Indianapolis Times, Indianapolis, Marion County, 5 August 1943 — Page 16
»
a ——— sh :
The Indianapolis
L ROY Ww. HOWARD RALPH BURKHOLDER Editor, in U. 8. Service
President . MARK FERREE “WALTER LECKRONE Business Manager Editor
(A SCRIPPS- HOWARD NEWSPAPER)
‘Price in Marion County, 4 cents a copy; delivered by carrier, 18 cents a week.
Owned and published - - daily (except Sunday). by Indianapolis Times Publishing Co., 214 W. Maryland st. Mail rates in Indiana,
$4 a year; adjoining states, 75 cents a month; others, $1 monthly.
«fo RILEY 5551
Give Light and the People Will Find Ther own Way
Member of United Press, Scripps - Howard News- - paper ‘Alliance, NEA Service, and Audit Bu-
.reau of Circulations. z SCRIPPS =~ MOWARD |
i THURSDAY, AUGUST 5, 1943
GOOD:NEWS DEPARTMEN T
ERE is a- hopeful item: The treasury is preparing: recommendations to congress for changes in the tax laws, with a view to simplifying taxpayers’ returns. Taxes have never been fun to pay, and they have been getting unfunnier as each new tax law puts the rates higher. We all know the war makes this necessary. But it doesn’t follow that the bookkeeping job of the taxpayer must be further ‘complicated .with each raise in the levies. Prof. Harley L. Lutz of Princeton.recently warned that " qppressive paper work is threatening to stir up a revolt
*
_ against the new pay-as-you-go ‘tax system inaugurated last
July 1. He proposed that the new withing tax be made to cover (1) the victory tax of 5 per cent—minus certain deductions, (2) the 6 per cent normal tax, and (3) the-13 per cent first-bracket surtax; and that the present requirement for year-end returns then be lifted in. all cases where there is no income aside from wages and salaries, and where no
: surtax above the first bracket is involved. oy
On its face, at least, that looks like a fine first step in . the direction of saving time and trouble not only for the tax“payer but for the internal revenue bureau. Anything that the treasury and congress can do in this
and other ways ‘to lighten the taxpayer's paper work will |
tend to ease somewhat the pain of the payments themselves.
“QVER BY CHRISTMAS”?
I" folds, certain things must happen. " - Hitler, who presumably is better informed on the German
HE Russians have won an exceedingly important battle ‘at Orel. If they can follow-through and win their summer campaign, that certainly will shorten the war. But they do not knock off to cheer before final victory—they take their gains in stride and keep,on chasing the enemy. Some of us Americans are less realistic, perhaps because our homeland is not invaded. Senators Mead and Russell, in London on a congressional junketing committee, predict that Germany will not last much longer, with Mead adding that the war will be over by Christmas. As a result of such loose talk America probably will “suffer more over-confidence of the kind which Lt. Gen. : Somervell and Vice Chairman Wilson of WPB blame for the dangerous falling off in war production. Of gourse the senators may be right—it is possible Germany may surrender next week. But, before Germany And nobody, not even
situation than American senators, knows in advance how - rapidly the military situation or the internal German situation will come to a head. }
Times |
» » »
VWHAT is known is that Ge
” rmany is much weaker on the
zn ”
battle fronts and at home than a month ago. What is known is that she cannot stand up indefinitely under a series of successful allied blows now planned. What is not «known is how long it will take to deliver those blows, and whether all will be successful at first, and how long Germany can delay collapse after defeat is inevitable, and whether political trickery will be used ‘to postpone military defeat a la Badoglio-Savoy. ‘German surrender may come in-one of ‘two general ways; either a political surrender to prevent occupation by the allies, or complete military defeat. If the former way, it might be attempted any time— seven next week. This method presumably would involve ~ the German generals—either without the aid of prominent Nazis, or with such aid as was the case when the Fascist grand council itself deposed Mussolini—disposing of Hitler. Although the Prussian generals probably would be “more clever than Badoglio, it is doubtful that the allies would deal with them on any terms other than unconditional surrender, which the generals would not. like any more than Badoglio. What would happen then, and how long it would
. take, certainly cannot be predicted in the case of Germany,
when it cannot be foreseen even one day in advance in ltaly where the play already has started. Thus any intelligent plan for ending the war has to be based on. Germany's complete. military deieat—which is precisely the allied plan. There is not much mystery as to “how” that can be done, though “when” probably will not, be known until almost the final battle. ’
2! = 2 = 2
[FORGETTING all about Japan and the long time it will |
take to lick her, Germany can be defeated before | Christmas if—
IF we can gain quickly the North Italian bases which |
Badoglio-Savoy trickery has delivered to the Garmans. IF the Russians wipe out not only the quarter of a million Germans around Orel, but break through the main . eastern defense line and dispose of another millisn or so Nazi forces; . IF allied air forces can complete destriction of the Ploesti oil fields, and level Berlin and other key German military centers as they have Hamburg ;- IF allied air forces can knock out Hitler’ s defenses on _ the channel coast or other Chosen invasion point, and his stronger inner defense line, and maintain an adequate sky cover for the allied ground forces of occupation. WHEN those “ifs” have been taken care of, it is a safe guess that Germany will collapse “soon.” and our allies can accomplish all those terribly hard and costly tasks before Chrispmas, when a year Would be fast work. But it is grossly unlair for any of us eivilinns-—inciuds ing senators—to fix some date which puts a time test on ‘the skill and heroism of allied fighting men.
