The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1939-03-02


business on occasions that many per-
sons sincerely have wondered whether
he really wants to encourage tn
forces of economic recovery and thus
return the country to a condition of
prosperity.
Of course it is inconceivable that
anyone in position of official respon-
sibility should wish to retard recov-
cry. Yet, despite his frequent protes-
tations, Mr.. Roosevelt has done mex
plicable things which have the effect
of discouraging business through the
creations of uncertainties and fears
of what the future may bring forth.
Investors Hesitate
Such improvements and expansion,
however, call for millions of dollars
of new capital. The huge volume of
idle money in our banks evidences the
abundance of funds in this country
waiting for profitable investment. Yet
the owners of that money-and they
include people with savings deposits
and life insurance policies as well as
rich men-hesitate. They hesitate be-
cause they cannot be sure that their
money will be paid back to them due
to the critical condition of the rail-
roads.
This lack of confidence on the part
of investors, however, has been dou-
bly, intensified by naming to the Inter-
state Commerce Commission a man
who avowedly is an advocate of gov
eminent ownership Of railroads, as
Mr.. Amlie is, and who has little else
to recommend him as a supervisor of
the nations transportation system.
Morevor, not even in the realm of po-
litical maneuvering can any plausible
reason be found for the Amlie ap-
pointment.
People in their right minds do not
throw money out of windows and they
do not invest money in enterprises in
jeopardy of being taken over by the
Government. So, no matter what Mr..
Roosevelt says, his action in naming
Mr.. Amlie discourages progress in re-
facilitating the railroads and retards
recovery. Thus this action Injuries the
railroad worker, the steel mill me-
chanic and the farmer.
Presidents Attitude ParadOxical
The Presidents paradoxical atti-
tude toward business is aptly illus
trated by the sequence of events fol-
lowing his statement that business
had no further reason for worry, made
while enroute to the war games in the
Caribbean. Insisting there was no rea-
son for lack of confidence on the part
of business, the President said no new
taxes were planned; that the Federal
Government had no plans of expand
ing it's competition with the private
utilities, and that, in brief, business
could look ahead without misgivings
as to the Administrations future
plans.
AS a move toward reassuring the
business community, the President s
remarks constituted a good start
though divergence between his
promises and performances make it
necessary that such words be backed
up with action. But, passing that over,
the country on reading these words
the next morning had a right to feel
better about the outlook.
Yet the beneficial effect of those
words was completely destroyed by
the time businessmen got to their Of
fees the next day. For fast on the
heels of the first dispatch from the
Presidential train came another. 1t
quoted the President as expressing a
fear that he would be unable to remain
away from Washington as long as he
planned because of a new, secret and
threatening crisis in Europe.
And then, some thirty-six hours
after the first remarks, the Justice
Department announced renewal OF
warfare on business in the form of an
antitrust suit against eighteen tire
companies for engaging in the very
type of practices imposed on them
under NRA codes.
One Fog After Another
Thus in less than two days after I'M
dertaking to dispel one set of uncer-
tainties affecting business, Mr.. Roose-
welt set in motion more serious I'M
certainties. Leaving the suit against
the tire companies aside, it was mex
plicable to those in Washington why
the President undertook to create
widespread disturbance about some
more rarifed New Deal circles. Ger
tainly it was one of Mr.. Roosevelt's
deepest convictions before he became
the Great Spender. Until recently the
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