Indianapolis Times, Indianapolis, Marion County, 20 February 1940 — Page 12

PAGE 12 _

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TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 1940

HONEST MISSY : MESS MARGUERITE LEHAND, private secretary to President Roosevelt, is the most honest third-termer we've heard of to date. A dispatch quotes “Missy” as hoping the boss will run again—“because she likes her job.” We could name a lot of other third-termers whose reason is the same. But not another one who will admit it.

AGAIN, TAX-EXEMPTS NO: 1 tax recommendation of Glenn Frank's Republican program committee: “Elimination of all tax exemptions of future issues of Federal, state: and municipal securities.” President Roosevelt made the same retommendation more than a year ago. The Ways and Means Committee in Congress held a hearing—and then nothing more happened. In fact, every President since Woodrow Wilson, every Secretary of the Treasury since Carter Glass, has pointed out the inconsistency of levying a steeply graduated tax and at the same time continuing to sell tax-exempt bonds to wealthy investors who want to escape high taxes. But successive Congresses, Republican and Deinoersiic, have failed to act. In 1934, according to a Treasury Sindy, 33 individuals who reported less than $5000 of net income actually received tax-exempt interest ranging in amount from $100,000 to $1,000,000. A married person with no dependents, earning $5000 a year, pays a Federal income tax of $80. That's not much for a person fortunate enough to have a $5000 salary. But what shall we say of an income-tax system which collects exactly the same amount from another person who has $5000 in taxable income and $1,000,000 more: in non-taxable income? Obviously we can’t say that the system is based on the principle of ability to pay. :

® x = = x = UR tax system definitely encourages the rich to play safe. It'is a matter of arithmetic that—considering Federal income taxes alone—a man with a $100,000 income can get a larger net return on a 3 per cent Government bond than on a 7 per cent private investment; a man with a million-dollar income can do better with a § per cent taxexempt than with a private risk that yields 12 per cent. And when state income taxes are added, the margin is even greater. If he resides in.New York State, the million-a-year man has to make more than 16 per cent profit on a private risk to realize as large a net as he can get ¢ on 3 ber cent exempt bonds. :

Since men of wealth a are Sally adept at arithmetic and notoriously reluctant to throw their money away, enterprises which might provide jobs for the idle go begging for “capital. The rich investor can take a free, safe ride on the never-ending stream of tax-exempts issued by Federal, state, county and city governments. But the fellow who can’t find a job in private business because of the lack of investments therein has no such comfortable alternative. He has to go on WPA or relief. :

We're glad Mr. Frank’s committee has recommended abolition of tax-exempts, just as we were glad when Mr. Roosevelt proposed the same reform. But we'd feel greater hope if the Republicans and Democrats in Congress showed more than an academic interest.

STATE “TARIFFS” AND CONGRESS

ARKANSAS, says the U. S. Supreme Court, must stop trying to collect a state tax on gasoline in the tanks of busses that come across the state line.

constitutional attempt to- impede the flow of interstate commerce.

The decision was by a divided Court, with three Naw Deal justices—Black, Frankfurter and Douglas—dissenting. Another New Deal justice, Reed, sided with the majority. It is important because it is the reconstituted Court's first recognition of the growing evil of state barriers to national commerce. Even the dissenting justices took notice of the dangerous legislative trend. They disagreed with + the majority as to whether the Temedy, lies in judicial rulings. “Spasmodic and unrelated inslaricis of litigation,” said Justice Black’s dissent, “cannot afford an adequate basis for the creation of integrated national rules which alone can afford that full protection for interstate commerce intended by the Constitution. We would, therefore, leave the questions raised by the Arkansas tax for consideration of Congress in a nation-wide survey of the constantly increasing barriers to trade among the states.”

