Indianapolis Times, Indianapolis, Marion County, 12 December 1942 — Page 2
ok Paid Help, Space, Funds to Operate; Face StateWide Resignations Because of Long Hours And Rising Public Anger.
2 Contisnod from Page One)
it of the public will rationing continue. Without the “support, rationing will collapse. “What do the boards need in Marion county? Working Space, with desks, tables, files, cabinets that can be locked _ and office equipment to do the job. Each board should be contacted by a state man with authority to act, or give us “authority to get what we need. We should have adequate phone service to serve the public who have no gas or time to'waste. The public is entitled to service by phone. When they have tried and tried to get in and the lines are (except for 49-1 all boards have but one line) busy, then they come down to the board, find a line waiting and are they mad? Perfectly willing to do what they should if they could find out how and when they should
Yes, and they should be.
do this or that.
“We need at least one bang-up good clerk for each job] or department of ratioming. One on food, one on price, one . \on tires, one on gas, one on fuel, one on clothing, one on files, and two good phone operators. This phone business is big, important and hard. The operator takes a lot of heat. 1.see it, we must have an overall chief clerk at least $2600,
an |$1800 man or woman to
from two to five clerks for each department. “We canriot continue to depend on volunteers who are Sin at irregular times, to do detail work right. As for board members, they not only do an endless amount of detail work, but bring in their families, their office help, spend their money in endless ways, all of which is a willing contribution, ~ but cannot go on indefinitely and have the work done right.
“Public Is Mad, the Board's on Edge” “Maybe what I suggest is not right as to detail, maybe LI am too small for the job, but I do know something has to be done NOW and in a big way. No conferences with delay until Cleveland or Washington approves will do the job. The public is mad, the boards are on edge. Maybe the people on the boards are not the best, but they are the best we could . get at this time. We are trying to do a job and we are not
doing it with any satisfaction important, to the public. We take the heat and the higherups go serenely on dishing out
confusion and unrest. “Now comes the change on salesmen. We have the ODT mess to handle, all of which takes an end- | © Jess time to fix up. Someone gets {in touch with Ludlow, and then the big boys issue instructions to satisfy a politician and the publicity does not tell the truth. The ODT tells the truckers that it is up to us to take care of the truckers and the truckers think it is our fault that ‘they. have no certificates or not enough gas, Charges Lack of Leadership
“We must take care of those who failed to have sugar cards so they can have coffee, those who ‘failed to get their “A” ‘cards, those who lost their “A” cards. We. must ~ have special forms for those who ' do not have registration cards, or who failed to turn in the extra
tires. ‘We must take care of all thet
exceptions. We must not stop war work. We must take care of the ~ people who need special gas for one reason or another and yet we must © gay “No” to the woman who has lost her brother or husband and she wishes to go now. With the weeping and wailing, some of it a fake, no doubt, yet it takes times, a lot of patience and certainly a lot out of a board member. “Back of it all is lack of leadership, no plenning, too many changes; result, a breaking down of confidence, no’ only of the public
IRENE) DIRECTORY goed To 7Z%edsd
IR
DIANA BELL TELEPHONE COMPANY
| gional authorities at Cleveland and
As
handle each department, and
to ourslves, or what is more
but of the boards and the paid staff. Again I go back to the publicity part of rationing. “I don’t know that you can do anything as a state unit; I can't seem to get any place on a county] basis, but if the higher-ups would stay hitched long enough or wouldn't shoot their dope in advance and with the emphasis on the wrong subject, we might sell the public locally. We depend on getting the story over by the newspapers and the radio, yet we restrict their operations so even if we get the story in the paper, many can’t get their paper and the reporter can't get the news. As I see it, a big mistake is being made as to the newspapers. “And - so I.ramble.on. I know I have not given a good case for what we need. I do know. am confused as we all are and: you and ‘your force. For my part I know I have
What am I doing that is wrong? will get out for the good of the job any time. I hate to fail at any job, but if I have failed, I should get out. The work is too important.” Throughout the state, all board members work from early in the morning until late at night and they “are at the point of exhaustion,” Mr. Strickland says. He asserted that the state office was fast reaching the point where it would be impossible to recruit additional members and that “if a wholesale epidemic of resignations should develop,” he would ‘dread to think of the consequences.”
