. Ledger syndicate.).
(BoGke Carriers opinions are
his DUN and are not necessarily
those of the Washington TinGeSJ