Indianapolis Times, Volume 46, Number 86, Indianapolis, Marion County, 20 August 1934 — Page 6

PAGE 6

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MONDAY. AUG. 10. 134 HENRY T. RAINEY nrms werk the rich .soil of western Illinois, * the Mississippi river bottom land he had represented in congress lor a third of a century, reclaims what was mortal of Henry T. Rainey. The people of that district and of the country at large lose a steadfast friend. The government loses an able leader. Not to be numbered among the great Speakers of the house of representatives, since he had served in that office little more than a year and had come to it when well past the prime of his strength, Henry Ramey yet will long he remembered by his colleagues and his country. This not merely for his gracious personality. but for his consistent championship of th*' riahts of the average man. Labor accepted him as a friend as readily as did the farmers among whom he lived and he endeavored sincerely to merit this friendship. Perhaps the best test of his long record in congress—a record that included early and vigorous advocacy of the reciprocal tariff law recently enacted and recognition of the Russian republic, now granted—was given in the vote that made him Speaker. The ballots that won for him came from the younger and newer members, the liberals who had come in with Roosevelt His career was known to them. H* 4 had. on the whole, been ahead of his own party in congress and, at was felt, could be trusted to do his share toward making the proposed New Deal a reality. He justified this faith during the brief time he was permitted to serve.

BI’RLESQI E OINCE Herr Hitler announced his burlesque plebiscite this newspaper, along with most of the American press, has been pointing out that it has no relation to a popular referendum. There is no reason to repeat the obvious now, except for the sake of the record. Hitler told the German people that the reason for this election gesture was to prove to a hostile and critical world that Germany is united. When he scans the world press today he will discover that he fooled none but himself. Americans have no desire to meddle in internal German politics. But they would be less than human if they did not feel a profound sympathy for the victims of the Hitler terror, the German people. As for getting rid of him. that of course is the task of the Germans and not of outsiders. If Hitler can restrain his war-making itch—which got the better of him in the abortive Austrian putsch—Germany will be left alone by other European nations to find her own way out of one of the most tragic relapses into barbarism ever suffered by a supposedly civilized government. Meanwhile, the perfect comment on this fake plebiscite is that made by the old General Von Mackcnsen: “This is no election. There is no opposition.” But if history teaches anything it is that opposition driven under ground finally ends in explosion. PAYING FOR WEAKNESS I TALF a million people may starve to death this summer because of the drought. Not in a century has there been a drought so sc\ere. Crops have withered under a blazing sun which has kept the temperature at 115 degrees. day and night, for weeks. Rivers have dried up. springs have stopped flowing. There is no food to be had at all, over wide areas: in scores of villages and towns even the supply of drinking water has become exhausted. The federal government wants to do something to relieve suffering, but it is so weak, so overburdened with previous efforts to combat the drought and so short of funds that it is very doubtful that it will be able to do anything effective. These few sentences present a living nightmare. They do not apply, of course, to the United States. They do apply, however, to China. They were taken from a recent news dispatch telling of the horrible crisis which China is facing this summer. The Chinese drought is one of the worst in living memory. So is the one that hit the United States. Indeed, the weather seems to have been about the same in each nationmuch hear, no ram, a steady depletion of all water supplies, a burning and blistering of all growing things. In the United States it has meant great financial loss for the farmers and higher prices for the city dwellers. In China it is meaning nothing less than widespread starvation—people dying by the scores of thousands becau.-* they can not get food and water. The contrast is instructive. The disaster was the same, in each case: but in one land there was a social and economic organization capable of meeting the crisis, while in the other land there was not. In other words, there terrible natural catastrophes that come upon us every so often can be robbed of their worst terrors if society is organized to meet them properly. Mankind can triumph over nature if it will. Its worst dangers are those which come wheo the human element itself proves incapable of meeting the challenge which fate periodically offers. A CTRB ON GREED 'TnHE regulations laid down by the new federal securities and exchange commission contain rules designed to check speculation by corporation officials who like to take little fliers in the securities of their own companies. Need of such rule was abundantly shown by disclosures made before the senate’s famous slock markets committee. Case after case was cited in which corpora-

