Evening star., 1942-08-27
Our Losinu Bottle

| iie pIUuleIH Ol TeSlStlnR llIldIlOu-
ary advances in the cost of living
a task which calls imperatively for
decisive action-was the subject of
a fortnight and sensible discussion
by the President at his Tuesday
press conference.
Mr.. Roosevelt pointed out that
you cannot control the cost of living
without controlling wages and farm
prices, and that neither wages nor
farm prices can be stabilized inde-
pendently. If one is to be stabilized
the other must be stabilized unless
an injustice is to be done one group
or the other. All of us, the President
added, are going to have to make
some pretty stiff sacrifices before
this war is over.
No one, with the possible exception
of professional spokesmen for farm
and labor groups, doubts that these
things are true. And it is well for
the President to bring these facts,
in simple form, to public attention.
But the trouble is that he has said
the same thing before. Last April,
in his message to Congress and in
his address to the people, he pointed
out IN language no less explicit that
wages and farm prices would have
to be stabilized if his seven-point
program to control living costs was
to be effective. The program, he
said at that time, could not be sue
cessful unless all of the seven points
were adopted, By way of illustra-
tion he added:
Are you retailer or a whole
Saler or manufacturer or a farmer
or a landlord? Ceilings are being
placed on the prices at which you
can sell your goods or rent your
property. Do you work for wages?
You will have to forgo higher wages
for your particular job for the dura-
ton of the war"
The retailers, the wholesalers, the
manufacturers and the landlords
have been brought into line. But
the farmer continues to get higher
and higher prices for his products,
and but few workers have had to
forgo higher wages for the dura-
ton. In fact, at almost the same
time that the President was address
ing his press conference, the War
Labor Board was awarding retro
active pay increases to the "big
steel' workers that will bring them
millions of dollars in higher wages.
The net result of this failure to
take a firm stand on the stabiliza-
ton of wages and farm prices has
been to bring on an acute crisis in
the effort to control living costs.
According to the President, the
whole anti-infation fight might get
out of hand within thirty days, and
because of the pressing nature of
this time element he indicated that
he preferred to handle the matter
through exercise of his executive
powers instead of going back to
Congress for repeal of legislation
which stands in the way of curbing
farm prices below 11O per cent of
parity.
Naturally, if Mr.. Roosevelt has
adequate powers, a question arises as
to why he has not exercised them
sooner, without waiting for the
problem to reach such an acute
stage. In some quarters it is con-
tended that it was the part of wis
dom to avoid an earlier showdown
with labor and the farm bloc on this
question, but if there ever was any
merit to that contention, which is
doubtful, it is clear that delay can
no longer be justified on such
grounds. BY the Presidents own
statement, 1t has become necessary
to act decisively within thirty days.
1t is to be hoped that he will act
without further delay, for the alter
native is to lose the battle against
imitation through fear of taking
the steps which Mr.. Roosevelt and
the public at large have long recog-
i L.. A.-1 l.