Indianapolis Times, Volume 46, Number 233, Indianapolis, Marion County, 7 February 1935 — Page 14

PAGE 14

The Indianapolis Times (A (WRirPS-HOW AHI) Sr.W SPAPF.R) BUT W. Prf*t<J*nt TALCoTT POWELL Editor EARL D. BAKER Botin*#* Manager Phan* Rlsr S7>l

A ■■'_*£SL Qtf* /.!/# t 4 f# Pr'jpl* Will find Th Hr Own Wop

M*mi*r nf Pr**#. 10-rij.p# ilovrard .V*wapp*r AU'inct, N*w*jaf**f Entrrpr‘— A#n*latinn. N*w*pp*r Inf'irtnafloo S<*rr}** and Audit Bur*aa of Clrcniation# Owned and puMi-hnd dally <*T**r*t Sundayi by The Indianap'd!# Tim*-# Publishing .. 21-22<' W Maryland-#!. Indianapolis. Ind Prir* in Marion Onnty. 2 r*nta a ropy; *l***wh*r*. 2 cent* —de-livt-rrd by narrirr. 12 ernfa ■ w*rk Mail #ub*rrlption rat*# In Indiana $3 a yar: outside of Indiana. cent* a month.

THURSDAY FEBRUARY 7. easy trap for grafters There is a certain type of individual who feels that public office is merely a device for reasonably safe theft. He is prevalent in politics as the boil weevil is in the Southern cotton fields. His philosophy is such that he can’t be reformed He can. however, be quarantined by putting him in jail or booting him out of his job. A number of people have asked us how one can spot a grafter. That’s easy. Have you a neighbor who is on the putUc pay roll? Look up Ins salary. It’s a matter of public reco/d. Th-n observe the manner in which he lives Supp * you kr.ow that his salary for the last she years has ben $2,000 annually. Assume tha' in the per.od he has purchased a SIO.OOO ho‘ you can get that information, too, from hn* a- , "'.*m nts —three cars worth $2,000 each, has be* n to Europe twice and is a collector of petii'-'re**d dogs. Don't hesitate to ask him where he got the money. You are paying for his flights of luxur in the end. anyhow. He may tell you his or his wife’s great-aunt died and left them an estate. A>k him the circumstances. Estates •re a matter of public record, too. By next November the income of every individual and corporation will be open to the public. The reve.ations will be interesting. But you don’t have to wait. The graiter is the public official who lives ' beyond lu salary and can offer no explanation for uoing so. WALL STREET HITS \HINT to the clique which controls the New York Stock Exchange apparently is* not sufficient. The Securities and Exchange Commission recently recommended that stock exchanges make their election machinery more democratic. But the Morgan-Whitney faction, which so long has controlled the New York Exchange, apparently does not intend to surrender its ruie. Through a nominating committee, that faction draws up a slate of exchange officers. A slate-selected board of governors in turn nominates a slate-selected standing committte to handle the allairs of the exchange. A mere member of the exchange, although he may pay a high price for his seat, is little more than a duos-paying member of this would-be private club. Subtle forms of pressure.” according to tne SEC. subdue any desire a member might have to rebel. The SEC recommended abolition of the nominating committee, to give all exchange members an equal voice in elections. The Morgan-Whitney faction led a lastditch fight against the Federal Market Control Law. contending that abuses would be corrected by self-government. Congress, looking at the dismal record of the boom and panic eras, agreed with some minority exchange members that Federal control was necessary. The SEC has tried to continue self-govern-ment in the exchanges with a minimum of supervision. But the same Wall Street clique holds on. Tins rule-pr-rr.in attitude may encourage even more drastic legislation by Congress, which considers a stock exchange to be not a private gambling club but a market place for securities where ail buyers and sellers are entitled to a square deal.

