Indianapolis Times, Indianapolis, Marion County, 2 January 1939 — Page 13

ar Franch’ Guiana He Finds. Visitors _ Are Not Allowed on Devil's Island Because French Are Ashamed of It.

AYENNE,: French: Guiana, Jan. 2.—The

two places in. the world I have miost |

vanted to see, I believe, are the Hawaiian per colony and the famous penal settlement I French Guiarla, usually but erroneously | own as Devil’s Island. A year ago No. 1 came true. And now here we in No. 2. I am down at Cayenne for a week. For ter or worse, it will be a week. For only one plane

a week stops here. I would like to write truthfully and thoroughly about the penal settlement. But I'm afraid it will not be possible. ~ In French Guiana, you are welcome only as long as you don’t mention penitentiaries. The subject is forbidden... Already, on the first day here, I can see that I will not see the inside of a penitentiary, will. not. set. foot on Devil’s Island. I asked a friend why this absurd,

ostrich-like position of the ‘French’

: Government. The answer was that Ms. Pyle they are ashamed. But we have Alcatraz. So what? There are a fundamental misconceptions of French Guiana =t should be straightened out. Maybe questions d answers vould be easiest. Some of the followng questions have been. ked me [by people who knew

ct Den is around 8000 or 9000. | Q—Are all the convicts on Devil's Island? A—No. There are only 18 men on Devil’s Island. Qa-Are there any convicts at all on the main-

d? A Protasly 8500 of the 9000 are on the mainland. Q-—Do they actually keep them in penitentiaries? | A—Yes. There are five big penitentiaries, scores of interior work camps, and then the three islands, of which Devil's Island ‘is one. The prisons

a stretch almost from .one.end of the Guiana coast

Li? we

to the other, Q—1Is ‘Devil's Island the worst place in French

«Guiana?

A—It’s probably the best. It is a lovely tropical ‘island, the kind we all dream about owning ‘and set- : g down on. You have to be a big shot to be sent to Devil's Island.

Dramatized by Dreyfuss.

| Q—Why is it, then, that Devil's Island is the one we’ ve always heard about? -~ . | A—Because of Dreyfuss, I guess. His case was dramatic, and he lived alone on the island. It’s hard od dramatize a. whole country, or 9000 people. So the ters and movie-makers have' used Devil’s Island as sort of an essence, to represent the whole colony. 'Q—Are the horror stories.true? |A—1 don’t know. I have no way of finding out. But from the standpoint of a guy with a good nose, I have a feeling youd have to be a Jules Verne to ‘exaggerate what has gone on here. Q—What is a “libere”? ". |lA—A man who has served his actual sentence in the penitentiary and who is, then turned loose, but ‘must stay in French Guiana and make his own living, which is almost impossible. Q—Is it unbearably hot in French Guiana? |A—In Cayenne it is very hot, but I don’t find it quite as bad as the summer heat in Washington, D. C. During the day there is a good breeze from the ocean. Back in the jungles, I imagine the steamy fest is close te unbearable. .Q—Can anybody stop off in French Guiana? 'A—Yes. They even ha¥e a little folder inviting tourists. But only three people, they say, have been . allowed in the penitentiaries or on the islands in the last 15 years. They had permission directly from “Paris. . .

: My Dinty..

‘By Mrs, Eleanor Roosevelt

ew Year; and It Seems Fitting Té Turn to the Problems of Youth.

JASHINGTON, Sunday.—New Year’s Day again. How quickly this week has passed. Every gen‘eration has been in the house, from little Franklin III, . to my husband’s mother. All seem to have gone about their various activities with mutual interest but no interference. I think the White House staff deserves great credit for managing to meet all the various de-

rv mands with apparent ease and no friction.

