Indianapolis Times, Indianapolis, Marion County, 1 March 1943 — Page 12

The Indianapolis mich

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.ond front”

RALPH BURKHOLDER ‘Editor, in U. 8. Service

MARK FERREE WALTER LECKRONE Business Manager : Editor . (A SCRIPPS-HOWARD NEWSPAPER)

ROY W. HOWARD President

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MONDAY, MARCH 1, 1943

AROUND-THE-CLOCK BOMBING

ROUND-THE-CLOCK bombing of Germany and occupied Europe has begun, already the continuous raids, which started from England early Thursday, have stretched

to the longest, largest and most destructive air offensive in

history. * Maybe it can go on for more days and nights. But even if the lull comes tonight, the allies have proved they have the wherewithal for sustained blows far beyond anything ‘Hitler handed out. This is accompanied by official British hints of a “secsoon. If land invasion actually is in the offing, this long air offensive is the best possible kind of soften-up prelude. But it would be a mistake for us to count on that. The allied propaganda job is to keep the enemy guessing, without disappointing hopes at home. So we should not allow ourselves to get too excited about these London hints.

WE GAMBLE IN SPAIN

HE revelation that the United States is sending to Fascist Spain large amounts of oil, chemicals, food and other products vitally needed in this country and on our fighting fronts, will shock many Americans. ~ American Ambassador Hayes, in Barcelona, went so far as to say this had boosted Spanish petroleum supplies “considerably higher than the present per-capita distribution to the’ people of the Atlantic seaboard of the United States itself.” -~ What possible justification can there be for such an American policy ? Isn’t Dictator Franco a puppet of Dictator Hitler, to whom he is largely indebted for his position? Isn’t Franco supplying troops to Hitler? Isn’t Franco an advocate of axis victory and an enemy of democracy? Didn't Franco's agents head up the dangerous axis subversive movements in Latin America? Has pot Franco placed his best Fascist troops in Spanish Morocco where they can stab in the back the American expeditionary force, if he decides he can win? 2 #8 = 2 a = HE answer seems to be, yes. But that is the point. It is because Franco is in such a strategic position at the moment that the allies cannot afford to ignore him. Ambassador Hayes describes this as a “good neighbor policy” toward Spain “so long as the war lasts and is kept away from Spanish lands.” Whatever may be the polite diplomatic term, the essence is perilously close to American payment of blackmail to an enemy. As bad as this is, we can think of lots worse. sudden stab at the A. E. F., for instance. So probably the best we can do, in the circumstances, is to hold our nose and get on with this smelly business. We didn’t expect war to be nice, and if this is part of the price of victory we had better save our shudders for casualty lists and things that hurt us more. It is important, however, that we not kid ourselves. Even if military expedience forces us to play with a blackmailer, we would be fools to trust him. That could be very

That

. costly to our troops in Africa.

2 ” # : 2 os 8 ET us not forget for a moment that Franco has Spain, as well as Spanish Morocco and the strategic Balearic

. islands, honeycombed with Hitler “tourists” and “specialis

—and that large Nazi forces are on the Spanish-French frontier. Let us be sure that all these American oil, chemical and food supplies are not used against us. Assuming that this policy is necessary and worth the gamble, assuming that it buys us essential time, the test is still how we use that time. Axis Spain will remain the chief danger to our African and coming south European campaigns until we are strong enough to isolate Franco from his partners, Mussolini and Hitler.

BONUS FOR HOARDING

Ae of baked beans calls for 10 points at the grocer’s. But a can bought before rationing has to be reported only as eight points. That's a 20 per cent discount.’ OPA officials say this may unintentionally benefit hoarders, but gives as the reason a desire to avoid complications. : This is the first example in all our observation of bureaucracy wanting to get simple. But our cheer over that . fact is not unmixed with a feeling that a 20 per cent premium for hoarding was, to put it mildly, in unauspicious way in which to depart from the devious.

