The Waterbury Democrat. [volume] (Waterbury, Conn.) 1917-1946, 1938-07-30

In fact Washington in summer
can be more mysterious and amaz-
ing than in winter.
But the most intriguing develop
ment in many years Is one which
Is taking place in an old walled
in garden draped with Ivy and
magnolias. There, on hot sum-
mer nights you see negro buffers
dressed in the regalia Of the Old
South, serving frosted mint juleps
to a group Of men.
And In this atmosphere one of
the miracles of the present adj
ministration is taking place-a
better understanding between the
New Deal and big business.
The man who is engineering
this miracle is Prentiss L. Coon
ley, New England Republican,
and the gentleman who lives in
the house with the mysterious
garden. His name does not ap-
pear in the headlines. Few
know he lives in Washington.
But he is the unofficial am
bassador of Big Business to the
New Deal.
Prospective Peace
Coonley has been filling this
delicate role only few months
but in that short time he has
already produced more tangible
peace between Business and the
Administration than all the fan
Jared conferences held by the
President.
This does not mean that the
lion and the lamb actually are
lying down together. Far from 1t.
The New Dealers have given up
none of their ideas, nor Is all Of
Business ready to kiss and make
up.
But as a result of Coonley's I'M
publicized goodwilling there now
does exist, for the first time since
the New Deal, basis of cordial,
man-to-man relationship between
Big Business and Administration
leaders. For weeks, groups of
them have dined together in this
Georgetown home and frankly dis
cussed their mutual grievances.
The list of Coonley's guests
reads like a roll call of the Sixty
Families and the inner White
House council.
Tycoons present have been:
Walter Teagle, head of Standard
Oil of New Jersey; w. Averell
Hartman, head Of the Union
Pacific; General Robert Wood,
head Of Sears, Roebuck; Edward
Stettinius of U. S. Steel; CIar-
ence Francis, head Of General
Foods; 8. Clay Williams, head
of Reynolds Tobacco; william
L. Bait, Of s. X. F. Ball Bear
ings; Gano Dunn of the j. G.
White Engineering Corp; Mari
on Folsom of Eastman Kodak;
Arthur Whiteside of Dun and
Bradstreet and Sidney Weinberg
of Goldman Sachs.
The New Deal roll call, on the
other hand, includes: Solicitor
General Bob Jackson, Assistant
Attorney General Thurman Ar
mold, Tom Corcoran, Ben Cohen,
SEC Chairman Bill Douglas, SEC
Commissioner Jerry Frank, WPA
economist Leon Henderson, Her
man Oliphant, author of the I'M
distributed profits tax; and DR..
Isador Lubin, director Of the Bu-
reau of Labor Statistics.
Hartman Plan
The idea of having a Big Bush
ness ambassador in Washington
is Averell Harriman's.
The young railroad mogul has
been on friendly terms with the
New Deal since its start, and
when the President began his
anti-monopoly drive Hartman
conceived the plan Of having a
representative Of Business take up
residence in Washington in order
to establish personal relations
with the inner group, who really
run the New Deal.
Hartman discussed the idea
with Edward r. Stettinius, Jr.,
youthful new head Of u. s. Steel
and other literally inclined indus
trial leaders. They approved and
chose Coonley for the unique job
because he had been an MIRA
Deputy Administrator and Direc-
tor Of the Division Of Business Co.
operation, so knew people In
Washington.
Coonley says quite frankly that
he doesn't know what the out
come Of his ambassadorial efforts
will be.
when I first started several