Indianapolis Times, Indianapolis, Marion County, 27 February 1940 — Page 14

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Give Light and the Peoples Will Find Their Own Way

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 27, 1940

THINK YOUR TAX IS HIGH? | T'S hard to persuade the average man, on the eve of a tooth-pulling, that he's lucky because he’s not. losing a

leg or an eye instead. : By the same token it’s probably futile to try to cheer

up the great American taxpayer, as the Ides of March rusn toward him, by suggesting it might be worse. But just for the record, let’s take a look at what the English ratepayer (that’s British for taxpayer) is kicking back to his government this year. , A contributor to Harper's computes that an Englishman with a wife and one child will pay in income taxes this

year as follows: |

Income : : hp 00 e908008 sone RtR ORES ess Bre i 2200 0000000000000 000000000 0000000 796.25 6000 isissisessnssiscaivessnnssisessieene 1421.25 S000 ....... . 2171.25

The Englishman also pays through the nose in indirect taxes when he buys a pack of cigarets or a glass of ’alf-and-'alf or a whisky-soda. Local taxation on. real es i heavy. On top of that, the wholesale price of food has risen"one-third in the last 14 months. And the war hasn't “started” yet. ot No, that tooth-pulling on March 15 won't be fun. But gave a tear for your cousin across the sea.

ASHURST AT BAY WITH this third-term controversy warming up, S Henry F. Ashurst had better look to his laurels nation’s high apostle of inconsistency. We have no doubt the agile Arizonan will prove his superiority over all challengers, yet it must be a that many illustrious personages are pressing for hig title. There is, for instance, that veteran newspaper columnist, Mark Sullivan, who writes of how the “cruel silence” of President Roosevelt is causing anguish to officeholders and candidates. Now is the time, Mr. Sullivan is quite sure, for all good men to cherish America’s “venerated tradition” that “no President shall serve more than two terms.”} Yet, as Charles Michelson points out, the same Mr. Sullivan wrote in 1912 that it would not be “unbecoming i - (Theodore Roosevelt) to yield to an unmistakable | public wish. A third term’has no dangers.” And Mr. Ashurst had better beware too of Norris of Nebraska, who in 1927 thought a third te Coolidge would be “a long step toward a monarchi

ess esscstnne

those who think a third term would be fine Uncle George's name leads all the rest. Le Other challengers in the Senate—Barkley, M Hayden, Neely, Pittman, Sheppard and Wagner joined with Ashurst, back in the Coolidge days, in voting for the La Follette resvlution declaring that any departure from the anti-third-term tradition would be “unwise, unpatriotic, and fraught with peril, and surely such eminent Republicans as Herbert Hoover, Charles Evans Hughes, C. Bascom| Slemp, Henry Ford, Bert Snell and Jim Wadsworth—all of whom put in a plug for a third term for Coolidge—would admit now that they have contrary views. Yes Ashurst has no monopoly.

EXTEND THE HATCH ACT. GQENATOR HATCH’S proposed amendment to the fine law which bears his name has cleared the first legislative hurdle. It has been approved by the Senate Committee on Privileges and Elections. It goes now to the Senate calendar, for action by that body, If approved by the Senate, it will then go to the House. | n The amendment would apply to state employees whose ~ galaries are paid in part by Federal funds the same rules that the Hatch Act now applies to regular Federal employees. i Since the season of primaries and political conventions is zetting under way this might be a good time tp review the Hatch Act’s provisions. These make it— : Unlawful for any person to threaten, intimidate or coerce a voter in a Presidential or Congressional election. Unlawful to promise jobs or compensation as reward for political activity. | Unlawful to deprive of work relief, or threaten to deprive, any person because he supports or opposes any candidate or political party; or on account of race, creed or color. fe Unlawful to disclose lists of relief workers to political candidates or campaign managers. | Unlawful to use relief funds or relief administrative authority to influence voters. Unlawful for any Federal employee (noes elected officials and top policy-making executives) to take active part in political management or in political campaigns. Positively stated, the Hatch Act protects every Government employee in his right to— : : Say what he pleases, Vote as he chooses, and Keep whatever money he earns. Congress should extend this law, as Senator Hatch urges, to employees of state highway departments, welfare bureaus and other state agencies subsidized i Federal funds. The same principles should be extended to| all public employees, state, county and municipal, regardless of the source of their pay checks. Under the Constitution Congress does not have the authority to go beyond [regulating the activities of those whose salaries come from Federal funds. The finishing touches await action by state legisla-

tures, county commissioners and city councils. |

| . THAT'S FOR NOTHING! | 8 NORWAY, sandwiched between the, wrath of Germany and England, is probably wondering how it got into

such a guess by doing practically nothing, fog tn 8

sabre AE Lop Bo pa cat Pak goad

Fair Enough

By Westbrook Pegler

Reveals Plans for Getting His Share Of the Great ‘Unorganized’ Groups| When Religion Becomes Compulsory.| [