In my last press conference I was asked for a New Year's message. It is certainly difficult year after year to impose one’s thoughts on any group of people, let alone giving them to the press for the public at

. large. I feel, therefore, that all I can do is to talk to

you on the subject which has interested me most. ~~ For a few years most of us centered our interest on Government résponsibility to older people. The tragedies seemed to be greatest for those citizens who had brought up their families, or lived their lives in situations where there was never enough margin to lay aside money for the needs of old age, or whose care- . fully accumulated old-age reserves were either wiped away by some circumstances beyond their control or proved insufficient for their needs. This particular phase seems now to have become part of the consciousness of the people and, for the moment, I feel our thoughts and energies should be focused on the problems of our young people. They -are, themselves, making so much effort to meet these problems that I'think we should becorae interested in their efforts and do all we can to be helpful,

Doctor's Family Their Guests

I am conscious of the fact that many people feel that the problems of middle age are not receiving suf-

ficient attention, It is a problem which we must meet,

but the most urgent thing before us at the moment, I think, is to help youth evaluate the country and the times in which it lives, so that it may start living in a way which will eventually make it independent and satisfy its conception of what life should mean to it. We have had a most delightful family staying with us. Dr, and Mrs. George Eusterman.and their five children arrived Friday from Rochester, Minn. and

. they seem to have spent a very active two days seeing

Washington. them. I wonder how many of you will listen to the broadcast in which Mr, Peter Harkins tells of his flight around the United States. This broadcast is sponsored

It has certainly been a joy to have

“by the office of education in the Department of In-

terior and the Smithsonian Institution. He started off to make his trip on Dec. 28 and he will give a final broadcast on Jan. 8 at 4:30 p. m. when the trip is er. Mr. Harkins interests me particularly because he is only 22 years old and was driving a truck in a CC camp two years ago. He was able to convince

_ the radio director of the office of education who visit-

ed the camp, that he was capable of writing educa- * tional scripts and speaking over the: radio, and his success may point the way for other young ‘people in similar fields.

Dey-by.Day Science

By Science Service ‘8 the economic and political condition of the world become more disturbed, there is a tendency to Jook more and more to science for factual and social ance. In many cases, especially where sharply delineated areas of nonemotional activity are concerned, scientific facts and procedures are directly ‘helpful and pertinent without any major dangers. The world has seen some shocking misinterpretaor perversions of science, such as the race docof the Nazis, the misconception of thermodycal principles called technocracy, the empirical rialism that flourishes in Moscow, and the more spread idea that Darwin’s “survival of the fitjustifies war. There has been great concern in scientific circles F such dangers, coupled with a feeling that sclthemselves should do some about of science’s social aspects. / ;

By. DR. GEORGE GALLUP

Director, American Institute of Public Opinion EW YORK, Jan. 2.—How _ is the Wages and Hours Act working? Are the rank and file of American wageearners contented with what their employers pay them and with the number of heurs they must work? The questions are in the spotlight today as the United States enters the new year with hopes of prosperity and industrial peace. Will Administrator Elmer PF. Andrews and his Department of Labor associates encounter the ' same stormy opposition from businessmen and the public generally that swamped Gen. Hugh S. Johnson and the NRA? Will there . be discontent: in the ranks of the employed? These are questions which only the future can answer, but a na-

Dr. Gallup

tional study conducted by the Amer-

ican Institute of Public Opinion shows two important things about the country’s temper at this time: ‘First, the rank and file of Americans approve of the Wages and Hours Law and the way it is working. u Second, the great majority of wage-earners is satisfied that their wages are fair and that they are not being required to work an unreason- : .able number of ‘hours per week. Taken together. these two facts indicate a. strong ‘popular base for industrial peace in the coming year. The Institute put its questions to

a carefully selected cross-section of the voters in all parts of the United States. Seven in every 10, on the average, de-

| clared they were in favor of the Wages ang Hours Law.

