Muncie Post-Democrat, Muncie, Delaware County, 3 October 1947 — Page 2

PAGE TWO

THE POST-DEMOCRAT & Democratic weeKly newspaper representing the 'Jtemocrats of Muncie, Delaware County and the lOtb Congressional District. The only Democratic Newspaper in Delaware Count! Entered as second class matter January 15, 1921, r.t the Post Office at Muncie, Indiana, under Act of March 3. 1879.

PRICE 5 CENTS—$1.50 A YEAR

MRS. GEO. R. DALE, Publisher 916 West Main Street

Muncie, Indiana, Friday, October 3, 1947.

Stability of the Two-Party System Marquis ChiMs’ column on politics in Greece suggests by indirection the value of the two-party system as it exists in the United States. Third, fourth and fifth parties, while they are organized in this country and get their names on the ballot, seldom amount to anything on a national scale. The notable exception in recent times was the Progressive, or Bull Moose Party, which was headed by Theodore Roosevelt in 1912. It split the regular Republican Party of which the late William Howard Taft was the nominee that year and insured the election of Woodrow Wilson. This schism which had not been completely heai'ed in 1916 probably contributed to the re-election of Wilson. It will be recalled that Wilson won Tn 1916 with the electoral vote of California. Charles Evans Hughes, the Republican candidate, is thought to have lost California because he snubbed Hiram Johnson, who had been the Bull Moose nominee for Vice-President in 1912. In later years third parties have not affected the outcome of a Presidential election. The senior Robert M. LaFollette of Wisconsin led a third party in 1924, but Calvin Coolidge, Republican, defeated John W. Davis, Democrat, just as he would have done had there been no third party in the field. Voters in the United States usually choose to work in and vote for one of the two major parties. It has given stability to our form of government. Tlie idea of many political parties seems to be a disease in some European countries. Greece is not an isolated incident in this respect, although Mr. Childs presents a very clear picture of the political difficulties which that country has. Certainly it is not a picture which appeals to Americans. France before World War II also was cursed with many political parties. The result was that cabinets rose and fell with sickening regularity. France was practically paralyzed politically. She was not even able to provide for her own defense in the face of the rise of nazism. In his early days of aggression, Adolf Hitler used to time his moves to coincide with the fall of a French cabinet. And, of course, the Nazi “fifth column” in France contributed as much as it couM to the fall of these cabinets. „ When Hitler finally swept into France with his lightning war he found the nation a pushover. The weakness which stemmed from many squabbling political minorities was a major factor in Hitler's success. — Journal Gazette.

Time to Call Congress President Truman’s report on the food situation, taken together with the latest information from Europe, makes it absurd to delay any longer the summoning of a special session of Congress. The President is to meet with congressional leaders Monday. It must be hoped that the decision will then be made to come to grips at once with the in-ter-related problems of food prices and aid to Europe. Europe’s situation grows more precarious every day. A foreign ministry spokesman in Paris says French dollar resources will be exhausted within a month, thus terminating the purchase of wheat, coal and fats. From Italy, Foreign Minister Sforza reports the likelihood of political upheaval within three months unless food in sufficient quantities can be obtained. In addition to these emergency needs, the start of long-range reconstruction along the lines of the Marshall plan cannot safely be postponed, as it would be postponed if Congress waited until January to begin debating it. And finally, the domestic price structure is in need of immediate attention. Mr. Truman pointed out that adverse crop developments in recent weeks “make apparent a food shortage even worse than a year ago.” In the face of increased needs, abroad, the American corn crop is reduced. While we may continue to export as much wheat as we did last year, the total of all grain exports will decline unless vigirous action is taken. The President’s cabinet committee on food urges increased shipments of food other than grain, and joint international effort to increase shipments from other surplus areas, notably Argentina and Australia. But even if these actions are successful, the committee says, there will still be a serious gap between minimum needs and total supply. Moreover, it is recognized that squeezing more food out of the American economy may tend to raise still further prices which have already brought us close to a buyers’ strike and have already cut consumption at many family tables. This is why a voluntary conservation program is to be organized by a citizens’ committee under chairmanship of Charles F. Luckman. Most Americans will gladly cooperate with this national campaign to reduce waste. One of the responsibilities of this committee should be to tell the country precisely how much food we can expect to make avail-

THE POST-DEMOCRAT, MUNCIE, IND., FRIDAY, OCTOBER 3, 1947.