: THANK YOU, VOLUNTEERS

HE community owes its thanks to the hundreds of volunteers who assisted in the point rationing registration last week. Theirs was a long and tedious job. : They set a high example in courtesy and efficiency. Few had to wait for long to get their books, so well was it organized. To the hundreds of school teachers, ParentTeacher association members, civilian defense volunteers, oy Scouts, pupils and to the OPA officials here responsible for the big task—your help was splendid.

ITIFUL” ERE we provide billions and billions, and refuse to provide the pitiful sum of 100 million dollars (for etary Wickard’s ‘incentive payments’ to farmers) to see t everyone has enough to eat.”—Congressman Stephen ce of Georgia. - Mr. Pace’s “pitiful sum” happens to represent the federal income taxes that must be paid this year by ,276 married men whose incomes in 1942 were $1500

Fair Enough By Westbrook Pegler

v

WASHINGTON, March 1.— This man is a famous politician

with presidential aspirations who |

has held big jobs in the government and the party and lived in Washingotn - for about 10 years. He was going out of the Mayflower and I was coming in and he remarked that he was going “up

northeast.” “Where?” I asked. “Maine?” “No, no,” he said. “I mean up

«the hill. I have to see a couple of fellows up on the

hill.” “But that isn’t northeast, is it?” “Well,” he said, “I have to admit you have got me there. I have been around this town all these years, but I still don’t know where the streets are. want to go somewhere I look up the address in the phone book and tell the taxi driver and he takes me.

“I never could tell Massachusetts ave. from €on- |

necticut ave., and I don’t know what street the supreme court is on nor the capitol. “I have never been in a streetcar or a bus and I wouldn’t know which line to take to go anywhere. I would probably wind up at the Mayflower, anyway. I always wind up at the Mayflower.”

Remember the Southern Senator?

OUR SUBJECT preferred not to be identified with this confession lest his political future be affected. He might seem uncommonly dumb, not knowing his way around after so long a time in Washington, and he might be accused of toryism in his campaign should it be known that he had never ridden a street car or bus but always in an official car or taxi. After all there was the cast of the southern senator who was driven out of office by an upstart opponent who campaigned the state wearing overalls and driving a steaming model-T Ford with a brass radiator, with no campaign issue but a menu from the incumbent's hotel. “Folks,” the upstart would say, “I want you to know how your senator lives in Washington. You po’ folks ought to see him setting in the lap of luxury eating out of the flesh-pots. Here is it wrote down on the menu. That there menu is a French word meaning what they have got fo’ dinner today. Here it is terrapin, $4, fo’ dolla’s for a he’pin’ of cooter. . “Here is another, cavair, $3; that’s fish eggs, imported from Communist Russia. Or steak, fo’ persons, $8—eight dolla’s for a steak for fo’ people, friends! “Supposin’ y'all are four in a family living at you’ senator’s hotel. fo’ dinner and the bill comes to $36 for just one meal and I say to you, my friends, here is the proof how you’ senator have been representin’ us po’ folks up there in Washington.”

Capital Home Only to Few

THE DEFENDING SENATOR was defeated by an opponent who then went to Washington, broke out his store clothes, tailored at $165 a suit in New York, and became one of the social high rollers of the capital.

Our subject may have been unduly cautious, al--

though there is no harm in playing safe. It might not be wise of a presidential candidate to admit that he never had ridden the po’ man’s limousine in all his years in Washington and had been so indifferent to the landmarks that tourists visit in awe that he didn’t even acquire a general idea of the layout of the city. But the truth is that the national capital, though crowded, is home to few of those who live there and Mrs. Roosevelt, herself, recently related that, unfamiliar with the public transportation system, she took a streetcar and discovered herself going in the wrong direction. Even of those who do jam the public transportation in the dusk of dawn and evening, struggling to work in painful masses, it is likely that most know only their own lines and go by Instinct. I seem to remember a story in the papers recently of a motorman who got lost and had to ask a cop. the way back to his route. He was lucky to find a cop who knew, for most people are just strangers here, themselves,

