Indianapolis Times, Indianapolis, Marion County, 24 June 1942 — Page 10

PAGE 10

The Indianapolis Times Fa; Enough

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WEDNESDAY, JUNE 24, 1942

TAKING AN OFFENSIVE

Of talk about opening a “second front” there is no end. Hardly a day goes by without some high official or officer in London or Washington repeating the same old threat of what the allies are going to do to Hitler's rear. We are not among the large number demanding a western front. Whether Britain is adequately prepared for such an offensive in Europe—without repetition of the debacles in Norway, Greece, the Far East and Libya—is a matter of military information which we do not possess. Obviously a successful offensive there is desperately needed. But unless the British are strong enough, they should not undertake it. The thing that troubles us is that the British and American governments keep talking about it. If they are going to act, the less said the better. If they are not going to act, they are undermining public confidence in themselves. Certainly any notion that talk would help the Russians has collapsed. The talk did not stop Hitler from launching his new drive against Russia, or from opening his own victorious second front in Libya. The allies cannot talk an offensive. counts now,

Only fighting

SPEED UP THE SCRAF

JPER-CAPITA contributions to the scrap-rubber collection have been much greater in the Middle West and Far West than in eastern cities, says a report from Washington. There may be a perfectly good explanation for that. Many city dwellers don’t have much room to keep useless seraps of anything, and commercial collectors have already worked the eastern field pretty intensively. But this is certain: vet turned in all the old rubber it can, and every section should speed up its contributions,

The drive has less than a week to go.

DR. CARVER HONORED

T a time when vicious men are seeking to fan hatred between the races throughout the world, it is cheering to read that The Progressive Farmer, a Southern magazine, has chosen a Negro, born a slave, for the highest honor it can give. Dr. George Washington Carver, a slave who became a great scientiest and benefactor not only of his own race but also of all Americans and all mankind, joins an illustrious group in receiving the title, “1942 Man of the Year.” Dr. Carver, Missouri-born TR years ago, has taught and experimented at Tuskegee Institute, Alabama, since 1896. From the peanut he has developed more than 300 useful products; from the sweet potato, more than 100. All sorts of agricultural materials that formerly went to

waste have become useful things under his patient and |

skillful treatment. He could have been wealthy, but he chose only to live humbly and serve. The announcement of the award words: “Even those Southerners like the writer, whose fathers fought under Lee and Jackson to resist what was regarded as an unjustified invasion of the South—all of us are now

ends with these

No section of the country has |

Business Manager |

glad that human slavery no longer Bxists and that men | like George Washington Carver may have a chance to use |

all the talents God has given them in service to their own race and the white race as well.”

Human slavery no longer exists in America, and with |

the help of God all Americans of whatever color will battle beside our allies until the new slavery and the hatreds

which axis leaders are trying to promote throughout the

world are stamped out. We will hold fast to such examples as the life of George Washington Carver and the honors awarded him, as showing that there is hope for all God's children to live together in peace and mutual service and respect.

WISE UNION

HEN a union offers to work on government contracts at less than prevailing wage rates, that’s unusual.

But the International Ladies’ Garment Workers, which has |

made this offer, is an unusual union. And its president, David Dubinsky, is a labor leader of unusual intelligence and vision. Ten vears ago, when Mr. Dubinsky became its head,

the ILGWU had only about 40,000 members and was | faced : | beginnings, in a short time, an industrial foundation

He has built the membership to over | and war industry equal to that of her capitalistic

deeply in debt. 300,000 and the union has a big surplus. Meanwhile, he has been an outstanding opponent of Communist borers-from-within and of racketeers in the labor movement. But priorities and other war dislocations have slowed down the industry, and in New York City alone some 70,000 of the union’s members are now unemployed. So the executive board has voted to co-operate with employers in efforts to convert many shops to the production of uniforms and other military garments, “even to

the extent of not insisting, in the making of war work, | on the higher wage rates prevailing in civiliam garment |

production.” The board asks that employers who get war contracts pass on wage savings to the government in lower prices, and has appointed a committee to work with shop owners in seeking orders and pooling equipment and facilities. Of

desire to make jobs for its members. But it is also working in the interests of a great industry and of the taxpayers, and we hope its program will be highly successful. a estos aap iee

