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The Barnwell Pcople-Smtiiul, BaniwclU S. CL, Thursday, December 26, 1935 v MM- >- IWU' 7 BRISBANE ...THIS WEEK ■vi, c Alas, One Rich Man Only! Gasoline la King All the Ships She Wants Senator jBorah's View Only one 1 solitary American citlsen bad a net income above $5,000,000 last ' year, and they wertfTN 59-cent dollars. The man did not realize it, perhaps, but he will realize it later as Inflation, which is now 9 fact, be-< comes , known to all ,i . Arthur Brisbane Who the last, ' lonesome, remote, unfriendly, melan choly five-million- dollar-a-year-man la may not be told. The' law forbids publishing Income , tax names, but the government tells you there la one and only one. That “last rose’’ of depression’s sum mer must look around him, sad-eyed, mourning over his old coibpanlons, withered and strewn. What is Important today may be nothing tomorrow; what was nothing . yesterday may become all important now. Once man was helpless without bis horse, camel, ox, yak, ass, mule, reindeer, dog sled or tame elephant. -Now, in civilization, .they mean little **whlle Lloyd George tells you, “Oil is the decisive factor In the Abysslnlaa campaign.” Of all the great powers whose attitude Is being canvassed, tha^ of King Gasoline is most important Without oil, Mussolini cannot win his war; with oil, victory Is certain. Japan at the naval conference will consider nothing less than a battle fleet as big as any the United States may build; no 5-5-3 ratio. No American should object to that, if Japan Can afford it It Is not the size of the fleet that counts. Unfor tunate Spanish grandees In charge of the great Armada £oiild testify to that, after they met Elizabeth’s small fleet and big sea captains. Also, there Is the fact that if real war started, above the clouds and under water, every' ftgfitlng nation would hide Its battleship targets out of airplane sight. In safe harbors; many battleships or few would make uo difference. Senator Borah tells over the micro phone what the country needs; Support of the Constitution; a’fight against those who would undermine It. The destruction of monopoly without necessarily enacting new legislation. . An end to crop restriction. Senator Borah says restriction has always failed In depression 1 ever sinc^ the days of Roman emperors. Mr. Lament du Pont receives the chemical and metallurgical engineer ing award for the greatest chemical achievement of the year—the large- acale production of synthetic rubber. If war and blockade cairie, this coun try would he at the mercy of foreign ers for Its rubber supply, an absolute necessity of modern civilization and war. Tbe scientific news, gruesome but important, tells you that the eyes of the dead can supply transparent tis sue from the cornea useful In curing blindness In the Hying. Tissue from dead eyes has been successfully trans planted to Hving eyes, and there Is hope of thus curing certain types of blindness. England has always acted like one “walking on eggs" in dealing wilh Ja- “pan, but she does say that Japan’s prdposed seizure of Chinese territory “harms tbe prestfge of Japan and ham pers the development of friendly future relations between Japan and her friends." Walter C. Teagle. head of Standard Oil of New Jersey, did not make a deal to supply Atussollnl with all his oil for thirty years, casually arranging to flnfin'ce tbe Italian oil market up to $300,000,000. Mr. Teagle says so, and It Is so. But when the wise John P Rockefeller once said. ( "I want tj^see my managers, their, desks cleWnwr iml their feet on, the desks, studying how to make money for Standard nil.” ht had men tike Walter Teagle In mind In Georgetown. British Guiana, a kindly clergyman sprinkled a tiny negro baby Just born, naming him “Roose velt Selassie Caleb.” The hoy’s parents descendants of slaves, say the name was chosen to honor “the greatest man In the world. President Roosevelt.” The little baby may wonder later why his parents dragged In Halle Selassie. In whose empire slavery stjll exists ns a major Industry. An v official representative of Russia said to this writer not long since: “We have nothing to fear from Japan. They waited three years too long.” While Japan was waiting, Russia established a great submarine and air base at Vladivostok, within short striking dis tance of everything Japanese. Since then Japan and Russia have got along peacefully. This country may suddenly wake up to find prob lems more Important than any theory on how to make everybody happy oa abort notice. • Kins P«atur«a Syndicate, tea. WNU ranrlna. News Review of Current v . ■■ __ Events the World <Over President’s Defense of AAA and Canadian Treaty—Italy Offered Peace Plan at Ethiopia’s Expense—Naval Conference Seetns Hopeless. By EDWARD W. PICKARD £ Waatern Nawapapar