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The Alamance Gleaner 1 ....... VoL LXV GRAHAM, N. C., THURSDAY, JANUARY 18, 1940 ~ Na 50 WEEKLY NEWS ANALYSIS BY JOSEPH W. LaBlNE Congress May Out-Spree FDR In Boosting Defense Budget, Despite Election-Year Fears (EDITOR'S NOTE?When opinions are expressed In these columns, they are those ol the news analyst and not necessarily et this newspaper.) _____________ Released by Western Newspaper Union. _______??J CONGRESS: On Guard ( ?) Biggest item on the congressional agenda was Franklin Roosevelt's $8,242,000,000 budget, which the sen ate voted to investigate via a joint suj>et-committee. But there was more talk than action. While con gressmen fumed to bury their teeth in the $1,800,000,000 defense pro gram, major budget item, they also hesitated, watching developments abroad. In an election year there must be economy talk, but 1940's congress may end up by spending more on defense than even the Pres ident asked. There were probes aplenty. Even though the house might kill that un precedented super-committee, four more groups were hard at it. The house naval affairs committee be gan by slapping newly appointed Navy Secretary Charles Edison. The slap: Pigeon-holing a proposal that the President be given peace time power to commandeer facto ries, materials and ships. Next came Admiral Harold Stark, chief of naval operations, who opined (1) that the U. S. now has no two-ocean navy, and (2) that 52,000-ton battle ships wouldn't be a bad idea. (Now building are two 45,000-tonners, with two more provided in the current bill.) Chairman Carl Vinson stepped in at this point with the week's No. 1 surprise, a proposal to boost naval strength 25 per cent the next three years through a $1,300,000,000 add ed appropriation. With this sugges tion Admiral Stark agreed in toto. Another house committee, appro priations, showed neither spend thriftiness nor laziness in okaying $267,197,000 for immediate emer gency defense (army, navy, coast guard and FBI). The committee simply knew not where to turn But if the senate approved this fund the current year's defense bill will be higher than next year's. Next day, when Carl Vinson learned the ap propriation committee might okay another $4,000,000 to fortify Guam, he boiled over. That question, he insisted, should first come to his at tention. Said he: "This committee (naval affairs) is jealous of its prerogatives." Two senate committees mean while got up steam. Foreign af fairs looked suspiciously at Guam, wondering how Japan would swallow the fortification plan. (S? ASIA.) Appropriations, under Colorado's Alva Adams, wanted to junk the emergency defense fund and prob ably would. What would eventually happen, most observers were willing to guess. Investigations will probably string along several months until Europe's war gathers steam. Then, overnight, congress will shoot the works and forget that it's an elec tion year. Also in congress: C. The house passed Rep. Joseph Gavagan's (D., N. Y.) perennial anti-lynching bill imposing fines on county or state officials who fail, by negligence, to prevent mob killings. The bill went to the senate, which customarily defeats it, two years ago by a South-sponsored filibuster. Q. The house ways and means com mittee heard Secretary of State Cor dell Hull defend his reciprocal trade act, which expires June 12 unless renewed. Score: Ten Republicans against it, most of 15 Democrats in favor. But on the floor it will face greater opposition, probably being renewed only on the condition that the senate shall ratify all pacts. Meanwhile doughty Sen. Bill Borah of Idaho inferred that the break down of trade talks with Argentina and Uruguay was a plot to win continuation of the act. CAdolph Sabath of Illinois, chair man of the house rules committee, said he opposed any more money for Martin Dies' un-Americanism committee. Reason: "After all, Mr. Dies has had enough publicity for any and all purposes and per haps he will be still In demand for public speeches and writing maga zine articles." ? 1 ? EDISON (LEFT) AND VINSON The committee was jealous. TREND Row the u ind is blowing ... BANKING?At San Francisco L. M. Giannini threatened to withdraw his Bank of America from the fed eral banking system unless Sec re tary 01 me m Treasury I Morgenthau I halts "perse- | cution" of its fl officers I through the fl Securities | Exchange | commission, am which has ffi been exam- ? ining records of Trans GIANNINI ~4 Aft america corporation, wM u, ? per cent of the bank's stock. Next day Henry Morgenthau struck back. POLITICS?At Washington it was indicated that Chicago can have both Republican and Democratic na tional conventions for the asking providing the city posts a $190,000 financial guarantee for each. ASIA: Naughty V. S. By mid-Jafauary