Blossom Time

Along the banks of the Potomac, Japanese cherry trees were last week bursting into bloom, sign of hot weather soon to come, sign that Congress should soon wind up its lengthy session. Senator Connally of Texas, moved by these harbingers of summer, thought of being gracious: why should not a small delegation of Democratic Congressmen go down to the Union Station to meet the President returning from vacation? Senator Borah, also gracious, asked: Why should not Republicans be included? The cloak rooms buzzed. Someone had a bright idea: Why not invite the whole of Congress? Why not march down with a band? No one could say nay to so unprecedented a patriotic gesture, but a number of Congressmen--mostly Republicans-- began to snicker at its unprecedented incongruity: to welcome back the President with open arms after Congress had, in his absence, flouted his wishes by overriding his pension veto, by taxing Philippine coconut oil, by threatening to remonetize silver (see p. 14), by extracting teeth from the Stock Exchange bill. When Franklin Roosevelt--after a long conference with General Johnson and NRA Counsel Richberg aboard his train coming from Miami--drew into Washington's Union Station, he was surprised to hear the stentorian trumpets of the Marine Band playing "Happy Days Are Here Again" and William Woodwin's "The Franklin D. Roosevelt March," to see the smiling faces of 200 eager Representatives and 30 Senators. Hale and bronzed, he came out on the rear platform of his car to the gangway which had been placed for his descent, and grinned at his unruly legislative children. Representative Kenney of New Jersey (sponsor of the bill for a billion dollar lottery for veterans) lifted his arms and led the lawmakers in a cheer. Then heartily enjoying the irony of the meeting, the President made as informal an extempore speech as can be found among public Presidential utterances: "I am very glad to see you all. . . . I am awfully sorry to get back, but while I have been having a wonderful time, I gather also that both houses of Congress have been having a wonderful time in my absence. "Furthermore, I expected on this trip to get some good publicity about the fish I was catching, but couldn't in view of the fact that here in Washington apparently you good people have been going from Wirt to Wirt." He paused, but the Congressmen were too befuddled by the sight of him to laugh even at a Presidential pun. "For you younger members of both Houses--speaking from an experience of many years in Washington--I want to point out to you the advantages of the Washington climate in July and August. It rarely gets over 110DEG here--there is no humidity and I don't mind if I stay here all summer. . . . "I have come back with all sorts of new lessons which I learned from barracuda and sharks. I am a tough guy. So, if you will come down and see me as often as you possibly can, I will teach you some of the stunts I learned."

Thus the President of the U. S. came back in blossom time and at once began diligently to tend his garden:

P: First came official acts that needed haste. He held a Cabinet meeting. He signed the Johnson bill forbidding loans to defaulting nations, signed a joint resolution directing the Federal Power Commission to study electric power rates throughout the U. S., signed an administrative order to enable NRA code authorities to assess all code members for the cost of code administration.

P: Next he got down to the task of making up a program for Congress, a program you will come down and see me. . . ." that would send Congress home by May 15. To do so he had to sort out those measures that should still be passed; those others that could be allowed to die; those that must not be passed. Picked for passage: 1) The tariff bargaining bill, permitting the President to effect reciprocal tariff cuts with other nations; 2) the tax bill, although the President would like the coconut oil tax eliminated; 3) the law to extend the present temporary plan of bank deposit guarantee for another year--thereby putting off the more drastic "permanent" guarantee; 4) the Stock Exchange regulation bill, with teeth; 5) a bill to appropriate $1,500,000,000 to $2,000,000,000 for relief and PWA expenses until the next Congress meets. Picked for probable sacrifice: Commodity exchange regulation bill; communications commission bill; permanent airmail bill; Wagner Labor bill. Picked for defeat: The silver purchase bill in its present form, the McLeod bill (see p. 14) and similar measures. To be sure of defeating the silver bill the President placed on his list for passage "some other monetary measure" to help placate the silver block.

P: Striking at the airmail snarl the President told Congressional leaders to postpone permanent legislation until next year. He urged a commission to study the whole field of private and military aviation in the meantime, endorsed temporary contracts with private airmail carriers (see p. 24).

P: One other blossom-time duty the President took care of: he attended the spring Gridiron Club dinner postponed until his return. Notable sketch provided by waggish newshawks: Vice President Garner in the role of Mark Antony reciting:

I came to bury Congress, not to praise it.

Our Congress dead? If so, 'tis the most antic corpse

Ever interred upon the Capitoline.

Congress, 'twas said, had sunk so low

None was so poor to do it reverence.

'Twas called great Caesar's rubber stamp,

His bond slave, chattel, fawning hound,

Which, when he oped his lips, dared not to bark.

P: Postmaster General Farley dropped in at the White House for an earnest conference about the payless furloughs ordered for Post Office employes as an economy measure (TIME, March 19). For six weeks that order had not only vexed mail carriers but had brought down criticism on the Administration for cutting pay and laying off men while Industry was ordered to do the reverse. When Mr. Farley left the President he went back to his office and issued an announcement: "Improved business conditions have resulted in a substantial increase in postal revenues. . . . I feel justified in revoking, effective May 1, my order for payless furloughs. . . ."

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