CHANGE OF VENUE TN his newest move for justice Tom Mooney’s volunteer counsel. Mr. Flnerty. dramatized a condition that neither California nor the United States Supreme Court can easily ignore. Fmerty boldly declares that to send his client back into California courts, as the United States Supreme Court recently suggested. is to send him into a tribunal of “almost incredible prejudice.'’ He asks the high federal court to reconsider its decision, take original jurisdiction and hear a petition for a writ of habeas corpus to free Mooney under the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. California's highest court, the new petition alleges, already has prejudiced the facts of this case and "prejudiced in a most intemperate and prejudicial maimer.” In its majority opinion m the 1030 Billings pardon hearing the California court “enunciated the astounding doctrine that both men i Mooney and Billings' must be assumed to be guilty unless they could establish their innocence by pointing out the actual perpetrators of the crime.” One does no? have to read and believe this new brief to conclude that the highest court of a sovereign state stigmatized itself. One of this court's own members. Justice Lar.gdon. in a minority opinion of one. called its 1930 ruling "unsound and indefensible.” The atmosphere of that court was such that In an ordinary trial a defendant would be entitled to a change of venue. Mooney is asking for such change of venue in petitioning the federal court to assume jurisdiction. WINTER EVENTS XTEW ENGLAND weather prophets are muttering in their beards these days All bets on the weather are off in Vermont because a Burlington hunter shot the groundhog Just before groundhog day. while In Maine a flock of wild geese was seen heading due north during one of .he coldest spells of the winter, leading people to suspect that something, is wrong either with the winter or the geese. But these incidents are only samples of the general midwinter topsy-turviness. The Japanese government announces that M will seek to restore friendship between

Legislative Progress BY TALCOTT POWELL

TNDIANA may well be proud of its Legisla- ■*- ture. The present session has before it a liberal program looking toward social Justice rather than toward narrow self-interest. Both Democratic and Republican member have thus far shown singular freedom from tub-thump-ing and log-rolling. They are giving a high qual.ty of public service. There have been, and will continue to be, vigorous differences of opinion. This is as it should be in a deliberative body. Yet these differences appear to grow out of honest convictions rather than the ugly influences of the lobbyists for special privilege. A good start has been made, but much remains to be accomplished. Let us have some plain talk about the road ahead during the present session. BOM CHILD labor comes first. There are six groups of people who oppose Indiana's ratification of the Child Labor Amendment. Here they are; 1. The old-fashioned, sincere states' rights advocate. He is perfectly honest in his conviction that states should regulate all labor matters. He is mistaken because he forgets that ALL modern industry is interstate in character and that labor problems know no local geographical boundaries. 2. Fanners who fear that the abolition of child labor may deprive them of their children’s occasional services in doing chores. Nothing of the kind will happen, of course. Home duties are part of u child’s education. If Congress were so silly as to try to regulate the relationship between parent and child it could never enforce such regulation. It would never attempt such foolishness. After all, mo6t Congressmen are parents. J. The hair-splitters of the legal profession. Thousands of forward-looking, social minded attomejrs are squarely behind the Child Labor Amendment. The pettifoggers may be disregarded. These technicians are so tangled in red tape they do not know their own convictions. 4. Certain, laymen and clergy of the Lutheran and Roman Catholic Churches who fear that the Child Labor Amendment m*.y interfere with the church schools at some future time. We ha: e always fought for re.igious freedom ard shall continue to do so, but we can not concur with the members of those churches who oppose the abolition of child labor. 'Ve here pledge ourselves that we shall always stand shoulder to shoulder with them if at any future time their freedom of worship or their right to maintain their own schools is attacked, but we can not agree that little children should be sweated in factories because of some theoretical chimera. 5. The out-and-out sweatshop operator who wants to exploit child labor. He is, of course, a disgusting swine onfit for association with decent people. 6. Last, there is the venal newspaper operator whose god is the cash register. Do not be fooled with his pious talk about “freedom of the press.” We believe in that freedom, too, and we’ll fight to the last ditch for it. But what such a newspaper owner really wants is the right to send little children out at all times of the night to sell his papers on the street. Do not be taken in by his nasty, self-right-eous cant about his opposition to the Child Labor Amendment. SOO NEXT to child labor in importance is a grave problem of public health: Stream pollution. Indiana now has 1377.75 miles of unspeakably filthy streams. Os this mileage, 689.75 miles are loaded with city sewage. The remainder is corrupted with the waste of greedy industry. It is from these streams that our drinking water must be drawn. No matter how thoroughly it is sterilized —and it is rendered

