Indianapolis Times, Indianapolis, Marion County, 25 May 1945 — Page 18

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Ew HOWARD WALTER LECKRONE HENRY W. MANZ President Editor

lishing Co., 214 W. Mary-

"TRUMAN'S FOREIGN MOVES :

“allied bombers delayed their employment until the channel

he danapolls Times PAGE 18 Friday, May 25, 1945

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THE CABINET SHAKEUP RESIDENT TRUMAN has taken three good steps toward making his cabinet what a cabinet ought to be. ~« Each change he announced is a distinct improvement, Together, they will ‘strengthen the cabinet greatly. We believe they will help Mr. Truman to simplify the government, restore to it clear lines of authority and responsibility, and enable it to serve the people better. We see in his selections no evidence that he is steering “left” or “right,” but only evidence that he intends to go forward, conducting his own administration, putting strong secretaries over federal departments, and requiring them to be Qepartment heads in fact as well as Dame.

TOM C. CLARK of Texas; chosen for atirney sonerel is an able lawyer of long experience in the justice department. His record encourages belief that he will enforce -the anti-trust and other laws vigorously and fairly. Rep. Clinton Anderson of New Mexico, now serving his third term in congress, is a practical rancher and grain grower. As chairman of the house inv estigation of wartime food problems he has made himself an authority in that field, This is fortunate, because as secretary of agriculture he will be responsible for the war food administration if Mr. Truman goes through withshis plan to.put WFA under the agriculture department. Louis B. Schwellenbach of Washington State, who will leave the federal bench to become secretary of labor, was one of Mr. Truman's closest friends when=both were senators. He was a consistent, effective supporter of New Deal measures. Whether he, or anyone, can please the leaders of both big factions of organized labor is a question. But if he does what we think the President intends—that is, if he gathers and co-ordinates in the labor department all the scattered agencies now stumbling over each other as they try to administer conflicting labor policies, and if he helps to develop a single, coherent federal labor policy—he will serve the workers and the country well.

A CABIN ET "ith half of its 10 meters from beyond the BT other two Westerners being Commerce Secretary Wallace of Iowa and the new postmaster general, Mr. Hannegan of Missouri—will be unique. But we like this western breeze that the President from Missouri is admitting to the marble halls of Washington. We hope Mr. Truman has in mind other changes. There is still room for betterment, but he did a great deal yesterday to put the cabinet back where it should be in our government.

HE President's announcement that he will attend closing sessions of the security conference is to raise the falling morale of San Francisco. He is dispatching Harry Hopkins to Moscow and Joe Davies to London to save the sinking Yalta agreements.

U. 8. possessions, Canada |

| REFLECTIONS—

Imperfect World

By Howard Vincent O'Brien

CHICAGO, May 25.—I find myself almost regretting I went to San Francisco. People ask such embarrassing questions. They want to know the “inside of the conference; and if, there is one, I don't know what it is: My view is that what has been going on out there

4 is really much simpler than it ‘has been made to

appear. ES Nearly 50 nations, representing an enormous ‘xariety of attitudes, have been trying to draft a code of conduct which will lessen, if not remove, the threat of War. o- Their aim has been limited; and so, I think, will be the results achieved. Out of the debate will come a new formulation of international law; but with no guarantee—or even probability—that the signers will adhere to it. How often does the drunkard sigh a pledge of abstinence—and thereafter fall from grace? Let us not snivel. This is an imperfect world; and no scheme of law can rise higher than the morality of its framers, The future will be what you and I make it.

A Clearer Sense of Time THE CHINESE understand this better than we. They have a clearer sense of time, and are, therefore, less impatient. Asked the difference between a "mandate” and a “trusteeship,” T. V. Soong answered: “About 26 years.” The Chinese are not bewitched by ‘words.

crept late to bed, resolved on sleeping late. I was aroused at dawn by a special delivery letter from Messrs. Balaban & Katz, explaining that while they had no objection to “courtesy week,” every week was courteously observed in B. & K. establishments. My emotional response to this episode is best not recorded. Te. I was charmed, however, hy the masterpiece of understatement issued from Okinawa by Gen. Simon Buckner: to surrender, nowadays.” Of high repute are the restaurants of San FPrancisco: but I found none whieh in cuisine and service were superior to Chicago's Northwestern station, Of Chicago's weather I cannot speak so highly.

