Indianapolis Times, Indianapolis, Marion County, 7 October 1939 — Page 10

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Give Light and the People Will Find Their Own Wey

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 1, 1039

WE HAVEN'T BEEN ASKED HE incurable American “itch to solve other people's problems will cause a great many thousands of words to be written and spoken on this side of the Atlantic concerning Adolf Hitler's latest “peace offer.”

There will be speculations on Der Fuehrer's assurance i

that Germany has no further territorial claims in Europe, recalling that he said the same thing after he annexed

B MARK FERRER BOF W, HOWARD. BALPA SURENOLDER

By Westbrook ok Tip to British on Winning War:

Drop Enticing Menus Instead of

Thete: Pamphlets Criticiding Hilar.

Austria, again after he invaded the Sudeten area and again Po

after the absorption of Bohemia and Slovakia.

And there will be contrary arguments that a peace NOW |

even under humiliating terms would be better than war long continued at tremendous sacrifice. But it would seem to be healthier and wiser for Amer: fcans to leave the speculating and recalling and arguing and deciding to the peoples of Europe—to remember that it is not our war and that if peace should come under present circumstances it will not be a peace of our making. ' There may come a time when both sides will ask the good offices of the United States in arranging an armistice. If and when that time comes, we should be ready to serve. We can best prepare for that eventuality by keeping out.

OH, HAPPY DAY! E'VE been brooding over the current World Series and the sad results for our neighbor to the southeast. ‘And we think we have a solution. Next year let's have a World Series between the . American and National League winners. The Yankees can ‘play in their own league.

PHILADELPHIA STORY HE City of Philadelphia, facing a financial crisis last year, “solved” its problem by pawning the municipal gas works. It borrowed 41 million dollars from the RFC and a group of private banks. Until that money is repaid, the RFC and the banks, instead of the city, will get all profits from sale of gas, abouts four million a year. Now there's another crisis. The water and sewage systems are in bad shape. So Philadelphia is trying to borrow $60,000,000 more from the RFC to make necessary improvements. This time it offers to hock the municipal water works and to repay the loan by giving up “the $5,000,000-a-year profit it now gets from water rents. But still other crises are coming up. The city is spending nearly six million dollars more than its income this year and a deficit of 16 millions is predicted in the 1940 budget. We're interested in the reason given for this mess by the City Controller, Robert C. White. chiefly to political waste—to superfluous employees, inefficient methods and ridiculously short working hours in city offices. He cites specific instances of wastage which he says have sent 30 million dollars “down the rat holes.” Making due allowance for the facts that most Philadelphia officials are Republicans, while Mr. White is a Democrat and a candidate for Mayor, we still Suspect that there’s truth in his charges. For few are the governments—city, state or Federal, and whether controlled by Democrats or Republicans—that are free from political waste. Few cities can afford to sneer at Philadelphia’s troubles. Indianapolis might well afford to profit by Philadelphia’s unhappy example and go after political waste with real determination to cut it down before it reduces us to such desperate measures as Philadelphia is taking.

GOOD

THERE is a good-tempered discussion under way between the Indianapolis Bar Association and some of its members concerning violation of prisoners’ civil liberties at City Jail. The Association’s civil rights committee reported it - had found no violations. Andrew Jacobs, attorney, contends certain basic rights are being violated “with the placid consistency of custom.” Far from being miffed at the challenge, Association officials promise to look further into the situation. That's fine. It’s encouraging to find a group big enough to re-examine its position on a question of this kind, and it’s a healthy thing for the community that such a discussion is going on.

PEACE IN HARLAN

HARLAN COUNTY has long been considered one of the last places likely to set the world a good example, and even now a certain amount of skepticism may be pardoned. But it does seem possible that both sides to Harlan's perennial war have learned at last that violence only begets more violence. The State of Kentucky has dismissed indictments against some 400 Harlan miners and others, accused by the coal operators of various illegal acts. The Federal Government has dismissed 57 indictments charging mining companies and their officials with conspiracy to deprive the miners of their rights under the Wagner Act. And W. K. Hopkins, the special Assistant U. S. Attorney General in charge of these conspiracy cases, has announced: “Industrial peace at last prevails. An impossible medieval industrial system, which the operators had sworn to perpetuate, is ended. The rule of the so-called ‘gun thug’ is no more.”

