The Waterbury Democrat., 1938-07-13


 son turn over in his grave.
 For in the closing days of Con- gress, unobserved by the general public, Roosevelt sent to the Sen- ate the name of Edgar Brossard for reappointment as a member of the Tariff Commission.
 This appointment may be con- trasted with the fact that Demo- cratic attacks on Brossard once were just as bitter as the Repub- licans are in castigating Harry Hopkins for engaging in politics.
 Brossard was a Utah lobbyist for the Mormon beet sugar in- terests, whom Senator Reed Shoot, a high official in the church, got appointed to the tariff Commission at a time when the tariff fixed on sugar was under consideration.
 Later, when the Democrats forced an investigation of sugar, the late Senator Joe Robinson se- cured testimony from Brossard that he had had nothing to do with consideration of the tariff on sugar. But after this the books of the night watchman were pro- duced showing that Brossard had come to the Tariff Commission every night that the sugar re- port was being written, sometimes remaining there until 2:3O a. m.
 Criticism of Br0ssard was so intense that 1t was only the powerful influence of Senator Reed Smoot which secured his reappoiptment by Hoover in 1881. No Democrat dreamed, at that time, that Democratic President would ever reappoint him for another seven years.
 Nevertheless, Roosevelt did.
 REASON: Sen. Ebert Thomas is under fire from the Mormon church (one of the biggest sugar growers in the World), and it wanted Brossard re-appointed. So with Thomas facing hard pri- mary fight, the President obliged. Bumpers
 They have very neat system on this train for getting rid of wis iting firemcn" who persist in talk ing Up the Presidents time. They use what the newsmen call bumpers.
 When a local politico has had the Presidents ear too long, one of his secretaries quietly signals member of the White House party. The latter approaches and with a regretful smile to the visi- tor says, Pardon me, MT. Presi- dent, but that matter you asked me to prepare for you is in your room"
 Thank you, thank you," the President replies and then to his caller, "You pardon me won't you? Some papers that have to get off at once."
 Sauvest bumper" on the train is Lawrence (Chip) Robert, sec- retary of the Democratic Ma tional Committee, whose Georgia charm and wit have few equals in the political arena.
 MOrmOns on WPA
 Utah continues to be a New Deal state, but the leaders of the Mormon church certainly have no great love for Roosevelt. One of their clashes has been over the handling of relief money which for a long time was administered by the Mormon church itself.
 The Mormons finally abandoned their plan of providing relief for their own poor, even though they boasted it to be the finest sys- tenn in the country, and succumbed to the acceptance of federal funds.
 But in doing so, WPA officials discovered that Mormon relief CTS were paying their tithes to the church out of WPA funds. This amounts to One-tenth of all each member gets from the government.
 Harry Hopkins office argued emphatically against this-with, no luck. Finally, two members of the Utah state relief board re- quested Sylvester 0. Cannon, pre- siding bishop of the church, to issue a statement htat Mormons seeking public aid did not have to make tithe payments.
 To this Bishop Cannon re- piled: 'T most certainly will not do that. I wouldn't be a party to rObbing a bank, or these poor people of their churchly bless ings."
 Ohio Aftermath
 An aftermath of the Presidents hit-and-run endorsement of Sen- ator Robert Bulkley in the Mari etta, Ohio, speech is the story told