Indianapolis Times, Indianapolis, Marion County, 17 December 1946 — Page 15

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Inside Indianapolis

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“IF WE GET more snow--we’ll sell these trees like hot cakes,” Harry (Dusty) Eaton said as he hustled a batch of painted Christmas trees under the canvas tent. This is Mr, Eaton’s 21st year in the yuletide tree Business at the same location—Meridian, just off of 38th st. - In his opinion the weatherman has dealt his business a blow. - Mother Nature is tops in providing the most popular color. Although Mr, Eaton has silver, pale green, baby blue and white trees, the biggest seller continues to be the natural green tree. In fact—it's the greens tive to one. Mrs. Thomas D. Stevenson, 5701 N. PennsyMvania st., was trying to decide about the size of the Scotch pine she liked. She claims her tree never looks as big at home as it does in the lot. william (Shorty) Shell, 138 S. Illinois st. convinced Mrs. Stevenson that this particular tree would fil the bay window in her home perfectly.

IT'S GREEN FIVE TO ONE — Even though William (Shorty) Shell has plenty of colored trees to sell,

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By Ed Sovola

A ——

Mr, Shell has been selling for a long time and Mrs. . Stevenson has been buying from him for a long time. It's not a new problem.

Pine Outsells Others

THE SCOTCH PINE outsells other types of evergreens. Mr, Shell thinks it's because there's more foliage, the branches are stronger and the shape of the tree fits most rooms. > Right smack up in front there was a Scotch pine that caught my fancy. For a moment I had visions. I could see it gaily decorated and standing near my insincere fireplace. An insincere fireplace is one without a flue. “Shorty—how much for that one?” “Around 14 bucks.” *1 coughed sincerely as my vision faded. The tree I had in mind was beautiful—no doubt about it.

Mis’ '~toe Sells Fast

SECOND SECTION

Halleck-Brown

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Gompromise Ruled Out

‘Martin Spurns Deal, Lets Votes Decide

By SANDOR 8S. KLEIN United Press Staff Correspondent

MR. SHELL STAYS with the Christmas trees 24 Republican Leader Joseph W. Mar-

hours a day. He sleeps, cooks, and warms up in a |, Jr.

portable army shack. That doesn’t mean he sells trees 24 hours a day. Last year two days. before Christmas about 2:30 a. m. when he was snoozing soundly, he was awakened by a party of four who apparently had been imbibing Christmas cheer a good part of the evening, They wouldn't take no for an answer. With Christmas spirit fairly coming out of their ears—they wanted a tree immediately, Mr. Shell charged for the tree and the sleep he had lost. “Thas O. K. pal ol’ pal.” On Washington st.,, near the Noble st. underpass James Goins, Greenwood, Route 1, Box 116 also thinks the Christmas tree business is slower this year. He handles Scotch pines exclusively. The item that sold in a hurry was mistletoe. Two bushels were sold in two days. Girls between the ages of 16 and 25 bought almost all of it. Only one man bought a batch and then he whs cautioned by his lady friend riot to buy “too much of that stuff.” : } Mr. Goins has a sliding price scale. Last year he had a tree which he thought should bring in $15. He held out for that price a little too long. On Christmas Eve when the bottom drops out of the tree business, he sold it for $2. Besides laurel, holly and hemlock, Mr. Goins handles a few silver trees. He sprays them himself. It’s the same old story—painted trees just don’t compare to nature's own green.

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Bilbo’s Dream

By Frederick C. Othman

S—

WASHINGTON, Dec. 17.—At long last I am in a position to speak authoritatively of the beautiful

dream of Senator Theodore G. Bilbo. The bookkeeping in connection therewith may be a little nightmarish, but the beauty of the dream shines through.

The senator's vision began with a lake to beautify the manor house he'd already built in the center of his ,3600-acre Mississippi plantation. So he got out his mule, called a one-armed assistant and two boys and started to dig himself a pond. > One of his rich contractor friends, name of Mike Morrissey, happened by and offered to dig it for him. Mike—who ran a farm of his own, rented road .scraping machinery to the government, and operated a saloon on an island in the Mississippi—dug a magnificent lake. He left an island in the middle of it, There Mr, Bilbo erected a small mansion he called dream house number two. And soon the senator was improving his dream. With the assistance of the same helpers and the same mule he was trying to build a reinforced concrete swimming pool.