We hope so. Harlan County has thoroughly tested the

theory that “rights” can be defended only by force. The men of Harlan, whether ranged on the side of labor or of capital, are intense in their individualism. Their method of settling differences has been to fight it out. And that method has failed disastrously. Men have died, women have wept, children have suffered, countless dollars have been lost, “Bloody Harlan” hag been made a by-word—and the differences have not been settled. But

now, it appears, a new method is to be tried. May Harlan

as the world must find some day, that both sides can peasetully what neither Sigg « can win n by. WAY,

He says it's due

head until the prisoner, with a desperate shriek, would |

leap to the bars of his cage and offer to confess to all the unsolved crimes on the books from the founding of Pt. Dearborn right down to date. The pathetic state fo which this, let’ us hope, mythical victim was. reduced. suggests possibilities which hereby are offered to the British and French War Departments in the interests of peace and democracy. : : The British have been bombarding the German people with pamphlets faulting Adolf Hitler and appealing to their desire for peace, knowing that in Germany it is a chopping-block offerise to possess any document in dispraise of the Fuehrer and a crime but little less grave to think, much less speak, of peace. It is no offense, however, to indulge in dreams of wiener schnitzel or roast pork, enormous sheets of roast beef with baked brown potatoes and plenty of gravy, roast stuffed goose or goose liver dumplings, plum cake with whipped cream and great, high stacks of white bread and unlimited quantities of pure, golden butter. By all means, plenty of white bread and real butter, not that ersatz made from the blubber of sea gulls and fish, Help yourself to the white bread and butter, Fritz. : » 8 8

T has been so long since the Germans even read a menu of such richness that, considering the almost lifelong, if somewhat intermitfent privation of most of the Germans now living, a bombardment of menus would strike deeper into their souls than any stilted, professorial or editorial tracts on the perfidy of Hitler or the joys of peace. Such inducements would reduce a whole group of armies to the surrender point, and yet the British, in their simple, silly way, attempt to speak to them unkindly of Adolf Hitler, whom they love, and enticingly of peace, which they hate. I leave it to any oldtime Chicago reporter to say how long it would take to break the German Hatale.

Business By John T. Flynn

Price Decline Due to Peace Rumors Recalls Experiences of Last War.

ASHINGTON, Oct. 7—The weakening of grain prices and of stock prices as a result of developments in Europe recalls strikingly the events of the last war, We were simpler then and it was a long time before we began to understand fully what the war had been doing to our economic system. Before we knew it almost, the war had lifted up our whole level of prices, wages, profits and, indeed, our standards of living. But in good time we began to understand that the continuance .of all this was dependent on the continuance of the war. It was for this reason that the American Ambassador to England, Walter Hines Page, cabled the President calling attention to the fact that if America did not go into the war and make the nécessary loans to England and France, our whole transatlantic trade would collapse and we would be thrown into a terrible industrial panic. At different intervals during the war, efforts for peace were made with great seriousness. and rumors would float into the Stock Exchange that peace was imminent. Every time this happened the market would sink and once, at least, it practically collapsed. We are seeing how this works alréady. The whole gamble that has been going on in Wall Street and everywhere for that matter, is on the war lasting a long time. If it lasts the gamblers will win. If it collapses they will lose their shirts.

An Interesting Debate

Yet it is strange how people are banking on the war to bring business. Coming through Danville, Ill, I found the following account of a debate at the Chamber of Commerce on the war. One of the speakers said: “I can’t see why we shouldn't sell when we have such large surpluses and so many steel mills that are wirtually idle. Our whole recovery is based on the fact that we must sell our surpluses. The reason ‘we haven't been selling them in the past few years is because other counfries have attacked our economics.” He then pictured what it would mean to have the steel mills going full blast again, thus creating a big demand for coal from local mines. “Eighty-five per cent of our people are against Hitlérism,” he said, “and: as large a percentage of them don’t want war. The thing for us to do then is to bring this war to an end economically, and to end it so quickly that this country will not be embroiled. I favor repeal of the embargo because that will accomplish just that. Germany has no money to buy arms. and a here and the British blockade will do the res ”

Thus the man’s feelings and his usiness sense got curiously mixed up.