~The war will not be won by Soothsayers, but, by those |
Maybe our forces |
Decaying Axis By Richard Mowrer
ON THE SICILIAN FRONT, Aug, 5~The Germans in Sicily are fighting practically alone. Italian opposition is virtually nonexistent on the American 7th armys front in northern Sicily. Our troops meet some Italians, but they are few in number. Most of them are blackshirt troops, who, since the fall of Mussolini and the advent to supreme power of Marshal Pietro Badoglio, have been ordered to discard their Fascist black. shirts for the uniform of the regular Italian army. They are forbidden to wear any Fascist emblems whatever, Some Italian artillery forces are still supporting the Germaas. But in the actual fighting line, it’s the Germans who are doing the fighting, with determination, skill and mounting desperation. “iy y The Germans here are in a bad situation. Not only do they have the powerful 7th erican and British 8th armies opposite them and the allied air forces over their heads, but they are fighting at the deep extremity of the country of their Italian allies, who are close to collapse and whose troops do not want to fight any more.
Turn on Germans
NOT ONLY do the Italians not want to fight with the Germans, but they now are beginning to turn on them. The Germans have complained of Italians firing on them, and stories of anti-German sabotage by Italian soldiers are becoming common. The Italians never liked their Nazi allies much and now they resent them because they feel that the Germans are prolonging the war. As long as the Germans fight, at.least on Italian soil, they are an obstacle to the peace which most Italians, in the armed forces and out of them, want more than anything else, So the Germans are fast becoming enemies and no longer allies in the eyes of the Italians. Anyone who has seen Itdlian prisoners of war or deserters from the Italian army and who has talked with farmers, villagers and townspeople here in Sicily, canndt help but feel that Italian resistance wil} be over soon.
on their own soil, yet they have put up less resistance than they did in Africa. The reason is they know they can't win. They have endured privations and hardships for three years and see no future in war except death and misery.
Italian Is War Weary
THE ORDINARY Italian soldier is war weary. He wants to go home to his family. He doesn't want to Germany's war, He is certain that he is now on the losing side. Italian equipment cannot stand up to that of the allies, he has found out. for the past year, because he has usually given some of his food rations, which have been substantial, to Italian civilians whose supplies are thin. Our forces have met increasingly weak opposition on Sicily. Once the preliminary landing operation had
Italian army's structure really set in. Thé ordinary Italian soldier generally has nothing in common with his officers, who are usually Fascists and who often are overbearing, vain and pompous,
Germans are Uneasy
WITH THE allies on Italian soil and allied air forces getting progressively stronger while those of the axis get progressively weaker, the Italians have reached a stage where they are increasingly open to expressing their anti-war sentiments.” With Mussolini out, the Italian soldiers are reportedly still more ‘menacing toward the Germans. German soldiers now give signs that they consider Italy. ds an occupied satellite country whose population is unfriendly and whose troops are decidedly unreliable. The-axis partnership was between Dictator Hitler and Dictator Mussolini. Now that Mussolini is out and fascism outlawed, as much as it can be by the Italian military clique, it’s enough to make the Germans here in Sicily uneasy. They are fighting with desperation but they feel
a draught on the back of their necks. Copyright, 1943. by The Indianapolis Times and The chicsgn Daily News, Inc.