The actual vote was:

“Are you in favor of the new Wages and Hours Law? i

YES creesettsinisansissasrencoaiostencans 1% NO

$0 05000060 800006000000008000¢00°0 080000 29%

This means that there is more sentiment/for wages and hours regulation today than there was a year ago or two years ago. Last January, when President Roosevelt asked Congress to put a “floor” under wages and a “ceiling” over working hours, the Institute found 69 per cent of the voters in favor of the idea in principle. per cent favored minimum wage regulation,

Northerners are for it; Southerners ‘are for it. So are skilled and unskilled workers and white-collar employees. Even a majority of American. employers ; are in favor of it, although under the Wage and Hour Law many employers will have to raise wages, shorten hours or pay overtime, and although virtvally ad employers will have to compile laborious records for thé Federal Government. s 8 8 : VEN more significant, possibly, is the fact that the great majority of American workers believe their em-

ployers pay them fair wages and work them a reasonable

number of hours.

The Institute asked: “Do you think your smplover pays jou a fair wage?” Throughout the country 79 per cent of those interviewed said they thought they were paid fairly, 21 per cent thought they were not paid fairly. :

The Institute found even less discontent with prevailing hour standards than with wages. Eighty-seven per cent’ of the employees interviewed said they were not required

“to work too many hours a week.” Thirteen per cent said they were. The niost dissatisfied art unskilled woikors in the larger cities and persons doing work of a professional nature, such as school teachers and social workers. Employees in the larger establishments (those em- ' ploying more than 1000) proved more contented with their wage-and-hour standards than . those in smaller concerns.

How contented were these wage-earners a year ago?

Two years ago? In 1932? While a single Institute survey: cannot possibly answer these questions, future surveys may

Provide an fportant barometer of industrial wirest, » B 2 4 LTHOUGH Administrator Andrews is’ beginning his wage-hour enforcement in a strongly favorable at=mosphere of opinion, there are many problems ahead for

The previous year, 61

What Does

America Think

Of the New

SE x ak

Kia Entered. as Becotd-Class ‘Matter : ob oab, Postoffices oiduavoils, ic

As the country enters 1939, a nation-wide survey by the American Institute of Public Opinion Indiziies widesirond Support: or the Wages and Hours Act—now in operation . a little more than two months—and shows that the great

majority. of wage-earners. believes their wages and hours are “fair.”

Highlights . Hours Law? = © Yes 71%

- No

National 29%

e600 00 0000 ROBO

Sections

New England States Jide Atlantic (States. . East Central States .',. Se West Central States ...... South. uu. nesivvinn divin West cetesrsisiriiiiiiens

oo S30 Li (gg. 75 59 3

34 25 dl «97

Groups Democrats .............. Republicans .........000s Employers .....c.vuveuss

Employees ceeseiieiannve 8 8 ®

Do You Think Your Employer Pays You a Fair Wage?

CEmaloyeds Only) Yes National Caste visnsnenseee 19%, Occupations

Skilled Workers .......... 80% Unskilled Workers tense ID White-Collar Workers .... 84 Professional Workers = (Teachers, ete.) ........ TT ; 2.4 a : ) Do You Think Your Employer Requires You to Work Too Many Hours a Week? (Employees Only)" ; y es National ......cc00000..+- 13%

80% 51 56 79

49 44 1 21

21%

20% 25 16

No 87%

Are You in Favor of the New Wages and |

219%

No - |

the enforcers. Will the public lose confidence in wage and hour regulation as the result of . the “differentials” still to be set in many industries? What will happen if it becomes

" cepted by, voters in both parties.

necessary to “crack down” on offenders and “chiselers,” as. in the days of the Blue Eagle? .

Institute surveys show that although the NRA was launched as a “patriotic” and popular measure in June,

+1933, it had the backing of only 52 per cent of the voters

by May, 1934, and that by May, 1935, just before the act

" was invalidated by the Supreme Court, only 37 per cent

of the voters approved it.

