The Charlotte News

Wednesday, May 17, 1939

THREE EDITORIALS

Site Ed. Note: As Cash had commented on the recent Washington Merry-Go-Round attack on Robert Rice Reynolds, ("Omission", May 12, 1939), and as Cash consistently found him a humorous, and dangerously dumb, butt for editorials, we thought we would include a letter to the editor from Drew Pearson and Robert Allen, authors of the Merry-Go-Round, to The News. (Whether this letter was specifically to The News, or was also circulated among other friendly newspapers as well, we do not know.) As Cash's columns, except some on the war, did not circulate usually much beyond the Charlotte area, it is unlikely Senator Bob ever wrote so warmly or at all to Cash--at least not under his real name.

When Robert Rice Smiled Upon That Column--And Why

Dear Sir:

Apropos of Bob Reynolds' four-hour diatribe against the authors of the Washington Merry-Go-Round on the floor of the Senate the other day, we thought it might be interesting to see what the Senator from North Carolina had said about us in the past. Digging through our files we find that the Senator once had different views regarding Pearson and Allen. For instance, on March 1, 1936, he wrote:

"My dear friends:

"It was with much appreciation that I read your daily article Feb. 22, 1936, which was published throughout the entire United States and I want you both to know that I am deeply grateful of this fine publicity which you gave to me.

"May I say that I read your column every night about twelve o'clock, as I buy The Herald around eleven every night, and the first thing I look for is your daily letter, which always proves entirely interesting.

"With warm personal regards for you both and trusting sincerely that the New Year upon which we have but recently embarked will provide both of you and those of your respective firesides with an abundance of good health, happiness and prosperity. I beg to remain,

Faithfully yours, (Sgd.) BOB.

ROBERT R. REYNOLDS, U.S.S."

In fact Senator Reynolds has expressed many times both orally and verbally his pleasure in being mentioned in the Merry-Go-Round. Again on April 18, 1936 he wrote:

"At this time may I again state to you gentlemen how thoroughly grateful I am for your mention of my name at frequent intervals in your widely-read column. I am one who appreciates publicity and don't hesitate to admit it, and to be mentioned in your column is fine publicity because I know that it is published in innumerable newspapers throughout the entire United States every day.

"With warm personal regards for you both, and reassurance in my deep appreciation of your many courtesies and mentions of my name, I am, as you will always find me to be,

ROBERT R. REYNOLDS."

All of which is said to you just by way of noting that the Washington Merry-Go-Round is a column which believes in letting the news chips fall where they may. Sometimes they fall in favor of the Senator from North Carolina; sometimes they fall against him. It depends very much upon the Senator's own conduct.

DREW PEARSON and ROBERT S. ALLEN.

Authors of the Washington Merry-Go-Round.

P.S. You can't please all of the Senators all of the time.

Washington.

It Works!

County Recorder Plays A Waiting Game, And Gets His Man

The genius of County Recorder Howard's insistence upon suspended sentences for occupational bootleggers was not long in being shown. Two weeks ago a raid was staged and a number of the regulars lined up for trial. Upon their conviction, the decision facing the Judge was whether to send them straightaway to the roads, from which sentence they could have appealed to and taken their chances in Superior Court, or to compromise on the sentence and suspend it upon condition that they be of good behavior and violate no law, especially a liquor law, for a specified period. In most cases they were glad to accept the suspension. And in doing so they bore out the court's theory that there is more than one way to skin a rabbit.

The fireworks started, remember, only a couple of weeks ago. Already one of the men given the suspended sentence has been caught breaking a law--a liquor law, it happened--and has been ordered off to jail. The right to an appeal from the previous conviction was waived when he, or his lawyer, swallowed the suspended sentence.

It reminds us of the old game of forfeits--you know, "heavy, heavy hang over your head." A sort of sword of Damocles, so to speak, and an ingenious way to break up bootlegging.

Scotch Vein

If The Doc Had Meant It This Way, He Couldn't Have Been Cannier

It is probable that Old Doc Townsend really meant it. All the evidence to date suggests that the old man actually believes in his crackpot schemes to establish old age pensions of $200 a month for everybody over 50 by levying a sales tax on all transactions. But if he had been calculating how best to hold on to his present soft and highly profitable snap, he couldn't have gone more cannily about it.

Yesterday the Florida Senate voted 28 to 8 against making that state a guinea pig for the testing out of this scheme. And the old Doc himself had a hand in that result by wiring just before the vote: "Utterly opposed to any scheme for pensions for aged by single state. These efforts inevitably doomed to failure Pensions to be effective and adequate to restore prosperity must be national in scope."

Yes, the old Doc probably meant it. He wants whole hog or nothing. But if he had just wanted to go on feathering his nest--well, it is, you see, probably going to be a very long time, indeed, before Congress falls for his scheme now. For the Representatives and Senators--including Henry Cabot Lodge--who flirted with the Townsendites at election time last Fall have conveniently forgotten. Probably this scheme isn't ever going to have a chance to pass. But it will be years before the suckers who join up and pay dues in the movement realize that--which means that there are years of clover ahead for the Old Doc and his organization.

Fair Enough

The Weakness In The War Loan Draft Is Not One Of Justice

The argument which is being widely circulated--for instance by General Ironpants Johnson--that the Lee bill for drafting loans from all the well-heeled in war-time, is unfair, will scarcely stand up under analysis. It is obviously true that a bond for $100, which may in fact be worth only 60 or 70, and which pays only one per cent interest is not full value for a forced loan of $100 in cash or a note which the lender has to pay six per cent interest. But neither is $30 a month full value for the bodies and lives of the men who may be drafted into the armies. So long as those men face the prospect of being maimed or killed, it is grotesque for capital to cry "unfair," at the prospect of not being as well-paid as it desires, for it is simply to say that money is more important than human life and agony and death.

The real arguments against the bill are others. It might and probably would have some little use in heading off war, as the Senate Military Committee was maintaining yesterday. But it would have no such great value for that purpose as seems to be imagined. The theory here is mainly based on the notion that bankers and industrialists make war to fatten their purses, and that is simply a myth.

The only effect of the thing would be to arouse somewhat more militant opposition to war among the well-heeled who are already against it.

 On the other hand, as we have pointed out before, the bill, as presently drawn, would require wholesale liquidation and bankruptcies on the part of those called on for loans--depress all values--terrify capital into hiding--paralyze the economic system--and so defeat the very purpose for which it is presumably drawn: the securing of adequate funds for defeating the enemy-to-be.

 


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