We the Peaple
By Ruth Millett
good-naturedly working together and helping each other out, don’t very much mind the fact that the war has added to their work. Take the matter of canning, for example. That is a hard job a great many women never tackled before rationing made it necessary. But it isn't too bad a job when two or three Foes fe together to peel fruit and can, and laugh over their awkwardness. - And not being able to get anyone to stay with the children occasionally could make women pretty desperate. But they manage somehow to get ouf enough to keep from feeling “put upon” by arranging for one “mama” to keep her eye on both her own and the neighbors’ children, while they get a little time off,,
Matter of Co-operation
EVEN THE matter of entertaining can be worked out in spite of food rationing and “no help” problems, if the ‘women who used to invite 10 guests, with no strings attached, now say to each other, “Come aver for supper Wednesday night and bring a pan of your wonderful rolls”—or a cake, or jelly or what-not. The women who haven't yet learned the benefits of neighborliness are having a pretty dull time with the job of running a house, now that it has become so much more complicated. But those who do. their big jobs together and who help each other out in emergencies are finding | a. new sort of companionship with worhen that they | never had before.
To the Point—
are here to stay—but we only know the calf of it,
and he didn't have to go far. . * COFFEE RATIONING comes to an end—ending our patient wait for our merchant ships to come in. *
* .
very often.
- * *
A CHICAGO POKER club has barred mairied “men. Likely figuring they know how to bluff too well.
* * =
often hard to get tea for two.
A CRIME SCHOOL was discovered in an Illinois town. Lots of boys think any school is a crime.
AMONG THE wild movements on foot, we: have the vacation resort dai i: ‘
*
For three weeks, the Italians have been fighting ’
get killed in a war which he has come to consider
He hasn't had enough to eat |
been achieved, the rot that had been growing into the*|
I wholly disagree with what you say,
The Hoosier Forum
defend to the death your right to say it.—Voltaire.
but will ®
“NO NATION BY ITSELF CAN REMAIN SAFE”
By Alma Bender,
If no one else is going to protest against Westbrook Pegler’s suggestion that we stay. on a war basis after the war, rather than cramp our style joining in on a world or-| ganization, then I'd like to protest. Does he think it wouldn't cramp our style to try to stay armed? — v Doesn't. he realize that it would g¢ qj), - When the army wishes us mean no more radios or electric re- i; know that they have chased away frigerators, not for the duration, but'ijs enemy planes, or destroyed ‘em for the rest of our lives? then they order the street lights to Russia tried to armed well enough come on again—all over town, to to stand off Hitler alone, and: ‘paraphrase a popular song! Wendell Willkie reports that he saw However, on that third siren no new clothes on the Russian plast, some trafic may resume with wornen. | caution, with only tiny slits of light In England, they had a way of s showing through their head lamps, saying that you can't have both|and inching ie) with due caution. guns and butter. But byséer isn’t|This only. the only thing England is doing| I believe the populace may have without. Does anyone think doing |gotten the idea that a whistle blows without, not just for the duration |for -all clear from seeing London but for always, wouldn’t limit our movies. In all the London pictures freedom?
(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.)
Zionsville
I have seen, I have noticed some:
And the worst of it is, after Russia and England have given up the comforts of life to try to hold back
| the aggressor, neither of them has
kind of whistle blows all clear for them. Not here, folks! Remember—street lights only!
THE HOUSEWIVES who are |
DESIGNERS SEEM to feel that short skirts really.
MUSSOLINI DOUBTLESS is at his wit's end— .
HUSBANDS who are caught’ in lies ‘don’t get out |
NOW IT'S EASY to get coffee for everybody—but
been quite able to do it. No nation by itself is able to guarantee its own protection any more You might as well try to keep a fire from taking your house by fighting independently, without the help of the fire department—with the help of such kind neighbors, of course, as may happen to be around.