able by this method. If it is not going to be enough, let the committee say so, and recommend what other measures are needed. If voluntary action won’t keep prices down and increase aid to Europe, we should take action which will. It is regrettable that President Truman at his press conference did not respond to the suggestion of a congressional price committee for curbs on speculation in grain prices. This can be done, the committee says, without disturbing essential business procedures. Unless the grain exchanges solve this problem themselves, Congress ought to consider it. A voluntary campaign to keep food prices down is incompatible with unbridled speculation that tends to keep them up.—Chicago Sun. Reapportionment in the Spotlight A Lake County Superior Court ruling to the effect that a tax law is unconstitutional because the Legislature that passed the law was improperly apportioned extremeiy interesting, but certainly not indicative of impending chaos. Judge Harold Strickland ruled that the gasoline tax collection statute of 1927 is unconstitutional. In effect, the ruling casts doubt on the legality of all laws passed since the first time legislative reapportionment was ignored. News stories quote “attorneys as pointing out” that only tax laws would be invalidated if the Supreme Court should finally uphold Judge Strickland. In the absence of any ruling on the matter, it is difficult to see how tax laws could be thrown out and all other statutes be upheld if they were passed by the same legislatures—which they were. It is quite probable that Judge Strickland has accomplished exactly what he intended to do with his unusual finding: Call attention to the unconstitutional practice of ignoring the reapportionment law. We do not believe Judge Strickland expects to be upheld in higher courts, and if he does, he is doomed to disappointment. No Supreme Court would intentionally invalidate all laws passed in 20 years unless it were setting the stage for a revolution. Lake County, like Allen County, and all other urban centers with industrial cores, has suffered because of the inequality of reapportionment for many years. Our State Constitution requires the Legislature to reapportion representatives every six years. This has been ignored since 1921. This condition is more traceable to apathy than politics, for both political parties have been guilty. As we have said several times before, the Southern tail wags the Indiana dog. On the basis of population, representatives from the populous districts have only a fraction of-the voting power enjoyed by their colleagues from sparsley settled counties. This condition can and should be corrected at the next session of the Legislature. It will be corrected and the constitution be followed if the people shout loudly enough for their rights. Judge Strickland’s ruling is not likely to cause our Government to crumble, but the jurist deserves a vote of thanks for throwing the spotlight on an old injustice. —Journal Gazette.

Tfs’ in the Marshall Plan The report of the Paris conference on the Marshall Plan has now been dispatched to Washington. It is well to recognize, at the outset of a long debate, that this plan for the recovery of Europe is conditional. It will work as contemplated, according to the report itself, only if certain things happen in addition to the grant or loan of American funds. One of these conditions, surprisingly enough, is “a substantial and steady resumption of Eastern European food,.feeding stuffs and timber supplies.” Originally the Paris conference estimated its four-year trade deficit at $29 billion. When American spokesmen let it be known that this would be too rich for Congress’ blood, the conference reduced the figure— but only by assuming that the normal continental trade of Europe will in some measure be restored. This represents a marked change in the whole theory of the Marshall Plan. Ever since Russia and her satellites withdrew from participation, the theory has been that Western Europe would have to find some way of reorganizing itself without the East. But now, in order to reduce the demand upon the American continent, it is being assumed that Europe may not be quite divided, after all 1 . Whether that assumption is correct, nobody can say. But the sword cuts both ways. If Eastern Europe is going to help Western Europe recover and vice versa, then the total American outlay under the Marshall Plan could undoubtedly be reduced by sending machinery and fertilizer into the Soviet zone. By increasing food production there, we would decrease the West’s dependence on imports from America. • / If, on the other hand, Eastern Europe is out of the deal, then we are deluding ourselves to think that $22 billion will meet needs which were originally fixed at $29 billion on the theory of a divided continent. The barrier to a resumption of normal European trade patterns is, of course, the political division between Russia and the West. If the great powers could settle the basic issues that divide them, Europe could probably recover with the aid of a smaller Marshall Plan than Paris suggests. But if the assumption is to be that these basic issues cannot be settled, then Europe may require a larger Marshall Plan instead. A second condition which the Paris Conference attaches is that the United States

will open its doors to large imports, not only from Europe but from other parts of the

world.

In figuring the total need at $22 billion, the conference assumed that, toward the end of the four-year period, Europe will have a substantial trade surplus with countries outside the United States. In other words, it is supposed that Europe will be shipping out to Asia, Latin-America, Africa and the Middle East more goods than it receives from those areas. Tlie surplus, however, won’t be usable in trade with the United States unless it can be converted into dollars. And it can’t be converted into dollars unless the United States has been buying goods in sufficient amount from Asia, Latin-America and the

Middle East.

This a roundabout way of saying that unless the United States reduces its tariff barriers and expands its imports, the Marshall Plan will either cost more than is now contemplated or will fail to accomplish its ends. When one adds that the Marshall Plan may also prove inadequate unless Soviet Russia permits at least a partial resumption of East-West trade in Europe, the conclusion j is irresistible that the straightest, shortest ' road to European recovery is the one-world

route.

If, through Russia’s intransigence or our own, we are not going to take that route, then we should be prepared to carry heavier burdens than the Paris conference was allowed to propose.—Chicago Sun.

