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News Review of Current
Events the World Over
Supreme Court Bill Opposed by Senate Committee, 10 to
B—Mrs.8 —Mrs. Simpson Applies for Absolute Divorce —
Fish Would End Our Gold Policy.
By EDWARD W. PICKARD
© Western Newspaper Union.
Announcement of their posi
tion on the President's Su
preme court bill by three more
Democratic members of the senate
judiciary committee
seemingly made i t
certain that body
would report the
measure adversely
to the senate. The
line-up at this writ
ing is 10 to 8 against
the bill. The three
who openly joined
the opposition were
Senators J. C. O’-
Mahoney of Wyo
ming, Pat McCarren
of Nevada and Carl
Bk X
Senator
O'Mahoney
Hatch of New Mexico. With them
in opposition are King of Utah, Van
Nuys of Indiana, Burke of Nebraska,
Connally of Texas, Austin of Ver
mont, Borah of Idaho and Steiwer
of Oregon. Those committed for the
measure are Ashurst of Arizona,
Neely of West Virginia, Logan of
Kentucky, Dieterich of Illinois, Pitt
man of Nevada and Norris of Neb
raska. McGill of Kansas and Hughes
of Delaware, still noncommittal,
were counted as being on the ad
ministration side.
Senator O'Mahoney, one of the
enthusiastic New Dealers ordinarily,
said: “The hearings have been com
pleted. I have listened attentively to
everything that has been said, and I
have heard nothing to date which
has convinced me that any increase
of the court is either necessary or
desirable.”
Senator Hatch declared: “I do not
think congress has the power to
place men on the Supreme court
to affect decisions in any way what
soever. To do so would be an ex
ercise of judicial power by the leg
islative branch of the government.
If we place men on the court to
change the trend of judicial opinions
we thereby invade the province of
the court and do that which many
people have charged the court with
doing.”
Senator McCarren addressed the
judiciary committee, in executive
session, for an hour and a half and
later said to the reporters: “In my
judgment, the Supreme court should
not be a department of government
subject to the will of either of the
other two branches of government.
While the Supreme court and every
other court that interprets the law
should at all times keep abreast of
the law and therefore be progres
sive, it is not for any other branch
of the government to say it should
reform its views to carry out the
will of another branch. For that
reason I am opposed to and will con
tinue to oppose the President’s bill.”
The committee agreed to begin
voting on the bill and on proposed
amendments on May 18.
CENATORS, representatives, de
partment heads, and almost <jv
eryone else in Washington official
dom were worrying themselves over
expenditure reductions, taxes, rising
prices and falling revenues, and Su
preme court reformation. But Pres
ident Roosevelt was gaily sailing
the waters of the Gulf of Mexico,
angling for tarpon. He was on the
Presidential yacht Potomac, which
he boarded at New Orleans; his
vessel was escorted by three de
stroyers, the Moffett, the Schenk
and the Decatur. At Galveston Sec
retary Marvin Mclntyre set up a
temporary White House, and Mr.
Roosevelt planned to land at that
city when he got through fishing.
CIX months having elapsed since
Mrs. Wallis Simpson was grant
ed a provisional decree of divorce,
and the lady having behaved during
that period in away
approved by the
king’s proctor, her
solicitors petitioned
the court to make
the decree absolute.
It was expected this
would be done after
the six days’ inter
val required by legal
procedure.
When Edward,
duke of Windsor,
and Mrs. Simpson
will be married is not yet known
to the public and probably not yet
determined by the principals in this
most famous of modern romances.
The duke was so angered by reflec
tions on his fiancee and himself in
"Coronation Commentary,” a book
written by Geoffrey Dennis, that it
was reported he might set the wed
ding date before coronation day;
but later there were rumors that
Mrs. Simpson, seeking to avert
further criticism, had persuaded
him to wait until after his brother
had been crowned. Edward demand
ed that the book be withdrawn and
that the author and publisher apolo
gize. This demand was complied
with, but nevertheless he had his
solicitors in London start suit for
damages on the ground of libel.