In Washington

By Peter Edson

WASHINGTON, March 1. — When the American expeditionary forces moved into North Africa, it was at first thought that it would be necessary to ship in large quantities of food for the native population, which had presumably been bled white and starved blue by Nazi and Vichy domination and demand for all available war supplies. Much to the surprise of American representative. when they began to explore and get a better line on the resources of the North African colonies, it was found that the farmers of the region

had considerable quantities of wheat hidden away on.

their farms. The African farmers had held back this wheat from the Nazi purchasing agents because there es nothing in the native stores for the farmers 0 buy. To remedy this situation some bright boys, who will probably forever remain unidentified, ‘thought up an idea. Instead of shipping in shipload after shipload of wheat for the native bakers, it was proposed to ship in a relatively small quantity of merchandise te stock the native stores. Farmers would then bring their wheat into town, sell it for cash and use the cash to buy the goods on | shopkeepers’ shelves, providing merchants with cash to buy more goods to sell to farmers who would bring in more wheat, and so on. In other words, normal trade would begin to function again,

Permanent Relief Objective

THIS ONE SIMPLE little lesson is spelled out here in detail because it is a perfect example of the basic problem which faces OFRRO, the alphabet abbreviation for the office of foreign relief and rehakilitations operations set up in the state department under the direction of ex-Governor Herbert H. Lehman of New York.

The general assumption had probably been that

| the “relief” end of the business—feeding starving

Europe after the war is over—would be the principal business which OFRRO would do. That is important and it comes first, but since Governor Lehman has been active in organizing his staff, studying the problems ahead of him and making a start in field operations, one fact becomes clearer every day: The “rehabilitation” end of postwar relief is destined to become more important and in the long run may be more humanitarian than the mere giving away of food to the hungry in the name of Uncle Sam and sweet charity. The big question ahead for OFRRO is how much money congress would be willing to appropriate. Relief may encompass food, clothing, medicine, temporary shelter. Rehabilitation might mean more permanent shelter, seed, fertilizer, draft animals, new dairy stock and livestock herds, new stock for the empty shelves, new machinery and raw materials for them to chew up. Once the war is ended; Governor Lehman's first big job will be to convince congress that this rehabilitation is to be administered on a’ business-like basis with some show of return more tangible than the extension of credit and the building up of war debts ‘which will never be repaid. ‘He will have to make a case that rehabilitation is cheaper and more lasting

than mere relief. Let OFRRO get the name of an |

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The Hoosier Forum

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

“BACK-TO-THE-FARM MOVEMENT NEEDED” By T. W. Lloyd, R. R. 6

If the labor shortage doesn’t reduce the food supply, given time the farm parity price will. What is the incentive to increase production when profits are guaranteed and scarcity is found to increase them more? We are confronted with a very serious condition. Our armed forces come first and, of course, poor people come last. This class is now feeling the pinch of high prices. This situation is bringing to the fore the necessity of a back-to-the-farm movement. With increasing large land-hold-ings by both local and absentees, with a strong organization and a friendly congress to fix prices, we look to the future with some apprehension. Starting now, all possible help and encouragement should be given families to own, live on, cultivate family sized farms. Then make available for purchase by the low wage and income class five to 10acre tracts of farm land in every square mile of land and at a price that is fair, reasonable. If this move is fairly well carried out, there is no question but we would be a much happier and stronger people financially and morally, That will be more nearly our

production that millions can’t buy. 8 » 2 “BROMFIELD PICTURE TRUE EXCEPT IN ONE PARTICULAR” By James R. Meitzler, Attica In those days whea tariff laws were made by the legislative, not the executive, branch of government, manufacturers’ lobbies were always present demanding higher tariffs on their products and lower tariffs or none at all on the raw materials of which their products were made. Louis Bromfield’s picture of the conditions which confront the farmer, grain grower, stock feeder,

Utopia than an era of high priced!