Urged That Cleveland Act
Usually volunteer workers are sufficient in number, but they are entirely inadequate to handle the load for the most part because they are not dependable insofar as hours are concerned. He said it was an “absolute impossibility to train part-time volunteer workers so that they could properly understand and administer our regulations.” Mr. Strickland reiterated that a “more patriotic and unselfish group never was assembled but that they are reaching the limit of human endurance.” He said he had communicated the state's dire conditions to re-
had urged them to take steps that would prevent the possihle collapse of the program in Indiana.
Here are excerpts from memo-
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a bear by the tail and can’t let go.|}
randa from board chairmen in the state: DEKALB COUNTY: ~ “The increase and activity of the local board makes it necessary that they be given assistance.”
ELKHART (20-1): “Replying to your recent letter regarding increases in salaries for our clerical force, we. are willing to abide by your ruling, but the time has come that I must have an assistant clerk as I am not able to handle the hundred and one duties that must ge taken care of in this office daily.’
ELKHART (20-2): “Business in our office is such that the present help cannot begin to care for it as it should be.” KNOX: “The way we have been going the past. few weeks, the clerks never think of the hours they work. They just stay and work and try to get the job done even ff it takes
in some cases, Sundays.” Too Busy to Read Bulletins
LAKE (43-3: “The pressure is still on us to hold our clerical force in. the face of increasing employment of large numbers of females to replace men in the industries in this region. . %» I da not think that gasoline rationing is going to be completed on schedule by any manner of means. As for other rationing activities, I have been so busy I have not even attempted to read the bales of correspondence, bulletins, etc., which come to us daily, and have but the sketchiest idea what is going on as regards to them. : “On Jan. 1, I will have completed practically one year as chairman of the board. . I'have been unable to attend to my régular job. I feel that I must insist on being released of the chairmanship by Jan. 1 or before that if it can be arranged.” (The above was written by an] $8000 a year executive who has been one of the state’s outsianding board chairmen.) LAWRENCE: “Need help. . PIKE; “Need help very Ee PORTER: “Work is piling up... have been operating shorthanded.” ST. JQSEPH: “In dire need.”
Fears Resignations VERMILLION: “All of the office force are working just as hard as they can and in addition put in many hours of overtime béhind locked doors. I can see signs of mental and physical exhaustion, especially with the chief clerk, and should that happen the whole machine would probably be badly damaged. . . , Some of the board members are getting tired and I am afraid they will tender their resignations, In that case, my list of possible nominees is almost nil . unless a larger staff can be secured, our board will break down. , , .” SCOTT: “The tremendous amount of extra work being put before the
possible to-keep up in the way we know that OPA wants the work done. , ‘MARTIN: “The inauguration of the fuel oil and gasoline rationing programs has made it practically impossible for the present personnel to handle the work at our local board office . . .” BARTHOLOMEW: “It will be impossible for us to handle properly with the personnel now in our office .
DEARBORN: “All are being rushed in an endeavor to do a good job gnd serve the patrons sufficiently . , .”
Letter Speaks for Itself The following letter, the state rationing director says, gives the consensus of all boards, “Nothing need be added,” Strickland said. X The letter, from board 22-1, New Albany, states: “We haye just about completed the first stages of the gasoline rationing in Floyd county. If has been an interesting but arduous task on which we have had very fine co-operation from a crew of voluntary workers. For nearly two weeks, these volunteers have in shifts given of their time during the day and up until 11 o’clock at night. “Applications for supplementary rationing are still coming in and with the fuel oil books yet to be tailored, this panel of our board will have many long evenings of work before, them until this job is completed. The writer has- been with this fuel oil and gasoline program ever since it started and have tried to match the board hour for hour in an effort to assist them to get this work out. “It has been handled we think very well but there is a limit as to what we can expect from the volunteer workers on this program.
