Evening star., 1941-08-13
Economic Defense
Board Takes Up
Secret Projects
New Group Holds First
Meeting With Wallace
And Cabinet Members
BY BLAIR BOLLES.

by DLHIh DOLLES.
Faced with new tests of its powers
m the developing Far Eastern crisis
and in the French collapse into the
German new order" the new Eco
nomic Defense Board set up by
President Roosevelt held its first
meeting today in the Office of Vice
President Wallace, its chairman.
Mr.. Wallace announced after a
conference lasting almost two hours
that members of the board had de-
cided to investigate the workability
OF two projects, use of which is ex-
pected to give the United States
greater strength in defending itself
from foreign encroachment.
The Vice President refused to dis
close the nature of the projects and
said he probably would pursue a
close-mouthed policy about the
activities of his board. 1t was spec
ulated that the projects were new
and that they were aimed at pro-
tecting American interests in the
Far East and in the Western Hem
isphere. There is a prospect the
Nazis may use French bases in
Africa to haraSs American interests
In the South Atlantic.
Cabinet Members Attend.
Besides Mr.. Wallace, those at the
meeting were Secretary of the Treas
ury Morgenthau. Secretary of War
Stimson, Secretary of the Navy
Knox, Secretary of Agriculture
wickard, Acting Attorney General
Biddle and Secretary of Commerce
Jones. Assistant Secretary of State
Atcheson, who is in charge of eco
nomic affairs at the State Depart
ment, represented Secretary Hull.
Mr.. Atcheson, Mr.. Biddle and Mr..
Wallace continued their converSa-
tion for half an hour after the
others departed. Before the meet
ing started, Mr.. Wallace said:
"At least 25 different Federal De-
partments and agencies have been
designated by Congress to deal with
international economic affairs. The
President thought that they might
do better job if they had an op-
portunity to interchange news and
coordinate their activities. That is
the basis on which this board was
brought into being"
The board will have another meet
ing next week, Mr.. Wallace said,
and probably will hear progress re-
ports on the two projects assigned
for study today. The Vice President
said eventually he expected the board
would have an executive secretary,
but for the present it is picking its
way gradually and determining what
the scope of its problem is.
Alternates Named.
Leslie A. Wheeler, foreign agricul-
tural adviser to Secretary Wickard,
has been designated an alternate on
the board for Mr.. Wickard, the Vice
President said, and Harry White.
Treasury economist, has been named
an alternate for Mr.. Morgenthau.
TN this field" Mr.. Wallace said,
I'VE can't talk much. We would be
like a poker player showing his
hand"
The South American blacklist, cur
rercy IreeZlng ana export ana I'M
port controls have been the weapons
in economic warfare used by the
United States to date.
Any decisions reached by the
board, Mr.. Wallace said, will be an
nounced by the particular depart
ment or agency in whose province
the particular phase of economic
warfare covered by the decision
seems to lie. Thus, changes in the
frozen fund picture would emanate
from the Treasury, although the
original decision might have come
from Mr.. Wallace's board.
When the President established
the board on July 81 in an executive
order, it was thought the order
would provide the United States
with something akin to the British
ministry Of economic warfare.