THE doleful tirades at the Wawasee Republican editors' outing show that the Indiana G. O. P. has learned nothing from its recent repudiation by the people. Senator Arthur Robinson opened his campaign for re-election on a querulous note that was reminiscent of the dark days when the late Mr. Hoover tried to terrorize the voters with a silly Jeremiad about ‘‘grass growing in the streets” if Mr. Roosevelt were elected. Since that idle threat was uttered not a single spear of timothy has poked through the paving. On the contrary, most of the nation’s main streets and highways have been improved and extended. The senator put on his ususal performance in his Saturday speech. All he lacked was a devil mask and a tom tom. Like a primitive witch doctor, he conjured up all the affreets, fiends, hobgoblins, shedims, jinns and werewolves that occurred to him. Out from the tomb he dragged the stale corpse of American Communism. He worried it up and down the platform, making it posture and bleed, but for all his puffing he could not give it the breath of life. “Subversive forces,” he shouted, “are now taking us unmistakably on a trek to Moscow! Regimentation! Collectivism!" Accuracy has never been an attribute of the senator. So it made no difference to him that the Communist party has shrunk until it is less than one-one-thousandth of the population of this country a a a He is indifferent to the fact that the insignificant publications of this handful of radicals spend most of their space in venomous attacks on the Roosevelt administration. He either is ignorant or insincere when he identifies the President’s enlightened capitalism with philosophy of Stalin. An hour with any standard reference work would show him the infinity that lies between the two political philosophies. During the coming campaign the Republicans are going to say a great deal about Communism. The people know why. They realize that when a pious fraud is caught with his hand in the collection plate he is likely to call the man that turned up the lights some mighty nasty names. Careful study of the senator’s keynote speech discloses only the vaguest references to real issues. He gave the impression that he favored some sort of food dole for the unemployed instead of the present plan of honest wages for honest work. He opposed the President’s emergency expenditures, but offered no substitute. He thought it was wrong that coming generations should help pay the cost of the present fight on economic depression. Yet this country has never been without a war debt which each generation has had to take over from its elders. Why is it not as sensible to hand future generations a bill for saving lives as it is to charge them for the organized slaughter of war? Mr. Robinson shuddered at the whole fiscal policy of the administration. Yet we venture to say that if the senator were confronted by a critical illness in his own family he would spare no expense, even though he had to borrow heavily, to insure recovery. And the extent of his credit would depend largely upon his ability to show that his every-day-expenses were well within his normal income.

The Roosevelt administration merely is doing the same thing on an infinitely larger scale. a a a He expressed indignation over the new bureaus which the government has set up and over the fact that many employes have gone on the public pay roll without benefit of civil service. The Times certainly does not indorse many of the stupid things which Postmaster-Geneial Farley, patronage chief, has done. This newspaper is for civil service. It regrets that the senator's own party did not see fit, during the many years it was in power in Indiana, to build up a real civil service system, particularly in the several police forces of the state. However, when Mr. Roosevelt took office the country was prostrate from a great economic disaster which had been augmented by the do-nothing policy of the previous administration. He had to act quickly. After all, when one's house is burning one can not stop to look up the character and credentials of every fireman before he is permitted to enter the blazing dwelling. The main objective is to extinguish the fire, even though some of the flat silver does disappear during the excitement. Senator Robinson also declared himself in violent opposition to the so-called’ “brain trust." This :s a group of presidential advisers, most of whom have spent a lifetime studying various specialized phases of social and economic probelms. Some of them are distinguished university tion officials got more interested in making a stock market killing than in conducting the affairs of their corporation in the interests of its stockholders. This not only led to a wholesale milking of suckers in Wall Street; all too often it subordinated the rights of the genuine investor to the speed of the speculating official —to the investor's direct financial loss. If the commission is able to curb such activities, business as a whole will be in much better shape. ORDER IN NEW DEAL TT is good to learn that the President has *■ ordered a full survey of all the “alphabet soup agencies in Washington, with a view to making their future activities more coherent and harmonious than has been the case in the immediate past. There has been a good deal of confusion in the capital in the last few months. Part of it arose because some of the innumerable agencies overlapped one another, and part of it came because there did not seem to be any definite course charted for all to follow. The conlerences which President Roosevelt is beginning ought to help end this confusion. The jobs that are being attempted are too large and too important to permit of any more drifting or working at cross-pur-poses. The big need of the day is to get all hands squared away and headed toward some clearly defined goal.

