Evening star., 1942-04-06

engaged in war work-to call of
Mr.. Arnold's probe into American
business methods and practices.
But to no avail. The President
has just issued a memorandum re-
quiring that antitrust prosecutions
be postponed only if they interfere
with the war effort and only If
the Secretaries Of War or Navy
certify formally to that effect. But
Mr.. Arnold is given the right to
recommend to the President that
their judgement be disregarded. 1t
Is believed improbable, therefore,
that either Mr.. Stimson or Mr..
Knox or even War Production Chief
Nelson will venture to match swords
publicly with Mr.. Arnold on any
antitrust case he has started or
decides to start in the future.
Such q powerful influence by
civilian official Is almost unpar-
alleled in wartime, but 1t is due to
the crusading force of the Arnold
philosophy when poured into New
Deal ears and to the support which
he has been able to muster lately
In Congress.
American industry, management
and labor have not credited the
Arnold doctrine with political
to bypass 1t, but the Presidents
unwillingness to circumscribe very
much the efforts Of the Assistant
Attorney General, even in wartime,
may well lead to the belief that his
proposed cure for most of our COM
mercial ills, national and interna-
tional. by means Of unrestricted
competition will eventually become
a paramount administration policy.
Arnolds Views Discussed.
Mr.. Arnold wants to continue to
use the criminal and civil penalties
of the antitrust laws, not only to
break up combinations at home, but
to prevent a division of world mar
kets through foreign cartels. He
wants unrestricted competition, too,
in the labor market and is opposed
to monopoistic demands for the
closed shop. He is against labor
union efforts to kill off the use of
labor-saving machinery or their
efforts to restrict production or fix
prices by collusion with employers.
He thinks the Supreme Court
made mistake in immunizing labor
unions from prosecution under the
antitrust laws, that the A. A. A.
and N. r. A. were both mistakes and
that restriction of output whether
on the farm or in the factory Is an
economic error.
Mr.. Arnold doesn't appear to be
disturbed when his superior-Attor-
ney General Biddle-teIs his press
conference that his assistant was
guilty of bad timing" when he ap-
peared recently before a congress
sional committee and denounced
certain labor union practices.
The Assistant Attorney General
who might have been made Attorney
General except for labor union op-
position goes his own way regard
less of the brickbats thrown at him
inside the administration. Some of
his friends say that if he is crossed,
he will resign and tell the world
what goes on in Washington and 1t
might not be pleasant reading to
those in off1cialdom who have been
trying to thwart him.
He Is Let Alone
So the disposition of the admins
tration Is to let Mr.. Arnold alone
In his bailiwick, war or no war. The
Assistant Attorney General says,
however, that he is always willing
to put aside antitrust prosecutions
that really interfere with the war
program but that he doesn't think
the lawyers or the legal departments
of most companies are needed to
produce war weapons and he be-
lieves they are the principal ones
whose time would be absorbed In
the cases.
Nor does Mr.. Arnold feel that
agreements and war contracts neces-
sarily made in haste by defense
agencies or the Army and Navy
should be immune from check-up
and possible prosecution later.
He says it's good deal like income