Nebraska Newspapers

    . The Frontier
D. H. Cronin, Editor and Proprietor
Entered at the Postoffice at O’Neill,
Nebraska as Second Class Matter.
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ECONOMIC HIGHLIGHTS
The late Congress will go down in
history as an extraordinary body. Its
total appropriations were exceeded
only by the World War Congress. Al
most without a dissenting voice, it
gave the President powers and pre
rogatives it has prized since revolu
tionary days. It was the most docile,
the most obedient, and the least im
aginative Congress since the war. A
list of its major bills, passed mainly
at the request of the President, fol
lows:
1. A bill enabling the President to in
flate currency by forcing the Fed
eral Reserve to buy Government
securities, to issue new currency up
to $3,000,000,000, to lessen the gold
content of the dollar up to 50 per
cent, to accept up to $200,000,000
in silver, instead of gold, in war
debt payments.
2. A bill giving the President, thru
a coordinator, wide powers in re
organizing and revising the rail
roads of the country.
3. A bill authorizing vast Federal de
velopments in the Tennessee Vulley.
4. A bill creating a Civilian Conserv
ation Corps to employ 250,000 oth
erwise unemployed young men in
the national forests at $1.00 per
day.
5. A bill authorizing the President to
regulate transactions in credit, cur
rency and other coinage; to place
an embargo, in whole or in part, on
gold; to forbid the boarding of gold
by an individual in excess of $100,
and to restrict the activities of the
Federal Reserve System.
G. A bill authorizing beer, in spite of
the Eighteenth Amendment, thru
revision of the Volstead Act.
7. A bill initiating a $3,300,000,000
public works program in the inter
est of employment, to be controlled
by the President thru a director of
public works.
8. A bill to reduce agricultural acre
age in production, with compensa
tion to farmers for ull land with
drawn from use.
9. A bill giving the President unprec
edented control over industry, with
powers to eliminate competition,
fix minimum wages and maximum
hours of work, regulate production,
etc.
There were other hills, of course,
but these are outstanding. Most far
reaching of ull is the last—it has not
yet swung into action and it is not
widely understood. Operation of the
bill, in relation to particular industries,
will be as follows: A trade group will
draw up a plan designed to settle
wage, price and production problems.
It will apply to the administrator of
the bill for authorization to put its
agreement into effect. The adminis
trator will then find out if the plan
meets with the favor of most units
within the industry. Representatives
of labor, and a group of consumers,
will be consulted. When all has been
settled, the agreement will go to the
President. If he finds it equitable, he
will authorize it. If not, it will have
to be redrawn. When industries are
unable to agree among themselves,
the President will be able to force a
pact on them, by the power of a licen
sing system.
The bill will trike directly at “de
pression bom businesses”—unhealthy
sweatshops paying employes 15 and
20 cents a day, and similar anti-social
institutions, and will eliminate dis
astrous, depression-prolonging com
petition. The danger of weakness in
the bill is that it w ill very likely make
it more difficult for the small business
to opetate, and will favor the more
efficient, better-financed large business.
Most encouraging phase of the gen
eral business situation is not only
that improvement has appeared in
has ic lines, but that it is being con
tinued. In recent months there have
been no “dowms *—there have been
many “ups”. Recently reported was
the sixth consecutive weekly increase
over 1922 in electric power output—
and each gain was larger than the
one directly preceding it. Car-loadings
are up—during the week ending June
10, they were 12.5 per cent over the
aame week in 1922. May cotton con-j
sumption was close to double that of
May last year. The commodity and
Jwcurity prire indexes have ifhown
climbs for several consecutive months.
The number of business failures has1
taken a sharp drop. Iron ore onsump
tion in May reached the highest month
ly total since November, 1931. Im
provement in employment and wage
situations is reported from all parts
of the country.
The United States is not alone in
experiencing signs of recovery. Un
employment in the United Kingdom
has declined. Favorable factors pre
dominate in French business indexes.
Conditions in Spain are fairly satis
factory. Trade optimism persists in
Canada. New business activity is ap
pearing in Japan. While economic
conditions in New Zealand are dull,
prices of export products have shown
sharp rises. Prices for Philippine ex
port products have been firmer.
NATIONAL AFFAIRS
By Frank P. Litschert
A number of newspapers have com
mented on the statement of Col. House
the other day, to the effect thut the
United States is without a friend
among the nations of the world. The
statement is undoubtedly true, but
why confine its logic to the United
States? How many real friends has
Great Britain, or France, or Italy
among the nations of the world? Not
one. Unfortunately there is no such
thing as disinterested friendship among
the nations of the earth, and never has
been. Perhaps there will be some time
in the future when the intenationalists
succeed in changing human nature,
but that time is several thousand years
distant. So the United States is in
no peculiar position in lacking friends
among the governments of the world.