What, No Mule?

ANOTHER OF HIB contractor friends, John R. Junkin, who sold ready mixed concrete for the building of army air fields, happened by. - He offered to build the pool. A few more weeks passed and there was the senator sadly contemplating the sorry state of the paint on the original dream house. . “And I just happened by,” began a third war contractor, Maurice T. Reed, and . . . “No mule?” demanded Senator Homer T. Ferguson of Michigan,

Aviation

“No mule,” reported Mr. Reed. He had the dream house painted as a kind of gift, sort of, to the senator. - He said, under urging by Senator Ferguson, that he used plain paint, not special dream paint,

Dream Was a Whopper

PART OF Senator Bilbo’s dream (it was a whopper, that dream) consisted of a new home for the Juniper Grove Baptist church by the lake, and a new home with four tubs for the preacher. Mr. Bilbo’s contractor friends contributed checks ranging from $500 to $3500 for these edifices. Came Christmas and there was the junior dream house, bare, cold and empty on the island. Mr. Bilbo's secretary and one of his political cronies borrowed $500 from the bank to buy sofas, chairs and floorlamps ds a Christmas remembrance to the senator. The bank eventually demanded that these worthies cough up the $500, plus $17 interest. So Contractor Reed paid that, too. Why did he do it? “They asked me,” he testified. I'll have to skip all the money contributed to political campaigns in Mississippi, as well as the troubles of the income tax bureau trying to convince the contractors that gifts to Mr. Bilbo couldn't be deducted as charity. - These developments are interesting, but they have nothing to do with the dream. “A beautiful, beautiful dream,” said the portly Mr. Morrissey, who wore an almost-yellow tweed suit and an expression of hurt surprise. “The senator wanted to be buried, when he died, by the parsonage, half way between dream house number one and dream house number two. It was almost too much for him, that dream. He had a hell of a time building that church.”

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By Maj. Al Williams

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TREMENDOUS SCIENTIFIC: effort is being exerted toward perfecting aids. to instrument flying which will enable the pilot to guide himself into a fog-covered airport, or be guided in by directions

from the ground. The system permitting the pilot to guide himself by means of electronic aids is called the instrument landing system, developed and advocated by the civil aeronautics administration. This is ILS. Against this is the GAC—ground-air control—perfected by the navy. Fierce controversy prevails as to which is the better system, with advocates in each camp insisting they are right. Experienced pilots incline toward the ILS, claiming they are unwilling to entrust their safety to some individual on the ground who may or may not be on the job, or capable of the eternal vigilance required. The pilot's attitude on this point readily can be understood. His psychological fixes are deep-seated. From the very beginning, his training and experience have taught him to depend upon himself—his own Judgment and his own initiative. Hence, he is loath to turn any of these prerogatives over to anyone else— and Iast of all to anyone who is not an experienced pilot.

Plane Seen Through Fog

ON THE OTHER HAND, the navy system of GAC, based on talking pilots into a landing, has its own strong arguments. Under this system, the ground-air control can see the plane aloft irrespective of the xv A Hence it is able to tell the pilot where he is with relation to the airport, and tell him which way to turn to head toward the desired runway. Then, all the ‘way down until he breaks through the ceiling, the GAC can keep on talking and guiding him in for a landing.

We, the Women

& MODERN CHILD psychology is certainly a comfort. No wonder today’s parents set such store by its reassuring terms,

Junior has a habit of bopping his little play-

HMmates over the head, kicking them in the shins, pull-

ing their hair and otherwise terrifying the smallfry of the neighborhood, Junior's parents have a nice word for it. Their pride and joy is simply “aggressive.” Willie is having trouble with reading, writing, and thmetic. It is much more comforting for his par-

“ents to blame his slowness on his teacher's inability

0 awaken his curiosity and hold his interest than 0 wonder if maybe they have a slow child on their ands. ?