How badly remedial action is needed is indicated by | . a partial survey just reported by the Commerce Depart-

ment. A study of the statutes of nine states—New York,

New Jersey, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Virginia, Ne-

+ braska, Kentucky, Louisiana and Mississippi-—revealed 650 laws and regulations which block the free flow of commerce. Few of these could, like the Arkansas gas tax, be construed by the Court as unconstitutional. y

But, as Justice Black suggests, the constitutional re-

sponsibility of protecting national free trade rests primarily with Congress. And the failure of Congress to lay down the rules is encouraging state Legislatures to nibble away at the economic nity of these United States: :

HOW TO SAVE LONDON

TEPHEN FOTHERGILL of Eondon, a conscientious ob . jector to military service, called before a tribunal to

show cause why he should not be conscripted, said: “I would allow the German army to march into. London, and instead of greeting them with machine guns 1 would give them cups of tea. That would completsly demoralize them,” Even better, give e them Sp ‘of that stuff the English call Soffss, Boys that ‘Would shatter r them, cid

ty, 8 cents a copy; deliv-

The tax is an un-

- started everybody ta

Fair Enough —

By Westbrook Pegler

Ah! Being a Naturalist Sure Is Fun: i

But You Know How It Is, Folks—

You Have to Have a Knack for It.| EW YORK, Feb, 20.—Nothing could be farther|

from my intention “than to doubt the word of such men as John Kieran, the professional know-it-all of the radio and J. Otis Swift, who writes quiet things about the intimate affairs of little birds and squirrels. I just envy them,. that is all.

Mr. Kieran knows the calls of all the: birds, and} .

when he goes out golfing he is always stopping and saying, “well, a double-breasted junco; it’s early for

them,” or “last week I discovered a nest of Carolina due-bills. You seldom see them this far North.”

He knows the names of all the flowers, too, and|

even the weeds; and I have thought that if he were to grow a beard and hair down over his shoulders and pick out a bench in some park the sparrows and pigeons would come and ‘pick. birdseed out of his lips. Like that man in Paris, in that park across, you know that street that runs past the Continental and the:Meurice. The birds have to trust you. You|

‘have to have a certain way.

” ® 8 R. SWIFT is that way, too. Mr. Swift, but I have read his pk

I have never met

, boy and

man, back down the years, for years and years. You|

know what he does, even? ‘He even watches weedseeds to see what they do, in the dead of winter.

Like the other day when he heard a ‘male goldfinch :

exclaim, “per-chick-o-rie,” as it tore some thistleheads to pieces, spilling’ some of the seeds on the

snow. So he watched the wind roll them along until they dropped down a deep hole melted around the stem of a weed where the spring rains will hatch them into more thistles. Thus life goes on. I have never met him, but his son was cable editor on the night side of the U. P, back down the years, and the gift has skipped anyway one generation. Young Otis knew birds only by general classification, such as chickens, parrots, pigeons and little birds. The various weeds were just hay to

him. 1t would be different if I didn't care. But 1 have tried and tried. . A friend up the road had so many deer around

eating his apples that he would heave rocks at them|

and yell, “amscray, umsbay.” And they would - duck around the woodpile and come back for more apples. I even bought some store apple and a big lick of salt, but the apples got frozen and covered with snow,

and ‘the deer never pai any of this hospitality any

mind. s » » NE day I saw some scarlet runners scratching around in the snow, 0 I got a streamlined fender and filled it up with the regular blue-plate special; including sunflower seed and the little kind that; you feed canaries. There hasn't been a bird around since. If I watch a weed-seed it sulks. “You can go crazy watching weed-seeds. Once I got a sheep. I got a female because they say the females are gentle and come arunning if you call them. But mine was a dog-killer. She would lower her head, her yellow eyes glaring, her lips curled back from her sharp fangs in a menacing snarl or creep out on an oyerhanging limb, lashing her tail until the dog was safe. She attacked people, too. I gave her to a farmer, and he shot her in self-defense, just as she was crouching. to sprihg. Johnny Kieran or Mr. Swift probably would have made a. house, sheep out

of her.

‘You have to be the type. \

Inside dopo

What They'll : Do Around Here When (And IF) M-Day Arrives.