EW YORK, Feb, 27—When I start operations as Bishop Pegler under the amendment to the Constitution making religion compulsory and atheism a felony I aim to organize a sort of clerical board of

trade to divide up the new business and avoid any|

such unseemly scramble as the one which has disturbed the realm of labor organization under the

Wagner act. a ' Here Congress gave the labor organizers a mar-|

velous power of compulsion over millions of subjects, complete with a taxing privilege and tax immunity for their own treasuries. The leaclers were unprepared to handle the rush and consequently they fell to fighting among themselves for members and dues. My idea is to take a census of all sects now existing

and all the people who do not belong to any church].

and divide the new business peacefiilly under the eeny-meeny-miney-mo system, I am all for peace and co-operation just so I get my share of the new business under the religious compulsion amendment to the Constitution. All those who now belong to religious congregations will be allowed to retain their present membership, but the great, unorganized group of about 70 millions must be shared evenly. 8 =» S to just what does constitute a valid, organized religion of the present writing, we must be a trifle arbitrary for the sake of the general good. The church, in which I have the financial good luck to hold an appointment as bishop, is not very prominent, but like some rather obscure no-account unions which were existing in a state of suspended animation by virtue of mildewed old union charters, when the Wagner act came in, our legal status is 100 per cent.

Some of those old union charters were clean for-|

gotten when the Wagner act came in, but they have been documents of fabulous value from then on. I understand that the Rev, Father Coughlin favors the Franco way, and I am glad to say that this way is okay with the Right Rev. Bishop Pegler of some church in Colorado. I am not yet sure of the name of this church, but I was appointed a bishop thereof several years ago, and I will fill in the blank when I find my diploma, which is somewhere around. Under

in Front

the requirements of the Franco way, all marriages| LX

must be performed by religious authority, and it takes no genius to see what that will mean to Bishop Pegler when he gets his share of the 70 million unorganized Americans. ¥ ” » ”» AY he gets only half a million of them and say there are about 100 other qualified clerics at present holding credentials.in this Colorado church, for it is really a very small cult, Bishop Pegler will get his share of the marriage business at anywhere from $2 up

to whatever the traffic will bear, with. time and a half for elopements after quitting time. He will get his regular grind for membership stamps on compulsory church cards. ' He will get collections to support his radio program, compulsory subscriptions to his church paper and compulsory funeral fees, and he can &peculate in the market while raiding the market through propaganda. And he need never pay any attention to the income tax, because churches are immune under the law. And anyone who interferes with him will be a dirty atheist Communist, subject to arrest on sight and life imprisonment in a concentration camp.

Inside Indianapolis

The Little Stories Behind the Stories That Get on Page One.

T= newspaper reporters at the State House are having their little troubles with the State Barber Board. And vice versa. It seems that the Board felt it had been treated unjustly by the newspapermen in the handling of the recent price order and the resultant skirmishing, : _ So diplomatic relations were severed. Informally perhaps, but none the less severed. The boys got the cold shoulder. Yesterday one of the State House reporters happened to hear of an advertisement that had been brought in by the Barber Board. Sure enough, the Board had planked its ad down, paid the money and walked out. | The reporter hot-footed it over to the Board offices. He asked Secretary Frank McKamey if it was true the Board had ordered a public hearing on rates. Read your paper, said Mr. McKamey tersely. = All additional questions brought forth the same reply. Read your paper, : So the reporter came back, read the ad, wrote his story. The ad appeared back in the “legals” section of the Classifieds. The story was on Page One with a big headline. Te in 8 = = THE NEWSPAPER VENDOR at the Fletcher Trust corner has equipped himself with a portable radio. « « « So he can be entertained with the latest in swing while he peddles his papers. . . . There's no fooling about the need for your poll tax receipts when you get your auto licenses and the result has been a number of delinquent taxes being paid. . . . It has just been learned that the Better Business Bureau and the Police put a stop to one of the worst telephone ticket-selling schemes in years earlier this month.... The operators would have grossed about $5000 if they had not been stopped. 2 8 8 THERE HAS BEEN SO much pneumonia and influenza lately that both $t. Vincent's and Methodist are literally completely full. . . . The riveters have gone into action at Market and Illinois. . . . We've told you about George Saas losing his voice. . . . Funny part is George went all the way to Florida to see a specialist who looked puzzled and then told George that the doctor for him {o see was an IndiShapolis specialist. . + . George then looked puzzled, 0.