Japan and China, and on the same day starts 4000 men heading for the borders of Chahar province with all the Implements of war. Lupe Velez and Johnny Weissmuller have undergone their 11th reconciliation and the state of Nevada has filed suit to collect taxes on 10 steamships operated out of the port of New York. The chief of the - 're department at Marblehead. Mass., has resigned because he can’t induce his firemen to go to fires with him any more, and a merchant in Birmingham, Ala.. has won a SSOO verdict against his lodge brothers because they kicked him in the pants while giving him a fraternal initiation. A New York gentleman is taken in by the police for begging, and he explains in court that he was simply standing in the street with his hat off so that the breeze would make his hair grow, and could he help it if wellmeaning strangers dropped $3 worth of nickels and dimes into his hat while he was doing it? Meanwhile, a St. Louis girl, who couldn’t take time off from her job to go to the marriage licence bureau, sends a g<rl friend off with her fiance to get the document, and learns to her horror that the two not only obtained the license, but got married with it. The sheriff of Robertson County, Tennessee. running shy of deputies, has taken to arresting people by telephone and reports that so far no one has refused to come in to the Jail and be locked up on request. Another telephone angle gets Into the day’s news when a New York phone girl has her ex-sweetie arrested for calling her up 136 times in one evening. And, to cap the climax, Chicago detectives arrest two colored men for trying to operate a “rent a gun and shoot it yourself” agency, seizing the 28 revolvers with which the men were equipped and lodging the men in Jail. To all of which you may add whatever moral seems to you possible in the circumstances. It might be worth while to inquire if Louisiana's tame governor was christened O. K. Allen or just got that way yessing Huey Long. Tailors meeting in New York have decreed brighter clothes for men, but the men don't happen to be women. Hillbilly crime is decreasing in Missouri and Arkansas, says an investigator. Probably not decreasing—just transferred to the radio. If Ford Prick wants a good suggestion for the improvement of baseball, let him not ask the wives of some of the fans. *

harmless to health this is not a pleasant thing to contemplate. In fact, the whole situation suggests barbarism rather than civilization. The need remedying this is so obvious as to need no special pleading. The Legislature has before it a sound bill for cleaning up Indiana’s streams. We believe that the present Legislature will pass it. We can not see how any self-respecting member of either house can oppose it and thus brand himself forever as a proponent of downright filth. 000 r T''HE State Police bill is also awaiting passage. It is a good bill—not perfect, perhaps, but a mighty long step in the direction of relieving this state from future Dillingers. A1 Feeney opposes giving the Governor power of removal over the head of the State Police force. Mr. Feeney is an honest, consecrated public official. He has given all of himself to his job. Yet we can not agree with him. The policy-making official of the State Police should be removable at the pleasure of the Governor, who appoints him. Below the superintendent of police both officers and troopers should be fully protected in their jobs by every safeguard that can be thrown about them. But the superintendent should be responsible directly to the Governor. Otherwise the state would be liable to the petty tyranny of a minor official. We can not always expect to have A1 Feeneys at the head of our State Police. 0 0 0 A S yet, no bill has been introduced reorgan- — izing the whole welfare system of the state. Last summer The Times printed a series of articles pointing out that all of the state institutions should be under one department. This applies particularly to our penal farms, reformatories and prisons. Proper provision should be made for the paroling of prisoners by a competent board made up, not of political hacks, but of sound men and women at least one of whom should be a competent psychiatrist. At present control of our prisons is scattered throughout numerous boards. There is no centralized control. no clearing-house for information. Let us hope that a bill dealing adequately with this problem will promptly be introduced. 0 0 0 T'WO pieces of purely social legislation merit A consideration of the legislators. One is Mrs. Roberta West Nicholson’s bill for the abolition of breach-of-promise suits. It has already passed the House by an overwhelming majority. A dozen other states are already imitating it. The only opposition has come from the female racketeer and a small minority of lawyers who are afraid of losing business The Senate should pass this measure. The other is the bill providing for divorce after thirty days’ residence in the state. This is a touchy subject, although we can not understand why. If we are to have divorce at all, what difference does the time of residerce make? Two* people who have made up their minds to be divorced are going through with it whether it takes 10 days or 10 years. Perhaps the wise course for legislators would be to make marriage harder, divorce easier. It is worth some thought. 000 /’" > *HILD LABOR, stream pollution, state poJ lice, centralization of state welfare, the elimination of sex racketeering—these represent a full program. The Legislature has its work cut out for it. We believe that it will solve these serious problems. We believe that the spirit in which our present legislators have tackled their job is a splendid harbinger of hope for liberalism in Indiana—which, by the way, is merely another way of saying that human rights shall prevail over special privilege.