2 2 = “WHISTLE FOR ALL CLEAR? NOT. HERE FOLKS”
By Mary E. Studebaker, Imdianapolis
The recent surprise. blackout was, a surprise to me in the misunder- | the. trouble of taking all that trainstanding that people now seem to ing and .devote their time and possess concerning the “all clear.” | energy in order to help others and I found so many people believing their community and city. that one of the siren blasts indi-| However, this is not good enough cates all clear. But the only all for some of us. We have to belittle clear signal we use is the resump-! what is being done or perhaps it is tion of the street lights. not being done our way or is a lot There are three siren blasts dur-'of toolishness anyway, etc. That is ing a raid, each one with a different our grateful response to O. C. D. meaning. But not one of them volunteers for their efforts. means: all clear! ~Our military aGthorities have, The first™blast means: Planes proven themselves so much wiser’ approaching. The second one|than their critics that if they.see no means: Planes overhead. The third! need for raid shelters, anti-aircraft one means: Planes passed ‘beyond ' guns, ets, that should satisfy the city. rest of us. Perhaps some of us And that jis ail. No all clear blast should have kept our air raid pre-
Side Glances—By Galbraith
» » » “SOME OF US JUST HAVE TO BELITTLE” By a Times Reader My dear R. M. I am of the opinion after reading
remarks. Well, that is the way it looked to me, but of course that. was only my opinion. I think I can also see your point
your letter that you did not like my |
government better or at least their of view. O. C. D. volunteers go to
. | cans in the rubbish then let the col-
caution opinions in our heads where they would have plenty of room. I am sure the N. Y. A. has served
1a useful purpose in the past. I have
in the past, and intend to continue paying my respects to our armed forces with money, war bonds, and blood as you suggested, » » ” “POOR FOOD, FLIES , . . SOMEBODY DO SOMETHING” By Goldie Funkhouser, 1176 N. Warman ave,
The government is doing a swell job feeding and taking care of our soldiers, Their food is the best we know and the way they look after they're in service for a few weeks proves what the government is doing in the way of good food. Now I think the government or the board of health should do something for ‘defense workers. Their cafeteria should be inspected and kept clean, poor food and plenty of flies is what you put up with thr most of the time, People are afraid to eat what they want and this creates laziness in working condition. So come on, someone, and help me to get defense cafeterias to clean up so we can enjoy lunch and feel like working to keep the home front | rolling, 8 » » “PEOPLE TO BLAME FOR WHATEVER HAPPENS” By Lettie Sawyer, Clayton
Growlers, that’s what this nation is becoming. People growl and grouch, Think they could run the
party. could. All right—look at Ger-
did. A tramp and a paperhanger
countries.
they are forgotten. We the people are to blame for whatever happens, for we. let it. We follow party leaders blindly instead of reading and judging by quality. Get your man’s background, not his party, before you vote. For county chairmen expect a bottle of whisky to go a long ways in helping their party keep in power, Not intelligence. w
» » EJ “PREPARE CANS OR KEEP RUBBISH” By F. K., Indianapolis It really burns me up to see all
the tin cans being thrown into the|
rubbish every day. Can it be possible that some people still don’t know that this country is at war? With most of the canned goods being put up in glass jars, there is very little tin to°be had and surely these people can spare the little time it takes to properly prepare a tin can for the collection. Let's try it again the easy way, and if these people still refuse to do this, then refuse to collect their rubbish, and if they try to-hide the
lector report them. ” » ” “WANTS FDR TO SWING THAT BIG SLIPPER” By F. L M., Indianapolis
We are so used to sitting and talking things over that the war game is getting stale. We all want more pay and less work. If Franklin D. would swing the big slipper like Teddy swung the big stick, there would soon be an end to this kind of business.
DAILY THOUGHTS
Bless them which persecute you: bless, and curse not.—~Romans 12:14,
| to’ cover the ‘wage increase. | might exert pressure to have rents increased,
many and Italy. That's what they |
try to rule and: they ruin their|
Our government existed before | either party; it will continue after|
{£m 5 i 3 sun
with patience,
In Washington |
By Peter Edson.