“At My Wits’ End” “Our entire rationing plan is going to collapse unless we can have at least two more permanent employees, and adequate quarters for our offices. Frankly, I am at ny wits’ end for getting further volunteer help and we must have some permanent assistance. “. . . we need larger quarters and if you can authorize us to spend $150 a month for rent we can set up a decent office and handle our problems with much less criticism from the public = d with efficiency for your office. ese two matters are very eas and we must have immediate action. “The above are only a few letters that have been received,” Mr. Strickland said.
Mr.
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Saturday afternoons of nights and;
office force ‘makes it literally im-|
Wu | p | | - 8 8 3 xi HH,
U. S. to Continue ‘Hands Off’; William Phillips Is Ambassador.
WASHINGTON, Dee. 12 (U. P). —A continued hands off policy by
with the turbulent political situation in India was predicted .today despite President Roosevelt's appointment of William Phillips, distinguished career diplomat, as his personal representative to - New Delhi. Phillips, twice undersecretary of state and former ambassador to Italy, will have the personal rank of ambassador. He will head the American mission in India, established in 1941 by Thomas Wilson. The president told his press conference that Phillips was not carrying any special message to the Indian government or the Indian
people. And officials in close touch with the situation warned against speculation the appoiriment represented any change in American
the United States in connection]
policy.
' CARROLL D.
ALCOTT
WALTER WINCHELL
CARLTON BEAUDETTE
JOHN McVANE
The bedraggled but happy gentleman is Flying Officer W. B. Hay who walked into a British airdrome in Egypt after being given up for dead. He spent 11 hours in the sea, hid out on the desert for a day and a night before reaching “home.”
GREGOR ZIEMER
CECIL HALE
LISTEN FOR
“Weekly War Journal’ L Sunday — 12:30 . Mm “Views on he ;
Jeffers Reports Progress
| necessary.
~ | essential military and civilian de-|
ACQUITTED IN THEET,!
H. V. KALTENBORN
EDWARD TOMLINSON
But Reaffirms Necessity For Conservation. - ; WASHINGTON, Dec. 12 (U.P). —
Rubber Director William Jeffers to-. day reported progress in the rubber program, but. warned that the situation Still is extremely critical and the greatest Possible’ conservation is
“We will do all right in meeting
mand if recent progress can be continued,” he said in an interview. “I am hopeful that the war production board, the armed forces, and I can arrive at a reasonable determination on the use of critical materials so as not to unreasonably delay the bringing in of synthetic rubber plants. If we don't get the plants running on schedule, we are
going to be out of rubber.” . He said, however, the initial unit of the first large synthetic rubber plant at Institute, W. Va., should start production within the next
FEARERING HIS NEST
ACCUSED OF PERJURY
LOS ANGELES, Dec. 12 (U. P.).— Joseph H. Katulka, 24-year-old barbay, seenfed smugly content when a jury acquitted him of taking an automobile withouf the owner’s permission. “You got a nice Christma present,” Judge William R. McKay said. *“You fooled that jury but you didn’t fool me. Now you took that car, didn't you?” “Sure I did. ‘Sure I lied, but I was on trial, wasn’t I?” Katulka replied.
few weéks.
o4¥standing or » UP main. me Corres. nt cities of ing fro nts,
JOHN STINSON
WILLIAM HESSLER
ROY PORTER
‘National Secretary Speaks’
At Annual Meeting
In Central Branch.
At 12:30 p. m, today the y. M. C. A. will complete and celebrate 88 years of continuous service. with the men and boys of Indianap-
olis as the annual meeting is held
‘in the central branch, 310 N. niinois st. , Bugene E. Barnett, national gen. eral secretary, will speak. Particularly pertinent - today is
'the fact that the ¥. M. C. A. has
furthered its efforts to care for the youth of America ‘at war. The “Y” has seen service in four wars and is now driving forward to aid on the home as well as the battlefront. Today “Y” work is carried into the boy's neighborhood; is revised to fit the needs of the men in the armed forces, and is streamlined to fit the 24-hour-a-day schedule of war plants. Other accomplishments of the organization include night = school classes, learn-to-swim campaigns, camping ‘and work for the Negro
Now he’s charged with perjury.
. | man and boy.
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