The Alamance gleaner * VOL. LXI. GRAHAM, N, C., THURSDAY FEBRUARY 7, 1935. NO. 1. News Review of Current Events the World Over Grand Jury Asked by Ickes to Investigate PWA Graft Charges?Future of NRA Hangs Upon Outcome ' of Suit Against Little Sawmill Operator. By EDWARD W. PICKARD ?, Western Newspaper Union. "T-J ONEST HAROLD" Iekes has ^ been subjected to lots of abuse by congressmen and others, but he does not Intend to let anything be put over on the Public works administration, of which he Is the admin istrator. At his re quest a special grand jury has been sum moned to meet In Washington on Feb uary 6 to Inquire Into charges of graft in the PWA. * Assistant United States Attor ney John W. Fihelly has the matter In Sec'y Ickes nana ror the government and will present first testimony concerning the $4,000,000 canal project in Texas. It was asserted that the contract for this project was withdrawn after Mr. Ickes* investigators had un covered evidence that there was a huge conspiracy to defraud the United States. Eight or ten persons, includ ing federal officials, are said to be in volved. Mr. Ickes himself said: ?'The Public Works administration in vestigation division has made a long and careful study of the Texas project upon the direction of the administrator (Ickes) and presented to the proper prosecuting officials of the government a full report for such action as they deem proper to take." A LMOST unnoticed among the spec tacular issues of the day, yet of momentous importance, the case of the United States against Belcher will be set for hearing by the Supreme court within a few days. This case opens up discussion on the constitu tionality of the heart of the entire NRA experiment?the power of the federal government to regulate wages and working hours through codes. Upon this refusal of a small Ala bama sawmill operator to comply with the code hangs the entire fate of the NRA, for if the government loses there will be nothing left of NRA except an empty statement of desirable business ethics. If the government cannot con trol wages and hours in the produc tion of goods intended for interstate commerce, there is a strong likelihood that the course of legislation to extend the NRA beyond June 16 will be strong ly affected. Other cases now pending before the court touch upon certain portions of the vital question, but this case goes straight to the basic power of the recovery act It affords a clear cut determination of the fundamental issues, because there is no dispute as to facts, no technicalities of law upon which the issue can be avoided. The case comes almost as an original case, since the attorney general took advan tage of legal machinery permitting an appeal directly to the Supreme court from the decision of a federal District court without recourse to a Court of Appeals. me ueieuuuui uptuij viumieu me lumber code. Instead of adhering to code provision requiring payment of 24 cents per hour for a 40-hour maximum week, he admitted paying his men 10 to 15 cents per hour and that he worked them as many hours as he saw fit What the government's line of de fense will be is not known. The case Involves all the constitutional objec tions which might be raised against the recovery act Decisions of the court In the recent oil cases did not touch upon the constitutionality of the main body of the act but involved only a special section. WHEN the senate passes the $4, 000,000,000 work relief measure, as it certainly will after all the ora tors get through, there need be no fussing as to who is to administer the huge fund. President Roosevelt him self, according In an authority high in administration circles, will undertake that Job and will allocate the money to the various agencies as be sees fit. There will be no new set-up for this purpose, unless it may be a small group of advisors selected by Mr. Roosevelt. These may be members of the cabinet or technical experts?more likely the latter. This information was given the senate finance committee as It be gan consideration <# the bill, ar.d was designed to quiet some of the opposi tion and also to curb the ambition ^?f certain gentlemen who had hoped to handle the $4,000,000,000. It did not, however, silence those senators of both parties who still contend that too much power Is given the President when he Is handed such a vast sum to dis pose of as he pleases. A strong possibility Is seen that the bill may be split Into two separate parts, so that the 880 million dollars needed for relief purposes may be passed without delay, and the senate can then take Its time in considering the extraordinary measure which gives the President such unprecedented pow ers In spending the four billion dollars. One development which was of