PROM all quarters of the earth
" men and women of much, little
or no importance were flocking to
London for the coronation; the diplo-
mats were trying on their new knee
breeches; the peeresses were buying
wigs to make their coronets fit more
comfortably; the officials, troops
and horses were being rehearsed
in their parts; the proprietors of
parade seats were desperately try
ing to dispose of them at cut prices;
and hotel managers and tradesmen
of all sorts were preparing to make
lots of money out of this thoroughly
commercialized affair. It was said
by steamship officials in New York
that hundreds of Americans booked
for the coronation had cancelled
their passages, but despite this it
was certain London would be
thronged with visitors.
WHILE Democratic leaders In
congress were disputing over
various proposals for achieving the
economy demanded by the Presi
dent, the house without a quiver
passed the second deficiency bill,
carrying $79,200,000. The Demo
crats called it an economy measure
because the appropriations were 19
millions less than the amounts asked
by the department heads. But 15 of
those 19 millions represented merely
a reduction in the 30 million appro
priation asked by the bureau of in
ternal revenue for the refunding of
processing taxes collected under the
agricultural adjustment act. The
saving, it was pointed out, was more
a deferred “economy” in that the
15 millions will be included in the
next budget.
“'T'HIS is the outstanding finan
cial blunder of the New Deal” i
said Representative Hamilton Fish
of New York, Republican, speaking
Rep. Fish
$25 an ounce.
“The American taxpayers” de
clared Mr. Fish, “under the ruin
ous gold policy of the President and |
the secretary of the treasury, have
become the ‘angels' of Europe, and
are now engaged in helping to fi
nance these countries in their mad ।
armament race. All of the nations
of the world including Soviet Rus-:
sia, have naturally unloaded their
gold upon us at exorbitant profits,
which, if we tried to sell back, we
probably could not get 50 cents on
the dollar.
"This insane and costly gold policy
is almost on a par with the high J
financing of John Law’s Mississippi
bubble. The American people have
been turned into milch cows, to be
milked by every foreign country.” |
'T'HE C. I. O. steel workers’ or
ganizing committee now claims
a majority of the 540,000 wage earn
ers in that industry.
Philip Murray, committee chair
man, told the convention of the
Amalgamated Association of Iron,
Steel, and Tin Workers in Pittsburgh I
that in the 10 months of the or- i
ganization drive 325,000 members j
have been enrolled, equivalent to ■
60 per cent of the steel pay rolls.
"We have driven the company
union out of American industry,”
Murray said. "No company union
can hope to live from here on. Ten
months ago the steel workers’ or
ganizing committee started from
scratch. We had no members. To
day we have built up 600 new lodges,
enrolled 325,000 members, and
signed wage contracts with 89 steel
companies.”
Seventy-nine women and forty
one men, arrested during the evic- :
tion of sitdown strikers from ■
the Yale & Towne Manufacturing ,
company plant in Detroit were held ,
guilty of contempt of court by Cir
cuit Judge Arthur Webster. They
were convicted for violation of an
injunction which the judges had is
sued, directing them to leave the
plant.
Judge Webster imposed maximum
penalties of thirty days in jail and
$250 fines on George Edwards, Unit- I
ed Automobile Workers of America
organizer, and Peter P. Sedler, who i
said he was an employee of the Kei- ’
sey Hayes Wheel company. Ten
day jail sentences were given three
other persons. Sentencing of the oth
ers was deferred to July 15.
VVTLLIAM GILLETTE, the vet-
’ ’ eran actor who became fa- ;
mous in the role of Sherlock Holmes ‘
and is remembered also for his good ;
work in “Secret Service” and other i
plays, died in Hartford, Conn., at ;
the age of eighty-one. He had been j
ill since last autumn.
John G. Pollard, chairman of the
board of appeals of the Veterans’
administration and former governor
of Virginia, passed away in Wash
ington of bronchial pneumonia. He
was sixty-six years old.
J
LW!
Mrs. Simpson
of the administra-I
tion’s policy of ac-:
cumulating gold at
$35 an ounce, or'
nearly twice the cost
of production. Mr.