i

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By Westbrook Pegler

NEW YORK, June 24—In an essay of mine on the eventful vanishment of golf as fuel and rubber shortage cute the cruising radius of the addicts, reference was made to the creeping cone quest of the lovely greens by a variety of weeds and herbs, including, as I spelled it, one called “pussel.” Miss Corinne Johnson, associate editor of Readers’ Digest, : sensed a challenge in this word and has written to demand my authority or an apology. She says that any vegetation “which isn’t flower, vegetable, grain or grass” or, as I take the liberty to add, tree, is just a weed to her and further that she has consulted dictionaries and found “purslane,” “pussley” and “pussiy,” but no pussel. I hesitate to stimulate this discussion because I once inadvertently asked a question about the sex life of the wistaria of which I possessed a barren female and the correspondence thus provoked was the greatest that I ever received on any one subject but, in a quiet, unprovocative way I should like to say that I spell “pussel” strictly by ear. That is the way I have always heard it pronounced, except when it was called pigweed, and, although I do believe “purslane” is correct, it has a stilted sound to me.

It's Edible, but Not Good

PUSSEL OR, IF you insist on refinement at the expense of inoffensive ease, “purslane” is a creeping weed that grows just about everywhere in the United States, except on rocks and in the deserts, and it is edible, although not good to eat unless your taste

run to spinach, dandelion greens and broccoli, in which case you might like it. I will not take the responsibility of describing it, lest readers of these dispatches gather by mistake messes of poison ivy or marijuana, which also are common neatly everywhere in our land, with unfortunate results. Incidentally, any batch of any greens, is a “mess” for reasons which, not knowing, I will not try to explain. One winter in Florida I got my hands on a history of the state and in a fascinating chapter on old Fort Jefferson, in the dry tortugas which lies to the south and west of Key West in a god-forsaken stretch of beautiful but deadly blue water, I found a tribute to both pussel and Dr. Mudd, one of the most interesting minor characters of our history, who was sent to prison in the fort after the civil war as an accessory after the fact to the assassination of President Lincoln.

Maybe You 'Kin Eat 'Em'

IT IS VERY DOUBTFUL that Dr. Mudd deserved any punishment for his offense consisting of giving medical aid according to his sacred obligation, but, anyway, he was there a long time in a horrible place of confinement surrounded by a moat policed by | sharks and was doctor and nurse to many of his fellow prisoners who fell sick of many ailments, including scurvy, and not a few of whom died. The guards seem not to have been much better off than the prisoners, so they yielded to Dr. Mudd’s plea that he be allowed to go ashore in a manner of speaking, along the terrible keys and prospect for any edible greens that he might find to combat the scurvy. The greens he found were pussel or purslane or pigweed and by this addition to the diet of the wretched survivors of the fort he managed to save some lives and stop the spread of the disease. This part of the narration recalled the famine in Miss Pearl Buck’s “the good earth” in which even a blade of grass or a few kernels of corn were a feast and filled me with a complacent feeling that whatever tragedy might befall our land through man’s own meanness that, anyway, never could happen here because pussel and dandelions and doubtless many other greens and nuts are with us always in abundance and then, too, the appetizing rattlesnake grows numerous and big, especially in Florida, and the alligator, too, and, if worst comes, garfish by the million which is despised as food but not condemned in the quaint Florida phrase: “If vou kin eat ‘em you kin eat 'em.” My recommendation of pussel or purslane is similarly qualified.

Editor's Note: The views expressed by columnists in this newspaper are their ewn. Ther are not necessarily those of The Indianapelis Times,

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Russia's Arms By A. T. Steele

NEW DELHI, India, June 24.— Whatever else may be wrong with Soviet Russia, there is .very little wrong with the quality of her armament and her army. The enormous contrast between the non-military and military sides of the Soviet state has fooled a lot of people and goes far toward explaining why so many experts

| mean it? | must grow and develop in a decent

THE INDIANAPOLIS TIMES

Tobruk

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 24, 1942

The Hoosier Forum

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

“WHEN IS IT GOING TO HAPPEN, MR. MORRISSEY?”