VERY once in a while the folks around here get to talking about what will happen if war comes, etc, etc. Well, we're ready to go ‘em one better. we'll tell you a few of the things the Government

has in mind oY the moment at Bs: affects Indianap-

olis.

Biggest job to the" Government, il ‘seems, is recruiting. So they've gotten hold of the files of clubs

what-not and they have one office all tagged to set up recruiting business in if and when. * ° Next, they're making a survey right now to determine which radio station: has the most listeners. When they figure that: out -(if they do) they'll tag that one for the propaganda speeches, the martial music, etc, etc. They've even gotten-to the point of writing down notes about a bond-selling campaign and who will be the best - customers, ad hor-

.rendum,

They put eight reserve officers through their paces at Ft. Ben Harrison studying all the possible administrative phases in readiness for “M-Day.” One of the eight is an Indianapolis man, a North Sider. » » 2 THE R. EARL PETERS backers have hatched up a nice idea to run their favorite Ft. Wayne citizen for Governor and at the same time sidestep that|® Hatch bill thing. The trick is for Mr. Peters to hand his resignation to his superior In Washington to put in his pocket, take a 60-day furlough he hiss coming, and then jump into the race. If -the G. O. P. starts to holler “Hatch,” the superior oily “simply jerk out the resignation: in great indignation, If not, Earl would have everything under control. The trick of course is to hypnotize the Republicans.

® s =

B. EDWIN SACKETT, Mr. J. Edgar Hoover's charge d’affairs locally, has to bring his young son a toy every time he makes a trip. . . . It. was all on the up-and-up until he was aphid Bi playing with a model coast artillery gun. e blush ing G-man said he was just trying to see if it worked. 1.d. (Nish) Dienhart, the Airport boss, hit a new oratorical high when, lauding Connie Connaughton, the flying

field restauranteur, he attributed all the Airport ad-| -

vances ately to Connie's “altitude sandwiches. ”

A Woman’ S Viewpoint

By Mrs. Walter Ferguson

GET a kick out of life’ but my husband doesn’t - seem to have mych fun. I can’t understand it. Do you suppose it’s something to do with one’s personality, or have men lost the, art of play?” The woman who flung that conversational ball into the group has a charnfing husband, and as she’s the sort of ‘person it ought to be fun to lve with, it g about what strange beings men are anyway, and right then and there we decided

| on the two major reasons for their unhappy condition:

They use their games and sports as devices for gambling; and they haven't learned how to window-shop. Nobody’ said anything abou

and one which he generally enjoys. He’s.done himself out of Fw sport by crea tion. - A person is obliged to travel so far nowadays to

-| find some place to cast a fly that if he holds down a || job he simply can’t indulge the pastime. Only -the| | unemployed individual has the leisure to fish, -and. he ¥

can’t afford a license. - Certain of our more: well-to-do citizens may “wade trout streams or chase tarpon during their annual

of the “fittest” gaged. Some men jumped out high |"windows; some men cringed in fear;

ting his proud urban civiliza- Fe

The Hoosier Forum

l wholly disagree with what you say, but will defend tothe death your right to say it.—Voltaire,

c 8

SUGGESTS SAGE OF ATTICA MOVE TO GERMANY By R. C.. Ridge, Crawfordsville, Ind.

Does the sage of Attica foally mean all the things he ‘says concerning us of WPA or is he just a fellow who' enjoys belly-aching?:

And if so, why should he continue?

From . reading his cries in the

newspaper I am of the belief that he is opposed to the laws of the ‘Government and everybody else but himself.

own United States, its laws and the people here, I would pull stakes and pitch my tent. in Germany so I would be close to the No. 1 bellyacher of the world. . .. : zg #8 CLAIMS MOST BUSINESS LEADERS SPURNED HELP :

‘By Veice in the Crowd : ‘A fellow: wonders what “Subscriber” is trying to say when he. states that the “fittest were on their knees

in the early Thirties begging from the politicians.”