George Washington well understood
the fact that there are no lasting and
disinterested friendships among na
tions. That is why he advised us to
avoid European alliances and entang.
ling commitments with foreign powers.
It is true that many of the citizens
of one country may admire the tradi
tions, people and policies of another
nation. But there is no such thing as
true and lasting national friendship.
There is frequently an alliance between
nations, just as there is often mutual
hostility between nations. But neither
condition is permanent because it is
dictated by self-interest and conditions
which make for self-interest have a
habit of changing this world of ours.
For example, for centuries Great Brit
ain and Spain were enemies, and so
were Great Britain and France. Then
the rise of Germany made allies out of
France and Great Britain. The friend
ship has been cooled and warmed many
times since the signing of the treaty
of Versailles and will continue so to
change its temperature. On the other
hand, Germany and Italy, once allies,
then enemies, have become friends
again. But the friendship is apt to
crack at any time over a disagreement
of policy toward Austria.
Perhaps the latest example of the
shifting likes and dislikes among na
tions can be found in the Orient. Japan
and Russia were long time enemies.
Often during the past few years they
have seemed on the verge of war over
the great Asiatic railroad. But during
the past year a great change has come
about. Japan has dared to invade
Manchuria and to penetrate the Great
Wall of China, and there has been no
Russian protest. Later came the sale
of the Russian “interest” in the much
disputed railroad to Japan, anil now
comes the rumor that Russia may even
dispose of her port of Vladivostock to
her erstwhile rival.
What has caused this sudden change
of hostility to friendship? Has it
come afcout because the Japs and
Russians have decided to join some in
ternational brotherhood whose funda
mental principle is loving one’s neigh
bor? Not in the least. It has been
brought to pass by self-interest. In
this instance the forming of a new
understanding between Japan and
Russia has been and will continue
to be at the expense of poor China.
There are interesting reports to the
effect that Japan has been financed
in her Chinese adventure by France.
Then later have come stories of a clos
er understanding between France and
Russia. Perhaps we will later learn
of a Russo-Japanese-French under
standing to exploit China with Russia
and France getting concessions in
other parts of the unfortunate country
to make up for their disapproval of
Japanese penetration of Manchuria.
The question then arises as to where
Great Britain comes in on all this.
Certainly with the most powerful fleet
in the world Great Britain will have to
be reckoned with. Whether she will
eventually see advantage in permit
ing things to work out in the direction
they ure now heading, or whether she
will oppose the supposed new combina
tion, remains to be seen. John Bull
is a good *business man and cun be
counted on to look after British inter
ests first.
At any rate friendships and mis
understandings among nations are
only temporary, and the friends of
today may easily become enemies to
morrow. So when Col. House or any
other man of diplomatic wisdom rises
'to remark that the United States pos
seases no friends among the nations,
we may well ask in turn, “Who does?”
EUROPEAN DEFAULTERS
Columbus, Ohio, Dispatch: Every
consideration that can be shown for
eign debtors of the United States has
been shown.
In spite of numerous revisions down
ward of the debt agreements, and the
moratorium of a year and a half
granted in 1931, European nations
seem on the verge of default, and it is
virtually taken for granted that France
and her allied nations will repudiate
their debts, which in theory they have
already done.
Great Britain, whose attitude has
been more honest and who has main
tained her payments up to the present,
now threatens to join the others by
offering a partial payment to Wash
ington.
Since the settlements of reparations
at Lausanne when Europe formed a
solid frontagainst the United States in
economic affairs, hope of collecting the
debts has waned, although this country
has never conceded that German re
parations were directly related to the
sums borrowed here during and after
the war.
More recently in the inflation act, a
provision was included permitting Eu
rope to pay in silver up to two hun
dred millions, making payment much
easier, but then America in the pro
cess of freeing herself completely
from a gold basis, and changing the
status of many contractual obligations,
thereby helped set the example upon
which England siezed as a pretext to
avoid payment. And though the cheap
American currency arising from this
act should have simplified payments
abroad, it had the opposite effect in
that it incensed both France, now left
nearly isolated on a gold basis, and
England, by offsetting the depreciated
pound with which she was striving for
world trade.
But there is nothing for the United
States to do except to stand firm upon
its present debt agreements until aftet
the London conference. Concessions
now under pressure would mean not
only loss of prestige and enormous
sums, but would permit Europe to
evade the stigma of repudiation from
which she is not entiled to escape.