(Times readers are invited to express their views in these columns, religious controversies excluded. Because of the volume received, letters must be limited to 250 words. Letters must be signed.)

dairy or poultryman, large or small, rich or poor, tenant, owner or landlord, was true in all but one particular. Said he, “Unlimited prices on live beef led to thousands of cattle being turned on the market direct from range or pasture because it was unprofitable to feed them out on corn at $1.20 a bushel.” What the stockmen feared was a ceiling on live beef. An unfinished steer weighing 800 pounds at 15 cents was worth $120. - Feed him to 1000 pounds and if the government set a $13 ceiling before he was sold the feeder got only $10 for the last 200 pounds. The same was true of hogs. The profit margin for feeders has been and is unduly favorable to the stockmen and Mr. Bromfield aims to keep it so. Bromfield describes his operations, “My own 1000-acre farm which produces beef, dairy products, eggs, broilers, capons, hogs, lambs, mutton and wool. . . . Labor consisted of a farm manager with three children, and five unmarried men.” Then with truly ‘Rooseveltian demagogism, forgetting his own large holdings, he blasts the producers of his Yaw materials, the corn growers, as economic royalists. “The farm lobby does not represent the average American farmer. It does represent a minority of rich landholders, many of them absentee landlords . . . interested only in the selfish interests of its own rich minority group.” Fountain county is represented in

Side Glances—By Galbraith

| HAIL, HOLY LIGHT! Offspring of

light 4 | Dwelt from eternity, dwelt then in

the farm lobby by the Farm bureau. There is only one 1000-acre farm in Fountain county and that is a stock farm. Mr. Bromfield’s holdings are four times mine. He works ‘his farm with hired labor. I do most of my work myself. He has other resources of revenue; I have none. The absentee landlords he refers to are mainly farmers too old or broken to work or their widows.

None of us is trying to keep the prices of stockmen down. Our fertilizer has risen in price and lowered in quality. Our machinery costs more than ever before. The only cheap labor is our own and our families. Upon our production of corn and grain the whole meat ration of the nation depends. Whatever it costs, men like Bromfield want it cheap.

8 8 ” “WHERE ‘INDIVIDUALISM’ COMES IN” By G. E., Indianapolis I don’t want to start a personal feud, so I won't mention the name of the person who “touched off” this “explosion.” : “Voice in the Crowd” may have an “exaggerated, one-sided idea about free enterprise,” but do you know just what your ideal, the C. I. O. union, really believes in? It says that within 90 days after being hired on a job that you can be making top money in that classification. Okay, we’ll take an example: A man, or woman, walking from place to place looking for a job, happens to remember the C. I. O. policy. He goes to the C. I. O. headquarters, pays his initiation fee to the secretary. Let’s say he joins the carpenters’ union, For 90 days he gets training using a hammer, saw and the rest. Then you want a hardwod floor laid. So you hire a man you've known in thats business for years. He brings two “helpers,” one with 10 years’ experience, the other the one with 90 days’ experience. You pay the 90-day man the same wages as the one with years of experience. How much work, in comparison, will the 90-day man do as the older one? How will the older man -feel knowing ‘the other guy gets the same money as he does" Will he give his best, from years of experience, or will be “take it easy”? Why should he “put out his best”? The

other guy gets as much for not| §

knowing as much, so what’s the use.

Or imagine a musician with 90] ;

days’ training trying to sit in with others with 10, 15, 20 years’ experience. Or a plumber, or a tool grinder, or a pipefitter. That’s where your “individualism” comes in. Why should & man with only 90 days’ training be worth as much as a man with years of experience?