Union. - r r/ already declared by the League of Na tions to be a victim of Italian rapacity, would be stlii further victimized with the consent of tbe two great powers that dominate the league. Presumably, If Emperor Halle Selassie refuses the terms and decides to continue his fight for the territorial Inviolability guaranteed by tfie league covenant, be will be abandoned to hla fate. Dispatches from Dessye, Ethiopia, said the emperor rejected the Franco- British plali,, asserting;-, “The’ Ethiopian* government cites Tfs previous declarations, notably that of October 8, to show that Ethiopia never wished and does not wish war. But today we are bound to' defend our Soil, which Italy has violated. * ^ “Ethiopia agreed at the time of the^ Paris conference and % the meeting of the League of Nations committee of five to all concessions comparable to its dignity, to avoid Italian aggression, but that aggression has been commit ted. . We cannot submit to force which we Sever provoked, because that would be rewarding violence.’’" Since Mussolini showed a disposi tion to consider the proposals, the oil embargo was postponed to permit ne gotiations. If Jie rejects the plan the embargo would go into effect later and supposedly the war in Africa would continue at least until the rainy sea son next, spring. Georgs N.' Peek W HILE the United States Supreme court was hearing oral arguments In the Boosac Mills case In which the constitutionality of the whole, Agricul tural Adjustment act was attacked and de fended, President Roosevelt was Hn. Chi cago seeking to justify the entire New Deal farm program. He ad dressed the American Farm Bureau federa tion in the Interna tional Amphltheaterat tbe stock yards and was* beard and en thusiastically applaud ed by 'some 25,000 farmers and as many others as could get Into the theater and adjoining wings si^pplled with loud speakers. The farm program, the President said, aimed to “stop the rule/of tooth and claw that threw farmers Vito bank ruptcy or turned them Into rorfs.” As evidence that it is succeeding, he as serted that farm Income “has increased nearly $3(560,000,000 in the past two and a half years." Necessarily Mr. Roosevelt defended the new Canadian trade treaty because only two days before that pact, had been bitterly attacked by his late trade adviser, George N. Peek. “Just as I am confident,” said the President, “that the great masses of city people are fair-minded, so I am sure that the great majority of Ameri can farmers will be fair in their judg ment of the new treaty. “If -the calamity howlers should happen to be right, you have every as- 1 surance fhat Canada and the United States will join in correcting InequalL ties, but I do not believe for a single moment that the calamity howlers are right. ——— “We export more agricultural, .prod ucts to Canada than we have Imported from her. “We shall continue to do so, for the very simple' reason that the United States, with its larger area of agricul tural land, its more varied climate and its vastly greater population, produces far more of most agricultural products, Incluiding animal products, vegetables and fruit, than <loes Canada. “In the case of the few reductions that have been made, quota limitations are set on the amount that may be brought In at the lower rates.” In his analysis of the Canadian agreement, Peek showed that 84 per cent of the taritT concessions which the New Dealers granted to Canada were on agricultural and forestry prod ucts. He also showed that the articles on whl(*h the New Dealers granted tar- HT reductions amounted to 308 million dollars In 1029, whereas Canada in re des valued at only 245 million dollars. After completing his speech and eat ing liincheon with a lot of local nota bles, the President went to South Bend, Ind., where he received an honorary degree from Notre Dame university an<l delivered another address. B EFORE the American Farm Bureau federation closed its convention in Chicago, it adopted a resolution en-J dorsing reciprocal trade treaties. To avoid dissension, the resolution did not mention specifically the recent trade agreement between Canada abd the United States, which lowered the duty on many farm products coming in over the northern border. Another of the 17 resolutions adopt ed at the meeting concerned “federal fiscal policies.” Indicating their un easiness . over the mounting federal deficit, the fanners recommended that the fiscal policies of the government be modified, and that “its revenues shall be increased, and that Its expen ditures shall be decreased, to the end that within the next few years a bal~, ance^hall be attained.” The federation also approved a res olution pledging Itself to defend the Agricultural Adjustment administra tion-act. The meeting offered ub~ seri ous criticism of the act, but asked tMT its admlhTsTration be simplified. The delegates, representing a paid up membership, of ,3U(),(XR) farmers In ai siaies, rv-eiectea IQSWard A. O’Neal of Alabama as president of the federa-. lion for a term of two years. Charles E. Hearst was re-elected vice presi dent and all 15 members of the board 'A directors were reappointed. pROBABLT with slight hope of ao * complishlng -anything worth while, representatives the United States, Great Britain, France and Japan met In London and opened the International naval conference. Italy also was represented, • but only as an observer and listener.