IT WAS NOT FIAT MONEY
Columbus, Ohio, Dispatch: Exca
vation on the site of ancient Pompeii
has recently brought to light the
skeletons of two men who from cer
tain articles of dress still discernible,
are known to have been slaves. A
bag of coins and various articles of
personal adornment were found
their sides. They were evidently carry
ing these when they were overcome
by the shower of volcanic ashes.
They lay in an underground passage
way leading to the strong-room of one
Menundro, who must have been one of
the very rich men of Pompeii, but
whether, like faithful servants, they
were trying to save the family treas
ure, or to make way with it under the
general confusion that prevailed, must
be left to conjecture. What matter
now ? Master and slave, riches and
penury, power and poverty were lev
eled in the great disaster.
The gold coins bear the images of
Roman emperors, but they do not de
fend for their value upon that. It
was not fiat money. The gold in them
is worth today just about what it was
when Vesuvius buried Pompeii and
Herculaneum.
Neither distaster nor time has been
able to affect that value. And yet
some insist that all money is at bot
tom, fiat. These old coins go to mus
eums where their historical value is
vastly more than that of the gold
that composes them; but there is a
ftsson value in them that is specially
needed just now when there is so much
wild talk about money.
WHY TEN PER CENT?
The Republic Bulletin: According
to press dispatches the European na
tions which owe us money are pre
paring to get together and offer us
in payment of the so-colled war debts
a total of “ten per cent or nothing.”
A great many people, looking at the
immediately practical result will jump
to the conclusion that ten per cent is
better than nothing and that we ought
to take the ten per cent and foget
the whole matter.
A more careful examination of the
question, however, leads to serious
doubt as to whether this is the casrect
view to take. Most of the European
countries are well able to take care of
their obligations, much better in fact
than poor but honest little Finland
who pays on the dot. France has the
greutest hourd of gold in ratio to pop
ulation, in the whole world, and Great
Britain has on hand now more gold
than ever. In addition, a little agree
ment on the scaling down of arma
ment, would save much more than
enough money to make these annual
payments.
Again, if we accept a small sum in
complete payment and wipe off the
debt, it won't be long until some of
these same nations will be back to
borrow more money for new military
adventures. If the books are clear
they will have little trouble in getting
it, if not from our government, cer
tainly from international bankers who
will lend, not their own money but
that of the people of the United States
entrusted in their care. Then the
trouble will start all over again.
But if they offer us ten per cent or
nothing and Uncle Sam elects to take
nothing but to keep the figures in red
ink on his ledger, it will not be so easy
to float international war loans in
America in the future. That is why
the borrowers are so anxious to have
the slate wiped clean. They do not
want to pay, neither do they desire to
default because they know they may
want to borrow in the future. In a
very sound and sensible editorial on
the debt question the Detroit Free
Press recently said:
“Many persons, even here in Ameri
ca, arc saying that in view of the gen
eral attitude of the country’s foreign
debtors, the thing for us to do is to
throw up the sponge, and tell them
they need not pay their obligations;
that the people of this country should
be taxed and made to pay in their
stead. These individuals seem to
think that by letting Europe put over
its dead-beat game the United States
will in some way further the economic
rehabilitation of the world. They ap
pear to forget that success in racket
eering always breeds racketeering.
“The Unted States cannot force pay
ments from countries that owe it
money, because in many cases the only
way to do so would be to go to war
to collect, and that would not be worth
while from any standpoint. But be
cause it cannot exercise duress, it
does not follow that America should
make default easy and pleasant for
i those engaged in doing the bilking act.
It can let the world know plainly what
it thinks about that sort of thing and
can serve notice that it is not going to
forget. It also can remember the
records of defaulters the next time
they are in a tight place and want to
borrow more funds.
“In particular the debt defaults
should be a warning to the United
States in considering the plans and
proposals that may be laid before it
in the course of the present Economic
Conference, especially as there is
plenty of reason to suppose that the
chief aim of one clique present there
is to ‘soak America.’ In any agree
ment reached, this country should take
care to protect itself and not again
be foolishly generous.’’
THE DEMAGOGUE
Detroit Free Press: Since the be
ginning of time the demagogue, the
man with a glib tongue and a cal
loused conscience, always has been
to attract and hold public atten
tion far more quickly and easily than
the man who has been content to let
his actions speak for him and has
tried to think right and do right with
out boasting about it.
There is something in human nature
| too, which makes a man incurably
fond of a spectacular show, particular
ly a show jn which there are victims.