A Woman's Viewpoint By Mrs. Walter Ferguson

WELLE wars rage abroad it’s that peace hovers over the home front. discover this, not from any unusual powers of observation, but from the energetic seven-year research of two professors who announce that 79 per cent of marriages in the United States are ‘happy ones. Take that, you weepers and wailers! This discovery is important for more reasons than one. In the first place it establishes the truth of

‘| what a good many of us have always believed; that

divorce only seems to be e widesprea. beca invariably gets the lion’s a of ead ee So divorce has become one of our bogeys. We talk and write of it in alarmist words. Is it possible, we ask, that two individuals of initiative and intelligence can adjust themselves to one another? We doubt it, and we doubt it so often and so loudly that most of ‘our youngsters happy marriage is an almost Such a defeatist, attitude is worse inking Xo for if E3t any institution on earth do with person ow eliev ym mis ma h ae 8 vie betors he 4 t he can never “You can't make ft, can make it]” what would happen if Jou t 1 such woeful expectations. Yet, in effect, those are

the doleul words we pour ino the eas of our yong | i

pleasant » know | Wel.

great social |

take it for granted that | impossible achievement. | “wishful |

we approached all our jobs with |

5

sd o Abourds That We May Y Yet “Events That Got Us Into Last Wer.

to sink our ships before’ we entered ‘the World

ar She will not hesitate to do

50 now.” This statement by Senator Tom Connally in the embargo debate is being repeated almost dally by many statesmen.

of my own and partly, by that correction, to try to

Connally’s, which comes as near leaving an erroneous impression as did mine. A couple of weeks ago I wrote: “Niné out of 10 laymen will tell you that this. & (the sinking of American ships) was a: lnadiny £8 use for our getting into the World War. As a matter of fact only one American ship, the Guiflight, was sunk by German submarines in that way only three American lives

were lost.” bout this statement is that it

‘The sloppy part doesn’t make it clear that only the Gulflight had been

| many. After that, and when war had become inevita-

The Hoosier Forum | 1 wholly disagree with what you say, but will ~~ | defend to the death your right to say it emVoltaire, fi

WANTS HIGH FEES MADE ELECTION ISSUE By Citizen For seven Jong, cruel depression years, the Democrats have been in office in this City, County and State. They have made no effort to economize in government by reducing the salaries and fees of the Marion County Clerk and Treasurer. There is only one thing left for the

people to do. | They must elect candidates in the

next primary who pledge themselves

‘| to reduce these exorbitant and out-

rageous salaries and fees. 8 8 ® - > FAVORS EMBARGO REPEAL. AS COMMON SENSE: i By E. B. Egan

Running the risk of being tagged as an idealist I am supporting President Roosevelt's appeal for the repeal of the arms embargo as a measuré of common sense, plus the national obligation of fulfilling contracts. Giving ronspredatory. nations an even break and saving ourselves the effort théy are making is ‘the least we can do. We know all the risks of war and its unspeakable crimes, yet as a choice against the domination of a r e as elemental and as brutal as medievalism with modern scien ds, there should be no hesitation, | The civilized world lives by commerce, and political policies. which ignore any n ty but armament

not only carry nations to eco-

nomic disaster but contribute to the

general impove shen, With the greatest gold store in history, this nation cannot give employment to a fifth of its population. And yet one of the foremost national figures makes the statement that the money wé lent Europe was the cause of this depression. I am not advocating the wasteful effect of war as an economic stimulus, but pointing out the convincing evidence that one-way, one-cargo commerce such as militarism xecessitates is not the way back to geanomie security or any other

Another bit of propaganda this same notable falls for is that this

enslaved Europe for centuries—in spite of the fact Russia has an organization world wide for its primitive political | ‘theories and Hitler! comm

~ {Times readers are invited to express their. views in’ these columns, religious controversies. excluded. Make your letter short, so all can have a chance. Letters must - be signed, but names will be withheld on request.)

does nothing but publicize the glory of German arms, The war to: make the world safe for democracy was nullified by the defeat of the League of Nations which, if we had. been a signatory, would have made a réal disarmamént program and permanent economic stability possible. . . .