Capital Capers BY GEORGE ABELL German ambassador hans luther is a plain, outspoken sort of person. When he wants to know’ something, he believes in asking a direct question. The other evening, Herr Doktor Luther attended a dinner party at which another guest was Associate Justice Harlan Fiske Stone of the United States Supreme Court. After dinner, Herr Doktor Luther (who obviously had something on his mind) wandered across the room and spoke to Justice Stone. “Ach, Mr. Justice,” he began peering up through his glasses at the good-natured face of the magistrate. “I see the Supreme Court iss now to settle der gold clause.” “Yes,” smiled Justice Stone, beaming down at his rotund little questioner. “How are you going to decide it?” asked Luther bluntly. But cruel Mr. Stone wouldn’t tell him. Note—Not ahvays does .Herr Doktor Luther ask indiscreet questions, however. Some times he is asked indiscreet questions. Recently, at the home of former Rep. Fred Britten of Illinois, the German envoy was approached by a gentleman puissant in the present Administration. “How are things in Germany?” he queried. “Fine, fine,’’ replied Luther. “Every one voted for Hitler.” “But the opposition cant vote, can it?” said the other. Weary guests had to listen to a two-hour harangue by the excited Herr Doktor who explained in loud tones all about German liberty under the Nazi regime. Since Luther was the ranking guest, etiquet forced other guests to sit patiently until he was ready to go—quite late in the evening. a a a THE Senate session just before the vote which rejected the United States entry into the World Court, provided an interesting study of types. Galleries and floor were crow’ded with visitors. So many congressmen came over to hear the debate that for a time one might have been in the House instead of the Senate —particularly if the names of senators w'ho were formerly representatives were added to the list. These (beginning with Vice President Garner) would include such men as Ham Lewis. Dickinson. Maloney, Barkley, Tom Connally, Pat Harrison and several others. Mrs. Ickes, wife of the Secretary of the Interior. was one of the Cabinet visitors present. She left just before the vote, evidently bellovlng that no action would be taken until much later. Witty Mrs. Florence Kahn, Representative from California, sat on the Senate floor flanked by two House colleagues, and jotted down the votes with her pencil. She seemed jubilant at the result. A Yale professor says a pedestrian is “a creature possessing highway rights,” but just let the creature try proving that to a truck driver who's never been at Yale.