By Henry Stout, Indianapolis I wonder what all this bunk is about Mr. Morrissey stopping gambling in Indianapolis. I think in nine or 10 years in office he should have been able to stop it if he was

igoing to. . . .

Everybody knows about the pinballs and slot ‘machines in the city, bookies running wide open and baseball tickets sold everywhere and punchboards sold in drug stores. “When” is all this going to happen, Morrissey?” Ha, hal

n = » “LOW INCOME HOUSING A

SERIOUS, PRESSING PROBLEM”

By Marion L. Griffin, Indianapolis We prate about the family being the first line of defense, the bulwark of civilization; that upon sound

family life depends the strength and safety of the nation. We agree without reservation that family life is the finest product of civilization, “the great molding force for mind and character”; we acknowledge that the home is a miniature state wherein there is a democratic spread of responsibility in which the first childhood lessons of honor, loyalty, and obedience, which prepare the child for future citizenship in a democracy, are learned as no other forces can teach. We say children are the nation’s greatest wealth, its concern of the present and hope of the future. Oh, ves, we say all of this, but do we Children, we declare,

environment. They must have a little play space and room enough

(Times readers are invited their

these columns, religious conMake

your letters short, so all can

to express views in

troversies excluded.

have a chance. Letters must

be signed.)

modest dwellings in which to house tnis wealth? , , , Parents who make a national contribution of six or eight children are practically helpless in finding] shelter that is even fairly adequate for them unless they are able to buy a house by putting down several hundred dollars, which they never have. The feeding of the many mouths of growing youngsters on a small wage doesn't permit this, much as it is longed for.

Social service agencies of the city are close to this problem of housing. They know first hand the dire need for decent homes for family groups. Real estate bulletins come weekly to offices of charitable agencies, but they hold nothing for the low income group and less for families with children, who are not wanted as tenants by landlords or real estate agents. This is a serious, pressing problem. The sheriff and his deputies with legal authority refuse te evict many of these families as they have no place to move into except the street. One mother recently in exasperation asked, “What can I do with my children? I can't drown them.”

Agencies are faced with the ques-| tion of breaking of families and,

placing children in institutions, but

on the purchase of a house large enough to house family groups. Landlordg and real estate agents have their problems, we agree, but, one of the duties of social workers is to teach many families and children to appreciate the property of others and to be considerate of its use. n on » “LET TERRORISM DIF WITH NAZIS, MR. WATSON!”

By Robin Adair, Indianapolis Jim Watson emerges from the depths of the political scrap heap long enough to expound upon the expediency of erushing the German nation following this war, ; When the slaughter and the tumult dies and when the democracies are triumphant, the senator would see the allied nations, the exponents of decency, the defenders of tolerance and freedom visit upon the hapless peopls of the axis nations the very wrongs which all free nations are fighting. Germany has followed that very pattern in Poland, yet what free man is there who believes that Poland will nov live to fight again. Bitter experience has taught that a peace built upon coercion, on vengeance and reparation will never stand. It is true, Mr. Watson, we did not march into Germany following the last war and like a gang of children proceed to tear their cities down. But we did what was many times worse—we stripped her of her national dignity, her colonies, portions of her nations, and leveled upon her a reparation which a hundred generations could never repay. What fertile ground for a Hitler! Who can say what sort of demagogue

in a home to move about comforta- | hg they will not do. Meanwhile, would rise up to lead the American bly. But it seems that here in In-| families crowded into small spaces) people under similar circumstances?

underestimated Russia's powers of | resistance against Germany. If there was any doubt why the vast energy the

dianapolis we have no place for the

| barely exist in undesirable neigh-|

| children of the low income group. porhoods fruitful for delinquency. Many families of children are liv-|

If children are the nation’s great-|

Let terrorism and national license die with nagziism, senator. Americans made short work of mass dis-

Soviet government and people have expended during | ing in wretched, dilapidated houses est wealth, we invite landlords to! crimination when they found it in

the past 20 years of industrial development did not produce a bigger improvement in the welfare of the ' population in general it is clearer now. Experts were | impressed with the side of Russia they could most | easily see—an unhappy panorama to most of them, Their only way of judging the strength of the country’s | armament was from Red Square parades-—which few | took awfully seriously—and the Russo-Finnish sideshow which few understood. The best of everything in Russia has been for years and is today going into arms and defense. The Russian people generally have had to take what was left and that was not much.

