Lots of warm sunshine on a two-day trip down the Potomac aboard the Sequoia knocked out the last remnants of President Roosevelt's cold. As Sunday's sun sank the yacht put in at Washington Navy Yard. At 8 130 he was in his White House study as visitors began to arrive in answer to a special call. In trooped dandified little Secretary of the Treasury Woodin, suntanned Secretary of Agriculture Wallace, portly Attorney General Cummings. At their heels came Federal Reserve Governor Black, R. F. C. Chairman Jones, Currency Comptroller O'Connor, Budget Director Douglas, Deposit Insurance Corp. Chairman Cummings. After handshakes all around they settled down in easy chairs, listened to the President talk. His subject: the necessity for more steam in the boiler of National Recovery.
Before the conference broke up at 11 p. m. in a haze of tobacco smoke, the President's ablest financial advisers had thrashed over a wide field of problems with him. Currency inflation was not discussed; the President wanted to try other things first. But credit inflation was, at length. One reason that NRA was failing to produce results was that codified industries had trouble borrowing money to finance new costs before new profits accrued. Why? Because many banks were hoarding their commercial credit. Why? Because they wanted to be completely liquid to qualify under the new deposit insurance system Jan. 1. Chairman Jones was deluged with advice as to how his R. F. C. could loosen its resources, break the credit deadlock. How to speed the reopening of banks frozen shut since winter was another topic of lively debate. Comptroller O'Connor reported his efforts to date. The President thought much more could be done with aggressive R. F. C. aid, in "hard" money. Secretary Wallace was wide open to suggestions to boost farm prices to new levels created by NRA. At the mention of capital fleeing the U. S. before the Administration's uncertain monetary policy all heads nodded in solemn anxiety.
But when the President said, "Good night, gentlemen." nothing more definite had been decided than that the Government should put its shoulder to the credit wheel harder than ever in the next few weeks. In the dark outside the White House, Secretary Woodin chirped: ''Everything looks very hopeful."
To replace the late "Ike" Hoover as Chief Usher of the White House, President Roosevelt appointed a lanky 36-year-old Bostonian named Raymond Muir. Chief Usher Muir was assistant to "Ike'' Hoover for four years.
On General Johnson's desk last week lay a brand new order which, if & when signed by the President, would bring into play the tariff clause of the National Recovery Act to exclude cheap foreign imports threatening NRA manufacturers.
Also last week the Treasury imposed higher anti-dumping duties on electric light bulbs and sneakers from Japan, celluloid-covered thumb tacks from Germany, saponified stearic acid from The Netherlands.