Fish thereupon in
troduced a resolu
tion forbidding the
secretary of the ।
treasury to pu r -
chase any more gold '
from foreign coun-1
tries at more than
WHEELER COUNTY EAGLE. ALAMO, GEORGIA.
about:
Touring Accommodations.
SANTA MONICA, CALIF.—
For the sake of comparison
two of us, out lately on a little
trip, stayed one night at a way
side motor camp and the next
night at the most expensive
tourist hotel in three states,
rates $25 per day per sucker.
At the tourist camp, the company
was mixed but neighborly and, for
the most part, pleas-
ant. The only really
discordant note was
a lady in the ad
joining cabin who, at
all hours, kept wak
ing her husband up,
apparently for the
purpose of telling
him another thing
about him that she
didn’t like.
At the exclusive
establishment were
many guests who
seemed to be suffering from severe
attacks of nervous culture, being
fearful, I’d say, that, if ever they
behaved naturally, they’d give them
selves away. Mainly they were dull.
Waxworks, even when animated,
usually are dull.
But stopping at a $25 a day hotel
I has one advantage, I find. After
ward, you can go around bragging
I that once you stopped at a $25-a
--day hotel. This should be a great
help socially.
• • •
Dealing With Snakes.
A CONNECTICUT congressman
is pushing an act to prohibit
importation of venomous serpents
from other countries for exhibition
purposes. His fear is that an earth
quake or something might shake the
zoo apart and liberate a lot of dead
| ly reptiles that would start multi
; plying and constitute a new menace
! to the lives of such of the populace
as have thus far escaped being
: killed by automobiles.
Without presuming to assume that
the gentleman is a bit of an alarm
‘ Ist, I’d like to point out that he can
: obtain millions of adherents for this
; measure among old-fashioned Amer-
I icans by tacking in an amendment
; to his bill providing that the bars
| likewise shall be put up against for
eign-born communists.
. . .
How Times Change.
I JUST read what I once knew for
* myself but had forgotten in the
rush and bustle of these latter days.
It related to the attitude which
America, considerably less than half
। a century ago, held toward unescort
ed woman. For instance, as recently
! as 1890 not many respectable hotels
i would permit one of them to regis
ter.
Some time after 1900—in fact, as
I remember, it was about 1910—a
' prominent lady was asked to leave
one of the smartest hotels in New
York city because she dared to light
a cigarette in the public lounge.
As for women drinking at a bar—
well, not even the most forward-
I looking liberal could conceive of so
: incredible a sight as that.
And now just look at the darned
things!
Hardships de Luxe.
WHEN our plutocratic classes
decide to go simple, they go
simple, regardless of what it costs
’em.
A rich couple have just completed
a trip out here, following the ancient
■ trails of the early pathfinders. Like
i true pioneer stock, they roughed it
। in specially built twin trailers, each
about the size of a pullman but
much more complete, and were
towed by a couple of Rolls-Royces.
The servants, only six in number,
had to put up with two much cheap
er cars.
During the entire trip there was
no dressing for dinner and thus,
with true democratic spirit, was
the primitive plan of the expedition
carried out. Every hardship en
countered enroute —such as the
champagne getting all jolted up and
the caviar coming unglued in the
can — was cheerfully endured. An
armed guard was maintained a t
night to repel kidnapers and hostile
| Indian tribes.
I wonder how Jim Bridger and Kit
; Carson ever stood it with no butler
along—in fact, not even a second
man.
IRVIN S. COBB.
WNU Service.
Tweeds and Peats
The famous Harris tweeds came
into being through an accident of
nature. The freezing winds which
| swept across the barren islands of
i the Outer Hebrides, off the coast of
Scotland, made it imperative that
the natives have warm wind-proof,
weather-proof garments. With no
where else to turn, the women of
; the islands took advantage of the
f unusually thick fleece which was
the winter coat of their sheep, and
from it they wove for their men
the first crude Harris tweeds. Be
cause they had nothing but the
natural dyes made from lichens and
crottle, and nowhere to steep their
I wool except over peat fires, Har
i ris tweed has always been charac
terized by a peaty outdoor odor.
