The Waterbury Democrat., 1943-01-25

EGteE EUSOm w 70 SCueQuIlL1B and production looked like Q good grudge fight for a time, but word from their training camps is that these boys are not so sore any more.
 Leon Henderson is cut because of eye trouble and weak back, so his bout with scrapper Ickes over petro- leum rationing will be scratched un- less Henderson's second, new OPA Director Prentiss Brown puts on the gloves.
 To an outsider reading about all these dogflghts in the ottlcial family, Washington must seem like a terrible place indeed. Maybe 1t is. The whole defense effort may be recorded as one long series of discords that leave the innocent bystander won- dering when the beaureaucrats get their work done.
 Nelson vs So1nmervell over who should be boss of war production, Jones vs Ickes over aluminium, Jones vs Wallace and Milo Perkins on rubber, Governor Gruening vs Byron Price over censorship, Elmer Davis vs the Navy over news re- leases.
 QUARRELS
 AREN'T POLITICAL
 These aren't political rows. They aren't fundamental economic rows like capital vs labor, Leon Tender son vs the farm bloc, or everybody vs Paul McNutt on manpower. They are internicene wars, beaureaucrat and the wondering Joe Public is sometimes constrained to ask why the president doesn't step in there and knock some of their heads to- gether.
 To all outward appearances, the President is inclined to let these feuds in his official family run their course. On one recent occasion, the President did only admit that the dispute between Nelson and Sorner- veil was something that concerned only the two of them, and that they'd have to get together and work it out themselves, which they ultimately did.
 The President did settle the dif- ferences between Henderson and 1ckes over petroleum products con- trol by giving the authority to 1ckes. and similarly the President resolved minor dispute between Nelson and Wickard over who should control the food administration by giving the authority to Wickard.
 The truth of the matter would seem to be that 8 lot more atten- tion is paid to these feuds than they merit. There is certain newspaper element which whips these official to-dos into a father when in fact most of the time the boys are swinging roundhouse punches or ex- changing blows with pillows, like a couple of WAACS setting ownership of an issue slip or priority on the smiles of second lieutenant.
 THEY'RE LIKE
 REST OF US
 The reason such stuff makes news Is that all disputes between bureau- crats are over government issues which makes them public or semi- public business. That is the only difference between the feuds of a couple of government officials and the wrangles between the second vice presidents of a bank. Anyone who has ever worked for any bus mess firm knows of what sorry ano tawdry stuff is office politics.
 The only difference between the inter-office rows of a couple of pri. vate corporation executives and the feuds of couple of government officials is that the former is kept under cover and the latter gets il the papers. In fact, case can bt made that 1t is healthy to have gov. ernment officials in there fighting for every phase of the war produc. tion effort.
 The war effort can use the hard. headed conservatism of a Jesse Jones, and it can use the imagina. tive vision of a Wallace or a MilC Perkins. If the boys in the bacl room were able to get along with out differences of opinion, then 1. when you should really begin tC look out. They might be ganging uI on you.