The Congressional fight over the present Wages and Hours Bill was strongly sectional in character, with the North asking uniform standards for all parts of the country

. and the South demanding differentials based on local -conditions. In the drafting of the final measure the South won most of its points, but the law has resulted in dis-

missals and occasional factory shutdowns in the South. Today's survey shows that the South is cooler toward the law than any other section, ahd actually less in favor of it than last January,

The sections which are most in favor of wage and hour ‘ standards today are the New England and Middle Atlantic

areas, hoth of which engage in textiles and. other vous with thé South. The vote by sections is:

ARE YOU IN FAVOR OF THE NEW WAGES ‘ ; AND HOURS LAW? Yes . No New England ...cc.ccceiveesees 19% 21% Middle Atlanti¢ ..c.coeoviecenes TT 23 East Central .....cc0.00000000.. 66 34 West Central ......o0c000v0000.. 75 25 South fesssesstsfevencsssis sins 59 41 : WWOSE .eivvisneenscnirrrrasrnnes 13 27" A year ago the South was 63 per cent for wages and hours legislation in the Institute. survey.

2 5 8

HE greatest support for the wage law comes from persons in the lower income groups and from unskilled laborers and persons on relief. But the survey shows that a majority of employers also favor the law at this time. The averages for employees and. employers

in today’s cross-section are:

For Against "EMPIOYeeS ..oveeriiasirsescsees 19% 21% Employers ........ / co 44 The present Wages and Hours Law was the result of a sharp struggle between New Deal Democrats and con-

servatives in Congress. Most Republican Congressmen took sides against the bill. But the survey reveals that

approximately half of the Republican voters throughout. "the. country are sympathetic to the law—another exanple

of a New Deal principle which has come to be widely acThe vote by parties is: ‘For Against adidesusnenivnsenies 30% 20% eaiiviarenseanisecs Bl 49 .. 80 20°

Democrats Republicans Others .......

900000 ses onesie

Side Glances—By nd

Everyday Movies—By Wortman

TEST YOUR

KNOWLEDGE

1—Which. French seaport is on .the estuary .of the Seine? 2—Under which government department is the U. S. Coast and Geodetic Survey?..3=In what year was Charles Evans Hughes nominated for President of the U. 8.2 4—What is the standard gauge of railways in the U. S.? : 5—Into what body of water does the Nile River empty?. 6—For which King of France was the State of Louisiana ‘named? 7—What is the abbreviation for the degree Doctor of Engineering?

” ” 8 Answers

1—Le Havre. 2—Department of Commeres. 3—1916. 44 feet 8% inches. 5—Mediterranean Sea. 6—Louis XIV, 7D. ne. : He» »

Tadlop a 3-cent stamp for reply when addressing any “question of fact or information The Indianapolis Times

Was Service . Bureau, 1013 13th St, N. W. Washing ton, D, C. Legal and medical

PAGE 1

¥ Our Towr

| By Anton Scherrer |

Make ‘Mental . ations No There's No Reason to Believe Th Things will Improve Much in 1939,

THINGS I don’t believe, at the start of

1939:

That the starlings are going to drive thi pigeons out of Monument Place. That ,putting panties on lamb chops i going to help much®in the long run. po - That stream-lined baby buggies are going to make DeWitt Morgan's task any easier. That any good purpose is served by calling an olde. fashioried milk gravy “Sauce Be chamel.” That the mortar joints ‘of the obelisk in the Plaza are fixed up. for good. That anybody understands how a zipper works. That Trafficop Allison at the Cross Roads of America is going to have any more luck making pedestrians behave than he did last year ~ That anybody knows why cig rets have to be wrapped in .

Mr. Scherrer

phane. - That the people over at the State House are going to get around to the Hendricks Statue and. give the figure of Justice a pair of scales. -. rf ‘That moral support is what keeps a lady’s evening gown. from slipping; if that were the case, it would keep men’s soeks. up, too. That anything is going to be done to give us a crosstown street car line. That Indianapolis is in such a sorry state that

Santa Claus has'to come to the rescue the day after -

Thanksgiving. Names on Request : |

That married men drive more carefully than bachelors; he: travels fastest who travels alone, says the old proverb.