The Great and Noble O'Briens

AND HERE T must reveal the result genealogical research in San Francisco. of the Palace hotel, my colleague, the eminent Hal «Q'Flaherty, found an elderly scholar carrying on studies in ancestry.

of some

To a question about the O'Briens, he replied that it was a great and noble family, with origins lost in the dim mists of antiquity. He showed us its escutcheon, with the watchword, “Courage eternal”; and a clenched hand on a befit elbow—just the position, sneered Mr. O'Flaherty, of a man at a bar. Wistfully, Mr. O'Flaherty then inquired about his family tree. I thought it improbable that he had any; but to my surprise, the genealogist did finally exhume a sort of crest—not a full escutcheon, of course—which was a symbol whose explanation eluded him—a lizard, of all things!® There was also “some sort of slogan, but I have forgotten what it was. Well, that will be all about San Francisco. I won't | even tell what Charles Boyei was doing besides chewing gum when I sat next to him. I now have really important matters to attend to, such as the restoration of a flooded basement and doing what I can with the dismal remains of what was meant to be a victory garden.

WORLD AFFAIRS—

By Peter Edson

SAN FRANCISCO, May .25.—An international shipping war to capture Pacific ocean trade formerly carried by the Japanese merchant marine is now being planned in West coast ports. Best estimates are that of the prewar Pacific tonnage in and out of American ports,

Both moves are typical of the prompt decision the public has come to expect of him. But whether these moves | —or any others the President alone might make—wil | . produce the desired results is uncertain. Post-war European problems have been multiplied by Marshal Stalin's failure to co-operate under the Big Three agreements. This in turn has taken much out of the United Nations conference. Now Prime Minister Churchill decision to force a general election will divide Britain and | distract her government officials, during six critical weeks | for the fate of Edtope and a post-war Word organization. |

THE PRESIDENT’ S presence at San Francisep should | compensate somewhat for the absence of so many chiefs | of foreign delegations. Of the Big Five, three have gone— | the British, Russian and French. Also of the Middle Five, | three have left—the Canadian, Dutch and Belgian. For these particular missions to Moscow and London, the President could have chosen no better men than Hopkins | | and Davies. They know more about the confidential com- | mitments of the late President Roosevelt, because they were | his personal representatives. And one of the main disputes now is over the meaning of the Roosevelt-Churchili- | Stalin agreements. | We hope the messengers can arrange a Big Three pet ing for the President.

EXPELLED FOR LIFE : TRUCK Driver Pasquale Lorizio of Revere, Mass., has | been expelled for life from local 29 of the A. F. of L. | Teamsters’ union, His offense? He testified before a Massachusetis legislature committee in favor of bills to prohibit labor union contributions to political campaigns and to require unions to file annual financial statements, The union opposed these bills. A union makes a ‘grave mistake when it disciplines a member for exercising his undoubted right, as a citizen, to speak his mind on questions of public policy. Among other things, it arms those who would prohibit the closed shop with an unanswerable argument. The American people, once they understand the issue, will not stand for men who say what they think, when unions think otherwise, not only being expelled from union membership but baived for life from working at their trades.

DEFENSIVE AIR POWER y AR POWER alone didn't heat Germany, as some mili = tary writers have taken pains to point out since V-E day. But we should be short-sighted and ungrateful if we failed to think of the saving in time which is due to defensive air power alone. British fighters won the battle of Britain. And though allied fighters failed to stop the robot and rocket bombs,

was crossed and Germany's fate was sealed, = ~~ Now it is revealed that Germany had a V-3 weapon, too 0-fout gun, flment completely buried beneath an inof’ mares capable of firing A A battery of 50 of these guns from fhe ¥ French coast. But aiy

the guns, humphred never used.