It can be said that by far. most were not so en-

but let it be said of-America that most men are building anew right

‘and organizations ‘and employment -agencies - and {rom the ‘ashes of the great con-

flagration of 1929. It is- these men that: deserve respect and they are not getting it. We must reach un-

‘derstanding to avoid disaster.

"Some business men did go to Washington on their knees.. Most of cour real business leaders and mil-

' lions. of ‘our .small ones did not go.

Don’t forget that the farm groups were thers with the labor group and the Legion-and the sellers of panaceas—men who knew that any temporary benefits they received would be paid for later by shaking the pennies out of your baby’s bank. The pressure groups put over their “shot in the arm” inflation, but don’t get the idea that they represen more than small minorities of ur people. The real American peoviv) of all classes have yet to get on their knees to anyone, and the time is perhaps approaching when others may bow to them. Jima ie 28 SEES .AIR BEFOULED BY SMOKERS AND DRINKERS

“| By Lloyd Hazlett

There are still a few cranks and

old fogies left in this progressive, smart Twentieth. Century. ‘The

writer unfortunately is one. He is

‘past 21, having been born in’ the

lf I were as dissatis- | fied with the Government of our

|cialists ‘of doing—theorizing,

(Times readers are invited to express their views in . these : columns, religious controversies excluded. Make \ your letters short, so all can have a chance. Letters must be signed, but names will be withheld on request):

Borse-snd-buaey age, but, of course, not a man because he doesn’t smoke, drink intoxicating liquor or even run around romancing with another man’s wife or daughter. He certainly is a fogie because he is frue to his own wife and is satisfied in trying to make his bread and butter honestly and rear: his family in a Christian. manner.

A few evenings.’ ago ‘this crank

fane, cigaret, pipe or cigar smoking men, besidés. women, girls and two children. The air becoming charged with smoke (possibly liquor) and carbon dioxide gas, he lowered a window to let in a-little of the only untaxed and free substance left for man~fresh air. In less than a moment one “he” man sitting behind him got up in-disgust and expressed himself so as he moved forward to inhale the sweet, tobacco-scented air. The writer fmagines colds and

‘other infectious: diseases are most

readily transmitted in poorly ventilated buildings, theaters, etc. The hext time you see a fellow gasping and trying to escape this Twentieth ‘Century ke-filled, liquor-charged air by raising a window, look again, size him up. It may be your old fogie, crank and the writer.

: » 2 2 DOUBTS THEORIZING WILL BRING RECOVERY By Claude Braddick, Kokomo, Ind. Those who contend that business,

if = left alone and . untrammeled,

would quickly allay our distress, solve our economic problems and absorb our unemployed, are doing exactly. what they accuse the So. nN=| dulging ‘in wishful For business was certainly being left untrammeled when, our economic distress grew. critical, and when the army of unemployed. grew ta unmanageable proportions.: : It wasn’t-the New Deal, remember, that produced this. wretched

army. It was zather the wretched

Side Glances—By Galbraith

bout: fishing, which is the|. . finest relaxation’ for the. hard-working male animal,|.

vacations, but the effort of going and getting home} -§

again is enough to wreck both their physical beings and their pocketbooks. For this reason perhaps fewer ‘men than ever bait

a fishhook. Instead they take to such games as golf, |.

bridge and tennis. Or they attend prize fights, foot-

ball games and other mass contests, and a large num- |

ber gamble on the outcome. Part of the herve strain so apparent among us these days is Sys. to 9 mounting gambling passion, which Senge us'on And what a pity that men scorn window 0 dg

| It's one of the pleasantest. of diversions ahd doesn’t | cost a cent. t

Be YA Ed

rode a erowded bus filled with pro-|

army that ‘made the New Deal possible if not indeed inevitable. The

can ever precede its cause. Voice in the Crowd may be wrong, a little too sure of his ground. But one thing ‘at least is certain. His confident utterances are a splendid