The Real Issue An Analysis

professors to whom wealthy conservatives have gladly paid many thousands of dollars for the education of their children. Many an industrialist has boasted proudly of the marks his boy got from Prosessor Tugwell, or Dr. Frankfurter or Professor Warren. Evidently some of these same fathers now believe that knowledge and scholarship are mere drawing room graces, which, like orchids and evening clothes, should never be used during business hours. It is easy to understand why Senator Robinson is opposed to the “brain trust.” His appeal always has been to the emotions rather than to the intellect. Through his entire career he has been a vigorous and practicing antagonist of brains in government. On that one point his record is splendidly consistent. His Wawasee speech ably demonstrated this. His thinking was muddled, his approach fanatical. He even attempted the impossible mental contortion of likening the New Deal to Fascism and Communism at the same time! His performance recalls the unfortunate fellow who dragged a hundred-pound harp to a party only to find he had forgotten his music. He couldn’t play by ear at all, but he tried anyhow. a a a On the first page of this edition of The Times are printed typical excerpts from the senator’s speech. Along with them we have published random parts of the address of Sherman Minton, his Democratic opponent, who spoke before the Democratic editors at French Lick a week ago Saturday. After reading the remarks of both candidates which do you think gives the greater impression of sincerity? Which makes the appeal to reason? Which deals in facts? Which sets forth the more constructive program? The two men are diametrically opposed not only politically, but in character. Mr. Minton goes about his business with becoming modesty. He does not rant, slap backs, hand out either cheap cigars or inexpensive conversation. So far as can be learned he kisses no babies but his own. While he was public counsellor for the public service commission he saved the people of Indiana millions of dollars in utility rates. There is nothing shameful about his record or his associations. He does not in the least object to answering questions from any source about his past history. Senator Robinson, on the other hand, has never denied—although twice we have asked him publicly—that he was associated in the Ku-Klux Klan with D. C. Stephenson, who is serving a life sentence for the peculiarly revolting murder of a young woman. He has never explained—though we have twice asked him publicly—just what, if anything, Stephenson had to do with his original appointment to the United States senate. During the last year the senator apparently entered into a state of chumship with the contemptible Huey Long, who, aside from being a renegade Democrat, is one of Mr. Robinson’s most ardent and profane supporters. The Indiana senator received another doubtful distinction when the Washington correspondents, who represent all political creeds, voted him “the member of congress least likely to be missed.” a a a His senate colleagues have not permitted his name to appear on a single important bill He has and can—do nothing in Washington for Indiana. His influence has been bankrupt for years. He is the apologist for an element in American life which for decades has had its snout thrust to the ears in the trough of special privilege. Many of this group have fed for so long at the expense of others that they have come to believe in their own righteousness. Next to self-preservation comes self-justifica-tion. They favor government of the people, by privilege, for privilege. They label any other political philosophy "subversive” and “dangerous”—as, indeed, it is to them. No thinking person is surprised at the earsplitting squeals which privilege is emitting these days. Mr. Roosevelt has it by the hind leg and is dragging it from the trough. Nor is any adult mind deceived by the vulgar lamentations of that section of the press which has been kept for a lifetime by privileged interests. An aging Jezebel does not face in calm silence the prospect of eviction from her oven scented boudoir, even though she may never have done an honest day’s work to maintain it. The real issue of this campaign does not appear in the spook-parade conjured out of Senator Robinson's imagination. The thing which the voters must decide is whether the average man—now no longer ’ forgotten”—is to have the opportunity to rear his family in true American dignity and decency or whether this republic is to return to the political philosophy which gave them the regimentation of the bread line, the collective right to starve.

SAFER FLYING need for better safety regulations to i educe risks of air travel has been apparent for some time. Existing regulations tend to establish average minimum requirements of pilot training and equipment, giving little consideration to the fact that safety requirements differ in various sections of the country. More specific regulations have been proposed by Eugene Vidal, air commerce director, and now are being debated by air line operator and plane jnanufacturers. American aviation is growing by leaps and bounds. Obviously It is improving its technique. But the record of the number of persons killed and injured in airplane accidents remains too high. It is not easy to compare our record with those of other countries. We fly more and in worse weather. We do more night flying. American aviation is daring. And that is all the more reason why the government should exercise firm control. A few operators grumble at the governments insistence that they use more expensive equipment, that they use only multimotored planes for night flying, that they cut down the number of pilot hours. It should be evident that a sacrifice of profits now to achieve greater safety will result in more profits in the future by reason of greater public patronage and confidence.

THE INDIANAPOLIS TIMES

(Times readers are invited to express their views in these columns. Make your letters short, so a'l can have a chance. Limit them to SSO words or less.) a a a OBJECTS TO CHANGE IN SCHOOL TEXTS By Mrs. E. E. R. Who is responsible for again changing all books this fall for the schools? Are our fine politicians that we taxpayers voted in and pay huge salaries doing that? There will be hundreds of children over the age of 16 forced out of school on that sole account. I think it’s high time we parents and taxpayers were making a kick and doing something.