The Need To Be Practical There is a growing conviction in the United States that a large part of whatever aid we give to Europe should go toward building up permanent recovery so that the Europeans can help themselves. Our people are beginning to realize that there is a limit to our ability to provide a hand-to-mouth (from our hands to their mouths) subsistence for the millions of the continent. We already have sent billions abroad since the end of the war, but too much of it has been spent by recipients for their daily living. This cannot go on forever and the inhabitants on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean might as well face the fact realistically. If American bankrupts herself, then, where will everybody be? Either in the-hands of Soviet Russia, or the earth will be converted into a universal poorhouse. Perhaps both. It should not be forgotten that there hangs over our economy the enormous debt which was built up during the war. Something must be done about that. Even the conservative Sen. Taft is proposing a new billion-dollar-a-year welfare plan. He says the Federal government can afford to spend that much. He is going to push his welfare program in the January session of Congress. The expenses of government seem always to go up and never come down. The United States is a rich country, but enough, straws of expenditure will break its financial back. Any one of the many items of expense which are proposed from time to time can be borne, but taken all together they make a mighty load. There is only one way the Federal government can get the money and that is by taxation. If taxation goes high enough it will eat up all profits and all income. There is such a thing as taxing business to the point of ruin and we seem to be headed in that direction. Everybody has a pet scheme which costs more money. People who are enthusiastic in the promotion of schemes do not like to think of the inevitable day of reckoning. But it comes just the same and the future of this country is already heavily mortgaged. But to get back to aid to Europe, it is not true that it must be placed on a more practical basis with permanent recovery as the goal? With our dollars should go engineers and businessmen with the “know how” to get Europe started again so that it can begin to take care of itself. Even more valuable than dollars are the natural resources which we are shipping out of the country never to be returned.—Journal Gazette.

Ike Has GOP Leaders Worried Gen. Eisenhower has the leaders of the Republican party worried. They are afraid he may be nominated for the Presidency and they do not want him. They prefer someone who has come up thru the ranks in organization politics. They do not know where he stands on the issues of the day. They did not even know that he claimed to be a Republican until recently. He was originally thought of as a Democrat. The Chicago Tribune declares that Gen. Eisenhower has been too close to President Roosevelt and President Truman from whom he received his preferment in the Army. The Tribune thinks he would prove to be a “Me too,” candidate like Willkie was in 1940 and like Dewey was in 1944. The Chicago newspaper prefers Gen. MacArthur and Sen. Robert A. Taft. Gen. Ike has said that he does not wantanything to do with politics, but the GOP leaders are not convinced that he means it. They do not think his refusal to run lias been strong enough. They are afraid he will change his mind and his attitude after he gets out of the Army and becomes president of Columbia University next year. There is only one consideration u n d e r which the GOP President-makers would want Ike and that would be in ease they felt no one else could defeat President Truman for re-election. They are not yet convincedthat situation obtains. Gen. Eisenhower is a legal resident of Kansas. Among his potential backers and boosters are Alt Landoh, who was the Re-

publican nominee in T936; Roy Roberts, able head of the Kansas City Star, and Sen. Arthur Capper, elder statesman, all of Kansas, If they got busy on a boom for the present Chief-of-Staff of the United States Army, it might turn into a combination which would be hard to stop. Eisenhower has the advantage of being known to every voter and school child in the land. The Republicans have not had a President since Herbert Hoover and they are anxious to recover the White House. But they want to win, if possible, with a candidate of their own kind, who understands the rules of politics and who has proved his Republicanism. Even Dewey is not entirely to their liking. Taft would suit them better. His views are more orthodox. He is the man who had most to do with making the record on which the party will have to campaign—the record of Congress.—Journal Gazette.

Our Crowded Campuses This week more than two and one-half million young Americans are attending colleges and universities. That is a million more than the peak enrollment of prewar years and the college trend is growing. Educators predict that the three-million mark will be reached within a year or two and they are frankly worried about educational facilities. Right now America’s colleges are bursting at the seams. Glass-rooms and laboratories are used in multiple shifts; nondescript buildings have been converted into dormitories or other housing units. Trailer camps abound on every campus. And

the end is not yet.

The chief reason for this is the earnest desire of the ex-Gi to get an education. The young veteran has confounded the “experts” who so’ glibly predicted colleges would set such high scholastic standards that most of the veterans who looked to their belated education would be flunked out and discourl aged. It has not worked out that way. The more mature veteran has set a hard pace for his younger classmate. Many of them have families—an ever present incentive to success. While colleges have been forced to drop certain prewar rules and standards because of the unprecedented rush, the quality of work done has not suffered too

noticeably.

