Ditch Up, Dam Down

"Passamaquoddy, Passamaquoddy," mused Majority Leader Joe Robinson in the Senate one day last week. "You know, I like that word. It has a pleasant sound."

Fact was that to most Democrats, including Senator Robinson, Passamaquoddy had by last week become one of the unpleasantest words in the language. Apparently doomed were this $36,000,000 Maine tide-harnessing project and the $146,000,000 Florida Ship Canal when, after Congress had refused to appropriate money to continue them, President Roosevelt washed his hands of the two ventures. He had started them on relief money without consulting Congress, now declared it was up to Congress to finish them. But the President had already tossed $5,500,000 over the Maine dam, sunk $5,400,000 in the Florida ditch, and well he knew that Republican campaigners would not let U. S. voters forget his headlong largess.

Last week the Senate Appropriations Committee reported out the First Deficiency Bill, containing a $1,425,000,000 appropriation for relief, with only a few minor amendments to the measure passed by the House. One of them, as a safeguard against possible unconstitutionality of WPA, shifted control of the relief fund from WPAdministrator Hopkins to President Roosevelt. Another, aimed at preventing any more such huge false starts as 'Quoddy Dam and the Florida Canal, provided that no relief project could be begun unless sufficient funds to complete it were set aside from this year's appropriation. When this amendment was read in the Senate, the President's faithful Joe Robinson rose to offer an amendment to it. He proposed that the President be empowered to appoint engineering boards of review to resurvey 'Quoddy and the canal, that if their reports were favorable he be authorized to spend $10,000,000 of this year's relief money to continue the canal, $9,000,000 to continue the dam.

Senator Vandenberg. who killed the original canal appropriation almost singlehanded, once more leaped to the attack. "We are back again," roared the Michigan GOPossibility, "boondoggling on 'Quoddy Bay and pipe-dreaming on the phantom Florida Canal. Most of us thought, or perhaps hoped would be a better word, that we were through with this quarter-billion-dollar extravaganza when Congress settled with it the last time. . . ."

As Republicans, Senators Hale and White were against the canal. But as men from Maine, they were for the dam. Hence Senator Hale forced a division of the Robinson amendment to provide separate votes on the two projects. Florida's canal came first. Senators Hale. White and 28 colleagues voted against it, but 35 Senators put it through.

Then came the dam. "Aye." voted Senators Hale, White and 26 colleagues. "Nay!" voted 39 angry Senators.

With 'Quoddy apparently gone for good, the Senate passed the Deficiency Bill, 62-10-14, committed the canal's fate to conference.

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