the U. S. was giving Japan so much trouble that the cabinet of Gen. Nobuyuki Abe was ready to fall. It was not enough that Tokyo's emissaries had been unable to win a new trade treaty replacing the pact being abrogated this month by Washington. Japanese also learned: <1) That the senate foreign af fairs committee was talking again of imposing an embargo on war material shipments to Japan. Lead er of the move is Nevada's Sen. Key Pittman, committee chairman. Such K YtUow WANG'S EMPIRE (IN BLACK) What would an embargo do? a step would sound the death knell of Japan's war in China. (2) That Washington was again talking about a big navy (Sto CON GRESS). The Guam fortification plan, pigeon-holed last year, when Japan objected, was making news again. Tokyo papers were warn ing that the U. S. would soon be No. 1 offensive-defensive power in the Pacific. But the public, suffering from an internal stomach ache, was unexcited. It seemed likely, meanwhile, that the Abe cabinet's sole accomplish ment and last act would be to launch the puppet government of Wang Ching-wei over Japanese-dom inated sections of China (tot mop). But if the U. S. embargo falls, lack of military supplies will make it hard to preserve what Japan has already won. PEOPLE: Outstanding Stassen At Chicago, the U. & Junior Chamber of Commerce chose Min nesota's G. O. P. Gov. Harold Stas sen as 1939's most outstanding young man. 4 Off to Australia from Shanghai went Clarence E. Gauss, U. S. con sul general, just named the first American minister to Canberra. Test your note lor nem. Answer all there questions and your tcore it 100. Deduct 20 points for each question you mitt. If you mitt more than three, hat ter not tell anybody.' 1. Bartley, W. Va., la a coal mining community. Why was it in tie news? I. The man at the rlfht, now Brit ish lord of the admi ralty, may beeom e supreme defense chief. What's his name? 3. According to the treasury, the average American had how math money in his pocket en January 1: (a) $57.71; (b) $10.13; <?> $126.54; <d> $1,401. ' 4. True or false: Thousands of workers at the Binghampton, N. Y., plant of the Endieott-Johnson Shoe company made news by vot ing for affiliation with the C. 1. O. 5. Both Republican and Demo cratic national committees will meet in February to pick their 1940 convention date. Which committee will meet tost? News Quiz Answers 1. Ninety miners were trapped two miles underground. 2. Winston Churchill. 3. (A) is correct. This is the highest per capita circulation since March, 1933. 4. False. They made news by thumbs downing both CLO. and A. F. of L. 5. Democrats on February 5; Repub licans, February 18. This is important because the Republicans can now delay planning their candidate and platform until the opposition has committed Itself. THE WARS: In the West German; and the allies seemed to be fighting everything else but each other as mid-winter arrived. There was sporadic sea warfare, a "great battle" over Sylt, German air base, and a Nazi raid over 500 miles of English coast. But despite those threats of heightened conflict, pub lic attention was focused elsewhere: German;. Nazi soldiers were re ported massed along the Baltic shores as the Reich eyed Scandi navia's neutrality, taking a more positive pro-Russian stand in the Soviet-Finnish war and threatening to invade Sweden and Denmark. But Germans were more worried about internal developments. Sup plies from Russia and Rumania were held up by disputes, poor rail facilities and frozen river routes. The greatest cold wave in 11 years struck hard in Berlin, where there were shortages of both coal and food. At this unstrategic time, it was rumored workers would soon be paid IOU's instead of cash. Allies. France was rumored about to shake up her cabinet, something Britain had already done. While the London press still railed at Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain for dismissing War Minister Leslie Hore-Belisha, Chamberlain turned about and rallied the empire to "more vigorous prosecution of the war." Both Hore-Belisha and Cham berlain were soon scheduled to un burden themselves in a secret ses sion of commons. By general con census, Chamberlain's position was none too secure. In the North Catching their breath during a temporary lull in fighting, the Finns estimated they had destroyed three, and possibly (our Russian divisions in one month. Still undetermined was a battle raging on the Sails front, where correspondents heard that Soviet relief troops were being encircled. Counting $10,000,000 worth ' of booty seized when the forty-fourth Russian division was annihilated, the Finns forecast a several weeks' lull. THE BALKANS: CaroV$ Choice Back to Budapest from Venice went Hungary's Foreign Minister Stefan Csaky. In his pocket was a Plan: Italy