It has been pointed out that American colleges experienced a doubled enrollment after World War I and that the present enrollment is history repeating itself. Responsible educators do not foresee any leveling off within a decade and-are frankly worried over lack of physical facilities. It is plainly an unusual problem for the nation. Privately endowed institutions as well as state universities must provide more classroom space and living accommodations. Practically all schools have been forced to limit their enrollments and thousands of woul^-be students are vainly seeking a place

to land.

The growing desire for a higher education should not be decried. It is one of the healthy signs of these troubled times. True, the trend causes temporary inconveniences but it is a challenge to adult America to provide education for its young people. The distant day may arrive when college .training in any line of endeavor will be almost essential to success. Our veterans are proving that a college education is more desired than it was a generation ago.—Journal

Gazette.

Atomic Energy Is Your Business Chairman David E. Lilienthal of the Atomic Energy Commission made an unspectacular but very important speech in Crawfordsville, Ind., Monday night. There was a note of warning in his plea for the people to inform themselves about atomic energy, so that they can “keep the broad decisions” in their hands. Mr. Lilienthal set out to puncture,the notion that atomic energy is too technical, or too deeply involved in national security, to be the subject of widespread public discussion. “That is plain nonsense,” he said, “and dangerous nonsense—dangerous to cherished American institutions and for that reason dangerous to genuine national security.” So long as international control of atomic energy remains unrealized, certain phases of the process must necessarily fall within the realm of military secrecy. But atomic energy is not synonymous with the atomic bomb. The great issue, for the nation and the world, is to what use the steadily widening scientific knowledge of atomic structure shall be put. That decision cannot be made by military men alone, nor by scientists alone, nor by politicians alone. “What this vast problem requires,” said Mr. Lilienthal, is “not technical judgment but rather the human experience and good sense of the natural leaders of opinion within the thousands of communities of the country . . . Nothing could weaken the security of our country in the atomic field more quickly, nor more surely slow up research in cancer control, say, than to permit science and scientists to be kicked around by the organized forces of ignorance and demagoguery, and petty politics.” Yet the people can be debarred from a decisive voice in the future use of atomic science if they fail to inform themselves— especially on the question of international control. Mr. Lilienthal makes complete sense when he urges that citizens do their own thinking, and put atomic energy at the top of the agenda for discussion and study in commercial associations, unions, parenttehcher groups, service organizations, women’s clubs and the like. “There has never been any good substitute for the all-around common sense of an informed lay public,” says Mr. Lilienthal. “That is just what is needed here.”'—Chicago Sun.

"HMPH, THESE FOREIGNERS - MY ANCESTORS

Courtesy Institute for Amarican Democracy. Inc.

Legal Notice

NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING ON AMENDMENT OF ZONING ORDINANCE Notice is hereby given to the citizens of Muncie, Indiana, that public hearing on an amendment to the Zoning Ordinance, which is now pending before the Common Council of the City of Muncie, Indiana, will be held in the city council chamber of the- City Hall at 7:30 p. m., on the 6th day of October 1947, at which time and place any objections to such amendment or change will be heard. The proposed amendment or change to be made is as follows: To amend, supplement and change the present Zoning Ordinance of said City of Muncie, Indiana, so as to transfer to the business district, to the six hundred (600i square foot area district and to the eighty (80i foot height district the following described territory in said City of Muncie, Indiana, to-wit:

Lot number twelve (12) in Block number two hundred fifty-seven i257), Muncie Land Company’s Subdivision of a part of the Watson and Prutzman Tract of the City of Muncie, Indiana, also known as 2812 S. Walnut Street, Muncie, Indiana. Said proposed ordinance for such amendment or change of said present Zoning Ordinance has been referred to the City Plan Commission of said City of Muncie, and has been considered, and said City Plan Commission has made its report approving the same: Information concerning such proposed amendment or change is now on file in the office of said City Plan Commission, for public examination. Said hearing will be continued from time to time as may be found necessary. In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand and affixed the seal of the City of Muncie, Indiana, (SEAL) J. Kenneth Foster City Clerk, and Clerk of the Common Council of the City of Muncie, this 25th day of September 1947. (PDI—Sept. 27, Oct; 3.

U.N. Facts and Faces

GREECE

EAAAI (GREECE)

V I

A cradle of western civilization which contributed many of the world’s most important artistic and philosophical ideas, Greece includes some 50,000 square miles of mountainous country at the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula. It borders on Albania, Bulgaria and Yugoslavia in the

north, Turkey and the Aegean Sea in the east, the Ionian Sea in the west and the Mediterranean Sea in the south. Her population is more than 7,000,000, and is largely agricultural. Her capital is. ancient Athens. The Kingdom of Greece is permanently represented at United Nations Headquarters by Alexis Kyrou. Her flag has five blue and four white stripes in addition Zo a cross of white on a blue field.

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