It's Easy to Get the Idea

FUTURE HISTORIANS MAY decide that were it |

not for the self-denial and suffering that the Russian people endured in this period, the world might be lost to Hitlerism. Under tremendous strain the Soviet union was faced with the necessity of building up from small

rivals who had been at it much longer. Proponents of this policy point out that if Russia had been a democracy, American type, or a socialist state, pacifist type—if she had put electric refrigerators before guns and pleasure cars before tanks—she would have been unable to stand up to Hitler's onslaught and would today be the vassal of her militaristic neighbors. To get the idea take a rifle bullet and a collar button of Soviet manufacture. The bullet is well made of the best materials. The collar button so poorly finished it would be passed up at the one-cent

counter of any American department store. And so it goes through the whole list.

So They Say—

It is worse than stupid—it is unpatriotic—to fight or refuse, for selfish reasons, to respect the price,

| rationing or priority regulations which are necessary !

. > wi > | to win the war.—Geor . course Mr. Dubinsky’s union is moved by self-interest—the | war ge A, Renard, WPB consultant. |

* * *

Perhaps we have been living in a very abnormal world where sugar, tires and gasoline were too often our standard of happiness. Lewis,

man habitation. .", , Oh, yes, children may be the nation’s greatest wealth, but what of a city that can’t provide simple,

(not fit for animals, much less hu-| permit them to occupy their houses| the Ku-Klux Klan. Or don't you

lin order that these children may remember that organization?

| develop into useful citizens, or we would welcome a plan wherein a [small down payment could be made

Side Glances=By Galbraith

» o ”

“PEOPLE NEED TO KNOW

WHERE DOCTORS ARE” By Mrs. Floyd L. White, R. R. 2, Quiney It seems to me that it would be a great benefit to the people of Indiana if the medical association would publish the names of the doctors

1] left available for service to the peo‘I/| ple of our state. || country and find nearly all our doc- !| tors joining the armed forces. The '| people need to know where good

We live in the

doctors can be reached if we are to keep our families well. 8 ” » “SUNNYSIDE WILL APPRECIATE RETURN OF BOXES”

y BR. J. Dearborn, principal, Sunnyside Saratorium

Last Wednesday there were left

|| on the Millersville road bus which || left the circle at 7:35 a. m,, three 24 || small cardboard boxes containing 2 1| a small collection of birds’ nests | to be used in the study of birds at

Sunnyside sanatorium, The boxes were securely tied to-

il | gether with a strong cord. They

{| have no money value to anyone but | their return to the streetcar com-

pany to be left at the lost and found department at the Traction Terminal buildihg, or a call to Sunnyside sanatorium telling of their whereabouts will be very greatly appreciated.

DAILY THOUGHT

When thou dost lend thy brother anything, thou shalt not go into his house to fetch his pledge.~Deuteronomy 24:10. ——

Propaganda By William L. Shirer

NEW YORK, June 24—After six months of chaos and confusion in our government services of information, propaganda and gen-

eral political warfare, the presi-

dent's step in setting up an office of war information is a great step forward. It should mean that not only will the American people and their allies be ‘more clearly informed of what is going on in this war but at last our nation is to employ the power of ideas as well ‘as of arms in waging war. The president's executive order made no mention of propaganda of political warfare—words which Washington for some strange reason shies away from—but their use in the prosecution of the war was implicit in Mr. Roosevelt's decree. The choice of Elmer Davis as directer was— as the nation’s press agreed—admirable. As this writer happens to know, he is no novice by any means in the field of propaganda and psychological warfare. .