DAILY THOUGHT

I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth - on me should not abide in aks ness.—John 12:46.

heaven firstborn! : Or of th’ eternal co-eternal beam, May I express thee unblam’d? since God is light And never but in unapproached t

|War Tactics

By William Philip Simms

Lad WASHINGTON, March book has been published country which may help wards winning the war. It British. soldier, historian a college lecturer, Thom Wintringham, and its “Weapons and Tactics: : to Stalingrad.” This may sound “dull man in the street—som Gen. Marshall and oft] hats to worry about. But that is just the p isn’t. Tom Wintringham—like President Prime Minister Churchill and most everybody looks on this war as a people’s war. Not that there isn’t a lot in the book that manders-in-chief, statesmen and politicians ali profit by reading. 493 “The size of an army,” says Wint: “never depended on a. simpie decision by a king r emperor: ‘We will have another hundred thousand soldiers’ The size of an army depends first on the

country concerned. How big an army can be brought to battle is often limited by the food and other supe plies it needs and by the stores and Supply (trans port) services available.” Sot

Profession of Arms Debunked

Our industrial production can be pushed to sal proportions. i i workers are clothed and fed. Everything goes back to the farm. : : Wintringham was a soldier in the first wor and in Spain, After Dunkirk he worked w helping to train the British home guard. His a “Nation in Arms,” was a best-seller because it iin how Tom, Dick and Harry—and women, ’ could do a first rate job as soldiers. Then, too, it goes far towards debunking - the fession of arms. Most people regard soldiering ) great mystery. Untrained men, they think, can’t possibly understand the business of fighting, Sa Once, says Wintringham, “our forefathers even made a mystery out of the getting and selling of fish.” And, he observes, “the army in Britain, still setaing some of this separate character of the medieval guild.”

Congress Might Like to Read

TODAY THERE ARE still trade secrets and craft skills, “but any schoolboy with a mechanical turn of mind can read weekly, in journals specially written for him, of all the technique of making and § ; and shifting things. An unforgettable film shows us the work of drifters and trawlers, work that was once part of the secret art of a worshipful company of fishmongers.” The art of warfare does not seem to have changed a great deal in fundamentals since long before the birth of Christ. As for equipment, the race has ale ways been between armor and armor-piercing weapons. First one, then the other, has taken the lead. This was so in the day of the spear, the bow and arrow and the armored knight and it is so today in the era of the tank, the flying fortress. ‘and the super-battleship of 45,000 tons. I've an idea our congress might like to have a look : at this book.

Above Clouds

By Major Al Williams -

men never “talk religion.” ness of every airman there is an why should this seem strange?

length of time above the earth

perspective about life, the physie cal world, and eventually of God, - Just reflect, you ground dwellers, what it meansto leave the ground and skim through the air, with any and all roads open to you. Just think what it to the life of man, aside from physical considerations, to climb through the skies and roam through clouds. ;

Plenty of Time to Think

THE MOMENT you leave the ground the seems to recede, With each thousand feet it farther and farther away.. Roads becom and rivérs become silver ribbons, and th

man seen in perspective? On the ground, close to things that the conception of the perspective is unknown. The airman enjoys known something every minute he flies. There’s plenty of time to think up: there attend fo the guidance of the plane. You k are nearer the ceiling of the world, but endless above you you sense the space. of an order than your world-universe, in" which your w tiny.

\

We the Women

By Ruth Millett

PEOPLE WHO belittle the in khaki and navy blue an they are trying to do by “Oh, they just wa to ge! uniform and show haven't talked to any WAVES, or SPARS abo matter. The girls are not in the ice for the sake of the u Women may go for worn by men—but they learn to like wearing them themselves. An in the SPARS says that she and all the un women she knows had a hard time getting uniforms. It was something they had to lear “At first,” she says, “our confidence in oy took a terrific nosedive when we found working In strange, new military clothes.

The Critics Don't Know

BUT IN TIME we learned how to be com and at ease in uniforms, and now we are ni conscious of them at all. That didn’t ¢ I until we had mastered our new jobs. Furthermore, this officer makes no bo fact that women do miss the pretty, colc they have given up. Clothes have mati for so long that getting into uniforms plished without a few backward glances ing shop windows. : 50; 1. 1op ome, SI) convinted that”

agriculture and the general level of production in the . »

NEW YORK, March ta deep in the heart and conscious | evident awareness of God. And

I cannot conceive of any nore oe mal human being who spends any |

not being compelled to think in |