would safeguard the Balkans from either Russian or Ger man aggression provided that stub born Rumanian, King Carol, could be whipped into line. All Rumania must do is guarantee territorial re vision with Hungary and Bulgaria, in which case Italy and her neigh bors will help Rumania if Russia tries to recapture Bessarabia. But should Rumania refuse, her neigh bors will not only let Russia come in, but will invade King Carol's pre cinct themselves. Actually this Italo-Hungarian agreement constituted an important step in breaking Italy away from Germany. Details of the pact were not published, for fear of "giving offense" to the Reich and Russia. Bruckart't Washington Digent Roosevelt's Latest Budget Has Congress Pretty Badly Muddled % Arguments, 'Ifs,' Suggestions and Suppositions Leave Solons in Daze; Leaders in Congress to Seek Facts for Themselves. By WILLIAM BRUCKART WNU Service, National Pre?? BldfWaihlngtoe, D. C. WASHINGTON.?Congress is pret ty badly muddled up over the latest Roosevelt budget of estimated ex penditures and receipts for the gov ernment's next fiscal year. And well it may be. There were thousands of greater and lesser items of gov ernment cost dumped into its legis lative lap at once the other day, but these were not alone. There were arguments and "ifs" and sug gestions and suppositions and an of ficial defense of the policy that for 11 years has seen government in come fall far behind the expenses? 11 years of deficits. And, along with these thfiigs came a proposal by the President to add a special tax, or a tax for a special purpose?national defense. In view of the fact that few per sons have been able to arrive at an absolute conclu sion on the financial problem submitted by Mr. Roosevelt, some of the more influential leaders of congTess have taken the lead in a plan to And out for themselves. Men like Senator Pat Harrison, the old Mississippi w a r horse, who has been chairman of the senate committee Senator Harrison on finance for years and who once missed being Democratic leader of the senate because President Roose velt wrote a letter to "Dear Alben" Barkley of Kentucky. Senator Har rison has support in the move and I am told that he is determined to get affirmative action, j The Harrison plan calls for some thing new in congressional policy. He would have a joint committee of 12 senators and 12 representatives, j divided equally among two senate and two house committees, to do some spade work on the new budget I ?the budget for the year beginning next July 1. It is a thing never at tempted before and may or may not be a wise course since it smacks of I utilizing a great new power by con gress. But this much can be said: for the first time, if the Harrison plan eventually is adopted, congress will get some information through its own channels instead of accept ing the unsupported statements, the wishful thinking and the planned ex tension of power by the bureaucrats intent upon preserving their agen cies. Annual Federal Budget Once Comparatively Simple Thing In years (one by, the annual fed eral budget was a comparatively simple thing, or as simple as mesaas of figures could be made. Its pro posed items of expense were set down and totaled. The anticipated revenue was calculated. But such is not the case with the current budget, nor any in the last few years since operations of the federal gov ernment have become as general as flies around the barn in midsum mer. Times have changed, indeed. Here is a budget that covers the astound ing total Ot $8,424,191.57#. It Is smaller by $47l,SM.tM than the last one and that redaction was de scribed by Mr. Roosevelt as a first step toward gradual accomplish ment et a balanced budget. But the total of proposed expendi tures shown was circumscribed with a handful of "its." The amount of $8,424,191,570 will remain that way if cuts are made (from last year's totals) in public works, in federal jobs, in CCC camps, in relief and farm benefits and if there are no other increases voted except for a vast program of expansion in the army and navy. On the basis of the budget calcu lation, the government's income will be $5,547,980,000 in the next fiscal year if congress will lay a special tax for paying the cost of a part of the cost of expanding the army and navy. The President said this tax should be made to yield $480,000,000. Thus, on the basis of the budget, the government will be in the red next year, if all things remain as planned to this point, by a total of $2,416,231,000. The President in 1 tends, however, to cut that 'way down by using up some odds and ends of money lying around among the government-owned corporations. By executive order, the President can re*tore to the federal treasury funds loaned by it to the various corporations. He said there was something like $700,000,000 in this pot of gold and that will be used to reduce the deficit further. Infgeis The** Day* Mark Earnett Consideration And there you have it. If all of the things go through as planned and if there is not another request from any office or agency of gov ernment and if there is as much tax collected next year as calculated and if the proposed "national de fense tax" is passed and collected, the government deficit for the fiscal year that ends June 30. 