U. 8. ships carried 25 per cent, the Japs 40 to 45 per cent, British, Dutch, Norwegian and other European flagships dividing -the remaining 30 to 35. per cent. Whén the war is over, Japan isn't going to have

| any merchant marine left, thanks to American sub-

marines and bombers. And if West coast shipping men have anything to say in the matter. the Japs won't ever again be allowed to build up their fleet to become a maritime power.

‘Cheap Labor Give Japs an Edge THIS OFFERS U. S. shipping a golden opportunity. European countries have their old home trade routes to re-establish and their fleets to build up. China and Soviet Russia “fay have some ambi- | tions to build ocean-going fleets | of these nations will be interested or able to take | care of anything beyond their own immediate and most pressing domestic needs is a great question. Japan's cheap labor, cheap ship construction and operating costs; plus ample government subsidies for |

{ resulted in freight and passenger rates so low that | no other nation could compete in the pre-war Pacific.

But with the Japs now out of the competitive pice |

ture, the hopes that American ship operators can

| capture a large part of this Pacific trade are def- |

| initely bright, according to such men as Hugh Gallagher of the Matson Lines, Russel Lutz of the American President Lines, John E. Cushing of the war shipping administration.

To keep the American flag on the Pacific will take |

some form of subsidy, they and all- other shipping men seem to agrée. but they emphasize that this question of shipping subsidies is pretty generally misunderstood. and in any case the amount of subsidies paid out will always be less than the cost of having to | build up a new merchant marine from scratch, as this country has had to do in two world wars

Construction Subsidy Urged COST OF the war I fleet was four billion dollars That fleet was scrapped when the American congress and American public opinion as a whole refused to support a U. 8. merchant marine. The cost of the

war II fleet will be between 12 and 15 billion dollars. |

If this modern fleet is also allowed to go to the ‘scrap heap, it will only mean that. U. 8. foreign trade will again have to be dependent on ships of other na-

| fions

Subsidies to keep U can be applied in several ways, struction subsidy, which is really shipbuilding labor. U. 8 U. 8 shipping foreign country, much lower This being the situation, it is argued that Ameri-ean-built ships should be sold to private operators at

First as a ship eona subsidy to U. 8 law does not permit any line to operate a vessel built in a where costs of

costs equivalent to foreign construction costs, the gov- |

ernment -paving the subsidy. U. 8. and foreign ship« ping lines would then have an even start and could contpete on more equal terms through shipping conference agreements on equal rates.

Operator Must Turn to Government

CONFERENCE RATES are now legalized iu the |

United States. Even. though they. do: constitute a

kind of cartel agreement which costs the shipper | more money based on a fair return to U. 8. ship |

operators who have higher wage rates and food costs. Conference rates are accepted by foreign ship operators because tly yield higher profits, When. conference agreements break down and rate wars are instituted through the payment of operating subsidies by foreign governments to their -shipping lines, then, “of course, U, 8. lines cannot | compete, Under such. conditions the American’ ship operator must turn to the U. 8 government and ask for a subsidy. But even so, U. 8 ldw’ permits the payment

of these subsidies only when they are Secesiary Yo.

keen a line in oneration. this

Speaking of words, I must mention the night T ;

“It takes considerable ingenuity for a Jap |

In the lobby 1

Pacific Trade

8. ships afloat after the war |

construction are |

that VU. 8. shipping interests r Pacific trade, :

- | agriculture, and Tom C. Clark of Texas, who is being .