Going Through the Stages

LITTLE AGATHA has been a demon for months but never mind. She is just going through a cern “stage.” Last year it was another “stage,” and

next year it will undoubtedly be still anpther “stage” “ neriness or explain his failings.

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Also, the GAC can watch and guide more than one,

pilot. In fact, it can see the other airplanes in the air neighborhood in addition to the one. being guided in for the landing. Talking an airplane intq a landing by the GAC system fits the psychological attitude of navy personnel, where each man is trained as a member of a team. The key to this team psychology is that each man trusts the other to do his part.

Depend Upon Electronics

THE EXPERIENCED pilot, especially the airline pilot, also believes in the team concept as an ideal which according to his experience, is all too often not attained. Expert weather pilot friends of mine swear by the ILS where they depend upon the mechanical electronics aid and their own judgment and skill. Others ihsist that while they were reluctant to be “talked down” by an unseen ground control, they found it much easier in that all they had to do was follow the verbal directions and devote all their attention to their flight instruments. Both systems are practical and will work satisactorily. Eventually, the ground-air control system ill prevail because no airman on his own and unable to see the traffic around him is competent to insure air traffic control. And no foreseeable system of elec-

* tronics, short of a complete radar picture, can tell

the pilot where he is in a fog with relation to a given runway as well as a trained traffic director who can see all the traffic aloft—and thus see the whole traffic pattern. Even if we do provide the pilot with radar vision, wherewith he can see the ground, he won't be able to see the traffic around him. And real control of air traffic, like motor traffic on the ground, can be handled only by a director who can see all the traffic.

By Ruth Millett

et et er ———,

that will make getting the same baby-sitter twice an utter impossibility. But she'll come out of each stage all right, the books say. They don't, however, make any surmises as to what condition her parents will be in when they have finally seen her through childhood,

Mother Tries to Reason

MAMA'S FRIENDS shudder when she and Susie come to call. - Susie—likely as not—will rule with an iron hand, while her mother helplessly tries to reason with her. But the mother remains placid while Susie drags the cat by the tail, goes into a temper tantrum when it looks for a& moment as if she might not get her way, etc. Mama believes in letting Susie “express herself.” * It must have been an awful responsibility to haye been a parent back in the days ore there were any pat phrases with which to excuse a child's or-

ats i vy Teint

of Massachusetts, today squelched talk of a compromise in the G. O. P, house leadership bat-

cide the issue,

house speaker, told newsmen he had no intention of stepping aside as *hairman of the Republican steering committee, the G. O. P.s strategy-making body in the house. It had been reported that Rep. Martin would be willing to let the steering chairmanship go to Rep. Clarence J. Brown of Ohio if Mr. Brown would quit the leadership race in favor of Rep. Charles A. Halleck of Indiana. Rep. Martin also denied a report that he would move to disband the steering committee during the coming session in order to [freeze Mr. Brown ‘out of any top role in the party's congressional council. Halleck Leading Now Mr. Martin said there definitely would be a steering committee in the next session and that he expected to be its chairman. He noted that it was customary whenever Republicans were in control of the house for the speaker to hold the steering chairmanship. Rep. Halleck, according to many responsible Republicans, is well out in front in the leadership race at this time. Some of Mr. Brown's friends admit this. But Mr. Brown, who has never formally announced his candidacy for the job, is still making a determined fight. His friends said he would be willing tn step out of the contest if he could be assured of the steering committee chairmanship. But such a compromise is out. Martin's Hands Off

Mr. Martin, who ingists he is maintaining a hands-off policy in the leadership battle, said he feels the post should go to the man who can command enough votes. to win it. If Mr. Brown fails to win the leadership, he would be pretty effectively eliminated from any influential position in the party's congressional machinery. He does not have enough seniority to rate the chairmanship' of any committee. Mr. Brown would be interested in the chairmanship of the powerful house rules committee but Rep. Leo Allen of Illinois is first in line for that post.

