Indianapolis Times, Indianapolis, Marion County, 4 October 1944 — Page 12

lianapolis Times : 12 Wednesday, October 4, 1944 BOY W. HOWARD . WALTER LECKRONE MARK FERRER’ mb, 0 Ber 0 Business Manager “@ SCRIPPS-HOWARD NEWSPAPER)

Price in Marion County, 4 cents a copy; delivered by carrier, 18 cents

SAVE THE GOOD NEIGHBOR POLICY THE midst of spectacular war news from Europe and the Pacific the dispute between the United States and Argentina may seem unimportant. It is not. Unless we sre careful, we shall defeat Nazi-Fascism across the Atlantic only to find it entrenched in our own backyard. : The Argentine dictatorship is making headway in’ its twofold campaign to spread totalitarianism through Latin America and to revive hatred of the United States. Our good neighbor policy, which seemed so strong in most of the hemisphere when cemented by dollar subsidies in one form or another, begins to appear inadequate under increasing Latin*American political and economic stress. Washington's critical policy toward the Buenos Aires dictators has been supported by public opinion in this country. Strong statements have been made repeatedly by Washington officials, such as the charge last week by President Roosevelt that the Nazi-Fascist-minded regime has repudiated its “solemn Inter-American obligations.” Northbound. American merchant ships have been ordered to stop calling at Argentine ports. : But the net effect of Washington's political and economic pressure has been disappointing. Although the Buenos Aires junta has made certain gestures to separate itself from the axis, including the current pledge not to harbor European war criminals, the general situation grows increasingly bad from the American and democratic point of view. Washington's methods have been either too harsh r not harsh enough—they have succeeded in making new enemies for us without curbing the main culprits. » = n m 2-8 THIS IS NOT entirely Washington's fault, however. It has to contend with several factors which limit its action. One is the old Latin American suspicion of Yankee interference. ' Another is the fact that the majority of _Argentinians are freedom-loving folk, who resent their dictatorship and who would be the innocent victims of any harsher measures taken by the United States. Also the * British government's refusal to stand by the United States —because of British investments, trade interests, and the need of Argentine beef—has prevented the allied united front necessary for effective sanctions. Sa The British press attacks the United States for “going rather far in its measures of coercion.” Argentine totalitarians charge that Uncle Sam is wielding the big stick without the consent of other hemisphere countries as pledged—though President Roosevelt and Secretary Hull insist that their “policy has been developed in consultation with the other American republics.” We can think of no better reply to Argentine and * British critics, and no better way to rescue the good neighbor policy so essential to United States and hemisphere security, than a Roosevelt call for the long overdue conference of American republics.

SAME OLD STORY WWE wish Donald M. Nelson the best of luck in his new - job—whatever it is. The President has told the public nothing about it except that it will be “a high post of major importance” dealing in “post-war economic co-operation with other nations.” Thats a broad assignment. It could include such matters as currency stabilization, lend-lease settlements if @ny, foreign loans and foreign trade. i We already have been handling these problems through such government agencies as the treasury department, the _ Bureau of foreign and domestic commerce in the commerce department, the reciprocal trade division of the state department, the foreign economic administration—and prob#bly a few others that don't readily come to mind. 2 2 & = PE # IS MR. NELSON to take charge of any of those agencies, or to function as a subordinate in one of them, ~ or to operate around the perimeter of all of the established government units, accountable only to the President? Knowing the political potency of Cordell Hull and Jesse Jones, we can’t see much chance of Mr. Nelson muscling in on their domains. And with his standing at the White House, Henry Morgenthau certainly will not yield any of his functions. Moreover, since the President is kicking Mr. Nelson upstairs from the WPB chairmanship—with great fanfare and that exchange of political campaign letters ex- _ pressing mutual esteem—it would scarcely be appropriate . for Mr. Nelson to take a job subordinate to Mr. Jones, Mr. Hull or Mr. Morgenthau. So the probability is that Mr. Nelson will operate around the agencies in some nebulous superior capacity— - which would be following the New Deal administrative practice of hiring several men to do one job, keeping the lines of authority and responsibility so confused that no one of them will know how much of that job he is supposed to handle, : Mr. Dewey described the technique when he said: ; “When one agency fails, the New Deal just piles another on and we pay for both.”

WASTED EFFORT

AGRICULTURAL records of 93 years ago have been discovered in California which reveal that Golden State farmers in those days were growing king-size carrots three feet long, and turnips that ran 20 to the ton. 3 And not a Chamber of Commerce in the entire state to tell the world.

R. ROOSEVELT SAID— AXES are paid in the-siveat of every man who labors e they are a burden on production and are paid ion. If those taxes are excessive, they are

and seeking jobs

tramping the streets’

Reflections ~~

By John W. Hillman ~~ |.4

bk. But this book is different.) It is.a colorful chron-

factories, in tax-sold farms, and in hordes |.

