the waste by industries in the hoarding
of labor, slow-downs, and so forth.

Mr. REED. Mr. President, if the Sen-
ator will pardon me for a further inter-
jection, I have lived a long time, and
have had a long public experience; I
have been Governor of my State in ad-
dition to the honor I have received at
the hands of the people of Kansas who
voted to send me as one of their Repre-
sentatives to the Senate, but in a long
public life I have never seen public senti-
ment so inflamed, public indignation so
aroused, and people so incensed over
waste, inefficiency, and extravagance in
governmental administration—whether
county, State, or Federal—as they are
now.

Mr. WHEELER. I want to say to the
Senator, in response to his statement,
that if the Government in Washington
does not wake up to what is the real feel-
ing of the people in the Middle West and
West, I fear for what is going to happen,

As I suggested Tuesday when I was
speaking, some have said that I was
wrong, but I want to tell Senators who
do not want to listen to the facts, Sen-
ators who are not interested, apparently,
in saving fathers, but are willing to break
up the American homes, that when they
come up for election and return home
they will find out the feelings and senti-
ments and temper of the American
people.

What applies to Goverment-operated

plants applies with greater force to non--

essential Government bureaus and also
to the waste of manpower in those bu-
reaus which are essential to the conduct
of the war.

Mr. President, I appreciate the fact
that anything I may say upon this sub-
ject will not change any votes in this

554199—3636

 

’ ‘
cs
atl
a

body. I appreciate that my Democratic
colleagues are apparently not particu-
larly interested in ascertaining the facts.
I wish to say, however, in all seriousness,
that the time will come in the not far
distant future when they will be inter-
ested. If they follow blindly——

Mr. BARKLEY. Mr. President, if the
Senator will yield there, I should like to
call attention, for the Recorp, inasmuch
as the Senator from Montana has sin-
gled out his Democratic colleagues, that
there are as many Democratic colleagues
present in the Senate as there are Re-
publican colleagues.

Mr. WHEELER. Well, Mr. President,
there have not been all afternoon. If
there are now, it is the first time there
have been. However, the time will come,
whether they are Democrats or Repub-
licans, when they will be interested in
the subject; because it is one which af-
fects not only 446,000 fathers, but also
446,000 mothers, countless children, and
grandparents and other relatives. If any
Members of the Senate do not believe for
one moment that the people of the United
States are interested in endeavoring to
prevent the breaking up of American
homes and the throwing into the streets,
of children, and if Members of the Sen-
ate do not think the people of the country
believe it is the duty of the Congress of
the United States to stop the waste of
manpower in the Government bureaus
and the hoarding which is taking place
in various industries throughout the
country, whether such Senators are Re-
publicans or Democrats, they will be
sadly mistaken. If they do not believe
they are breaking down the morale of the
American people in the war effort by
inducting fathers into the military serv-
ice they are sadly mistaken,

U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE: 1943