STILL DISLIKES AD POSTER By Ex-Bread Customer! Well, Mr. Observer, in answer to your childish attempt at criticism of my protest in regard to obscene and offensive billboard advertising, I have been quite busy, too busy, in fact, to give your pathetic attempt at wilting sarcasm more than passing notice. I have heard that, “it is the bit dog that yelps,” then it occurred to me that the “fine bit of work” (as you described it) might, after all, be the reproduction of a photograph of some member of your family: a sister, daughter, mother or some other near and dear relative; otherwise, just how did you nappen to “barge” into this? Your reference to a “fine bit of work” is really amusing. I have had some experience in commercial art and advertising, and the better artists consider this type of advertising merely cheap stuff, very common, etc. So, when you read this, just control yourself—it probably isn’t the first time you have spoken out of turn and made yourself ridiculous. Permit me to suggest that we, for the sake of our long-suffering editor, and a more or less bored pufclic, call this “closed business.” Yours for sane and decent advertising.

LAUDS EDITORIAL ON FREE SPECH By Albert L. Humphrey. Congratulations on your “Free Speech in Indianapolis” editorial. If Mike Morrissey and E. F. Maddox don’t like this country with its constitutional guarantee of free speech why don't they go back where they came from? n a a BELIEVES RADICAL THOUGHT NECESSARY By Times Reader. We have in this U. S. A. men who by accident, get to become heads of large organizations, but who by no means can show a sense of common human reasoning. Edward A. Hayes, national commander of the American Legion, seems to be one of those men who have a head but have no “think” in it. Mr. Hayes is alarmed at the fact that radical teachings are spreading to schools, colleges and universities and even to churches. He is also afraid that in case of another war, American “rats” will refuse to be trapped in an old trap to be murdered and maimed for the sole gusto of Mr. Hayes and those of the American Legion and the like. In the first instance, radical thought is needed not only among the laboring people, who suffer on account of their ignorance and stupidities, but by those who spent part of their life and their father’s

TURN AROUND, LI’L ARTHUR, TURN AROUND!

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The Message Center

Challenges The Times on Gambling Expose

By Insider. I have heard that there are such things as libel laws and slander statutes but I must confess that I am wholly in ignorance of the mechanics of the aforementioned legal obstacles and I am open minded about this whole thing. I would like to know one thing. Is it fear of libel or slander—or something—which is keeping The Times from cutting loose with some real haymakers in this slot machine business? * Almost everybody in town, of course, knows what the whole thing is all about and it seems rather strange that you can't come out and tell the unvarnished truth, i, for instance, know all about it. so does my wife, every

money to become men and tvomen of thought, to find themselves, now, underpaid or not paid at all, as is the case of many teachers, professors, preachers and others. These men and women, if you please, who have been taught to think, must do a little thinking for their own good, if they at all want to classify themselves as intelligent human beings. B B B BRIDE DEPLORES MATE’S UNEMPLOYMENT By Two Who Want a Chance. One week after we were married, my husband lost his job. That was a year ago. Since then he has had only two weeks work. He took the place of an elderly gentleman at a company here in the city, who was ill. This man lives with his daughter, who has a good job in the statehouse and could very well take care of him. He keeps his job only because he Is too proud to acknowledge that his working days are over. My husband and I haven’t even had a start yet, and this mans salary could give us the chance we yearn for; a home and babies which we are now deprived of. Why must this condition exist and what can be done about it? We are both 20 and trying to make our marriage a success, but so far we have had nothing but tough luck. 808 RESENTS CRITICISM OF FREE SPEECH By Hugh B. Marshall. In Friday's Times, I found a letter by E. F. Maddox, remonstrating against the use of Message Center as a Communist and Socialist vehicle for spreading propaganda, and accusing the editor of trying to boss the whole community. He states that Communism and Socialism are unpopular in this town. Mr. Maddox, in the first place, by whom are Communists made? By capitalists, those getting into power and using that to rob poor people of what little they do possess, because they are unable to go to law to defend themselves, because even those handling the law are against them. Second, a Communist is a man who believes he should have plenty ol work at living wages to support himself and family. A capitalist is one who intends that if he can help It, he will never let a laboring man receive that. Next, unless a change is made and men are allowed to work %t living wages, you are due to see more and more of Communism. Your attack on the editor is shameful. He is a good man, putting out a good clean, truthful