These tweeds had been worn in the
Outer Hebrides for many years be
fore the fashion centers of the world
discovered them and elevated them
to the front rank of sports fashions.
Washington!
Digest
National lopics Interpreted J
By WILLIAM BRUCKART^ffISffi^
, NATIONAL PRESS BLDG. ■ WASHiNGTO^.D C
Washington.—Several weeks ago,
I reported to you the apparent ne
cessity for presi-
Must Cut dential action in
Spending the direction of a
curb on spending.
I have written about this subject
many times and I have no regret
that I have done so, because for a
half dozen years our government
has been spending money too rapid
ly.
The President’s latest message
reviewing the budget situation in
dicates that the Chief Executive at
last has started his thoughts in the
direction of curtailed spending. In
deed, Mr. Roosevelt’s message to
congress in which he asked for a
billion and a half dollars for re
lief purposes was characterized by
quite a new note of firmness in his
discussion of the need for cutting
government costs. I think it is fair
to say that in previous messages
the President gave little more than
lip service to the cause of economy
in government. His previous sug
gestions to congress lacked force.
Not so with the current call for a
reduction in expenses. It had the
earmarks of determination—but it
yet remains to be seen whether he
will insist strongly upon his con
clusions when the showdown with
congress comes.
The President’s message was in
teresting in several respects beside
the note of firmness, mentioned
above. He confessed, for example,
that there was no chance for a bal
anced budget in the next fiscal year.
There is no chance, he disclosed,
even for achieving the “layman’s
balance.” That “layman’s balance”
ought to be explained for, my under
standing of economics does not con
template more than one kind of
budget balancing, namely, income
equalling outgo. But Mr. Roosevelt,
in his campaign last year and in his
message to congress last January,
spoke of “layman’s balance” as
meaning a balance of income and
outgo with the exception of expendi
tures for relief and for retirement
of the public debt. I have heard it
described in many quarters as a
trick balance which I truly believe
it should be called since it is not an
honest balance.
In the January message, Mr.
Roosevelt talked at length about the
necessity for business taking on
workers who were then on relief
rolls. Only in that manner, he em
phasized, could there be a reduction
in relief rolls.
In the more recent message, the
President omitted any reference
to the responsibility of industry for
reducing relief rolls by re-employ
ing workers. That is not strange.
The fact is, according to the gov
ernment’s own records, that indus
try is taking on workers at a more
rapid rate than the administration
had expected. But still there is no
hope of a balanced budget this year.
So we must look elsewhere to find
the reason. Instead of one, we find
two reasons. The first and most im
portant of the two is the fact that,
by whatever analysis you make, the
New Deal is guilty of continuing to
waste money by hundreds of mil
lions and it was not until a few
weeks ago that any serious effort
was made to choke off this drain,
assuming the current effort is se
rious.
That statement sounds complicat
ed and dull. It is not either one.
The unvarnished truth is that Sec
retary Morgenthau and the flock of
experts, trained only in theory, with
whom he has surrounded himself,
were unable to calculate what the
present taxes would produce in rev
enue. Or, to say the same thing in
a few words: Revenue receipts were
far below’ what the Treasury experts
guessed they would be.
Thus, the picture seems to be
clear. On the one hand, the Presi
dent heretofore has allowed the al
phabetical agencies to run hither
and yon in their money spending
spree. On the other hand, the lack
of competent financial men in the
Treasury again is glaringly shown.
• • ♦
To get back to the question of
curtailed spending I should like to
call attention to
Sounds the President's
Strong; but — language in his
latest message.
He said that he proposed to use
‘ “very means at my command” to
eliminate the deficit next year. That
statement sounds strong enough. I
question, however, that it can be
called a program of retrenchment.
In other words, Mr. Roosevelt was
content in his message to congress
simply to criticize, if not to de
nounce, extravagant outlays insofar
as new commitments are con
cerned.
During the last few weeks, Mr.
Roosevelt has called upon the vari
ous agencies of the government for
statements of their financial re
quirements and something of a re
view of what they have done with
previous funds. Considerable bally
hoo accompanied announcement of
this survey of governmental re
quirement. But again, there was no
evidence of specific determination
by the Chief Executive as to what
Irvin S. Cobb
governmental activity should be re
stricted or entirely eliminated. It
was like a charge of bird shot. It
scattered. There was no target
mentioned except in a general way.