Deserves a High Command Post

MR. DAVIS’ JOB obviously will be twofold. First, to see that his owh people get all the information available which will not benefit the enemy. Second, to carry on political warfare in the enemy, neutral and allied lands. It is to be fervently hoped—though the point was not made clear in Washington—that Mr. Davis will be given a place in our unified high command. For as ‘James B. Reston points out in an extremely important book shortly to be published it is terribly essential that the chief of our political warfare should sit with ‘Gen. Marshall and Admiral King and plan political warfare as part of our grand strategy. Though we have been at war six months, this has not yet been done. But it is not too late to do it now. 4

All Around the World

IT TOOK GOEBBELS several days to figure out what line to take in his propaganda against the Anglo-American-Russian agreements. The first day he had no ideas at all, so music was played in place of the usual political review. Then the axis, line was that the pacts had no value. They “originated in fear.” Finally Goebbels in his propaganda to this country concentrated on arousing American suspicions. Apparently the Nazis are still counting on our isolationists. . .. Is Turkey veering away from the axis? A checkup of recent broadcasts of Ankara radio reveals an overwhelming pro-united nations line. This is new. . . . British propaganda has begun to make direct appeals to thd German people to get rid of their Nazi regime. The president's United Nations day speech last Sunday seemed to fit in with this new tack. What Americans and English so often forget is that a large number of Germans really believe in the Nazi barbarism. Should not our propaganda to Germany be made with this in mind?

A Woman's Viewpoint By Mrs. Walter Ferguson

SOMEBODY SAYS that man’s pride in his wife's achievements has moved the American housewife: to toil unselfishly at Red Cross duties. That's good, but it doesn't go far enough. Mama's gense of usefulness and importance has heen mostly responsible for the industrial miracles we've seen accomplished by these volunteer workers. Let us remember that no ons in our country has been more consistently ignored as a citizen than the housewife. Her group, although it represents the most powerful force in the nation, was made to feel unimportant during the interval between wars. We talked a lot about those women. Beautiful advertisements called attention to their buying power and lauded their wisdom, They were extolled over the air and praised in print, but to them more tangible evidences of appreciation was lacking.

Usefulness Means Importance

SOME WOMEN ORGANIZED themselves into clubs and pestered legislators a bit, but mostly they

stayed home doing the dishes. And that sort of thing does very little for pride in citizenship. The house= wife was the laborer who didn’t belong to a union, and therefore couldn't strike. She did not receive a stabilized wage, and the work she did appeared unimportant so far as any measurable civic or financial results were concerned. People told her she was useful, but they did nothing to make her feel it was true. & Now for the first time many women see proof that the work of their hands is necessary and important, I think that is the chief reason why the wives and mothers of this country have performed industrial miracles in Red Cross rooms. If you counted their contributian to the war effort in terms of labor union wages, what a stupendous sum they have given! I've seen those who were gradually settling down to old age bloom again, and aimless playgirls become capable, earnest women under the pressure of hard volunteer service. It makes you realize that thers is nothing so fine for morale, and nothing so necessary for mental poise, as the feeling that one is useful, for being useful means that one is important,

Questions and Answers

(The Indianapolis Times Service Bureau will answer any question of faet or infermation, not involving extensive research. Write your question clearly, sign name and address, inclose a three-cent postage stamp. Medical or legal advice cannot be given. Address The Times Washington Service Bureau, 1013 Thirteenth St., Washington, D. 0.)

Q—To who does the widow of a veteran appeal if the veterans’ administration refuses to grant a pension? A—An appeal may be filed with the office denying the claim within one year from the date of notice of denial. Only one appeal is allowed on each claim. All appeals are considered by the board of veterans’ appeals of the veterans’ administration at Washington, D. C.

Q—What is the real name of Bette Davis? A--Ruth Elizabeth Davis. She was nicknamed

“Betty,” but spelled it “B-e-t-t-e” on her school en-

rollment card and her parents decided to let th spelling stand, Q—Are mongel metal and stainless steel similar in composition? : A—No. Monel metal is an alloy of approximately

67 per cent nickel, 28 per cent copper, and 5 per cent of other metals (iron, manganese, silicon, etc.). Stain-

‘less steel is an alloy steel having chromium as its

essential alloying constituent. The chromium content is usually 12 to 14 per cent, but may be much more. A nickel-chrome, stainless steel contains about 8 per cent nickel and 17 or 18 per cent chromium,

Q-—How can one determine whether metal foil is tin, lead or aluminum? A—The national bureau of standards says that the only sure way is by chemical analysis, but that a rough methed is to use a flame. Tin and lesd melt readily. Aluminum burns

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and leaves a flim. Disting~

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