[/ wholly ' disapprove of what you say and willA defend to the death your right to say it. — Voltaire. J

friend I have, and practically everybody but the poor bird who works all day for a living and never gets in contact with any of our not-too-brilliant city, county and state governmental officials. Os the three I’d say that the statehouse bunch is the smartest of the lot with city hall running a fair second. Ever since you started out on that terrible slot machine racket you’ve had us all in a lather, expecting that any day now we’d pick up the paper off the front porch and find out that The Times has finally *gone and done it to that bird. Why don’t you? I hope you're not afraid of that four-flusher. Are you?

paper, and believes that all men should, under the free speech laws and justice, have a full right to voice their views. I have seen many of your letters and some of them look to me like you are the one wanting to boss the community. And as far as showing our “abysmal ignorance” we have as much right to our views as you. No doubt, many of us could show more hours of work, longer residence, more children, than you can. But please lay off the editor of the best paper published in Indianapolis. a a b SAYS POLICE IGNORED TAXI DRIVER’S COMPLAINT By H. H. Jackson. Today a cab driver came into the place where I am employed and asked to use the telephone. He called his company and a few minutes later told me that he was out a cab fare for three drunks he had hauled from Keystone avenue and Prospect street to a Broadway address. I suggested that he call the police apd after talking with him a few minutes he asked me to call, which I did. I explained to police headquarters the plight of the cab driver. The response that I received was “Oh, we can’t do anything about that, we can't make them pay.” The cab driver working with stiff competition on meager earnings is out 80 cents. lam wondering, and perhaps will go on wondering, if a prosperous store were robbed of 80 cents in nickels, if the incident would meet the same response from the police? From the poor cab driver, all the way up to a big concern just where does police aid begin? PHOTO ENGRAVER POLICY ASSAILED By J. W. F. The unemployed members of the Photo Engravers Union do not agree with E. M. Baker as to the generosity of their brother members. To labor is the divine right of kings, a God-given right. After four years of unemployment, it has been definitely proved that this is no major depression but the breakdown of a system, world-wide. What then gives a chosen few in an organization the right to say: “You may not work. We will pay you $15.00 the first year you are unemployed, SIO.OO the second year, 55.00 the third year, to keep yo'u from competing with us, nd make our jobs secure, after that, you may sink or swim.” Isn’t it about time this organization, numbering 100 members, saw the injustice of such a plan and share the available work with their

.AUG. 20, 1934

fellow craftsmen who have shared equally with them in the building of their union? Members have gone on record as favoring remedies suggested by President Roosevelt's NRA. but the "chosen few” have seen to it that it failed of adoption. W’e do not desire a revolution within our ranks, but officers selected should put first interests first, that is to be forgetful of self in interest of the body, of mutual benefits of members as a whole, and function as a bill of equal rights for all and not as a shield for the selfish activities of a limited group. a a a CRITICISES M’NUTT ON BRICK PAVING By H. A. H. The brick Governor. Well, •’Franklinite” Aug. 15th, just try to lay a brick street in front of the McNutt mansion and see what happens. That sweet smile would come off his face, and plenty. I am glad to read of Franklin looking for a “home town” boy and trust he will be more broad-minded. Any kid knows that brick is all wrong for a highway, and I am glad to I do not have to drive on bricks in frosty or icy weather. Very seldom do I drive over the section of 31 mentioned, and I surely hope I will not have to, for the safety of my family and others. I wonder if many remember that old section of the road leading into Martinsville. I don’t forget. It was a pain in the neck. It is true that charity begins at home, but don’t forget, Mr. McNutt, there are a lot of homes all over Indiana, such as Bloomington, with a bid of $193,533.73 for bituminous concrete. a a a THINKS SUBURBS NEED SANITATION By a Timry Reader. Much has been said and done with regard to sanitation In slums, but how about sanitation in suburbs? Take for instance, septic tanks and outside toilets. What about sewerage on Sherman drive, from bridge north to Prather's lane? Kingan's packing house in the west end Is perfume compared to that section on Sherman drive 'Brightwoodi especially when there is a high wind. Where is the power of the board of health? Is somebody waiting for the next election to make some new promises? Or is there a group of neighbors who are too ignorant to protect their health? This might be a chance for some of our CWA officials to spend more tax money.

Resignation

(To L. B. B ) BY KATHRYN MASON No longer do we pray, That God should Always grant the good. No longer do we grieve, ’Alien those we love Must leave. No longer do we ask, Why some unfinished task Be left undone in death. No longer do we give, The cry Os grief bound slaves. But resign unto the test Os loving and believing God’s way is best.