‘| antidote for the vile and un-Amer-’

ican defeatism that is being so widely preached. And that, in my opinfon, “covereth a multitude of sins.” 8" =»

CLAIMS COMMUNISTS

CAN'T BE AMERICANS By Edward F. Maddox The significant thing, which.a lot of intelligent Americans seem to fail to understand, is that a few Communists in the Youth Congress, or any other organization, are exactly like rotten apples or potatoes in a barrel—if not removed ;they will spoil the whole thing. Communists: are Eling to wreck our whole political, moral, ethical and economic system. They are bold, unscrupulous and treacherous.- To say that they have a right to call themselves Communists is all right, but they have no right

zens: ‘They are alien agents. The fact that Communists always work on the youth of the land is a sure indication that they will be found in all youth movements wherever they can muscle in. So no greater service to our American youth can be ‘done than to drive the Reds out of all k youth organizations. “ive ” ”» .

FORECASTS PICKUP IN E CANDIDACY

By W. H. Brennen If Judge Emmert goes out for the school vote, it’s going to cause the politicians to keep close tab on his quick DiSkup, McNutt made his big gains in his talks to teacher conventions. Now Emmert goes out for free school books and it lays down a lesson or warning for politicians to look to the people for votes and not to the politcal bosses. Emmert’s change of style came in good time and he may be tipped off about the textbook people going into a textbook study to clear up an error of long standing. textbook business - must ‘ be figured quite. a spell in advance. ‘And, this time,

causing so: much grief.

ents of school children to take the schools ‘a little more seriously and put democracy and Americanism into the schools. ‘and ‘less -about things no one but those in favor of isms sanction. . - Judge’ Emmert is ‘on the right road now and you.will see a quick pickup in’ his standing as a candidate.

SPRING By VERNE S. MOORE How subtly does the skillful tailor, Spring Thread warp into the faded woof again As magic shuttles’ oscillations bring Upthrusted green across the earth. Swift rain And Waring sun, his deft design-

The Patren fields with every wind that. blows, ‘And when at last gay floral trimmings gr

Then Spring a busheled Winter's

tattered clothes.

ts strings Tops ie Jd Wa Winter's harsh and with h ‘vibrant. changing rhapscfiy| 3 that: brings

From swollén brooks and teathered| iin throats, soft tunes '

lagoons,

DAILY THOUGHT For the-poor shall never cease

i out of the land: therefore I com- . mand thee, saying, Thou shalt wide nin thy. | to thy’

open thine hand brother, to Ny y he Sa ut

army was here first, and no effect

to ‘call ‘themselves American citi-|

must be made to please instead of | The time has come for the par- bao

The talors wr working hours are hard| Bit sal me itt his harp and froin

ry ti Se 1

Gen. Johnson | Says—

Nations That Could and Should Have Aided Finland With Arms Did Not

Do So and Now It May Be Too Late. ~

ASHINGTON, Feb. 20.—It is too early to judge whether the present sustained Russian assault on the Mannerheim Line has any chance for a real break-through, or is merely poking a pocket in those defenses which the Finns can convert into a trap by pinching it off froth the flanks.

If we knew more about the remaining Finnish reserves of troops and munitions, we could risk a guess. In a real break-through; the defenders must

‘| either retreat to new rearward positions or risk being

rolled up from the center toward both flanks. If the Meannerheim Line is pierced, the Finns could possibly, still put up at least a delayed action behind it. On the other hand, an attacking army can’t pere mit a pocket or salient which doesn’t break-through to become too deep and narrow—even if it can still advance. The risk of being pinched off is too great. Even if it maintains the offensive, it must pause and attack the shoulders of the salient to widen it or fry to make another salient nearby and then attempt to pinch off the resulting pocket in the defenders’ line. ” ITHER alternative tka tore. For these reasons, one could guess that the Finns should get a short breathing spell very soon, and thus have a new chance unless, as seems probable, they are too exe hausted to make use of it. Even if they retain enough strength thus to keep up the fight against overwhelming odds, it is almost a certainty that they could not, in the end, avoid defeat, unless help comes. “Help” in this sense doesn’t ‘mean such gestures in granting credits and loans as ‘are being debated in Congress. There has never bean a time since the Russian campaign began when

| anything this country could have done would have

materially affected the present result. The only thing that can save the Finns now, or

could at any time have saved them, is a fully.