DON'T LOOK NOW, but the U. S. Army has decided that the jeep is here to stay.

unreconstructed . cavalry major

oats—old troopers die hard, as} sundry Sioux -and Apaches once could testify. But the official view has changed. Proof that the army now Is thinking in terms of gears rather comes from the U. S. Treasury's office

than fetlocks of surplus property, Which recently announced to a

startled world: “A quantity of riding spurs of the wishbone type by the United States cavalry have been declared surplus by the Army and are currently being offered for sale.” J Adding insult. to salesmanship, the release adds: “The spurs will make attractive paper weights, book ends and can be easily converted into ash trays and souvenirs.” And that tremor the seismographs picked up in Washington yesterday was not an earthquake in Japan; it was Gen. Phil Sheridan stirring uneasily in his lonely grave. Making spurs into ash trays! For when the cavalry parts with its spurs, even hopé has died. The horse, at long last, has gone over the hill. \

Something Gallant and Romantic : AND SOMETHING gallant and remantic has gone out of an ariny that has beaten tts swords into manifolds—something that Gen. Lee had in mind when he said of war, after Fredericksburg: “It is well that this is so terrible; we would grow too fond of it.” But the old cavalry, the real cavalry and not the monkey-wrench platoons of mechanized warfare, will live on in the traditions of the army and in the history of the nation. Men will remember the thrill of a cavalry review, and they will tell their sons: “1d like to have again a straight back and a clinging knee. I'd like to be again astride a thoroughbred. . . . I'd like to see the sabres of the squadron commanders flash as they catch the sun, to catch the first faint rumble of the trotting hoofs as the band breaks into ‘Keel Row,’ the cavalry ‘trot.’ They go past in a whir) of dust, the guidons whipping and snapping in the wind of their own passage. Then when the rearmost troop has passed, the band without any order, suddenly breaks into the loved cavalry gallop, ‘Bonny Dundee,’ and I see the leading troop take the gallop. I catch the distant thunder of hoofbeats as they send the regiment past ...” That passage is from the book, “As a Cavalryman Remembers” (Caxton Printers, Ltd.) by George Brydges Rodney, a retired cavalry colonel. It is a book, written in the “red dust of a cavalryman's world,” and it recaptures much of the adventure and excitement of that world—a world that now seems destined to live on only in Saturday movie matinees.

This Book Is Different

THE MEMOIRS of retired army officers usually are pretty dull reading. A lifetime of writing and reading official orders produces a literary style that is’ a bit on the soggy side. Army routine is hardly conducive to the development of a sense of humor or a sprightly philosophy. And the army caste system (Moes not always inspire an appreciation of broad hu‘man values. After all, army officers live for war, not literature. :

icle of the golden age of the U. 8. cavalry. From 1898 to 1932 Col. Rodney saw a lot of action—in the Spanish American war, the Philippine insurrection, on the frontier posts of the Southwest and at and across the Mexican border. He writes well, and brightly. His memories are spiced with laughter and insight, with narrative skill and with description that catches the sharp flavor of forced marches on sweatstained saddles, of death and dust, of man-to-man relationships and the charm of far places. Yes, something brave and fine has gone from the army with the passing of the old cavalry. And, reading this book, you realize just how fine and brave it was. 5 The army is going to miss those spurs.

World Affairs

By William:Philip Simms

WASHINGTON, Oct. 4—Politjcal opportunists in France are systematically driving a wedge between that country and hep British and American allies—especially the United States. No sooner had the AngloAmerican armies forced the Boches back from Paris than the Communist press began its mischievous propaganda. In a signed editorial in L'Humanite, the party 4 organ in Paris, M. Magnien said: “The international role of the Soviet Union cannot be disregarded by anybody nor can we overlook the fact that it is due to the Soviet people that the world awaits the downfall of Hitlerite Germany and all its satellites. ‘ 2 “Gen. Eisenhower, in his speech yesterday under the Arch de Triomphe, stated that Paris was liberted by the people themselves and so confirmed the historical truth that, due to the military action of the French people, our fatherland was so rapidly liberated. “These two historical truths are officially proclaimed. But can we be convinced that adequate political conclusions are being drawn therefrom?”