WASHINGTON, Aug. 5. stock argument of the groups—the farm lobbies, the fi processors, packers and distribu-?} tors who favor letting prices go up Just a little—is, “What difference does a few cents make?” There is only 15 cents’ worth. of cotton in a shirt, so what differdhce does it make ‘if the price of raw cotton goes up? * There are only five pounds of wool ‘in ‘a suit, so it only makes half a dollar's wort of difference if the farmer gets 50 cents instead cents a pound for his wool. The average consumer eats only 12 pounds of butter a year, so what difference does a 5-cent increase in the price of butter make . Sixty cents a year, One drink and the whole thing goes down his gullet, A 4 cents’ a pound increase in the price of meat means only $6 a4 year to the average consumer, and what’y that when women fight each other for the chance pay $12 for a strap over a dainty, bulging instep and runover heel? You can't dispute those facts and figures, but like a lot of other so-called statistics, they lead to a false conclusion, Increase in prices on any one item may not make much difference but when you add them all up, what you have is inflation. The clouds of inflationary threats on the cost e living horizon today are numerous. Every place ou look you see a thunderhead, filled with increased cost of living lightning. In addition to the simple exe amples mentioned above, you must consider these:
Inflation Threat In Oil
THE DEMAND for a 35 cents per barrel increase ‘in the price of crude. oil—less than a cent a gallon is definitely inflationary in that any increase in price of crude means eventually an increase in price of gas and oil. Sooner or later that would mean that rates of bus and truck lines might have to be raised. An increase in the fuel oil price would mean some rents might have to go up. The price of coal was "raised 50 cents a ton some months ago to allow an increase in wages to miners working” a sixth .day, but now there is an additional inflationary threat in the United Mine Workers’ proe posed agreement with the Illinois coal ‘operators, call= ing for a $3 a day increase in wages, contingent upon an OPA approval for an increase in the price of coal If approved, that, too,
lords’ pressure to get rents raised is a potent in tionary threat. Here OPA has done a real job down-holding, the general average rise in rents for the entire country being only 3.5 per gent higher now than in mid-August of 1939. Offhand, that might seem to be sufficient reason to give the landlords their share of the higher price levels, but once the rent rates start getting out of control the entire cost of living index goes up by leaps and bounds, rent being such a major item in everyone's budget,
In almost every war production area, the no
&
Wage Demands Dangerous x
BEFORE CONGRESS went home on vacation, consideration was given to authorize increases in the price of corn and of poultry. Neither proposal got through but they are still a threat and may be brought up again when congress comes back to Washington. The accumulated savings of individuals and b ness firms, amounting to $50 million at the end of 1942, may be $100 million by the end of 1943, and these liquid assets constitute potential purchasing power of definite inflationary danger, as they tendyt force up prices;on the reduced quantity of = is available for purchase. The continued pressure of labor to get higher ar if the cost of living is not held down, is the most: gerous inflationary threat of all. The whole battle against inflation, in fact, is a battle to keep down the cost of living index so wages won't have to be raised, rolling back prices by better enforcement and new ‘specific ceilings, such as on fresh fruits and vegetables,
to get all the way or most all of the way back to Sept, 15, 1942, levels.
Mercy Bombs
By Major Al Williams
WASHINGTON, Aug. 5.— The coast guard has adapted the « deadly bomb to the service of seas faring men. Survivors of torpedoed tankers and shipping can. be located by . ‘patrolling aircraft, but gettin - food, water and medicines to rats survivors sometimes tas meant long delays because, ‘of seas that were too rough to permit Planes to ; land safely. It was pretty tough to see half- clad mén “in life= boats or clinging to rafts below. The frantic waving of arms spelled messages pleading for water and food, The only expedient was for the airman to check his navigation carefully and relay the information to the nearest ship or shore station. From time to time efforts had been thade to utilize the forestry ‘chute to float down supplies. B there were too many variables, such as strong’ wi which “floated the ’'chute-borne supplies far: beyond the reach of the shipwrecked. Peli Cans of all kinds, including otdiriary miik cans with attached life-preservers, were tried, but still the objective - was far | from Being obtained.
Solved the Insolvable 5
NOW THE coast guard has solved the. al pardotly insolvable. Two . guardsmen, Frederick. -Denlo, metalsmith :1-¢, and ‘Harold V. Booth, aviation mae chinist 1-c, approached their commanding. Richard L. Burke, of the Elizabeth City (N.C). guard station; with a plan on which they ‘had working in after-duty hours, The ordinary practice -bomb, usually filled ‘with water, is a mere shell of thin metal, equipped with tail fins. Denio and Booth ‘fitted it with a cast concrete nose-piece which weighted it to fall truly, and upon hitting the water the concrete cast would break loose and permit it fo float vertically. They painted it yellow and marked it with a red cross: The buoyancy of the hollow bomb accommodates cigarets, * matches, seven cans of water, a pint
“whisky, a can opener, and sufficient concentrated
rations to keep. quite a few men alive for days.
| Weighs Only 40 Pounds
ALTOGETHER the loaded” mercy bomb Wi little more than 40 pounds. It can be handled by those in need of its contents, “Mercy bombing” tactics differ little from ordinary low-altitude bombing except, of course, for the absence of gunfire and the need for haste. The accuracy of placing the bomb at an exnot really amounts to a hand-to-hand delivery from speeding aircraft. to the lifeboat. bi The mercy bomb also has been used. to d special medical equipment and even blood plas ships at sea. kL No matter what else these two coast guard en men, Denio. snd. Booth; do duing theif service
BD.