A Woman's Viewpoint By Mrs. Walter Ferguson

“TEAR FRIEND,” says a letter that has moved me |

deeply, “I have reac all your articles concerning the married working woman. The subjegt is of vital interest to me because I have worked since I was 17, and I am now 33. Always in the same plant. I married and nad three children, Our little boy died. My two girls are now 12 and 14. I value my independence very much. I make $20 a week and my husband makes an average of $22. } “Now I'll admit we could exist on the $22 a week, but we couldn’t live. If wives are to be put out—-and I understand that plan will soon go ‘into effect here, the Government should see to it that men’s wages are raised, and not allow corporations to put restrictions on the rights of married women. For admittedly married women are the best workers. They have definite goals: Their home betterment and the higher education for their children. : “My sister is 31. After 13 years of steady employment in our plant she was’ released without notice, because she got married. We are all to go soon. What can we do? I think I speak for all women over the country who are as desperate as I'am. A

1 law ‘banning us from paying jobs would make for|

speakeasy marriage. ‘all the years I have worked I've kept a girl in my home to help with the housework. When I lose my job she'll lose hers. Where will the gain come in? We need the money s6 much. Please give me some encouragement and tell me how we can lick this thing.” | : ; | I wish I could. But we Americans seem to be

| losing our capacity to think straight about certain|{ & v alized or nonlegalized scheme to draw| |

job class distinetions is a defiance of the Constitution.

1t contradicts also our orations on individual freedom. As as matter of cold fact, freedom for the individual

must dwindle in the same proportion as plans for col-| lective secugity gr ab resp are certainly |

| Dewey Is Reported to Be Out

WER

The Hoosier Forum

I wholly disagree with what you say, but will defend to the death your right to say it.—Voltaire.

THINKS HOSPITAL AREAS LACK PROPER PROTECTION By M. J.C. When is something going to be done to put a stop to the morons that are running at will around our

local hospitals? Twice within a week they have beaten, scratched and bitten nurses at one hospital. A few weeks ago a nurse at another hospital was the victim of an attempted attack and lost some teeth. A short time ago there were so many Peeping Toms at still another hospital, perched on a limb of a tree, that the limb broke. ,. . Just in the last week four women were slugged and robbed of their purses in one night. Grocerymen, filling station men, druggists, have been murdered. Surely the president of the Safety Board and his chief can spare some of their men from the tail-light, bingo, parking meter and craps campaigns long enough 'to take care of this situation. * : 2 ” ®

HOLDS ECONOMIC SYSTEM LACKS CO-ORDINATION By Conservative

If the G. O. P. wins the next national election, we can look forward to it to out-deal the New Deal in changing the face of our economic organization. The 10 million unemployed are a national problem that cannot be ignored even by the G..O. P. The reason they are unemployed lies in the| fact that, there is no coordination in the operation of our economic system. It is just a lot of loose joints flopping around, without a’directing force to accomplish the objective of providing for the general public welfare. If 40 million were unemployed, and only 10 million people had work now we woud soon get our heads to work on solving our problem of poverty in the midst of plenty.

face the New Deal as wholly useless workers, after seven years of taping the broken parts of the économic machine, shows that reconstruction has not really been undertaken. Mr. Roosevelt does not really care anything about these 10 million economic outcasts. If he did he would center his mind on this problem, rather than try to attract our giddy minds to foreign quarrels. The President deserves to be knighted by His Maj-

The fact that 10 million still :

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

British Empire, and to bring America back to its Dominions. He has unmasked himself as the protector of the economic ruling class. He belongs to that class himself. 2 » 8 DEPLORES ACTION AGAINST KNOT HOLE BAND : By A Fan : The rabbit season is closed, but for those who are looking for some small game to bump off, may I suggest there are still plenty of young children in the city and county that you can train your guns on and break their hearts. The Police Department was after the children and their bicycles and the City Council took care of them. Now comes another group of hunters. The Indianapolis Musicians’ Union is now claiming that the Perry Stadium Knot Hole Band is unfair and keeping them out of

work. They have advised President Miller of the Indianapolis Ball Club that this group cannot play at future games at the ball park and Mr. Miller has heen forced under threat of boycott to tell the kids

they can no longer play for those they have faithfully entertained for nine years. Mr. Miller, please hire a band from the ‘Indianapolis Musicians’ Union and I promise you I will buy a box seat, just back of home plate. I could not miss seeing them booed out of the park when they tried

very nicely be “Careless.” We should put those kids back o home plate where they have serve us for nine years for nothing more than a free pass. Over at Columbus they thought enough of their band to bring it on a free trip to Indianapolis last year. Over here we throw them out.

ah » t J INSISTS ONLY TRUE AMERICANS ARE INDIANS By Robert Luke, Local 226, U. A. W. A.

