Evening star., 1944-01-12

NiIS 4oW oAll hSCp VAC
ment of business in private hands
or with accustomed means of meas
uring profits.
But it may be that the President
is not concerned with the mainte-
nance of the profit system
Certainly in his new bill of rights in
which he outlined specific economic
rights, he made a fragrant omission.
He forgot altogether that the right
of citizen to invest the savings
earned by hard labor over the years
and to earn wages for those saw
ings-commonly known as fair re-
turn on capitals an integral part
of our economic system.
Without the recognition of such a
right, there can be no realization of
the other parts of Mr.. Roosevelt'S
bill of rights, as, for instance, "the
right to a useful and remunerative
job in the industries or shops or
farms or mines of the Nation"
For how can there be any indus
tries or shops or farms or mines un-
less private capitals right to exist
Is recognized? There can be Gov
ernment WPAs and state socialism
and production for USE" as the So
cialists call it, but unless the Presi-
dent Inadvertently omitted it, the
elimination of fair return on capi-
tai invested as basic economic
right means that the whole schedule
of rights which he presented falls
to the ground.
The Presidents message was, of
course, written with an eye to po-
litical Developments. 1t could hard
ly be otherwise in year in which
he expects to be renominated and
rejected. In certain respects he
put Congress on the defensive He
showed that he intends to make an
issue of the renegotiation law and
Of the failure thus far to provide a
uniform means of handling soldier
voting.
Congress intends to pass a law
on soldier voting. Public opinion
demands it, AS for the making of
a new tax law, some changes will
be made in pending measures, but
it is doubtful whether the final bill
will satisfy the President. If he
VetoeS 1t after concessions to both
sides have been made in confer
ence, it might be passed over his
veto.
Legislation to ban strikes is much
more likely to be passed than ma
tional service legislation. The coun-
try has not been persuaded as yet
that, in order to eXtricate the ad-
miniStration from its bungling
methods in handling strikes, it now
is necessary to put every man from
l6 to IS in the hands of local
draft board subject to compulsory
work and for every woman from
Is to so to be dealt with likewise.
Mr.. Roosevelt has lost all his poll
tlcal sagacity If he thinks such a
measure can be passed unless dire
necessity calls for it. And the only
dire necessity which many members
Of Congress see is some means of
camou1aging the mistakes that have
been made by the administration
in handling the coal strikes and
John L. Lewis.
The universal service idea always
has been espouSed by veteran SOL
dler groups as a wartime PROPOSE
ton, and it is doubtless popular
today among men in active service.
But the bulk of the citizenry will
not be persuaded by the arguments
advanced thus far that any such
a measure is imperative.
Even the President leaves himself
a loophole. He says he will not
recommend universal service legis-
lation unless a tax bill is passed, and
a food subsidy bill, and a continual
ton of the renegotiation and wage
stabilization laws. Some of these
will be passed, but it is doubtful
whether his conditions will be met
100 per cent, in which case it is to
be presumed that universal service
legislation will not be recommended.
&c to