- Prime BUnIsjer"Stanley Bald win welcomed the dele gates in a smooth ad dress asking the chief sea powers to lessen sonie^of their demands to “avert the calamity of unrestricted naval competition.” Norman H. Davis offered President Roosevelt’s suggestion of a 20 per cent reduction In existing naval treaty ton nage, or, falling that, a continuance of present fleet limitations. Then arose“Admiral Osaml Nagano, chief of the Japanese delegation, and 1 told the conference that • Japan de manded parity with Great Britain and the United States Instead of the exist ing 5-5-3 ratio and requested a “just and fair agreement on disarmament” After several days of discussion .and debate, the Japanese demand for parity was flatly rejected by the delegates of Admiral Nagano the four other nations, turn had granted concessions on artt.-_ The pessimistic feeling that pre- /tlixa a* ci 111 I of sitilxr ‘ > 1 \ rtiillisxn vailed was attributed to the Japanese demand for parity, the rivalry In the Mediterranean between France and Italy, the war In Ethiopia an ! its sanc tions developments and recent occur rences In north (’Mna. Any on£ of which might wreck the conference. T HE United States*and Great Brit ain, In the conference at Washing ton, agreed upon a plan that is ex pected to result in regular air mail and passenger transportation across ’ the Atlantic by- the summer of 1937. Ne gotiations were under way for the northern route by way of Canada, New-\ foundland, and Irish Free State to England, and the southern route from Porto Rico and American ports to England. The northern route Is more practica ble than the southern route because of the shorter distance, but is less prac ticable In winter because flights would be undertaken under less favorable conditions. r Under the agreement experimental flights will begin next summer. When regular service is inaugurated, accord ing to the agreement, four round trips will be made each week. rOHN L from j TALY is being punished for starting l the war against Ethiopia, and will -e well paid Jor stopping 1L That in a uutshell is the status at this writing. Great Britain and France reached an agreement as to the offer to be made to Mussolini before the imposition of an ell embargo, set for December 12. This plan for peace, drawn up by Brit ish ^ Foreign Secretary Sir Samuel Hoare and Pr^mlei Laval, waa based on the proposal that Italy ahould re tain part of tbe territory already con quered in Ethiopia, chiefly In north western Tigre province, including autn, and that the Italian Somaliland border should be rectified. In return,' Ethiopia would be given either tn Eritrea or French territory. Thus - ' A- j,- +i ' i*hr: . ■ • niij , H. HOEPPEL, congressman California, and hie son, Charles, were found guilty by a jury in the District of Columhia Stijircuie court of conspiring to sell an. appoiut- nient' to West Point for $1,000. They were released on bail pending motion for a new trial. Hoeppel was elected to congress in the Roosevelt landslide of 1932 from the Seventeenth Califor nia district, and was re-elected in 1934. Be Is fifty-four years old; his son ia twenty-one. QEORGE L. BERRY, lndustrial«co- ^ ordinator, found great difficulty in mustering his proposed Industrial coun cil, In which many great Industrial groups had refused to participate. The Initial session of his conference bfoke up In disorder amjd shouts of “liar and threatened fist fights. Further lugs were postponed for a week or and most of the delegates went/Home, declaring they wanted nothing to do with a permanent council which might Adowa but,, not the sacred city of Ak-_ Jead to further government interfer- ’llar” 'if r do- in more O ence with private bus! unions aftood by Beri gram would aid hour week and all Industry. The labor hoping his pre plans for a 30- Ucenslng of J OHN J. LEWIS, president of tlie United Mine Workers and head at tMP‘*reber committee on Industrial cr- ganlzation that Is aeekifag'lb^gain con trol of the American Federation of La bor, Invited President William -Gfben of the federation to resign and accept chairmanship of the committee. In a letter to Lewis, Green declared that he never had associated himself with any minority seeking to split