Evening star., 1949-12-11
Ritchie's Prophecy Held
Fulfilled by Events
Comment by Maryland Governor on
Spending by New Dealers Recalled
Bv Frank r. Kent

By Frank r. Kent
The late Gov. Albert c. Ritchie Of Mary
! land-a thoughtful man and an exceedingly
clear-headed politician-looking at the stu.
alton in this country one day during the
second Roosevelt administration, said to
some friends, "They have started something
that can't be stopped" His reference was
to the political strategy Of appealing to great
groups of voters, not with reason, but with
promises and gifts.
The gifts, of course, came from the Gov
ernment and formed the foundation Of the
New Deal-cash subsidies for the farmers.
unemployment relief for the idle, social
security payments for the INDECENT and aged,
legislative favors and White House support
for the labor union bosses, unlimited payroll
patronage for the politicians. All this created
the deficits against which the Democrats
had pledged themselves and piled up the
national debt to hitherto unapproached
heights. However, both of these were well
coined as particularly the debt,
because" as they said. I'VE owe 1t to our
Selves"
It was poor arithmetic and worse logic.
but it certainly was successful at the polls.
1t was this success, plus the desperate effort
of the Republicans to regain lost strength
Democrats, that was behind the Ritchie
remark that "they have started something
that can't be stopped" Conditions now-l2
years later-make it clear the Maryland
Governor knew what he was talking about.
In that time we have gone to extremes in
the business of buying the groups such as
were not dreamed of when it first started.
More than two million people are on the
Federal payroll. One out of every nine per-
sons in the country, directly or indirectly. is
receiving Government money. The size OF
the debt and the depth Of the deficit are
far beyond the direct prediction Of the most
pessimistic of the anti-spending element.
The administration and the party in power
are more closely bound to the labor bosses
particularly the CIO than ever before.
To the lonely voices Of Senator Harry r.
Byrd and few others who for years have
been pointing out that this policy Of buying
the voting groups and ever enlarging the
Government payroll was the sure way to
calamitous national bankruptcy has now
been added the powerful one OF James F.
Byrnes ex-senator from South Carolina,
ex-Supreme Court Justice, ex-Secretary Of
State. What makes Mr.. Byrnes' voice more
potent at this time than any other is because
from the inception of the New Deal spending
policy to the time he left the public servics
he had been one of its most effective sup
.,
an administration wheelhorse. Few who
knew him we'll ever believed Mr.. Byrnes a
convinced New Dealer. Quite clearly 1t was
his party regularity and personal loyalty to
the President that carried him along then.
No one suggests now that the reversal Of
his position is due to anything save convic-
tion Since his retirement he has had time
to reflect upon the lengths to which this
vote buying policy has carried the country.
Released from all obligations, he Is now FREQ
to express his opinions and has done so with
great vigor. The Fair DEAL and the Fair
Deal" policies he regards as contrary to all
sense and certain to end In ruin. He warns
his party and the country that If collapse IL
to be averted, the time has come to stop.
And his words have been commended in
every section. Unquestionably they will
stimulate the resistance to the administration
program In the next session. ss
But will that be enough to reverse the
trend? Few really think so. Perilously
unsound as these vote-buying policies are
and little as some of their conspicuous advo-
Gates believe in them their political success
has been so great that only few men in
public life have had the courage to rise UP
and say so. Most are pusillanimously con-
tent to coast along, cheered by the notion
that the collapse will not come In their
time It is the cowardly course, but 1t is
the one to which they are committed and
they can't stop-or think they can't. OF
course, they can't stand still, either. #
they don't turn around they have to 60 on.
A notable example Of this is in the present
passionate advocates Of pensions for the
aged which have broken out in both parties
all over the country. A decade ago, both
parties stunned the called Townsend plan.
hrov loI ND
crackpots. But not now-not by any means.
Just short time ago Jimmie" Roosevelt,
announcing his gubernatorial candidacy in
California, came out for pensions for every
body. A few weeks ago, Maurice Tobn,
Trumans Secretary Of Labor, In addition to
urging 81 an hour as q minimum wage,
insisted that Immediately" we must inaugu-
rate plan to give every retired" person :
pension of 500 month. That was the
original Townsend demand few years ago.
On the Republican side, Senator Taft. while
he does not indorse the $100-a-month plan
and estimates 1t might cost $12, ,000, 100000 a
year, does recommend that Congress give the
subject close study and consideration. The
record shows that every pension proposal to
which Congress has given "close study and
consideration" has eventually been enacted
into law. So there you are. Both sides head
in the same direction. The warnings OF the
ByrdS and the Byrneses do not even slow
them up. If we are not over the brink
before this 500 pension plan passes, we will
be after it does. Mr.. Ritchie was certainly
right. =
ary Board, including: Miss Olive Risley
Seward president; Miss Marie e. Patterson.
vice president: Miss Sara Carr Upton. record
ing secretary; Mrs. Maurice Egan, corre-
spending secretary: Mrs. Richard p. Bland,
Mrs. Francis M. Ramsey. Mrs. Eugene A.
Carr, Mrs. Thomas A. Carter. Miss Catherine
Roach, Miss E. c. Dangerfield, Mrs. w. C.