Evening star., 1944-05-06
Purpose of Investigation

adopted yesterday, nor the earlier
Senate resolution for investigation
of the Montgomery Ward seizure
is designed by its phraSeology to
determine whether the administra-
ton exceeded it's lawful authority.
On the theory that such a deter
mination should be left to the courts,
original language which asked for it
in the House resolution was stricken
out.
But with the Ward seizure as an
example of how the law has been in
terpreted by the President and his
advisers, the purpose of the investi-
cations should be to decide whether
to amend the law. AS Representa-
tive Howard Smith of Virginia puts
it: IF it Is lawful to take Wards
retail store. then where do we go
from here?"
Mr.. Smith, a coauthor of the
Smith-C -Connally Act under which
the seizure was ordered, believes the
administration went far beyond the
authorization of law itself, as we'll
as the intent of Congress He has
gathered rather persuasive evidence
to support his claim He recalls that
in Senate debate over when the
President could seize q plant where
a, strike was in progress the words
cor other cause" were stricken out
by amendment after Senator Con-
nally had defended them as follows:
The words "or other cause" are what
he seeks to strike out. The powers
which are provided for by the bill
cannot be exercised by the President
until he makes that kind of a find
ing, and the plant has to be one which
is equipped and suitable for the pro-
duction of national defense articles,
Again, he quotes Undersecretary
of War Patterson as testifying In
a hearing on the bill:
I see nothing drastic in this meas
ure at all. 1t does, of course, rest
upon the foundation of national de-
tense and I dare say the bill would
not have been introduced but for the
current Interruptions which are now
going on in various plants which are
so vital to the national defense pro-
gram. 1t is very clearly confined
to the national defense in the ma
tional emergency, the equipping of
the armed forces. These plants
are plants that, for defense purposes,
are serving the Government already.
The Army or Navy have the con-
suming interest, and the ones most
vitally concerned in the continued
production at the plants.
Senator Connally then remarked:
The reason asked you that ques-
ton is some industrialists complain
and say, "Oh, we do not want to have
Government interfering in private
business . taking over and inter-
fering with private enterprise"
And later, Senator Connally said
on the floor:
Let me say, further, that the
cardinal objective, the chief principle,
back of the bill from the beginning
was not the idea of hunting for some
individual in an effort to put him in
jail, but the objective was how best
we could provide for the continuous
operation of plants manufacturing
munitions
With which Senator Austin of
Vermont summed up as follows:
1t is. therefore, the correct inter-
pretation, I believe as stated by the
distinguished Senator from Texas,
that the jurisdiction of the National
War Labor Board covers war actiy-
tiles and the settlement of disturb
ances and disagreements relating to
wages and other terms Of employment
In war enterprises and in the per-
formance of war contracts.
Even to the layman, not emotion
ally swayed by prejudice against the
New Deal or against Sewell Avery,
it seems far cry indeed from the
intent Of the law, as indicated by
these and other quotations from
hearings and debates, and the extent
to which the War Labor Board has
gone in writing a new law of the
land in labor controversies and
applying it as policy, regardless of
the nature of the controversy or of
the plant in which it occurs. The
seizure of Montgomery Ward is
merely one dramatic illustration
adequately photographer OF where
this policy has taken us already.
The Senate and House investiga-
tions should be able to determine
whether this is the policy intended
by Congress and, II not, whether to
revoke it.