the A. F. of L., and never $ould do so. He mildly rebuked the insurgents by saying that he himself ‘‘In a spirit of good sports manship took It on the chin” whenever he had found himself outvoted In the A. F. of L. convention. DMINISTRATION officials state **-that President Roosevelt will ask’ the new congress for a $100.90(0.000 ap propriation as the Initial fund to launch the federal social security pro gram going lhto u effect January 1. The fund is to be distributed among the states for the needy old aged, In the form of pensions, for maternity and child welfare, and to aid’ the blind. State commissioners and public wel fare directors were sumniohed to Washington by the social security hoard to discuss formulation of regula tions and procedure. POLITICIANS, especially Republicans * were greatly Interested in a meeting In Washington between former Vice President Charles Curtis and / Senator Borah, and its possible Implications. Curtis Insisted to the press that he is stjll advocating-the nomination of Gov. Alf Landon of Kansas for the Presi dency, but the Idaho senator is himself a leadfng possibility for that honor. Curtis had recently had a conference with Landon In Topeka, but he said there was no connection between fhat and his call on Borah.. The ex-Vice President said of the nomination: > “I have no second choice, but a lot depends on what happens at the convention. I have the highest regard for tpe senator. I’m for Landon, who Is well equipped to run, after giving us an economic administration In Kan sas—something we need here in Wash ington more now than evjgribefore." C ARLOS MENDIETA resigned as presjdent of Cuhq because of a fierce quarrel in the government over procedure for the election of a con stitutional president. Mendieta had held the office for two years.- Secre tary of State Barnet took over the office and reappointed all members of the cabinet, and preparations for the election went ahead.’ C ONTINUOUS rioting in Cairo, di rected against British 'control of Egypt, attacks on English soldiers and smashing of street cars and shop win dows, forced Premier Nessim Pasha and his cabinet to decide' to resign. The rioters de- manded the restora tion of the constitu tion of 1923 and thje ministers pleaded with Sir Miles Lrtmpson, British high commis sioner, to give his con sent. He Was obdurate in ’‘fiTs J refusal until King Fuad. Ne Ss j m Pasha an nounced’ that he would quit, but yield ed then to avoid disorders similar to those of 1919. Therefore, with the consent of Great Britain, King Fuad signed a royal de cree restoring constitutional govern ment, and tlie cabinet members with drew their resignations. The consti tution^ thus restored provides for a senate and chamber of deputies and takeshcontrol of Egypt’s internal affairs conriiretely out of British hands. It does not, however, affect Britain’s con trol of Egyptian foreign affairs, nor the British military protectorate. N ORTH CHINA autonomists, sup ported by the Japanese armies, evidently are too much for the' Nan king goveriflfient, of which Chiang Kal- Shek has now become the premier. The provinces of Hopei and Chahar, with a population of 30,000.000 or more, have been granted virtual self-rule under a political council. The central govern ment made only three stipulations— that Nanking would continue to control the new state’s foreign affairs, finan cial, military and Judiciary matjers; that all appointments would he made by Nanking, and that there would be po actual independence for the area. No machinery was provided to pre vent tbe new council from-dolng exact' Tv as it pleased-under Japanese protec tion and guidance. n it UNO HAUPTMANN, convicted of •tJ ktdnapt.tg and murdering the f/fwK borgh baby, lost almost his last chance of escaping the electric chair Vihen the Supreme court refused to. review his case. The decision was made through the single word "Denied." Hauptmann’s atton.e^s had an nounced previously that, In the event a review was refused, they would seek a new trial If new evidence could be found and would appeal for a commu tation of the death sen tenge, to life Im prisonment-' ^ : Washington! Digest Jik National Topics Interpreted By WILLIAM BRUCKART ^ONiSUMERS who buy potatoes In regular retail establishments are not liable to a fine as hl^h as $1,000 the spuds are grown and marketed in violation of the poteto control act. Only the first purchaser of unstamped potatoes ia liable. This Is the ruling of the AAA, and the act may he amended later tn include this pro vision. Tlie bureau uf Internal revenue rego- jations require that the producer can- ^cei the at a mbs, after they are attached, by writing liy ink or indelible pencil or by stamplmrhls Initial* and rh*» d«‘<' . Washington.