Evening star., 1946-09-20

sure the enemy would not buy. Mr..
Jones RFC financed the purchases.
The Vice President accused Mr..
Jones of being slow with the purse
strings of delaying the war effort" p"
Mr.. Jones replied that it was Mr..
Wallace's own outfit, not his, which
was responsible for delays. Further
more, Mr.. Jones said the BEW
was wasteful.
Mr.. Jones won that round. Presi-
dent Roosevelt took away Mr.. WAL
lace's war job by abo1ishing BEW
and creating new agency in other
hands to carry on it's functions.
Nudged Into Cabinet.
There were those who said then
that Mr. Wallace was dead DO
litically" but he proved live enough
to nudge Mr.. Jones out of the
cabinet later.
That was after the 1914 Demo-
, cratic convention and ensuing elec-
ton campaign. The convention it.
self was another row swirling about
Mr. Wallace's head.
Through the early months OF that
election year. it became apparent
that there was bitter-end opposition
in the Democratic party to renomi-
mating Mr.. Wallace for Vice Presi-
dent. And there were other party
elements, chiefly the CIO-PAC, Just
as determined that he should be.
President Roosevelt, sure of
fourth-term nomination, gave the
nod for the nomination to Senator
Truman. Nevertheless. Mr.. WAL
lace's name went before the con-
vention. He lacked the votes, the
Missouri Senator was nominated
and became President Truman on
his chiefs death less than a year
later. s
After such a convention defeat,
many candidate might have re-
tired to his own tent and political
obscurity. But Mr. Wallace battled
vigorously in the campaign for the
Roosevelt Truman ticket.
His reward was appointment as
Secretary OF Commerce In the
fourth-term Roosevelt cabinet. That
meant ousting Mr.. Jones from the
cabinet post and President Roosevelt
did it with letter to Mr.. Jones
which said frankly he wanted to give
the job to Mr.. Wallace as a reward
for faithful campaigning.
Commerce and RFC Separate.
That precipitated another storm
this time centered at the Capitol.
Major opposition was evidenced in
the Senate to confirming Mr.. Wal
lace. The Commerce Committee
voted against approving him. The
Democratic leadership cleared the
way for him by getting through leg
islation divorcing the Commerce De-
partment and the billion-dollar RFC.
When Mr.. Roosevelt died. there
was widespread speculation that Mr..
Wallace might soon be out of the
cabinet. But President Truman put
out the word that he wanted him to
stay on.
For Mr.. Wallace, events were quiet
until the storm over foreign policy
broke.
Some of Mr.. Wallace's critics have
said he walks with his head in the
clouds.
Certainly, he has walked his own
way with little regard for the fences
of party regularity.
Republican Background.
All his background pointed him to
the Republican party. His father
was Secretary of Agriculture In the
cabinets of two Republican Presi-
dents, Harding and Coolidge.
Mr.. Wallace was a registered Re-
publican as late as 1886. Years be-
fore, however he had demonstrated
his disregard for party regularity.
| AS editor of Wallaces Farmer, a
farm journal founded by his grand
father. he frequently criticized the
policies Of his father and the Re-
publican administration.
1t was his work as an agricul-
tural journalist which drew Mr..
Roosevelt's attention to Mr.. WAL
lace and led to his appointment
as Secretary of Agriculture in 1893.
From Mr.. Wallace's ideas stemmed
the agricultural adjustment act and
what critics frequently recalled as
the kill the little pigs" policy 1t
was charged, too, that the law made
Mr.. Wallace GEAR" over agricul-
tural production.
Mr.. Wallace's contention was that