More Teen-age Crimes Reported

The teen-aged crime wave continued in Indianapolis last night. Henry P. Cafroll, 50, a clerk in the Calderon Liquor store, 611 Massachusetts ave., told police that at 10:15 p. m. last night a 19-year-old youth brandished a nickleplated revolver and said “Give me money.” He then took $164 from the cash register and $11 from Mr. Carroll. Three 17-year-old youths attacked Robert E. Harris, 53, of 243% Virginia ave, as he was walking near Virginia ave. and South st. Mr. Harris suffered a fractured shoulder and was taken to City hospital, He told police they apparently “beat him up for no reason at all.” Mrs. Estella Moon, 35, of 838 S. Woodrow ave. an employee of the Bond Baking Co., 318 W. Vermont st., told police she was on her way to work last night when a 6-ft, youth struck her in the face, grabbed her purse containing $43 and fled. Virginia McClara, 22, of 728% E. Vermont st, told police that a youth wearing at “tan windbreaker,” grabbed her purse containing 50 cents as she approached Noble and Washington sts., and fled.

Order Defied

WASHINGTON, Dec. 17—House

tle and insisted that votes must de-

Mr, Martin, who will be the next

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The Indianapolis Times

TUESDAY, DECEMBER 17, 1946 .

dents have just completed a Christmas scene at the school in the form of a “stained glass window.” Painted in pastels on a window

NEW YORK, Dec. 17.~Conrad pleasant but extremely restless ma paying guests. In the midst of the housing in a dozen different hotels, from

in Lubbock and Longview, Tex. But being host isn’t what Mr. Hilton finds most fascinating about the hotel business. “I. like the negotiation, acquisition and. financing of the properties best,” he says. “I've always got the pot boiling.” - For $7,500,000, he snapped up Chicago's 2700-room Stevens hotel. “The price included everything but the whisky,” he says. “It hasn't had an empty room since we took over. Been making money so fast we can't count it. I once figured out that we serve a million people a month in the Stevens, either with a room, a meal, a drink or just a package of cigarets.” Cleans Up Fortune From a depression low of $500,000 in debts and no income, Mr. Milton has cleaned up a personal fortune of between eight and nine million dollars. But he still hasn't enough money to go around buying hotels without outside ‘financial help. “When I bought the Palmer House in Chicago for $19,385,000, people said ‘where does that guy Hilton get all that money?’ In that deal, the First National Bank of Chicago put up about $11 million. Atlas Corp., and City Investing both put up some. The rest came from the boys. “Some of these people have been stringing - along with me for years, making money at it. Whenever we go into something new they cut in.” With his hotels all , making money, Mr. Hilton is looking for new deals, His vision isn’t limited | by U. 8. shores. Already he's signed a contract to operate a still-to-be-built $3 million hotel at San Juan, P. R. Texan by Adoption “Hardly a day passes that someone, somewhere doesn't offer me a hotel to buy or operate somewhere in the world, in Egypt, Asia, South America or Pleasantville, U. S. A.” But Hilton is no longer interested in just any hotel. “It ‘must be a great hotel, a famous hotel. Or maybe a brand new hotel.” Mr. Hilton doesn’t look upon the expanding .of his chain as a gamble, “I've got a good organization that

NATIVITY SCENE—Spotlighted at night, this Christmas scene painted on a window in the Shortridge high school library just over the school's Meridian st. entrance, gives the appearance of a- stained glass window.