The Roman arena catered crudely to
this instinct; so does the Spanish bull
ring. The demagogue has through the
ages played upon it with more subtlety
and cleverness, and in consequence
more dangerously.
From the beginning the person with
an easy flow of language and no
scruples, but with desire for notoriety
or power has, in particular, been one
of the great political, religious and
social dangers of America because
there has been no way of placing pro
tective check upon him. Time and time
again with reckless, specious, and oft
entimes deliberately and maliciously
false assertions,he has defeated states
manship, sober thought and sound pol
icies, and thrown filth upon what is
clean, honorable and honest. He has,
all in all, been a greater peril to this
land than any outside foe.
Of late the radio has given the
demagogue a new opportunity to ex
ercise his dubios talents and in a
peculiarly monstrous way. Hidden in
a broadcasting room, secure from the
chance of being obliged to face the
objects of his attacks, unseen by his
auditors, he has become an insidious
voice out of the void, disseminating
veiled propaganda or telling vicious
lies to millions of people who have no
possible way of determining whether
he is speaking the truth or uttering
falsehoods. The ancients in their most
lurid flights of fancy imagined nothing
more dreadful than this modern visita
tion.
Bindery Talk: A racketeer on trial
for murder bribed an Irishman with
$100 to hold out for a verdict of man
slaughter. After being out for a long
time, the jury returned the desired
verdict.
“I’m very grateful to you,” the
racketeer told the Irishman.
“Did you have much trouble?”
“Yes,” replied the son of Erin, "I
had a devil of a time. All the rest
wanted to acquit you.”
Bellhop (after guest has rung ten
minutes): Did you ring, sir?
Guest: Hell, no! I was tolling; I
thought you were dead!
“Any old junk you want to get rid
of, ma’am?” asked the dealer.
“Yes,” she said. “If you wait a
minute my husband will be here.”
Junior came home from his first day
at school. “Well, son,” greeted his
father, “how did you like it?”
“Aw, they asked too many ques
tions,” replied the younger edition.
“First they asked me my name, and
I told them. Then they asked me your
name, and I told them. They they
asked me where I was born. I didn’t
want to be a sissy and say a maternity
ward, so I just told them Yankee
Stadium.”
_ H
Former Mayor Walker wiys that he
would rather become a gentleman
farmer in England than return to
politics in New York. And probably
New York feels the same way about
it.
TKICKS ofMAGIC o o-o
explainsMZOiL
HOW TO GET A LOOSE CORK OUT OF BOTTLE
i.
Blow SUAPPLY
INTO THE
BOTTLE AND
THE CORK
WILL POP OUT
Pour water into a bottle until it is about three-fourths full, and drop a
small cork into it. Stand the bottle on a radio cabinet or something higher
than a table, so that you can hold your head upright and blow into the bottle.
If you blow sharply the cork will pop out. The cork must be small enough
to easily slip down the neck of the bottle.
(Copyright. Will h. Llndhorst.l
In The WEEK'S NEWS I
HE’S A SHE — His
—or her—voice be
trayed this young
“fellow,” so Eliza
beth, N. J., police in
vestigated and found
the slim youth pic
tured above actually
was Miss June Clark,
15, of Needham,
Mass. She had start
ed running away
from home, but the
slip sent her right
back again.
INSIDE FACTS—Singin’ Sam, popular basso,
gave a noted visitor inside information on studio
life when R. K. White, Pontiac sales-manager
and prominent automotive figure, spoke as guest
on a recent program. Photo shows Sam (left)
and White conversing.
A KEEP COOL IDEA! These
snowballs won't melt as they
are made of caffeine removed
by Kellogg scientists in mak
ing caffeine-free coffee, a fa
vored Iced beverage for the
summertime.
TO PIERCE STRATOSPHERE—Jean Piccard,
who plans to emulate his brother’s feats with a
flight of his own into the stratosphere next
month, gets some advice from brother Auguste
Piccard, noted Swiss scientist, who ascended 10
miles into space last year. They are inspecting
NAVY TAKES HER—After e«ten
■lye shakedown tests, the Nayy offi
cially accepted the U.S.S. Macon,
queen of the skies and largest light
er than-air craft in the world. Photo
■hows the ship, which i* 785 feet
long, and 146 feet high.
HEADS INOUSTRY—John S.
Taylor, former senator and
veteran grower, assumed
leadership of one of Florida’s
important industries with his
election as President of the
fruit growers’ cooperative or
ganisation, the Florida Citrus
_gschwnqc.