If Mr. Maddox is 100 per cent American he must be of Indian descent because an Indian is the only one privileged to call himself a true American. “After all, the majority of us are descendants of foreign citizens. : I am a United Automobile Worker affiliated with the C. I. O. and question whether Mr. Maddox can boast. of supporting a program for jobs, security and peace, and if so, what his solution is. It seems Mr. Maddox doesn’t realize that churches, schools and other institutions built by the magic power of labor are only possible by the surplus value created by labor, so to be a good citizen and believe in true democracy, he would have to sup-

port labor and bring forth something constructive.

New Books at the Library

“ OUSE of Hospitality” (Sheed), by Dorothy Day, is an account of the translation of a spiritual idea into a reality. The author had been a rsearch worker, dialog writer a newspaper correspondent. In pursuit of her vocation she had covered, for two Catholic journals, the Hunger March of the Unemployed Councils upon Washington, D. C., in December, 1932. There she witnessed the hysteria, the fear, the

esty as Lord Roosevelt for his distinguished efforts to maintain the

brutality caused by the sight of this ragged unemployed horde; and the

Side Glances—By Galbraith

thought came to her that these people had been betrayed by Christianity, that men were no longer Christians or such degradation would not exist. She was seized with the desire to do something for these poor people. i When she returned to New York, she found Peter Maurin, a sort of tramp philosopher with definite ideas on social problems. With him she tried to work out a social service founded on the tenets of Christian helpfulness, voluntary poverty, and the effort to help the poor to help themselves. : : The result has been the founding of The Catholic Worker, a labor paper, 23 houses of hospitality for

| {the rehabilitation of the poor in

America, farm communes, and a day-by-day effort on the part of the author and her helpers to stimulate the spirit of responsibility and independence in the people among whom they work. They oppose the idea and attitude of organized charity. Their own support comes from individuals and organizations sympathetic with their aims. They seek to reach people “through voluntary poverty (going

| without luxuries in order to have the essentials) and through *the

works of mercy (mutual®aid and philosophy of labor).” ) This philosophy of love and labor, they believe, is the solution of the social problems of the country.

a

FEBRUARY RADIO ‘By MARY P. DENNY

Radio beam, radio beam ; Ringing out the hours of day. Ringing far in one great line In a glory grand divine. Over land and over sea Ringing anthems of the free. Beaming over earth and sky In a wonder lifted high. - Radio beam, radio beam Shed afar the beam of peace Over all the world today

In the lights that never cease.

_ DAILY THOUGHT

_ One generation passeth away,’ and another generation cometh; ‘but the earth abideth forever.—

Ecclesiastes 1:4.

to play their first piece, which could |

fa

_ TUESDAY, FEB. 21, 1940,

a

Gen. Johnson

~ Such Progress Made in Diesel Power Units That Huge Outlays for Hydro Plants Soon May Be Unjustified.

EORIA, Ill, Feb. 27.—What literary enthusiast was it, who on seeing some gadget or invention wrote: “I have just, seen the future?” I wouldn’t go that far, 1 spent too many years trying to nurse world shaking igventions into practical use, About nine of 10 go sour, But I saw in Peoria at the plant of the Cater ‘pillar Tractor ‘Co. a development that I'll bet will go far to revolutionize the electric power industry. This is of great economic, social and political im-

portance. The power industry, as a series of necessary local monopolies, has gotten itself so far into the political field and governmental operation or come petition that its iife is a nightmare, Accurate information about it is almost impossible to obtain. The dizzy if not fraudulent figures of cost of government produced hydroelectric power as a yardstick cdo not clarify the subject. They muddy it with guesses as to the elements of costs, necessity and utility of flood control, navigation and irrigation with cynically unfair juggling of tax burdens, ® » »