—A politician without problem confronting him is virtuall^ji unknown. Whether^ Political he be a big shot in Problenu political life or Just a ward feeler, his life is constantly beset with diffi culties. Those difficulties'always have and always will force him to wiggle and squirm and sprout additional gray hairs. * \ The newest problem worrying politi cians is t$ie Townsend old age pension proposal. Promoters of that fantastic scheme are gaining such a headway that even James A. Farley, postmaster gendt'al, chalrrpnn of the Democratic national committee and chairman of the New York state Democratic com mittee, is currently reported to be de veloping frowns on his otherwise smil ing face. When Mr. Farley begins to get worried, there Is cause, indeed, for all of the ; other politicians, big and little, to-get worried. The Republicans also are concwned about the Townsend plan. But It is not quite as important to the Republicans as it is. to the' Democrats to take a stand on the Townsend plan because the Democrats are In consol of the national admlri- Istratjcn and obviously they are’dn the defensive. The battle being pressed by Mr. Townsend and his satellites is no small concern. , Impossible as It Is of opera tion; doomed to ultimate failure as such a scheme must definitely be, it continued to expand In its scopfc of po- lltlcal influence and has, arrived at_the point where It constitutes a power -that must be reckoned with by all. I am convinced that anyone who will analyze the Townsend plan cannot help arriving at the conclusion that It Is comparable to the fantasy of the “Mississippi bubble.” When the Missis sippi bubble broke, not thousands but millions were disillusioned, if not ut terly destroyed, and their economic future, so glowingly painted, was com pletely wrecked. • • • The Townsend plan which contem plates payment of two hundred dollars per month to the in- , Townsend -digent is one of those Plan things that develops Invariably in periods of economic distress. It is distinctly a product of hard-times. v . When people are out of wojk and without resources; when they are suf fering, they are always prey to any and all argument offering them relief. Tlie conditions exact even a greater toll, a toll leading to crime. l)nly a few day» ago the chief of the secret servjce, W. H. Moran, told me that It was a characteristic of hard times that counterfeiters of currency were more active. Idle hands will find something to do' and the clever crook will take advantage of the situation. While every one who has talked with Doctor Townsend recognizes his sincerity, his earnest desire to accomplish relief for the aged an(l indigent population, I be lieve it is an Indisputable fact that Doctor Townsend's plan would not get to first base except for the fact that this country now has millions of citi zens who are almost If not quite with out food. " The point I am^ trying to make Is that Doctor Townsend’s scheme. Idle dream that It Is, has been put forward at one of the few times in this nation's history when tt is posstble to amass a following of political importance. It is only in times such as these that people would pay attention to It. It will die down and his organization will crumble sometime in the future but this will not happen, until it has caused plenty of grief, until it has wrecked political fortunes of countless scores of men and women who guess .wrong and until probably it has pro duced ^.burden of taxation upon this nation the like of which never has been seen before. In the forthcoming campaign, I be lieve we will see numerous political candidated, otherwise 8oi|nd In their thinktmfr afflrm the vaildity oT the Townsend plan. They will commit themselves to Us support because po litical maneuvers will force them Into that position. Some of theny probably "more than' we now Jmaglne, will be elected to congress and they will bring a gigantic headache to Uncle Sam who must foot the bill Townsend plan supporters In all of their preachments have constetently talked of their proposition from Its behuteous side. It is susceptible of thak because It Is easy to point out what ft blessing it would be to have each ageia person receive a monthly check of tWo hundred dollars from the government. ' / But there is another side to the pic ture. * It Is basic. Where will the gov ernment get the money? Townsend spokesmen have figured out a vision ary taxation scheme to raise the amount of money required but the thing they do not discuss Is the funda mental fact that ^y their taxation scheme they will depreciate our na tional currency and will load upon, those who are willing to work^snch a* burden of taxation that soon there will be a clamor from three out of four of the population for some kind of a government payment The end then would be obvious because after all in government as such produces nothing. All that it pays out