Evening star., 1949-09-30
Bitter Senate Battle
Appears Likely Over
0|ds Appointment
bv Cecil F. HoIIond

A bitter Senate fight seems
likely over President Truman's
appointment Of 58-year-old Le-
land Olds to a third term on
the Federal Power Commission.
Opponents of Mr.. Olds indicated
they would seek to block con-
firmation as it was revealed that
the White House wants Senate
action on the nomination at this
session.
Senator Mcfarland, Democrat.
of Arizona said yesterday the
White House wanted the nomina-
ton reported by the Senate Com
merce Committee, favorably or
unfavorably. for final action
before adjournment.
Senator Mcfarland asked the
Commerce Subcommittee consid-
ering the nomination to speed its
consideration and act on the NOM
ination within the next few days.
A member of the subcommittee,
the Senator said it was possible
that Congress might adjourn by
the middle of October.
May Appear Tomorrow.
Three days of public hearings
we're concluded yesterday with an
array of witnesses both assailing
and defending Mr.. Olds, a men,
ber of the FEC since 1889.
Mr.. Olds is scheduled for re-
turn appearance either tomorrow
or Monday to answer specifically
charges made against him by
Representative Lyle, Democrat, of
Texas, author of a natural gas bill
opposed by the FEC member.
Mr.. Lyle testified against the
appointment on Wednesday and
submitted to the subcommittee a
large file of articles written by
Mr.. Olds in the 1920s when he
was industrial editor of the Fed
Grated Press, a news service for
the country's labor press.
Mr.. Olds admitted that his
writings then were radical" but
said he has since changed his
views.
Overtones of a long and bitter
controversy over extension of Fed
eral regulations over the produc-
tion and gathering of natural gas
marked the testimony of wit
nesses in opposition to Mr.. Olds
at the Thursday afternoon ses-
sion Of the committee. One of
the witnesses. o. c. Bailey of FL
dorado. Ark, chairman of the Ar
kansas Oil and Gas Commission.
said it was apparent that Mr..
Olds wants Federal regulation of
natural gas from well to con-
sumner without regard to the con-
stitutional rights of the Sta.es."
Other opposition witnesses were
more bitter and freely applied a
variety of epithets to Mr.. Olds.
Hayden w. Head a Texas lawyer
representing an independent pro-
ducer of oil and gas described Mr..
Olds as "a fraud" Another
William M. Bonner a Houston
(TexD lawyer-said that Repre-
sentative Lyle's testimony before
the subcommittee contained all
the data necessary to show that
Mr.. Olds ts"a traitor a crackpot
and a jackass wholly unfit to make
rules or regulations or to sit in
judgment on any matter pertain
ing to privately owned property"
Senator Lyndon johnson, Demo-
crat. Of Texas, chairman of the
subcommittee. sharply reminded
the wttuesses that sanos evidence
has been vinfrodu before the
groups ref1ecting IN Mr.. Odds
loyalty.
Mr.. Olds was defended by Will
liam A. Roberts, Washington at
torney, who said failure to con-
firm the nominee would leave
consumers without his informed
protection against pipeline and
major gas-owning interests"
The nomination of Mr.. Olds
was sent to the Senate before his
term expired June 8. Since that
time. Mr.. Olds has been unem-
ployed while waiting for Senate
action.