1M1, will be $1,716,231,000. Senator Harrison may be wrong or he may be right in his proposal to have congress do something about understanding this and subsequent budgets; but it must be said there is something about the condition of budgets these days that merits ear nest consideration. There was merited applause from congress for Mr. Roosevelt's decla ration that he was prepared to cur tail spending. He tossed some cold water on that enthusiasm, however, by a statement of policy that he did not favor too much curtailment at one time. Rather, "government support" for the many functions now a part of the federal structure ought "to be tapered off." There was not too much pleasure about that among the real supporters of an economy policy, and there was considerably less when attempts were made to analyze the true results. I have a hunch that mare disap pointment is due. The budget that was sent te congress the ether day, in my opinion, is net going to be nearly all that will be needed in the way at money. Present National Debt Ran* Right Close to Late There is, however, still another "if' to be considered. Mr. Roose velt advised congress that if all con ditions materialized as be expected, the national debt on June 30, 1041, would be $44,938,977,622. That is right close to the line, for the pres l I ent law limits the national debt to $49,000,000,000. It was suggested that the administration was able to stay under the limit only by taking away some of the funds from the in-laws and stepchildren, known as government corporations. That probably is proper, for the govern ment gave each of them money with which to set up housekeeping. It was more important to the adminis tration, however, since it thereby became necessary to ask congress to raise the limit af the national debt?a request that was sure to raise a row. One eaanot sarvey the badge* and an ef Its possibilities and probabili ties without wondering what Has la the fatare. Take a look at this general divi sion of where the federal money la being spent, and I think you win agree there is a critical need for a general revamping of the func tions of the government at Wash ington: National Defense. $1,800,000,000. Work Relief Programs, $1,300,000, 000. Agricultural Programs, $000,000, 000. Public Works and Investments, $1,100,000,000. Interest on the Public Debt, $1,100,000,000. Pensions, Retirements and Assist ances, $1,200,000,000. Regular Operating V nniisas, $1,000,000,000. ? BRUCKART ON THE BUDGET Finds congress badly muddled over the latest estimates. Harrison plans (or congress to get information about the budget through its own channels. Some thing new. Present estimates will leave the government in the red $2,416,231, 000. Condition of budgets these days merits earnest consideration. Possibilities cause wonder as to the future. Sportlight By Crantland Rice The Danger Zone . . . Pay (or College Football Players De bated ... Reasonable Bounds And the Commercial Side. LOS ANGELES.?In the active presence of some 400 famous football coaches and athletic directors from all over the map, I have been trying to get some group to answer one or two questions "Has football moved into the danger zone of proselyting and pay for athletes?" "Has the commercial side grown too impor tant?" Most of them tell you their uni versities give a certain number of athletic scholarships and try to pro vide Jobs?but nothing more. Yet it is a well-known fact that any number of universities or their ath letic associations have from $10,000 to $19,000 to help roundup, corral and capture star high school talent from coast to coast The pursuit of the elusive ball car rier, the crack forward passer car the big linemen emerging frotn school play is the keenest I've ever seen. There is another school of thought that believes the football player doesn't get nearly enough. They tell you he furnishes the battered body for the billion-dollar industry. I've found no coach who believes in paying any football player any form at salary. Yet in one way or another, I know many are paid. It is entirely too complicated for my limited brain. Maybe there isn't any real danger zone. But football is too great a game, it affects directly too many American kids, including the high schools, to move along unguarded. The count goes into the millions. One answer