must be takeff from those who produce. • • " In adverting to the Townsend plan • as I have done, I have attempted to set forth In a man- Another per what I believe to Problem be one of the great est dangers of the present ’’day, namely, the absence of clear thinking. In the Townsend plan, as In jnany other problems that con front the nation at the moment, Indi- V vlduals seem prone to jump’ at conclu sions without analyzing what condi tions actually are and without consld- * eringwhat the ultimate effect would bar' ..It seems worth white to consider fm- ' other national problem which, though of an economic nature and less sensa tional In Its outward appearance, is nevertheless -very real. This problem concerns opr transportation system. Shortly after President Roosevelt took office we were deluged with argu ment that amounted to propaganda fa voring government ownership of the. railroads. There was a reaction against this Idea. The reaction was so strong that few politicians dared to unloose their demagogery in favor of government ownership. Yet, It is perfectly evident that those who fa.vof perpetuating private enterprise which is always more efficient and less waste ful than any government are In dan ger, of being lulled to sleep. Crack pots and misguided theorists In great v . numbers still favor government own ership ot the railroads. They are still working. v The government ownership problem is not dead. It is only con cealed from the eyes of most of us for the time-* being. Certain developments of the past sev eral months confirm the statement have just madwt Taken sifigiy, these developments appear Insignificant. Collectively, they are very important. I have heard it charged that govern ment ownership advocates have a well- laid plan to wreck private ownership In the rail Industry; This charge goes further. It asserts that those who seek to destroy our profit system are pro ceeding, piecemeal, to load a burden of charges upon the railroads str-that. in the end it will lie a physical impos sibility for the railroad corporations to earn a profit. Indeed, it is alleged that the scheme contemplates eventual* burdening of tlie rail lines to the ex tent where they cannot make their ex penses. » • • Obviously, If that end wert attained, bankruptcy would follow. Then, there v ' . would he no alterpa- Means tlve hut legislative Bankruptcy action Apiacing the rajlroads in govern ment ownership. Our wartime experi ence ought to be sufficient to demon strate how the costs mount when the government operates the.railroads. It means more taxes on every one of us who has income whether it be large or . small. But to get back to the developments, mentioned earlier. Whether there ex ists an actual plan to drive the rail- - roads into bankruptcy or not, the de velopments certainly are subject to that surmise. One of the items of ex pense, a new burden of cost that 14 proposed to be loaded on the railroads. Is the rail pension law. I bare seen some statistical calculations which were convincing to me at least that the charges proposed to be levied upon the railroads by the law will not work out In ithe manner their proponents claim. The hill would assess each rail corporation 3^ per cent of Its pay roll and each worker would contribute a proportionate amount of his salary toward his pension when he retires. Like the Townsend plan, no one cap argue against the fine spirit actuating a move to protect the retired workers. But to go behind the figures at the start one finds certain astonishing facts. Almost any way, almost any method, one aiea to calculate this cost, forces the conclusion that after eight or ten years the' pension system will have expanded to such an extent that the railroads will be carrying an an- mmt ch«rge'tm thetr payroTT of not per cent but approximately 15 per cent. I think It goes without saying that no Industry can bear such a tax. In addition to the pension proposi tion, labor unions, aided by^heir cats’- paws In congress have kept up a steady machine gun fire, demanding first one thing and then another froip the car riers. For instance, one of the current demands—and it Is likely to succeed In some form—is the movement for shorter hours for practically the en tire list of railroad employees. Of course, the railroads' cannot Justify working their employees longer than eight hours except in au emergency. It Is possible that a seven-hour day might be practiced. But even a seven- hour day would mean that the rail roads must add to their operating costs, and any item added to operating costs reduces the chance of the cor porations tor an even, break between income and outgo. There are a number of other such demands or movements under way or In the offing. Each one means s a new burden, a new tax sn the railroads. • WMUrn N*vap*p«r Union. ^Vjh'