THE INDIANAPOLIS TIMES

§

The Message Center

(Times readers are invited, to express their views in these columns. Make your letters short, so all can have a chance. Limit them to 2'o words or less. Your letter must be sinned, but names will be withheld at request of the letter writer.) a a a MAYOR PRAISED FOR CITY APPOINTEES By Clarence Butler. Mayor Kern deserves congratulations for the kind of people he has thus far appointed to serve under him during his administration. In connection with this, aIIQW me to put in a good word for Andy Miller, superintendent of the Riverside Nursery, who has been with the city for twenty-five years. I have known him a long time and hope Mr. Kern will see fit to retain him. The excellent condition of our beautiful parks and drives is due largely to his efforts and direction. Having long worked under him, I know from experience that he is a good man. What the city needs is more men like Andy Miller and Mayor Kern. a a a INDIGENT POOR MUST HAVE NATION’S AID Bv Alta Samuels. I agree with Mrs. Burris’ letter “the time will never be ripe for poor, old people.” Would it be wrong for us to hope the time would come to the rich that are fighting the old-age pension that they too would have to squeeze every nickel they could get to help make both ends meet to keep the wolf from their doors? Give us enough to live like you wish to live, or shall we ask Congress to pass law to kill every one as soon as they are old? aa * a TIMES IS COMMENDED FOR EDITORIAL By E. J. C’nruh. I take this occasion to commend you for your excellent editorial in the issue of The Indianapolis Times of Jan. 30, entitled, “To Hell With the World—and America.” a a a CHILD LABOR AMENDMENT SHOULD BE RATIFIED By Mrs. Z. A. Buzzards —those are the men in this country who would hinder the growth of a child, mentally, morally j and physically so that a few more coins would jingle in the pockets of their jeans. They are t .e men who are fighting the ratification of the Child Labor Amendment. They are the men who do not want any legislation passed that might keep them from hiring these children. They are afraid—in fact they know—that if Congress has the power, it would not let them w r ork little boys and girls, 14 or 15 years old, as long as 10 or 11 hours a week. I pm glad The Indianapolis Times has the good sense to approve ratification. a a a DEFENDS EMPLOYING OF WOMEN IN CITY By. Mr*. W. M. G. M. Trilby, your article interested me very much. You say that married women are the world’s worst enemy because they are working. How many wives are working today by choice? Very few. We certainly

THEY TRIED TO BLOCK THE WAY

By W. O. Sheet I purchased The Times, as I very often do, to read the news. What seems to be important good news to most,of the people about town, country and cities, was but an incident in today’s Times. But, the secret was out, when I reached the editorial page, the “good grace” was evident under the caption, “To Hell with the World and America.” Now w*hat in the hell do you mean? Your biased opinion from a stifled imagination is the only evidence which can be gathered from that editorial. Isn’t it sufficient that we went to war—that the profits wert to international bankers and munition manufacturers—that the billions in loans were never paid back by Europe, that the people who bled and died were not from the profiteering class, that such as your secretary of war during' Wilson’s administration became enormously wealthy, that our rearen’t gold on the idea of working all day in an office or shop, rushing home to eat out of tin cans, and then working half the night on a million jobs at home. Why are we doing this? Because we can not live on our husband's salary of 40 cents an hour. If we are willing to do our work at home, and at the same time, please our employers, why should outsiders object? It is we who try hard to get ahead who will succeed. I work in a large group of girls, and about one-half are married. All would be more than glad to quit I should our husbands get a raise so that it would be possible. You say we should stay home, and let someone else have our jobs, so that they may have a change from beans, beans, and more beans. Should we do this, we would be lucky to afford beans, never naming how we would „ pay for a car that is so necessary for our husband’s work. You say we are cheating nature by not having children. Don’t you think there are enough living on charity now? We may be cheating a doctor of a confinement case, but we may as well do that as to owe for it the rest of our lives. As for not being able to work, nor keep house, as long as our husbands are satisfied I again say why should outsiders object? Until the husbands get a raise in salary, “hats off to the industrious married women.” a a a OLEO TAX WILL NOT INCREASE FOOD COSTS By Z. O. Hapgood. A bill is now in the House Committee providing for a tax of 10 per cent a pound on oleomargarine except that made from domestic oils and fats. This bill, if enacted, would give the consumer a more wholesome and strength-giving food at no increased cost. At the same time the whole farm Industry protests against the import duty for oils produced by pauper labor employed in the South Sea Islands and American possessions that we can not tariff. Labor should and will grant the farmer the same protection they ask for themselves.'

