The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1939-06-01
LOOKING FORWARD
Bv FRANKLIN MAILMAN
Publicity Director, Republican National Committee

In his message to Congress asking
relief for the fiscal year starting July
l, President Roosevelt gave his un-
qualified blessings to the Works Prog
ress Administration. He said that
WPA in the next fiscal year "should be
carried on much as at present.
May Heaven forbid!
Mr.. Roosevelt either does not know
what mess the WPA has become
due in large part to the lax admins
tration of the fair-haired Harry l..
Hopkins-or he has become insensible
to decency in government. OF course,
the Federal Government should and
must appropriate funds to take care
of those in distress, but the WPA
should not be permitted to "carry on
much as at present" Indeed, the time
has come for creation of an entirely
new system and agency for Federal
relief.
Were the Presidential olfactory or
gans functioning, Mr.. Roosevelt would
have taken warning last summer when
Thomas L. Stokes, writer for the New
Dealish Scripps-Howard Newspapers,
revealed disgraceful playing of poll
ties with WPA in the Kentucy Demo-
cratic primary. Instead Mr.. Hopkins
undertook to laugh it off and deny the
Stokes articles, but the Scripps-HoW-
ard reporter was fully vindicated by
the Sheppard Committee Investigat-
ing Campaign Expenditures.
Awarded Pulitzer Prize.
Now, as is justified, Mr.. Stokes has
been awarded the coveted Pulitzer
Prize of $1,000 for excellence in re-
porting for his series of stories. This
award to Mr. Stokes at least indicates
that the newspapermen of the country,
irrespective of their attitude toward
Mr.. Roosevelt and the New Deal, have
lost faith in WPA as it has been adj
ministered.
The House Committee investigating
the WPA likewise has been turning up
some smelly business. This committee,
as reported here several weeks ago, re-
vealed that the Workers Alliance
the so-called union of WPA workers
was under the control of Communists
and that its loquacious president, Dav-
id LASER, had used dues wrung by the
organization from the hard-earned
pay of WPA workers to take trip tc
Moscow as an official delegate to cele-
| brate the twentieth anniversary of thu
Bolshevist Revolution.
The Committee brings to light more
shocking revelations. Lest anyone think
we are guilty of eXaggerating or over.
drawing the picture presented to the
committee, let's turn to the Demo
cratic Baltimore Sun and there reac
the account of one days session of the
committee, as written by Charles P
Trussell, one of its staff Washington
correspondents, chairman of the
Standing Committee of Correspond
ents and an exceptionally able news
paperman.
Startling Story Told
Excerpts from Mr.. TrusselPs stor!
follows:
Henry G. Alsbery, national direc
tor of the WPA's Federal writer's pro
iect, today was accused from Capito
witness stand of instigating a sit
down strike against his own organiza
ton to impress Washington agains
cuts in fund allotments and personnel
"He was charged, further, with re
fusing to take steps to rid the projec
in New York of Communications
teenteen of twenty-three of his super
visors named in the course of a day o,
startling testimony were identified a
members of the Communist Party
and with resorting to personal reprl
mand and denying of promised promo
ton to a supervisor who had testified
in response to Congressional sub
poena, regarding conditions in tina
governmental agency
"From New York came a battery o
project supervisors, some in goo
standing and others who swore the,
were under punishment for havin
given voice to complaints and charges
wider than ever Mr.. Bryan did.