8 8 8 FEARS GREATER DANGER IN EXISTING LAW By Pat Hogan, Columbus, Ind. Although the embargoists and is0lationists have their theories exploded by facts every day, John T. Flynn

keeps harping on one string, and evén contradicts his own logic. The veteran Simms tells us that the present embargo includes only 10. per cent of our exports while 90 per cent may be shipped abroad in our vessels—and sent to the bottom of the sea. Therefore we have exactly one chance in 10 of keeping out of Hitler's war. Or in other words, we are only 10 per cent neu- . Flynn points out that to change our law might incur the hostility of Germany. Like many others, Flynn confuses Germany with Hitlerism. Hitlerism, if not crushed, will destroy not only Germany and the German ‘people, but civilization as well. . Isn't all his hubub, even the special session of Congress, for the sole purpose of keeping us out of this war? Our present law has actually helped Hitless, if" indeed it did

New Books

is a war of boundaries such as has|

HARLES A BEARD, Indianaborn dean of American historiems, has just had published ‘a entary on the current war,

Side Glances—By Galbraith

| Austria and P

the grabbing of oland. As we have helped one’ side, we cannot be accused of being unneutral if we drop the bars and offer to sell cash on the barrel-head’ to all comers. Hitler might not like that, but Germany will when rid: “ot Sesion »

not encourage

SEES HYPOCRISY je

: PRESENT NEUTRALITY aor!

By R. Spranger Sale of matérial to pions’ armaments is gs bad as sale of armaments and ‘so either way you contribute to carrying on warfare. The stigma of . should be removed from’ our “neutrglity” law by repeal of ‘the ‘arms embargo and

the cash-and-carry plan enacted in 25

its place. The cash-and-carry plan Aces not “take sides” as some argue but sells to all who cdme gnd get arms with cash and carry them sway.

It’s not our fault it certain ips

those things are to be el. war time. Also, isolation smacks of the rols of a coward who tries to’ escape solving world problems by burying his head in the sand and ends up in war anyway. The war of {812 proves isblation is a failure for the United States also. Peace, yes, but not by being hlackmailed or that of an ignoramus.

* 8 x THINKS BOTH SIDES SCORED IN NEUTEALITY DEBATE Fe By Observer : :

So far the Senate neutrality febate is a standoff. The isolationists have convinced me that we should retain the arms embargo. The other side has proved the wisdom of selling all other materials on a cash and carry basis.: Let's have both. That way we wouldn't have much foreign trade. But we wouldn't get

{an

| | Britain,” reminds Mr. Beard {to be America.” Pe

into the war. Either,

———

“Giddy Minds and. Foreign Quer

rel small book; it has already gone into ita second ‘printing by "Mac:

oi characteristic vigor, Mr. Beard gives his views on American foreign He pleads for ‘the condentration of American “energles on the making of a civilization within a circle. of their continental

He asks that Americans not “withdraw from the world, but to, deal with the world as it is and not as’ r . propagandists picture it. Mr. Beard is‘a, refreshing antidote for so much of the ‘pressure urging America to enter the war. It should be required reading for those who have pronounced views for one side or the: other.

- “America is not .to be Rome y Th -

G LIGHT

Tle By MAUD p COURTNEY WADDELL : Mellow street lamps twinkle through

the wind-tossed leaves, '

| Wile ‘wend the parent tree to) o

which they. cleave.

| fous sue above stiine through the

‘night, htly faimkle down seons.

: | Government

American ships, but our equally strong objection to

| the sinking of neutral or even belligerent merchant

ships where American lives and property were involved. It was literally true that before the break

and she happened to be traveling with a belligerent

Germans had “hesitated to sink American ships.” The point is that, even after the Neutrality Law

| becomes law, if we take the same position we did in

1916 and 1917, we can have exactly the same cause for war if a German submarine should sink a neutral ship carrying Americans or their property. Thus 1916 and 1917 could be enacted all over again, They are. being re-enacted in other ways. British ‘mi there being supplied. They are armed to fight and

the British: get: away with it. s 8. 8

long enough to permit an opportunity at least

in a farcical sham search to see if she was armed, disarmed or interned her had shé been armed. Yet we let British ‘ships steam boldly into our harbors with ‘their armament in full

law in the World War by ifort It looks as though they ¥ er preparing ‘to repeat the same dose. ' It remains to be seen whether We shall again let them get away with it. I

don’t want ‘to take part in this war. I can’t see that repealing the arms embargo is taking part. But there are plénty of other ways to be sucked in. We

pat that led us into war before.