Inter est to many was that the measure was prepared under the supervision of Mr. Bell, the budget director, thus making him a candidate for the "physical hang ing" advocated by Senator James Cou zens of Michigan. CMSARIhTG the anger of their aroused *? constituents more than the adminis tration's whip, the senate kicked over the traces to defeat ratification of the world court protocols. The final count was seven votes short of the necessary two-thirds. Frantic efforts to force the measure through were made by the administra tion. Several revolting senators were called to the White House, and the President even agreed to amendments to the resolution, but was unable to overcome the effects of thousands of protesting telegrams which had been pouring into Washington from citizens all over the country. In private, many Democratic sena tors who face re-election In 193G heaved sighs of relief as the measure was de feated. Administration forces accepted the verdict, apparently without rancor, although the long memory of the man in the White House is well known. Seemingly the issue is dead, for the present at least. Observers at the capital refused to view the world court vote as any in dication of a spreading revolt against Roosevelt's policies, since the court controversy cut deeper than party lines. Several senators who opposed the tribunal will undoubtedly support the administration on other measures, although victory of the small band of Irreconcilables who led the fight has undoubtedly added to their prestige. THAT serio-comic "civil war" In Huey Long's domain Is becoming more serious than comical and almost any day may develop into real war fare. It was cen tered for the present at the state capital. Two hundred armed men, directed by lead ers of the Square Deal association, seized the parish court house in East Baton Itouge and held it un til assured that one of their friends who had been arrested was re leased. They then Huey Long dispersed with a warning from one John Appel to "be sure you have enough ammunition and be ready for the call at any time." The Kingfish was in New Orleans at the time, but he hastened to Baton Rouge while Governor Allen called out some troops and proclaimed partial martial law In the capital. Huey im mediately ordered the recently ap pointed Judge J. D. Womack to start an investigation of what he de scribed as a plot to murder him, in which "four sheriffs and a district at torney" werq involved. The senator declared: "We picked up two men, one of them was going to drive the murder car. It was all fixed up. He was going to block my car on the highway between here and New Orleans, make it stop and force me in the ditch, and then 14 or 10 were going to come along in an other car and kill me. "We found all the stufT in the fel low's car. There was sheriffs equip ment, and everything." Maybe Huey was right, for one Sid ney Songy testified at the inquiry that he had been given a gun. ammunition and gas bombs to kill the senator. Long blamed the Standard Oil com pany for the armed assembly of his enemies In Baton Rouge and said that unless the company stopped the "vio lence" his compromise with it over the 5-cent oil refinery tax would ?be called off. Despite this warning another armed group of Square Dealers gathered at the Baton Rouge air field; but some one betrayed them and a detachment of the National Guard advanced on them In battle array. The sight of machine guns was enough for the citizenry; they surrendered, and were disarmed. THOSE who view Russia's growing military strength with alarm were not comforted by a statement made by the vice commissar for defense before the seventh All-Union congress of Soviets in Moscow that the Red army has grown from 000,000 to 940,000 men in four years. Fortifications along the eastern and western frontiers have been strength ened, and all branches of the miliCury service, particularly aviation, have been increased, the vice commissar stated, and more will be spent for de fense In 1935 than was spent last year. The delegates, who were meeting to re view Bolshevist progress since 1931, greeted the vice commissar's speech with roars of applause. IN AN effort to build up an alibi for Bruno Richard Hauptmann his at torneys have called a strange collec tion of witnesses?a minor league boot legger, a speakeasy op erator of various names, a young Swede whose sto r I e s have been somewhat vague and conflicting, and a man who has admitted that he served several jail sentences?a not particularly impressive lot upon which to de pend when you are fighting to escape death in the electric ctjair. Bruno Hauptmann One of the peculiarities or the trial Is the number of persons who only saw Hauptmann for a few minutes or* sec onds, but