Hoosier

| “LIMIT THE

{TERM OF OFFICE”

By R. R. Indianapolis Is it really true that congress- | men had the stupidity and gall to | vote themselves $2500 more a year in wages? | If true, and it should be paid, ! {then it is long past time to have {an investigation committee of voters to get the facts. Imagine a body of employees in an industrial plant, | or even our military or naval serv- | ice men, getting into a huddle and | voting themselves even $1000 additional “for expense accounts.” 3 If any congressman thinks he is worth more than the $10,000 he was paid, then let him resign and | itry his luck in competition with {others in the business world—or in the workshop or on the firing line If 10 per cent of these men can— (or ever did)—make $12,500 a year! on their own ability then they! should step out of congress and make ‘way for those who can afford to give their best at the puny salary of just $10,000 each year. One solution of this sort of hold- | up is to-limit the term of office. | We voters should band together to limit the terms of office for all congressmen — yes, and Presidents | The history of our country shows {us that just as good men are availlable as ever were enthroned in | | these government offices. ” ~ ”

“THERE SHOULD BE | BETTER CO-OPERATION" | |

|By R. W. F., The American people are dis-

Indianapolis

ESH(EG #1 Whe way pw County 5 them corn by the bagful is, because | father and mother equally until It| |it causes them to congregate in our fof age, But whether any | | seems as if we have done" nothing | public places.

{being led around by the nose.

to help win the war in Europe, |

| There should be better co-opera-!property, or, do you value your | mothers during school years, with

tion among the allies. As for a meeting of the Big Three, what's the use?

{lived up to.

American and«European ideas are miles apart, Our best guarantee for

I suppose, lies in the greatest

army, navy and air force in the for a law-abiding citizen to keep |comes and from Whom,

world. We have them, so let's hold | {on to them. As for the coddling of criminals, our country ‘land should bow their heads in

shame! after the way our lads were park benches, sidewalks and public {republic and, incidentally, force the

{treated by the same Nazis they are now coddling.

Forum

‘| have the right, why not hogs. why. not feed hogs in our parks. | They are not much filthier than | pigeons,

death

(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 ne 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.)

“FEED THEM ON YOUR OWN PROPERTY" By Arthur B. Faust, Indianapolis 1 see that Haggerty person is! writing again. She thinks it-should. be lawful to dish out corn to the | pigeons. preciate corn, some .of us don't.

One of her colleagues says]

| pigeons have as much right#4o live;

I do not find that in which recite the If pigeons And

as humans. the scriptures, facts about creation.

Unsanitary conditions that would not be permitted on our front porches should not be allowed in our parks. Haggerty says

{ while walking in the park. That is not so objectionable, but feeding |

If you have to feed pigeons, feed them on your own property too much to do so. I do: If, as Mrs. Haggerty requests, we

Promises | should change our law so that|ends I mean Friday after school all merchant marine sailings under the Japanese flag, | land agreements are made but not|pigeon feeders will not become { hours until about 8 or 9 p. m. SunIt is about time that criminals, why not change all laws | | days. | we all wised up to the fact that|so that no one'will be a law breaker, | port, We | bills, etc,

regardless of what he does? could then empty our prisons. Don't

peace, blame the law Haggerty, blame the | child or children’s names so child

law breaker. It is not too difficult |

{the law. Pigeon feeders should be forced |

war [to sit under a pigeon roost for 12 ANY PROBLEMS” and Eng- hours at a time, to get an idea of | By G. B.

the damage these birds do tb our|

buildings. Try and find a bench | fit to sit on in University park.

Side Glances=By Galbraith

}

father wort thi

"Try fo keep them looking decent till Find home ot least, 50

I've used

“l wholly disagree with what you say, but will defend to the

Maybe the pigeons ap-|

it is natural to | feed birds out of g sack of popcorn,

On the contrary it was an invis

your right to say it.”

“UNIFORM FEDERAL DIVORCE LAW” By J. ©. Gustfson, Indianapolis Glad to see that our supreme courts are finally waking up in trying to get congress to act on uniform federal divorce law. The new law should also cover, in a uniform method, where there are children involved as to equal. cus-tody-time between parents. As it has been in the past, no judge rules same on any divorce, and when children involved, no same ruling on custody-time with parents and relatives. Yet they force fathers to support them in full, even paying for wife's divorce and attorney fees. Such methods are unconstitutional, as mothers and fathers should share alike, There also should be action taken at once to cover all back divorces, as well as future ones. Making it unlawful for either parent to | poison children’s minds, etc. Treat all-equal: {| Our judges should get together now on uniform methods at a spe{cial meeting, and draw up methods and plans on equal basis—fees for support of one child, plus so much for each additional child, etc., on equal basis. As it is now, politics are being played by our judges and county officials. All cases in the past should be brought up at night courts and new rulings made with teeth. This should cover all divorces;, if one or both ask for a hearing, and such be free of attorney fees. All newspapers should back this uniform law movement. It would save many a child from our courts by having the guidance of both