Aviation By Maj. Al Williams ¢ © U.S. Would Restrict, “Then Take

to convince some people that the transportation to be restricted first, and later taken over by the Government if we are pushed int this European war, will be our airlines.

the transport The heer of World War procurement programs,

emergency program. Bids can be requested and submitted by mail, but the transportation of that mail will have to be ac-

necessary fo secure priority, private air mail undoubtedly will be shunted to rail transportation. -In any event, the volume of Government airmail will be so increased that the airlines may well be taxed to the éxclusion of carrying passengers. And, after the manufacturing contracts are awarded, ex< perience teaches us that even in peace time the volume of correspondence incidental to ordering

contract alterations will mean [another ‘airmail peak :

transportation problem. Cause for Alarm

-Just what this increased’ volume of airmail will amount to in war conditions can only be estimated, but those charged with making such estimates are alarmed-——even now. ‘To completa the . picture of what may and can be expec it is DeSean to provide for the contingency of ‘Thousands and -thousands of Government aircraft inspectors, and those charged with the detailed ‘execution of the aircraft production. schedule for making rapid contacts between the Government

and the con “The essence of war in. y of its angles is.

of the existing airlines-are today just about capable of handling our peace time passenger traffic loads. A stepping-up of airmail volume end the obvious increase of emergency: travel by- ‘Government 'representatives will dump a problem in the the laps. of our airlines that may well tax their capacities. Ta At any rate there is unquéstionable anxiety of the CAA a at Po tr Cairn ment will Mminisr the SINGS Siler they Xe ken over. 5

By Jane Stafford

ERMAN measles is another of those ailments that the school child is likely to pick up, although it get this sickness than One attack generally or| makes the

ery q is that it ‘may, during its early stages Scarlet fever. ae ron, ‘3 should call their doctor if Johnny has

| a Repetition ‘of Those Same’

_ YORE, Oct. 1.~“Germany did not hesitate

I refer to it partly to correct ‘a sloppy statement

set the record. straight on such statements as Senator :

‘sunk before we severed diplomatic relations with Ger- -

| ble, but before its formal declaration, the, subs sank : or sgvera) other American ships.

NHIS Jooss: ‘wording, however, made ttle difference. : to the argument of the column in which it was’ | made. That argument was that what got us into the war was not primarily our position on the sinking of -

came on this issue only the Gulflight had been sunk - British convoy. In other words, up to that time the

Armed erchant, ships are coming into our ports and

destroy German ships. In that sense they are warships. We so held during the World Wwar-bue weé let:

HEN the Brimen sailed empty, we held her up for her capture by a British cruiser. We held her: up. ; ‘with an implication at least, that we would have:

sight. The British viclated our Hghis at international with our shipping.

"If there is one thing certain, it is that our people

geem to be starting step for step down Saactly the.

Over. Commercial Airlines { in War. ASHINGTON, Oct. 7.—Logic seems inadequate

May 1, therefore, submit the information that 5 | Civil Aeronautics Authority officials anticipate the ' ‘make this its first move to control. ation deemed to be of first importance? '

covering material and contracts for the mass manufacture of fighting aircraft,- présent reasons for the contemplated move, if we, again face the necessity of ‘turning out thousands of military planes under an

complished by the fastest means, namely, via air. This means a priority of Governmeit airmail, and, if

speed; And the speed of manufacture and fabrication in war time is the speed of transportation. The facilities -

Watching Your Health :

also attacks adults. In fact, adults are more likely to -

patient imm : . German mensles, h has the scientific name of ce TE a OL :

symptoms of the disgate, std fii ates should he sepmSted’h WS

ad IEA,