There has been some talk that
possibly Mr. Roosevelt’s message
and promise to use every means at
his command for curtailing ex
penditures may have been intended
as a message to his own subordi
nates that definite orders were to
follow; that he intended his subor
dinates should see where they them
selves could lop off spending plans,
and could put their own houses in
order. I hope it works out that way
On the other hand, I entertain very
serious doubt that such a procedure
will ever cause such individuals ar
the impetuous Mr. Harry Hopkins,
relief administrator, to cut dowm on
his spending. Mr. Hopkins loves to
spend money. He seems to be hap
piest when he has billions to spread
around, regardless of whether the
spending plans really accomplish
aid for the destitute. I suspect that
congress alone can curb Mr. Hop
kins and the only w'ay congress can
do so is by declining to appropriate
extra money for him.
What I am trying to say in using
Mr. Hopkins as the “horrible ex
ample,” is that Mr. Roosevelt has
taught his subordinates to spend I
money as freely as they can. To a ’
considerable extent, he has let con- ’
gress have a taste of new spending |
morsels and what politician does not .
like to spend money! Therefore, the ;
President is confronted with the ne- I
cessity of educating both his own j
subordinates and congress to the I
new order of conserving taxpayers’
money. If he does not accomplish
this, we will be saying in another
six months what we have said many
times —that we are confronted with
national bankruptcy.
I cannot believe that the budget
ary situation looks any different
than it did last January. The dif
ference in the picture is that Mr.
Roosevelt at last has begun to see
some of the dangers in the situation
which he either failed to see or
elected to ignore last January.
There were few who believed in Jan
uary that the tax receipts were go
ing to amount to the estimate given
congress by the President. The fact
that they have fallen short of his
calculations by four or five hundred
million is a serious thing but it is
not so serious that a remedy can
not be worked out. The remedy, it
seems to me, is a simple use of a
simple practice among Americans:
When you do not have the money,
deny yourself some of the things
you would buy if you had the cash.
♦ • *
Mr. Roosevelt's message asking
for a billion and a half for relief
served to get the
Relief collective mind of
Message congress off the
Supreme court
packing plan only temporarily. The
relief message caused quite a stir
in the house of representatives
where there has been a decided
move already to continue appropri
ating huge sums of federal money
for relief purposes, but it held the
senate off the court question no
longer than one business day.
I think there has been no ques
tion more frequently asked in my
time in Washington than: “Will the
President’s bill to pack the Supreme
court pass?”
I have watched the ebb and flow
of the tide of sentiment in the sen
ate constantly since the court pack
ing plan was submitted. As the
situation now stands, I believe Mr.
■ Roosevelt has the odds in his favor.
■ There is probably a margin of from
' five to ten votes on the President’s
■ side. Whether that will be the state
> of affairs when a vote comes, I
think no one can foretell because
the vote in the senate is going to
be close.
Many informal polls of the senate
have been taken. The results have
varied somewhat. They have va
ried of necessity because there are
many senators who remain non
■ committal, and who are unwilling
at this time to take a position for
; or against the President's scheme.
! One may properly ask why this
I is. The answer is politics. A good
many senators do not know how
their home states feel about the
plan. That is, they are not able to
; determine whether there has been
i a crystallization of sentiment for
' j or against the thing.
Consequently, these senators are
trying to wait outside of the playing
! field until they can tell whether
| they can be justified in going
I against presidential wishes or ca
pitulating to the President’s com
i mand. It is to be remembered that
i if they turn against the President,
! they antagonize the administration
I and particularly the Farley politi
’ cal machine. It is rather unhealthy
for a New Dealer or Democrat to
oppose the Farley machine.
Another reason why many sena
-1 tors are keeping their own counsel
I on the court packing scheme is that
they believe there will be something
in the nature of a compromise
' come out of the hearings and senate
J judiciary commit'ee consideration
© Western Newspaper Union.
