Evening star., 1944-11-01

My opponent promises to be mind
full of the problems of small busi-
ness. The small businessmen of
America will know how much faith
! they can put in that and I should
like to talk briefly about the future
of small business. This is the field
in which large part of our white
collar workers earn their living. This
is the field of the forgotten men and
women under the New Deal.
Now, American businessmen know
that the New Deal way of being
mindful of their problems has been
slowly to drown them with a rising
flood of rules and regulations, ques-
tionnaires, reports and directives.
Paper Work Burden Great.
It's been bad enough for large
business, but the big corporation at
least has its lawyers, its account
ants. clerks and statisticians. When
it comes to small businessmen this
New Deal burden of Government
paper work has too often meant
the difference between success or
failure.
Take the case of Capt. j. F.
Shields of Seattle, who is in the
salt Goldfish business. For 80 years
his boats have gone out-until last
year, when the War Labor Board
failed to pass on his wage contracts
So last year, he couldn't 60 fishing
at all.
He reports that this year he
finally got clearance, after going
through "a different Government
agencies in order to carry on his
small business. In addition to the
Navy Department, Interior De-
partment, Commerce Department,
Treasury Department, immigration
Service and the Maritime Com
mission, partial list of the agen-
cies he had to deal with includes
WLB, VINO, OPA, VISA, FEC
USES, WPB, ODT, SIS, VIA and
others.
Here is another sample of what
our small businessmen have had to
contend with. The world trembles
in the greatest war of the ages and
bureaucracy puts out the following
ruling:
Mashed potatoes offered a la
carte for weekday lunches would
be in the same class of food items
as potatoes au gratin offered la
carte for weekday lunches, but
would be in a different class than
mashed potatoes offered a la carte
for weekday dinners or Sunday
suppers. ="
How Has Small Business Fared?
Well, that's the New Deal way OF
being mindful of the problems of
small business. It's the same from
restaurants to beauty parlors, from
electrical shops to the insurance
business. And that's why it's time
for a change-before it's too late.
Yes, the New Deal pretends att
election time to be the friend of
small business. But how has small
business actually Jared under the
New Deal?
The record shows that in 1912 and
1943. the most prosperous years we
have had under the New Deal
because of war-there was-a net de-
cline of 100000 in the number of
American small business concerns,
a net figure of half a million small
businesses closed their doors.
And yet my opponent has the
temerity to go on the radio and
say; This administration has been
mindful from its earliest days, and
will continue to be mindful, of the
problems of small business ."
In the light of the record, that
promise, too, is worthless and it
will remain so, even though it is /
again and again and again.
My opponent has read our platform
and is now saying, ME. too" Even
the New Deal knows it's time for
a change.
No, we cannot live on promises
We must have performance this
time-before it's too late. AS we
keep our minds on these peace
time years ahead, let us remember
one thing: My opponent has Of
fered no program for the peace
time years ahead except the same