who are able Jo identify him more than two years later. The man accused of killing the first Lindbergh child is not outstanding in appearance or one who would be likely to indel ibly impress himself on a person's mind, but both the state and the de fense have been able to produce per sons who swear he was the man they saw the day the crime was committed. The battle of handwriting experts has also begun, with the state pro ducing experts to swear that the hand writing on the ransom notes does not resemble that on the admitted writing of Hauptmann. Their statements are just as positive as were those made by the defense witnesses, and It all proves Just a little confusing to the Jury. Considerable comment was caused when one of the jurors, a woman, smiled broadly at Hauptmann as he left the stand following his examina tion, and some wagers have been made that a hung Jury will be the outcome of the trial. Such predictions are hardly in order, since a single bit of testimony may yet change the entire course of the case. DURING the debate In the house on an administration bill to increase by $9,000,000,000 the amount of long term securities the treasury can issue, Representative Reed ot New York quot ed Secretary Morgenthau as saying that the treasury could not finance the work relief program unless congress broad ened its bond-issuing authority. So the house passed the measure at once. The bill, prepared by the Treasury department, places the administration squarely against intiation. It provides authority to raise money necessary for the public works, social security and similar measures, meet federal deficits, and might even be used to provide funds for payment of the soldiers' bonus. unuer provisions 01 me measure there would be ten-year bonds In amounts as small as ??5, and as ex plained by the Treasury department, would be sold below par. There would be no Interest, but each six months the bonds would appreciate In value at the rate of 2% per cent, plus com pounded earnings. Huge sums are Involved: first, the creation of a revolving bond authoriza tion fund of $2,50U,UU0,U0U; and sec ond, the consolidation of the two pres ent revolving funds of $10,000,000,UUO each into a Joint $20,000,0ear Mr. Wynn : I have been going with a young girl for about one year. We were always together until she graduated from high school about six months ago and se cured a position. Now she passes me right by. If I talk to her she won't answer me. What can the answer be? Sincerely, G. OGRAPIIY. Answer: You say she was all right when you went to school together but ! now that she is working she won't answer you. Quite simple. She must be employed aa a telegraph oj?erator. Dear Mr. Wynn: A friend of mine told me that he saw a man "run over himself." I told him he was crazy. Now he will not speak to me. Do you think it po*u5ible for a man to "run over himself? Truly yours, I. HALL Answer: Sure It Is possible. I know of such a rase. A friend of mine was driving a car. He stopped it In front of a candy store. Jumped out, went into the candy store and asked for a pack of cigarettes. There was only one clerk In the store and he tobl my friend that If he wantetTngarettes he would have to go across the street to the cigar store for them. My friend then asked the clerk If he would not run over to the cigar store for him, and the clerk told my friend that he could not leave the candy store alone and run over to the cigar store for the cigarettes; so my friend "ran over himself. ** Dear Mr. Wynn: I am a young man but am always in 111 health. It may be the climate here In New York. I will go to any town you may suggest that is very healthful. Yours truly, D. TRESSED. Answer: The healthiest town I know of is Crum City, Wyo. This town is so healthy they had to kill two people last week, Just to start a cemetery. C. tb? Associated Newspapers. WNU Sarvlcs. WITTY KITTY Bjr NINA WILCOX PUTNAM The girt chum say* that, as far m she can find out, no woman has over made a practice of reading herself te sleep with a cook book. wxu Service. I PAPA r NCWj-l "Pop, what is a Junta?" "Tropical hot box." t B?ll ByadioMA?WXU S?nrtca. Dance Frock A long separate scarf which ties la a bow adds charm to this classical dance frock. The waistline, high la front, slopes to the back where a Jew eled clip accents the fanshaped full ness of the skirt. American beauty chiffon Is the material. Here's a Record Shipment From Japan THE Shotile Marn from Vokohama arrived at San Francisco the other day with a record shipment of two hundred tuba of goldfish from Japan, desig nated for distribution to cities ail over the United States. On the trip across the Faclfic the temperature of the water in the tubs had to be maintained at a uniform degree.