★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★A
J STAR I
: DUST :
* *
* IMovie • Radio *
★ *
★★★By VIRGINIA VALE***
EVEN better than having the
circus come to town is to find
“Elephant Boy” playing at your
local motion-picture theater one
of these spring days. It is a pic
ture that defies description, for
volumes would be necessary to
describe the thrilling scenes of
vast herds of elephants, the
gruesome terror of discontent
brewing among the natives of
India, the sturdy charm of little
Sabu, the twelve-year-old In
dian boy who shares stardom
with the king of the elephants,
the magnificent blending of mu
sic with the haunting shrieks of
wild animals.
But with all of its other merits, it
is the heart-warming friendship of
the boy and his elephant that makes
one want to go back to see this
picture again and again. Robert
Flaherty, the explorer-director who
hasn’t had a picture on our screens
since the unforgettable “Man of
Aran” made off the coast of Ireland,
went to India two years ago and is
responsible for “Elephant Boy.”
Back to roles that are hot and
low down go Bette Davis and
George Bancroft in
their new films.
When Warner Broth
ers and Bette Davis
ended their long
court wrangle, they
told her all was for- „
given, and certainly
they must have
meant it, for they
have given her the
best role of her ca
reer i n “Marked
Woman.” George
Bancroft comes
Bette Davis
back in a Columbia picture called
“Racketeers in Exile,” which is a
powerful answer to those reform
ers who said thay they just wouldn’t
let us have any more gangster pic
tures.
For months Sol Lesser has been
conducting a search for a Tarzan
I and at last he found one. Glenn
Morris, Olympic champion, will
I play the role that Johnny Weismul-
I ler made famous. Johnny will stay
with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, hoping
for more civilized parts.
You never can tell what an actor
will be asked to do down at
the M-G-M studio. You’d think they’d
be satisfied to have Clark Gable and
Robert Taylor the romantic idols
of half the population, but never
satisfied, they are making the lads
sing in their new pictures.
Doris Nolan was not too pleased
over her role in “The Top of the
Town" because it seemed to her
that she never had anything to do.
She felt that she was aU but lost
among the fancy sets and big
musical numbers, which just shows
you that actors are usually wrong
about what a picture will do for
them. Sam Goldwyn took one look
at “Top of the Town” and im
mediately started negotiations with
Universal to borrow Miss Nolan for
a prominent part in “Dead End.”
Meanw-hile Miss Nolan had gone off
on a motor trip with her sister, to
take a look at the cherry blossoms
in Washington, to dash over the
skyway in Shenandoah valley, and
visit relatives in North Carolina.
The good news about the big dra
matic role, just the sort she has
been begging for, reached her en |
route. "
All the studios are re-making suc
j cesses of other days, having failed
to find new stories
I that are as good.
; M-G-M has cast
\ Jean Harlow and
Jimmy Stewart in
; “The Shopworn An
gel” which was one
i of the best pictures
ever made when
Gary Cooper and
Nancy Carr 011
played it. And Lily
I Pons will play “Ki
! ki” with operatic
flourishes, which
was not so good when Mary Pick
ford played it years ago.
ODDS AND ENDS — Erin O'Brien
Moore, who was so good in “Black Legion,**
is going to play Nana in “The Life of
Emile Zola” a part that dozens of promi
nent actresses had tried out for . . . Pathe’s
two-reeler, “A Day With the Quints”
proves definitely that the world's most
famous three-year-olds grow more charm
ing and obstreperous every day. They
achieve an almost Donald Duckian rage
when anyone addresses them by the wrong
names . . . When Ann Sothern returned
to the R. K. O. studio she found an ex
quisite crystal reindeer on her dressing
table, a gift from Una Merkel who had
occupied the room during her absence
. . . Don Wilson of the Jack Benny pro
gram is making his picture debut in R. K.
O's “Missus America” . . Albert Coifs,
famous Belgian portrait painter, says that
the most beautiful of all the film stars
ire Francis Farmer, Merle Oberon, Luise
Rainer, Jean Harlow, Norma Shearer and
Kay Francis.
€ Western Newspaper Union.
I
Lily Pons