| My idea as to equal custody-time {would be for children to be with

| fathers on all week-ends, school {holidays and vacations, By week-

Parents share equal in supschooling, clothing, doctor until of age. All money | paid through courts by checks in

{or children know where money

{ . “WAR NEVER SOLVES

Indianapolis The movement to militarize this

other major nations to do likewise, persists here among most of the professional military caste who, of course, are thinking chiefly of their Jobs, and the politicians who continue to mouth peace but urge prep~ aration for war. Unless the people of this country rise up and oppose this, we are headed for another war, the proportions of which will make world war II look like a Sunday school picnic. Let the people not be fooled by the Dumbarton Oaks proposals and the adroit avoidance of anything remotely resembling a determined and co-operative effort to really promote permanent peace at the San Francisco conference, All of the so-called realistic talk about preparedness is just so much drivel, for any informed . person knows that preparedness simply means war. We had most of our navy at Pear] Harbor, but did that prevent Japan from attacking us?|

tation for attack. Peacetime conscription and the

an invitation to war. Most of the European nations have maintained large armies for years to what effect? Only one—intermittent wars and useless waste of human life. War never solves any, problems. The participants in war are all losers and no victory Is ever achieved no matter to what extent the *ictor or yictéfs may boast or what misleading statements may be circulated to justify it.”

DAILY THOUGHT

pla

| to analyze such

maintenance of a fighting force is|

| POLITICAL SCENE—

Looking West £ By Thomas L. Stokes

WASHINGTON, May B— i President Truman's gesture to the = West in his cabinet shake-up is | important politically. The West, and that means the Far West and the Pacific coast, long has been clamoring for representation in the cabinet, © The appointment as secretary of labor of Federal Judge Lewis B. Schwellenbach of Washington, former sen ator, gives the Pacific coast a place. ‘The West and Southwest are represented further in two other new cabinet members, Rep. Clinton P, Anderson of New Mexico, named as secretary of

moved up in the justice department to attorney general,

'Four Members From Wast'

WITH SECRETARY of Commerce Wallace wit is from Iowa, there are now four members of the cabinet from west of the Mississippi river, which is the largest representation that great section of the country has had in a President's official family, Governor Dewey of New York made quite ap issue of western representation in the cabinet in his campaign for the presidency last year. When he got to the West coast on his first big campaign swing he promised the West a cabinet post, if elected, and repeated it from time to time. Since the death of President Roosevelt, Demo cratic political strategists have given much thought

in the Far West, due in part to the achievements under his leadership, in development of such power and water resources as Grand Coulee in Washington. and Bonneville in Oregon.

‘Recognition Will Be Appreciated’ REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTS had promised and given lip service, But he delivered. In his four elections he carried everyone of the eléven mountain and Pacific coast states with the exception of Colo rado in 1940 and 19044 and Wyoming in 1044, President Truman is, of course, not so well known in the West. His recognition of that section in his cabinet will be appraciated and will help to build up its interest in the new administration. .Its impor tance politically can not be overlooked, “ “Those who look for some significant trend to lefs or right in the new cabinet appointments are likely to be disappointed, though Washington always tries shifts to find some deep-dyed purpose. : The nearest approach to any trend perhaps is in the departure of Attorney General Biddle, who had become a figure with the advanced New Dealers and a symbol of ardent New Deallsm among conservae

stance, of the C.1.0, But progressive forces, as dise tinguished from the more left wing New Dealers, do not feel any particular loss, . In appointing Tom Clark to succeed Mr. Biddle the President rewarded a career type of official. Mr, Clark served as head of the anti-trust division and since, has been head of the criminal division.

