The people's voice. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1939-1969, 1946-09-27
LongtimeCOP-
Continued from Page One)

heartily the IVA and its program
and policies. Those in contact with
the authority system know from ex-
perience that it is successful in every
way, and that it is not communistic.
Was Hole "Communistic"?
You do not seem to realize that
there are many government owned
corporations active today in many
lines of work and that, if the MVA is
"communistic" so are they. Take, for
example, the Home Owners Loan Cor
poration, which saved the homes of
thousands of citizens during the de-
preston and which was liquidated
without it's having cost the govern
ment a dime. 1t was a corporation
created by an act of congress and
managed by a Board of Directors APP
pointed by the president, and was just
exactly as "communistic" as the IVA
or the proposed MVA. Or take, for in
stance, the Metals Reserve Company.
1t, also, is a corporation owned by the
government, created by an act of con-
gress, managed by Board of Direc-
tors appointed by the president. This
corporation began the development of
the chrome mines in Saltwater county,
Montana and spent lot of money and
it was applauded from one end of the
state to the other because of its acti-
vities in this state. Through no fault
that could be charged to it, it was
found practicable to ship chrome ore
ballast during the war, and the higher
authority ordered the Metals Reserve
Company to cease operations and it
had to. Then, just as any other cor
poration is likely to do, it infringed
upon the rights of the owner of the
mines, a Mr. William w. Mouatt of
Nye, Montana-or, at least he so
claims-and he had to go to court
Now, Mr.. Ecton, had these operations
been undertaken by a bureau of the
United States government instead of
a corporation, what would Mr. Mouatt
have had to do to secure redress for
the alleged wrongs done him? He
would have had to go to Washington,
D. c., and file complaint in the Court
of Claims, if breach of contract were
the basis of his demands. If, however,
the wrongs done him arose out of what
lawyers call a tort or, let us say, |
damages not arising out of contract,
what would he have had to do? He
would have had to go cap in hand to
congress and ask it out of the good |
ness of its heart to pay him what he !
claims was due him.
Could You Sue Bureau of
Reclamation, Mr.. Ecton?
But, Mr.. Ecton, inasmuch as the
Metals Reserve Company is a corpora
ton, such as the IVA or such as the
MVA would be, he was able to file his
complaint in the Federal District
Court of the State of Montana, so, if
an MVA carries on the work in Mon
tana and other western states of a
half dozen existing federal bureaus,
it, too, would be answerable in the
courts of this state to those who had
claims of any kind against it. Do you
think, Mr.. Ecton, that you could sue i
the Bureau of Reclamation in the
courts of this state?
Is it possible, Mr.. Ecton, that your
opposition to an MVA is due to the
fact that it would save the people of
Montana thousands of dollars in cleo
trio light and power costs? Perhaps
you are opposed to it because the iva
has saved the people in it's territory
of $12,0OO,OO0 since it was
organized in cost of power and light
and even this year, with all other costs
going up, it was able to make further
reductions in prices charged for light :
and power.
AS a matter of fact, an MVA is )
simply a method of co-ordinating the 3
work of half dozen federal bureaus 3
and Incorporating them into and under !:
1ne management, which would be To- !;
lated, not in Washington, but in one \
If the states where its work had to be :;
lone. 1t is as simple as that
1t is as "communistic" as an old q
ashioned 4th of July picnic.-Respect- 4
ully, Fred G. Huntington I;