[l wholly disapprove of what you say and will 1 defend to the death your right to say it. — Voltaire. J

Editorial Draws Fire

turning soldiers were thrown on charity and kept there? That billions were stolen by the banks and their heads from the accumulations of the masses, as a result of two or three years of after or during war inflations, and that the rank and file are asked to condone the spirit of an entry in the back door of Europe’s melting pot, for her troubles (the court and the league) and that now through the good advice of speakers, senators and statesmen, the average man who has permitted all this so-called honest legislation and representation finally wakes to register his wish, that we care for our own events for the time being, and avoid the obnoxious suggestion that has confronted three or four administrations? Your conclusion is one of our attitude —“To hell with others. * Wake you, my friend —people have other means of obtaining news, these days, other than the messenger on horseback, or the newspaper editor’s opinion. FARMERS SHOULD PAY WORKERS LIVING WAGES By Mrs. E. E. R. I have never read a truer piece of smart saying than R. J. B. wrote about the farmer. True to life. They want everything there is to make life easier and have less help on the farm. We have farmers right here in Boone County who have fnen working on their farms for 15 cents a day for feeding and 50 c-;nts for plowing and work such as that; then go to the county trustee for their food, letting the taxpayers furnish them farm hands. They come to town in their cars and talk about common laborers, saying they wouldn’t work if they had a job while poor relief workers are on the PWA work for 40 cents an hour and just barely enough to exist. When we put the laborer to work the farmers won’t have to worry about their products because they w’ill be in demand. Let the farmers pay their help living wages and wait. Theirs will come later. FIREMEN DESERVE*PAY SLICE RETURN By J. W. B. I arr. a business man and deal with the firemen and find them the best of men They say Indianapoils has the best fire department in the country and of high standard. Well let’s keep it that way. The boys took a Cut in pay and took it on the chin. Every time there is a donation the boys are in on it, and never turn down buying tickets when they are approached. Now taxpayers don’t let’s squawk when they ask for their pzv back, j Let us take it on the chin and give them all of it. Everything is higher and, to bring back prosperity, we must pay high wages. Daily Thought Can the Ethiopian change his skin, or the leopard his spots? Then may ye also do good, that are accustomed to do evil.—Jeremiah 13:23. • AS surely as God is good, so surely there is no such thing a s necessary evil. —Southey.

_FEB. 7, 1935

RATIFICATION OF CHILD LABOR ACT IS URGED Mr. and Mrs. L. A. Martin. This week the Indiana Senate will have to consider the child labor amendment. Do they realize what an important thing it is? If our civilization is to move on, it seems to me we must pass legislation to prevent unscrupulous employers from exploiting our youth. There are eleven states in which employers may have children under 16 work as much as 10 or 11 hours a day. This sounds like the days of slavery. Let Indiana wake up and join the parade of forward-moving states. Let us ratify that amendment. e a a SUGGESTS TAXES NOT STRIKE AT POOR By a Taxpayer. Tax margarine so the poor can do without butter. Why can’t this tax be put on something that the poor can do without, such as luxuries? Taxes should be placed on tobacco, candy, drinks, shows, ball tickets, pool tickets, dances, slot machines and ice cream. These things the poor can do without. If this tax is placed on margarine that means that we do without butter, hoping that every other family does the same. / a a a BONUS SHOULD BE PAID TO VETERANS By Mrs. E. Davis. Saturday night your paper had a letter from someone who called the veterans bonus whiners. If this man could see my husband, suffering from day to day, and in need of some money to doctor with, he would change his mind and say pay the bonus. So They Say The men in the navy are sound and do not take the ideas of the Reds seriously. Navy Secretary Claude Swanson. The nation has tried to accomplish in one generation that which, under ordinary and prudent circumstances, it should take a country a 100 years to bring about.— Percy H. Johnston, New York financier* I am not really very familiar with American people or their institutions. Perhaps it is because I am not a movie fan. Sheila KayeSmith, British author. How I Know BY VIRGINIA KID WELL Now I know why it is you’re in a crowd Continuously pretending to be gay. Are always seen where laughter is most loud —lt is to drown the thoughts that in you lay. Now I have fathomed why you can not bear To be alone where memories may rise, A quiet hour would drive you to despair, At last I understand and sympa** th i