| is almost certain that improvements in produdtion of electricity by steam have so lowered costs as compared with even these juggled figures on waterpower that, In by far the greater part of the country, hydroelectricity will be as dead as the do-do. If that is true, some of the Government spending of billions on projects like TVA becomes nothing less than monstrous misgovernment and waste. : But I think we can skip that contested and debated field in view of what I saw in Peoria. .It was a Diesel operated power plant. There were several sizes. The smallest sells for about $1700 and is about the size of a standard traceor, It will generate enough power for all the electrical needs of a fair-sized hotel or a little village or tourist camp. It is fool-proof and almost as easy to start as plugging in an electric refrigerator. One was put into operation in a Western community in 15 minutes. There were several varieties of larger sizes up to power enough for a small city. There is, of course, no limit on capacity from combinations of units, Ee The knock-out fact in all this is low cost—not merely of the power plant and of transmission lines and distribution—but of the generated and delivered energy itself —from 3% of a cent to 1 cent per kilowatt hour, or less than half the cheapest going rate to the average consumer in large parts of this country. 8s 8 2 HERE is very little of experiment left in this field. These units are in actual production and operation. = : If this is all true, why should billions be spent in high-cost plants, transmission lines and distributing systems to produce a necessity of life at a much higher cost? If there is no satisfactory answer to this question, this individual Diesel plant is as revolutionary as the cotton gin. This development has been slow and its spread in use slower. That is hardly a wonder, considering what it may do to many existing installations of great economic and political influence. Maybe there is some hitch in this extraordinary appearance. This column is no expert or exhaustive report. But before Congress puts up any more billions of taxpayers’ money for hydroelectric power, it has a compelling duty to investigate this development to conclusion. :

Trade Stealing

By Bruce Catton

British Intercept U. S. Plant's Cable To Norway, English Firm Gets Order.

X 7ASHINGTON, Feb. 27.—British interference with U. S. communications to Europe isn’t always based strictly on military necessity. Last fall a small American steel company got a query from a firm in Norway, which wanted to buy some steel if the price was right. The American company met the Norwegians’ price, sent off a cable to that affect, and waited for an order. The order never came. Some time later the Americans had a chance to investigate. They found the cable had got as far as England and then had stopped. The Norwegians never got it, assumed the American firm wasn’t interested—and, a few days later, placed the order with a British firm (which they had never heard of before) which just happened to submit th same price for the same bill of goods. : fia )

Farm Diversity New Goal -

Back of the transfer of M. L. Wilson from the undersecretaryship of Agriculture to the post of Director of Extension is a program for educating farmers to the importance of diversified farming—and, also, for geiting the county agents out from under the load of administrative details which came with the AAA program. : ; . "° The demonstration agents are placed in each county in the country. Paid by county, state and Federal funds, they try to teach farmers proper methods. Until the New Deal they concentrated largely on methods of increasing production. With triple-A, however. they got a mass of administrative work to handle in connection with the crop reduction programs. In many cases they got snowed under. Wilson hopes to get them back to their original sphere. ; ;

8 2 2B Separate Air Forces Backed

Congressmen who have resisted the clamor for a separate air force say they are more than ever confident they were right in view of certain reports that have been coming over from Europe. One report. which they accept as true is that the British have been having a bit of trouble with their naval air patrols. Not so long ago, says this report, a British air squadron ihdustriously bombed a squadron of British warships by mistake. : Moral, according to the separate-air-forces advocates: Army and Navy flying assignments are so different you can’t get efficiency by using just one air force to handle both.

Watch Your Health

By Jane Stafford

NE of the most vitally important and one. of the most wearisome jobs 8 housewife has is the constant, day in and day out struggle to keep her home in order. Most women keep at it because of their pride in a well-ordered home’ and their desire to keep order for the family’s comfort. Many of them probably forget that when they are picking up the baby’s toys, directing the older children: to hang up their coats and put their skates and bicycles away, and keeping after the man of ‘thé house to make necessary repairs, they are acting” as safety engineers. ‘ The safety engineer in a manufacturing plant is a person of importance. He is responsible to a large extent for the lives and health of hundreds of workers who might be disabled or killed by accidents if he did not insist on good housekeeping and safety practices in the plant. : Sony When vou realize that home accidents ate responsible for more than half of all accidental injuries received in the United States and for nearly one-third of all accidental deaths, you realize the importance of the housewife as safety engineer in the home. A eit Falls are a major cause of accidents which she must guard against. Dangerous falls may be caused by small rugs on slippery floors, by children’s playthings’ or pails and cleaning implements left out of place, by loose stair treads, torn carpets or rugs, cords trailing across the floor from vacuum cleaners, or electric lamps, or by the use of rickety ladders or rocking ehairs to reach high shelves. : One 4-year-old girl was discovered biting a loaded cartridge which she had gotten by climbing on 8 gues, 2 reach t ‘sh he er