That the kids of Indianapolis| have to start their | parties at midnight and get home after everybody Ss

has finished breakfast. That Kurt Vonnegut is going (to keep on wearing a mustache. That the average mentality of the Am, ican male is that of a 12-year-old boy. Shucks, tHe truth is that the average 12-year-old b around here has the mentality of his «daddy. : : That anything is going to be. done to give Ine dianapolis a lover's lane or more benches in the parks—hammocks, too. : That all great men are pipe’ smokers as Graham

McNamee keeps preaching over the radio, much as Fo

I'd like to believe it. That putting an olive in a gl as some bartenders seem to think. names if I wanted to. > That anything is going to be dine in the way of producing a pair of pajamas that don’t pinch around the stomach. It’s going to be a grand year if you follow my example and start it with a lot of mental reservations,

Jane Jordan—

Youth No Longer Calls Unless Asked, Girl Advised Again "Hanging On.!

D®2 JANE JORDAN—I am a girl of 25 and have been going with a bay of 23. We have quit going together steady and he just comes now and then whenever I call him, ut I still love him. Should I keep on doing this, 2 in time will he come back and marry me, or will he quit? MISS X.

Answer—I have no way or knowing. can guess. strong enough to prompt him to. make his own dates, I imagine that soon he will drift away entirely. Don’t hang on so hard. It doesn’t help your case any. ® ” ” | EAR JANE JORDAN—I am 8 young girl of 17 and I went steady with a 3 of 20 for five

makes a Martini, I could mention

I only to

months. For the past five months we only have a date now and then. He works a neighborhood = drug store and has stopped to see me quite often, but = the trouble is he tries to date my best girl friend, too, and also telis her he loves her. When I was going steady with this boy he told me he idolized me and gave me a diamond ring for Christmas. If T stay away from the drug store, would that make him forget me or would it make him want to come back? HEAR ROKEN ANNE.

Answer—You should g0 ‘go out an have fun and stay away from the drug store. Try not to be so gullible where boys are concerned. The boy isn't in love with either you or your girl friend. e is just amusing himself. I don’t mean that he does this deliberately or with desire to hurt, but when a boy is 20 and in love with love, almost any good-looking girl will seem like his one and only . . . until he sees another. ® 8 2 EAR JANE JORDAN—Please don’t toss this letter aside for your answer is very important to me: My problem is that I am bow-le ged. I know that sounds very “silly but the fact has made me hate the whole world. My mother, my aunts and my uncle laughed at me for being bow-les pl. Several weeks ago two boys made fun of me fi I do nothing but stay in the house any more. Does being. bow legged make any difference to’'boys when they ask girls for dates? I'm of medium height. Could you suggest about how long I should i: my dresses? : a | WORRIED.

Answer—First I would see a surgeon and se if there is anything that can be done to straighten your legs. If not, try wearing your dresses just below the calves of your legs. Do not ex cruel jibes of the young by going in boys are about. You can make yo longer skirts which hide your de develop a charming, sympathetic up for what you lack in Physical

New Books Tod Public Library’ Present

T= history of birth control and the shoty of Mat garet Sanger are almost indistinguishal Others before Mrs. Sanger had stucied the p of surplus population—war, poverty, disease, remained for her to evolve a solution, In 1912, by the misery of slum women overbu: dened wi bearing, she founded the Birth ( ental,

| MARGARET SANGER, AN AUTO] fon) narrates the movement's quarter | struggle for expansion and accomp

Tishm, garet. child in a ah of

; Higgins, live babies for her dolls; an Jmpevctisied

Sanger, an Bris, ‘motherhood

; Hour a

If the boy's interest in you isn’t