equipped, organized and trained expeditionary force of at least two army corps—50,000 to 60,000 men with a proper complement of fighting planes—a't least 1000, s ” os N the present temper of the American people, ‘we never would have sent such a force if we could and we couldn’t have done so if we would. We haven't got them. In our whole Army we haven't even two fully manned and equipped divisions of the necessary type—not half the minimum force necessary to save the Finns. As for Europe, it is clear now that the aid Finland needs is never going to be given to her by any nation unless_it feels that its own security is imme diately and very dangerously threatened. .Both.the Allies and all the Scandinavian countries are so threatened in greater or less degree. They apparently have slipped Finland a little bootleg aid through some blind-pig entrance—as we propose to do but, in the

only kind of help that will do the trick, they have not

‘acted and now it is getting perilously close to being too late to help. I- think this example of what European nations who are able to help—as we are not—are willing to do to aid a valiant country, standing alone between themselves and imminent war, should be an object lesson to those among their own citizens who are so hot to have us in charge of this conflict regardless, Of course, what they do is their business—not ours, But, by the same token, keeping out of Europe: is our business—not, theirs.

Garner i in linois

By Bruce Catton

Cactus Jack Expecis a kins but Entered Primary to Keep His Word,

ASHINGTON, Feb. 20.—The Garner strategists went into the Illinois primary with Sher eyes wide open. They knew when they filed Garner’s name as - a candidate, that in a straight Garner-Roosevelt race in Illinois the winner will just naturally be Roose velt. It simply can’t be figured any other way. ; No candidate ordinarily likes to start his csmraien by taking a licking, - - Nevertheless, the Garner people filed—after Roose= velt’s name had already been put in. They had two reasons. First, it had been announced that Garner would enter any state contest where any local group in vited him. He got an invite in Illinois and he wasn't going to run out on his first scrap—and have it said. he was looking for. set-ups.” Second, the Garner people have a hunch F.D.R. n, name may not stay on that ballot. It may get ruled off by the state authorities, on the ground that he did’ not formally consent to its entry. Or ... he might withdraw it. (He has until Feb. 24.) ; Daily ” 8 » Economic ‘Bump’ Forecast }

Economists in the Commerce Department figure business is going to take a sharp bump sometime in the near future. They don’t know how far it will fall or how soon it will bounce back up; have a hunch that it will come back pretty soon on account of war« born expansion of export trade. Meanwhile, here’s the way they figure it: The fall boom was pretty much an inventory boot, Inventories are still piling up, though new orders are

falling off. The index of industrial production is

dropping fast. Prices of industrial raw materials, which: went up sharply when the war started, have been going down since mid-December. Cessation of] inventory accumulation will ‘mean- a Sti ‘business drop. Nevertheless, they. don’t see the situation as parallel to 198%, When there was a crash after an ventory)

For one thing, they Say, ‘there Kas n 3 eral rise in wage rates, as there was during the 1936-3 hoom; on the contrary, wage costs per have-dee clined, Further, the pending drop in-"Government spending - will probably not be as Heavy as it was: in 1937. Lastly, many. industrialists. may icarry garzy. Jargen inventories in expectation ¢ of War x demand, 4

By Jane Stafford

PATENTS “with heart ‘disonte who'ate® because they believe: they are: Sooried valid existence for the rest of their. li greatly cheered by. the case: history of just reported in the Joumsi ot th mer Association. _ This man suffered an, attack Kk:

to an n-

‘thrombosis at the age of 43, the sort of Beart. a tae gi usiness

tive eo : thot

early age. Complete rest

the attack was followed

es should Bb o hem

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