No Comparable Eulogies of America

AND M. MARCEL CACHIN, former Communist senator and editor of L'Humanite, wrote in the same paper: “Some Frenchmen sare too forgetful. . . . They forget that it was the sacrifices, the unsurpassed heroism of the U. 8. 8. R., that have weakened the Hitlerian army and brought it to its annihilation, . » « It would be a disgrace to Frenchmen worthy of

of an entire people who have done more than anyone else in the world to save us from the greatest disaster in our history.” No one on this side of the Atlantic would seek to belittle the magnificent effort of the Russians since June, 1941. The point is, however, one may search in vain for comparable eulogies of the American war effort, either in the speeches of Gen. De Gaulle or of those about him. ow Quoting from the editorials of L'Humanite, New York's New Leader which prides itself on being “the only free forum on the honest left,” remarks that M. Cachin “maintains the Russians: have fought the war practically single-handed and that, therefore, the French should accept their leadership . . . M. Magnien says everything he can to discredit Great Britain and the United States in Prench eyes. The obvious purpose is to prepare for a division between the allies and to make sure that France will line up on the Russian side . . :

'People Can Hardly Be Blamed" -

IN NORMANDY last July, I found the French disposed to be friendly toward the United States, But if the Dé Gaullist regime maintains silence on the subject while Communists and other interested groups actively play down America's role, the people can hardly be blamed if they become. prejudiced against the American people.

This would be one of the greatest

it would us. Probably alone among all

There may be an occasional |

the name were we to disregard the greatness of soul |

tragedies of | | the war. Moreover, if would hurt Frahce worse than |

“THE SAME REMEDY WOULD APPLY HERE”

By H. W. Daacke, Indianapolis.

» No one will deny that unemployment is one of the greatest evils of present day society, ~~ One of our family of nations was able to reduce unemployment to almost a negligible: amount during the pre-war depression of the 30's, not with rugged individualism and private enterprise, but the direct opposite, co-operatives, both producer and consumer, and a tendency toward socialized industry. By the power vested in the producers and consumers co-operatives, the owning class was forced to eliminate profiteering, and by a compromise between capital and labor, the question of unemployment was solved. : While the U. 8. is more highly industrialized than the nation referred to, the same remedy would unquestionably apply here and get the necessary results. Voice in the Crowd, please note. s ” 2

|“You won't EVEN

PRINT THIS LETTER” By Lee Oberly, Indianapolis. Newspapers supposed to disseminate news and facts to people of all classes and color, regardless of politics, faiths, etc., should refrain from taking sides in an election. Should the majority of the people be subjected to reading ridicule about our President, for after all, he was chosen to be our President by the majority of the people? In your article, “F. D. R. Asked for It,” you state that Dewey read the record to sustain charges which the President had said were “false,” “fantastic” ‘ahd “fraudulent.” You also stated the man who suggested that after the war we could “keep people in the army about as cheaply as we could create an agency for jobless men when they were out” was the “national director of selective service, appointed by Mr. Roosevelt and still in office.” But, what you purposely neglected to state was “that the national director of selective service” is listed in “Who's Who” as a Republican, Also, that Dewey has promised, if elected, to retain our present chiefs of staff of our army, navy, etc. And, if I remember correctly, only

a few months back the Republicans

The Hoosier Forum

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

(Times readers are invited to express their views in these columns, religious controversies excluded. Because of the volume received, letters should be limited to 250 words. Letters must be signed. Opinions set forth here are those of the writers, and publication in no way implies agreement with those opinions by The Times. The Times assumes no responsi bility for the return of manuscripts and cannot enter correspondence regarding them.)

of our present congress were responsible for the amendment to the selective service act, putting this said djrector in complete charge. So isn't it reasonable to assume that, since this director is a Republican and he alone made this suggestion, if a Republican President should take office next January, this director's suggestion is more apt to be carried out? No one expects both the European and Pacific wars to be over by that time. If you ask me, it looks like a deliberately trumped up scheme to try and recapture some of the votes the Republicans lost when they made it so difficult for our most worthy men, our soldiers, sailors and marines, to vote, Now, if you realy mean "your paper tries to be fair -and present both sides,” put an editorial in your paper and tell the people, your subscribers, who happen to be both Democrats and Republicans, that this man who made this utterance is listed in Who's Who as a Republican and Dewey has promised to keep him on, if elected, and that the Republicans were responsible for the amendment to the Selective Service act, putting this man in complete charge so Mr. Paul McNutt would have no authority. But, I know you .won’t, because you also like to talk on both sides of your mouth at the same time. You won’t even print this letter,

f wi. AE { : i }

Side Glances—By Galbraith

the great

itec no ax

| shalt laugh; neither shalt thou | MY

“CAN YOU IMAGINE” By Mrs. Housewife, Indianapolis. A presidential election where the

campaign speeches deal solely with the ideals, habits and characteristics of the nominee and no dirty mud-

slinging or raking over the past record of the present man in office: A congress made up of men who stand behind the President or oppose him as the case may be, entirely on the merits of his decisions, using their best judgment as to whether he is right or wrong, and it the idea proposed will help or hurt the public rather than if the issue is Tavored by the so-called big money men: A government for the people, by the people and of the people instead of a government for, by and of the political machines, and the favor seeking few. As a young American, I can imagine these things IF the common people were interested enough to go to the polls and vote on election day and to exercise their rights as a citizen rather than leave it up to someone else to elect the man that we should have, The citizens

my one vote make, whoever is going to win will whether I vote or not.” BUT if we all had that same idea, who would be on hand to elect office-holders—only the people who are interested in getting certain people in office because they have been promised a political job of one kind or another. Do we want a government run by men who have to make that type of promises to win votes or do we want a government run by men who we have put in office because we think they -are captable of doing the job and because we think that to the best of their ability they will strive to uphold the American ideals and the standards that our boys are fighting to maintain? .

