The potters herald. [volume] (East Liverpool, Ohio) 1899-1982, 1949-07-28
Liberals Fighting Finished
Bottle With Power Trust

the Northwest who favored the
bill, but he gave a free hand to
power trust representatives and
others who testified against the
bill. The AFL's League for Politi-
cal Education branded Whiting
toms conduct as a public dis
grace"
Meantime, such northwest liber-
ais as Congressman Henry M. Nit
chell and Hugh B. Mitchell, both
Democrats of Washington, made it
clear the fight for the CVA will be
pushed to the limit.
The Central Valley tug-of-war
involved the power trust Indirect
Iy. Under previous federal law,
irrigation water from the govern
ment's Shasta dam is limited to
farms of 160 acres or less in that
valley.
Big farm corporations, closely
tied up with the power trust, have
for years tried to knock out that
limitation. Unable to do that, they
have trained their fire on Michael
Straus, head of the Reclamation
Bureau, and Richard Boke, region
al director of the Bureau, for en-
forcing the limitation.
Senator Sheridan Downey Cd,
Calif.) has been spearheading the
fight against the two men. At first,
he got through a rider to wipe out
their salaries, but agreed to elm
mate the rider upon promise of an
investigation of the Reclamation
Bureau.
Such an investigation got under
way in the past week before a
Senate subcommittee headed by
Senator Joseph O'Mahoney Cd,
Mont.) Downey was the main wit
ness and made a violent attack on
Straus and Boke, but O'Mahoney
pinned him down to present facts
instead of smear. That cramped
Downey's style.
One of the interesting sidelights
of the hearing was the presence OF
a batch of Pacific Gas & Electric
lobbyists. They have been private.
ly aiding the attack on Straus and
Boke, and working for an end to
the 100 acre limit.
What happened in the Vermont
fight was brought to light in a
letter that Governor Gibson, a lib
eral Republican, wrote to Joseph
ID. Keenan,, director of Labor's
League for Political Education.
Gibson pointed out proposed
compact between New England
states for creation of a Develop
ment Authority had cleared both
the Judiciary and Appropriations
Committees Of the House by over
whelming majorities,
Yhrn Albert Cree, president OF
the Central Vermont Public Ser
vice Company, along with "other
utility lawyers and lobbyists spread
the word among the Legislators"
that the bill fought to be defeat
ed" Gibson said.
"They served some members OF
the legislature drinks in the rooms
of the hotel, reserved by Cree or
his lawyers, and did pretty good
Job Of misrepresentation to the
end that the next day when the
bill came up for passage they
were able to muster enough votes
to defeat it," the Vermont gov
ernor added
Pointing out that some members
of the two committees reversed
themselves in the House, Gibson
declared "the only explanation is
that they were doing the bidding
of the private power companies"
Labor's League lauded Gibson
for his fight. 1t pointed out that
the governor "has taken the lead
in the fight to free New England
from the banker-public utility
political dictatorship which has
been wrecking New England in
dustry and driving industry out OF
New England since 1920"
"Today, New England has the
highest power rates in the United
States" the League added. II
voiced the hope that Gibson, de-
spite the latest setback, would still