| 'Indication of a Trend’ THE DEPARTURE of Miss Perkins had been exe

pected: Judge Schwellenbach, who succeeds her, was a stanch New Dealer when he was in the senate, an

| administration standby, and a strong champion of

labor. His services for the administration were rewarded by his appointment to the federal bench I$ took a good deal of persuasion by President Truman, a close friend and associate in the senate, to get him to take the labor department post. There is an indication of a trend in administrative procedure in connection with two of the appointe ments and related action. In delegating to Rep, Anderson as secretary of agriculture the powers of war food administrator, from which post Marvin Jones is retiring to return to the federal bench, President Truman has dispensed with one emer= gency post and drawn'the entire management of tiie food problem into a government department nate urally concerned with it. Rep. Anderson was chairman of a special house committee on food which had been critical of the situation. He is New Dealish generally by inclination and has a progressive record .in congress. It is expected, too, that Mr, Schwellenbach, as secretary of labor, will carry out plans to reorganize that department and bring various independent la bor agencies under its general jurisdiction,

IN WASHING TON—

Censorship By Daniel M. Kidney

WASHINGTON, May 25.~The office of war information conducts its own “star-chamber censorship” independent of the office of censorship, it was charged today by Lester Cowan, producer of the Ernie Pyle motion picture, “G. I. Joe.” As an independent producer, Mr. Cowan made the widely acclaimed picture “Tomorrow the. World” which was based on the theme of a Nazi-educated child shifted to a democratic world. He obtained export approval from Censorship Director Byron Price which would permit him to show the film in European countries liberated by U, 8. armies. “At that ‘point OWI butted in with its ideas on what people should be shown, told and read” Mr, Cowan said. “OWI prevented the picture from bee ing transported abroad,’ Mr. Cowan declared. Using the same methods, some congressmen sald, OWI may be able to carry out its original plan to prevent U. 8. newspapers and magazines from cire culating in U. S. occupied Germany and confine pee riodicals there to its own publications, despite the stand to the contrary announced by President True man and Gen. Eisenhower.

Also in the Movie Business OWI also is in the movie business. It ls ree ported to be preparing to show one of its own pice tures abroad entitled: “Better Tomorrow.” An owt film called “Two Down and One to Go” has added confusion to the home front. It purports to show how soldiers will be discharged undér the point sys tem, but the picture was made before the present point system was perfected and therefore it is outs moded. ; Among other outmoded OWI things .are several million pamphlets stored in a warehouse in Italy.

Mussolini was a fraud. But OWI didn’t get around to distributing them before the Duce was killed and kicked in the streets of Milan. Dr. Roy Harris of .the OWI music section reported that they have “62 outposts” and listed “Lone Cairo, Casablanca, Chins, South Africa, Turkey, Spain, Portugal, New Delhi.” In Washington OWI sends its men to all press conferences, including the White House. OWI Director Elmer Davis asks $42,000,000 to keep up this work at home and abroad, but the house appropriations committee cut that figure and the house itself may abolish the agency.

To The Point—

THE MANUFACTURE of refrigerators will begin on July 1, with deliveries expected six months later. TAL TAPAIY ives 10 YH HOUR: 10 10M something to put me them. .

York and New Jersey coasts has been lifted

1 indulge In my sorrow, and | wit all the and fury]

to the western political problem, looking forward to 1948. President Roosevelt was tremendously popular

tives. He has been identified as a friend, for ine .

These were designed to persuade the Italians that.

don, Paris, Moscow, Rome, Luxembourg, Algiers,

THE BAN on the use of beaches along’ the New

RATS TO SS,

a —— LL

FRID: Sche To Arisrioas mander Ed today for

Memorial « dead.

Scheiber! Flanders Brussels fi by the Bel On Ma; American | nes cemete to visit B London, wi I and IT ¢ war II bu England. On the Scheéiberlin action wat demobilizal “Unless meeting de we did | millions ¢ disillusione said. The com by Mancel chairman registratio: planned t