may be the different As it is now the Ivy league has gone into a covey of its own. It rarely leaves the fold. Try to slip some outsider into an Ivy league contest. The Big Ten has done about the same, outside of playing Notre Dame, and members of the Big Six. As one of the Ivy league roaches told me, "We have Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Cornell, Pennsylvania, Dartmouth, Columbia, Brown, Army and Navy. Syracuse and Colgate are O. K. Who else do we need? We can't play everybody." The Pacific conference and the Southwest are together. They play most of their games among themselves. In spite of all this, I have found a strong feeling of distrust when it comes to the matter of proselyting and taking care of star players. In the last few weeks I've cov ered several thousands of square miles through hot football territory. Today almost all territory is football hot I've heard over 40 stories of high school stars offered board, lodging, scholarships, and a fairly substan tial stage. I know part of this is bunk. I also know part of it is true. Almost every high school kid likes to boast of the offers he has had. j Most of them are baloney. But not all of them. A kid likes to brag. I asked one veteran athletic di rector just how* much money he fig- j ured colleges were putting out or giving away for football talent, one way or another. "There are only about 100 colleges or universities," be said, "which can afford to meet the competition. Their funds range from $3,000 a year ; to $30,000 a year. My guess would be around $1,000,000. This isn't so much when you figure 40,000,000 peo ple look at football each fall?that football is easily a billion-dollar game for all concerned?colleges, hotels, railroads, planes, tickets and so on." Ik* Mala fa alt goes back to the colleges and the universities. Ik* directing people are the ones who have turned football into a billion dollar industry. They are the ones who have stood back of all the bowls and stadia. They are the respon sible people. It is something border ing oo s crime to start blaming the coaches. "m give yes one answer that win help some," a prominent athletic di rector said. "Pass a rule that no team can play over two men who live over 300 miles pway tram the university they play for. Don't think we get fooled when we sea teams with eight or ten players on the squad who come from 800 to 1,500 miles away. And there are plenty at these." I still think the main answer has to M on the scholastic or scholar ship side. This is where th* final segregating, will take place. ??Speaking of Sports?? > Coming Year Headache to Ring Industry By ROBERT McSHANE D OXING, like world peace and the St. Louis Browns, is in ? bad way as it pulls itself together and starts in a new year. It survived many a first class beat ing during 1939, but is merely bald ing its asm at present Recovery : is a slow, painful process, skillfully hindered by many of the men who should be nursing it carefully dm- - tag the period of recuperation. ? The truly alarming state af affatrs is evidenced by the fact that Tswy Galea!#, tki bukMPf iphi g LenJ^crewn!* A 'jiseTlt fibs Ihd) is diseearmgiag. Bob ^Pastar^Js btei.MUk'lur1' JJ" Not Oat these boys didnt de serve their ranking. They did. Bn-j discouraging part is that no better fighters have appeared en the scene to replace them. The old year limped oat with a ^ Juicy ring scandal still mwltbd ' a fitting farewell to a year which saw few favorable derelopnuotB. The Harry Thomas fixed fight cane still remains an the boohsjta^hmmt ran GALono affiriale It Aould have been settled out while the story was "hot." Then basing fans would know that rikhb ' gra at a high f^r.e "* Memory Lingers g/ty ImBSt CT>U>tS torn<te*of aaetoarNttes^?*if?!m Boxing promoters have themselws into their |a aaaad padbi ament. They haw arranged aad built up matches which wesw aiaia ly second rate erhihltinaa flay haw foisted upon the public a ae ries of fights which, far want af a better Word, may be fanned horri ble. It fa tnse^ that thew fights haw Id*fakhfa"spJrt!>"^'*w^daifa> m cr aTmi? realfaa tt^jST^Wsw Edward C. Foster, National Baa ing association secretary, faaana the new year. Howewr, ha fa heath champions haw been ehmhsetait far good. One Title Role That was as it should be. No fight er should be allowed to hold mow than one crown. If Ana^^^H was the logical welterweight alj^H pion then it was unfair to ranking contenders in the hra^H weight divisions far him to ba^^H king. The public cant get wry ?? cited owr a featherweight pionship bout if the champion 1 that class also leads the aad welterweight divisions.
The Alamance Gleaner (Graham, N.C.)
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
Jan. 18, 1940, edition 1
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