r Shortridge high school art stu-|of the school library just above the

Meridian st. entrance, the scene depicts the Madonna and child sur-

The window Is night. An original design by Phyllis

rounded by angels, shepherds and the window is the work of an art

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| sheep,

Nicholson, Hilton, 54, a tall, graying, n, is the nation's greatest host—to

shortage, he controls 10,000 rooms New York's swank Plaza and the

equally plush Town House in Los Angeles to smaller Hilton hotels

lis capable of absorbing many more |properties. I think I know more |about the hotel business than wnost people,” he admits, modestly. Mr. Hilton is more or less a Texan by adoption although he has made his headquarters in Los Angeles Since "1038 and spends a good deal ol time in New York City. “You need a foothold in New York,” he says. {“I'ts the financial captial of the lesuntry.” Intended to Be Banker He picked Texas for his starte ing point after the last war on the advice of a dying friend who told him “if you go to Texas you'll make your fortune.” ’ “I did,” says Hilton, “and he was right.” Mr. Hilton intended originally to {be a banker. He had had a touch {of politics before world war I when {he became a member of the New | Mexico state legislature at 23, but he preferred business to politics. He was all set to purchase a small bank in oil-booming Cisco, Tex, when a wire from the absentee owner protested that he was taking too much time to make up his mind. “The price has gone up $5000,” the wire said. “If it ‘hadn’t been for that wire,” Hilton recalls, “I might have ended up as a bookkeeper in a small bank.” Then as an afterthought: “But I doubt it.” Business Was Good “Anyway, I found that the operator of the hotel in Cisco where I was staying had paid $25,000 for his lease and was taking in $2500 a month. That decided me. Any business that got its capital back in 10 months was the kind I wanted. “Four partners and I bought the other hotel in Cisco for $40,000— land, building and equipment. We borrowed $20,000 from a bank and put up. the rest. “That was right at the beginning of the great hotel boom after the last war. When the depression of the early '20s came along, oil dropped from $3 to $1 a barrel. The bank I was going to buy and 11 others of the 13 in that area all failed. The hotel business stayed good.” Hilton and his partners (who varied some from venture to ven-

SILLY NOTIONS

By Palumbo

City zoning board members today had defled a court order by refusing to grant a permit for construction of a filling station at 42d st. and Boulevard pl. The petition for the station was filed by George Weidlich. It was appealed to Judge Emsley W. Johnson in Superior court 3 several months ago following an unfavorable decision by the board, Judge Johnson upheld the petition and ordered the board to grant the permit. cold shoulder to his decision yestérday, despite warnings from Arch N. Bobbitt, city corporation counsel, that it would be in contempt of court. Mr. Bobbitt dug through his legal tomes in search of some defense for the board after it denied the request. He said he will file a petition in court for a review of the case.

Purdue Convocation Times State Service ’ LAFAYETTE, Ind., Dec. 17.—With more than 500 students participating, the annual Christmas convocation at Purdue univ presented in the hall of mysic to-

By Zoning Board

The board turned .a |

ity will be |

morrow night by the Purdue musical

organizations.

12-17 " “

TUR NEXT AMATEUR WILL IMITATE A WAN."

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iclass sponsored by Orin Thundere.

A Texan by Adoption Finds Buying Hotels Is Much More Fun Than Renting Rooms

Conrad Hilton Controls Dozen Hostelries; Makes So Much Money He Can't Count It

By MARC. J. PARSONS NEA Staff Writer

HOST—He's always got the pot boiling.

ture) built the. string. to. eight -hotels when the depression of the '30s hit. That gne didn’t miss the hotel business. “At one time I owed half a million and had no income,” “he says. “But I managed to hang onto five of the eight hotels. That was considerably better than the national average where 81 per cent went under. “I never got those three back. Someone else picked them up again before I could. But then I got somebody else's hotels.” He's still looking for other people’s. hotels.

Zoning Board 0K's New Church

The zoning ‘board yesterday granted permission for the Northwood Christian congregation to build a new church to cost $180,000 at the southwest corner of 46th and Central ave, The church purchased the lot two weeks ago for $30,000. It is across the street from the present church which stands on the southeast corner of 46th and Central. The new |lot extends for 175 feet on Central {and back 600 feet along 46th st. |and 100 feet on Washington blvd. The “L”-Shaped new building will [include entrances on both Central land 46th st. The materials out of {which it will be constructed have not been decided on, Burns and James are the architects. The Rev. Theodore Fisher is the pastor of the Northwood congregation which now numbers 450. Dr. George M. Wood'is chairman of the building committee; I. C. Spencer, of the building finance committee; and Glenn Findley, of the church {official board. Mrs. Norwood | Hawkins is president of the woman's council.

Nativity Scene Plan Canceled

Mr. and Mrs. Anthony Hessman, 815 N. Linwood ave., cancelled their plans for an outdoor Nativity scene. Last night a thief stole their sixfoot tree and 50 outdoor colored lights. Lie 3 The theft was discovered when Mrs. Hessman looked out the win-

gone off, .

the front room where ‘they'll be sure to have it for awhile.