» # ” “LABOR OFFICIALS UNDULY CONCERNED” By Frank J. Nol! Jr., Indianapolis

Overheard recently while standing in line waiting to obtain gas coupons: “There seems to be a lot of war plant workers here judging from the number of badges I see. If they find sufficient time to stand in line from one to two hours, ‘or more, to get gas coupons, I don’t see why they haven’t a little time to register for voting.” The above remark recalled to my memory the recent complaints, so vociferously made, by certain local labor union officials, purporting to be speaking for and on behalf of war plant workers, that unless additional facilities were provided for registering, thousands of these workers would be disfranchised. It would seem, however, - that these labor officials were unduly concerned. Judging from statements made by several plant workers to whom I have personally talked, many resented the implication of these complaints, viz, that these

to vote sufficiently important to take a little time to register. The truth of the matter is that there are more facilities available

vious years. This fact is a matter

to be “Oh well, what difference does] §

workers did not consider their right,

for registering this year than in pre-|

of record and may be easily verified ‘by any one interested. The oppor-| | tunities to register for anyone really desiring to do so are ample. :

"Love of Party Found a Way'

LOVE-OF PARTY found a way in 1040 through the setting up of all sorts of special committees on this and ‘that to evade the limitations of the Hatch act. Love of party probably will find a way {itis year. There are already evidences in the C. I Os P. A. C. and N. P. A. OC. and the Independent Committee for Presi-

money to try to defeat President Roosevelt. ~ A new Democratic money-raising agency has come to light. It is called “The 1000 Club” and its object is to get a thousand members to contribute a thousand dollars

‘No Mention of the Initiation Fee'

THE LITERATURE sent out to solicit membership has a lot of high-sounding phrases about the purpose of the club—"a thoroughly Democratic vehicle through which a cross-section of public opinion and reaction to important developments of the times might readily be obtained, considered and acted upon by its duly appointed officers” and the like, ' No mention of the $1000 initiation fee, But its real purpose is to get the thousand bucks apiece, as Mr. Porter acknowledged. He sald he did not know how well it was doing thus far. In his whimsical fashion, he ‘said he had inquired just what it would take to biackball anyone who wanted in this club, and when it was suggested that it probably would be the lack of a thousand bucks, he agreed that was probably it.

In Washington By Lee G. Miller

WASHINGTON, Oct. 4. —1 went up to the library of congress to see some old pieces of

Having just come from luncheon in a modern hotel with a bright young man who talked wisely of the mysteries of radio, it was something of a contrast to find myself in the hushed and high-vaulted office of Archibald MacLeish, the librarian of con-

gress. . Mr. MacLeish broke the seal on an envelope and produced a key. He sent for David C. Mearns, director of the reference department. He summoned two screw drivers.. He unlocked a door, revealing a closet on the floor of which rested a flat bronze box the size of a table top. I put out my cigaret, carefully. Se The two men struggled the heavy object to an upright position, painstakingly turned a couple of dozen screws, opened the hinged end of the pox—and spread upon a table the Declaration of Independence,

‘And Now ‘They Are Back’ Fu

NOW THAT may seem to some an unexciting way to spend an afternoon. But as each great sheet of vellum was exposed to view, and the majestic, pregnant sentances of our birthright documents lay there before us in their original ink, something of the librarian’s feeling for their significance struck this visitor. : Since-a few weeks after Pearl Harbor these things had been in hiding, far from Washington, entombed in their fireproof, waterproof casket .of bronze, guarded by day and night. And now they are back. It is one thing to see them in the familiar fascimilies. It was another to see—to be close enough to - touch, though without daring to risk even an invisible fingerprint on the margin—these symbols of which our flag itself is but a secondary symbol. The Magna Carta, it is true, yields nothing .tangible to the untutored-—even the scholarly Mr. MacLeish cannot translate its beautifully inscribed medieval Latin. But the beholder senses what Lord Bryce said—that this charter, forced from reluctant King John at Runnymede in the year 1215, “was the starting point of the constitutional history of the English race, the first link in a long chain of constitutional instruments which have moulded men’s minds and held together free governments not only in England but wherever the English race has gone and the English tongue is spoken.”

"That They Exist at All is Symbolic' THE ORIGINAL of the Declaration of

the United States Constitution, and the Magna Carta. |

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