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spotlighted at

Harting and Lorraine Rodenbarder,

dow to see why the lights had

The Nativity scene is going into)

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Army Delay i Firing Reds Stirs Capital

Despite Court Rulings

By LYLE C. WILSON United Press Staff Correspondent

" WASHINGTON, Dec. 17.—This baffling capital was in a typical mess today,

The courts have held that the government can fire Communist

fellow traveler and the war depapt-

ment is wailing it has no means of protecting itself against such subversive characters, “What goes on, any way?” demanded the man-in-the-street interviewed by your correspondent. Na one seems to know the answer

<'to that one,

Congressmen were particularly interested in the war department situation, A. responsible individual told the United Press the department had no satisfactory system of checking on Communists and other subversives employed by it.

Several members of the house unAmerican activities committee told the Uni Press that the department plenty of authority to act and should get moving on the prob’ lem right now. If the department fails, to clean its own house, there might be a congressional investigation to discover why not. An Outrage, Says Rankin Rep.- John E., Rankin (D, Miss.), however, thinks there: ought to be & law, He says he will propose that congress legislate for the res- | toration of the army's counter intelligence system to detect subversive government employees. “It's an outrage,” said Rep. Rankin, : At about the same moment, the judges of the United States court of appeals were affirming a lower court decision that the government can fire an employee about whose loyalty there is reasonable doubt. The empleyee in this instance was Morton Friedman, The court did not pass upon Mr. Friedman's loyalty or the implication that he was a Communist sympathizer. It simply said the U. 8. civil service commission had authority to determine his loyalty. The commission held that Mr. Friedman's loyalty was questionable and after more than a year of investigation and discussion, Mr. Friedman finally was ordered out ‘of his war manpower commission job.

White House Picket Recalled

In the processs of firing Mr. Friedman, the civil service commission took a terrific swing at an outfit known as the American Peace Mobilization. In a letter date June 5, 1944, and addressed to. Mr. Friedman, the commission said he had to be fired, and explained: “The commission's action was based mainly on your activities in connection with the American Peace Mobilization. It may be true that many members of the APM were not aware that it was Communist dominated and pro-Com-munist +. , .” The APM was the organization which was picketing the White House against aid to Britain against Hitler right up to 11 p. m.,-or so on the evening of June 22, 1941. At that moment the flash came that Hitler” had attacked Soviet Russia. The APM picketeers were caught with one foot in the air. They balanced in that awkward position briefly and called the whole thing off. With Russia under fire the war became a holy cause to Communist fellow travelers,

APM Has Successors

The APM has gone out of business long since to be succeeded, it is charged, by incorporated offspring equally attentive to the Communist party line. But if any mem= ber of the outfit or its successors remains in ignorance of the implications of their late sodality, they should be referred to Section 1 or Appendix, Part 9,0f the house unAmerican committee on Communist front organizations. Here is an excerpt: “The American Peace Mobiliza~ tion was one of the most notorious and blatantly Communist fronts ever organized in this country. The period of its existence coincided exactly with the period of the StalinHitler act, down to the very day of June 22, 1941." On Page 432 of the foregoing document, the committee reorted that the officers of the APM as of _ Set. 3, 1940, Included: Paul Robeson, Negro singer; Rep. Vito Marcantonio of New York; the late Theodore Dreiser, a novelist who publicly embraced communism shortly before his death, and Rep. Hugh Delacy, a Washington Demo~ crat who was defeated in last month's election,

Christmas Seal Sale $43,000 Short of Goal

The sale of Christmas seals to aid in combating tuberculosis today is $43,000 short of the goal set. A total of $57,000 has been contrib uted. A week remains of the campaign. The seal sale is sponsored oy the Marion. County Tuberculosis association. El Lilly heads the volun teer sponsoring committee. Headquarters reports that if a current trend of late sales continues the mark will be reached.

Yu Plan Jenner Banquet BED: , Ind, Dec. 17 (U. P.). —A ¢ banquet for SepswrElect William E. Jenner wil be

ge credo