Indianapolis Times, Indianapolis, Marion County, 4 September 1949 — Page 18

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. A SORIPPS-HOWARD NEWSPAPER

ROY W. HOWARD WALTER LECKROND President Editor

HENRY W. MANZ Business Manager

PAGE 18 + Maes Conny 3 sete»

Telephone RI ley 5551 Give Light end the People Will Pins Thew Own way

Our Public Building Menace MARION COUNTY and Indianapolis units of government are running headon into a major emergency in public buildings, without & plan for solution in sight. The unsanitary and congested conditions at the Marion County Jail, as pointed out by Sheriff James Cunningham in a story on page 17, points up again the seriousness of government housing here. . The sheriff revealed that the jail, built for a capacity of 150 prisoners, is housing from 350 to more than 400 inmates; that the whole plumbing system is so worn and anti-

quated that it is almost unoperative; that eight men have -

to sleep in a small céll originally built for four, . » » . EJ . THESE conditions eventually will result in the spread of disease, disorders among prisoners that might lead to several deaths ahd costly attempts at piecemeal remedies. Conditions at the County Jail could be remedied. temporarily by. some makeshift alterations and additions but this would not solve the jail problems for long and, furthermore, it is only a small part of the County's overall building problems. The same conditions have prevailed for years at the City Police Station where facilities are far inadequate for efficient operation of the greatly expanded Police Department. | . . , . . . EVEN WORSE are conditions at the Courthouse where rusted-out girders have fallen through the ceilings of some public offices. The building has been condemned for almost "10 years as dangerous and unfit for use. ~ Failure to take some constructive steps toward a build-

"Ing program cannot be excused on the basis of economy. - The expense of temporary repairs and rentals of outside -

space, not to mention the waste incident to inefficient operation, will cost the taxpayers far more in the long run than a rew government building that we all know will have to. -'be erected some time. It ought ta be started now.

Better Late Than Never PROMISE of the Democratic Party's 1048 platform

this: “We pledge ourselves to restore the reciprocal trade

ts program formulated in 1934 by Secretary of-

agreemen State Cordell Hull and operated successfully for 14 years “until crippled by the Republican 80th Congress.” Here is an issue on which the Democratic majorFeb. 6, the House, responding to“an appeal from President Truman for quick action, voted 316 to 92 to renew the re‘ciprocal trade law for two years, and to take out-the restrictions the 80th Congress had put into it. ~~ But Democratic leaders in the Senate chose to give priority to other issues on which their party is deeply divided. They got into a series of futile wrangles—and they let the reciprocal trade law die last June. » » . 5 . » . . NOW, IN September, with a weary Congress panting * to adjourn, Mr. Truman and his party leaders have decided to fight for Senate passage of the bill already passed by the “House. They say they are determined to make good on that ‘platform pledge, even though it may take two or three weeks to talk down Republican opposition. Well, better late than never. It seems too bad that this Senate battle over American tariff and trade policy must begin at a time when Britain's representatives will be in Washington to discuss their own financial problems, But the battle should be won. : -t And bringing the Cordell Hull reciprocal trade program - bagk to life will be an excellent way of demonstrating that America is eager to do all she prudently can to help Britain * and other friendly nations solve their- problems.

One or the Other

NEW HAMPSHIRE'S Sen. Bridges, “neutral trustee” of the United Mine Workers’ welfare and pension fund, says that he is. proud of voting with John L. Lewis to make the fund effective. That is his reply to charges by Ezra Van Horn, former trustee répresenting the.mine operators, that Sen. Bridges and Mr. Lewis, the third trustee, invariably voted together for steps that put the fund on an “unsound” basis. . The Sénator asserts that he had to vote with Mr. Lewis to break a deadlock, because Mr. Van Horn opposed every effort to make the fund fulfill its purposes. He adds that he is willing to take “any amount of personal and political abuse to help it functidh.” " i That would be all right if Sen. Bridges were not taking a $35,000-a-year fee from the fund for his services as trustee, while at the same time continuing t37sit in the Senate with a vote on legislation affecting the United Mine Workers and other labor unions. It is neither personal nor political abuse of Sen. Bridges, it is merely a plain statement of decent public policy, to sav ~-a8 we .do—that he should resign either from his UMW fund trusteeship or from the Senate.

Europe's Own Problems TWELVE Marshall. Plan countries represented, in the European assembly at Strasbourg have agreed that they must co-operate to escape economic disaster. But they are split on how to go about it. Conservative members of Britain's delegation léad a coalition ‘urging greater freedom from government regulation in intra-European trade. ‘But British Socialists oppose any program that might seem critical of their Labor government's planned economy, which controls Britain's trade through export and import’ licensing, currency regulations and customs duties. - re Ete Obviously, until our friends in Europe can settle these ‘matters among themselves, they are limiting the ability of the United States to contribute to their collective stability. “0 Si oe i : i

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The Indianapolis Times nes

Sunday, Sept. 4, 1949

MELE

1 which should and could—have been kept long ago is | . : 3 | the world's worst Congress. | |

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DEAR BOSS. . . By Dan Kidney

1950 Strategy

Blasts Democrats’ Fair Deal But Votes for Their Bills

because our Sen. Homer E. Capehart wanted Congress to quit for keeps Sept. 30, don’t get the idea that”he doesn’t like it here. The senior Senator from Indiana will do everything in his power to be renominated by the Republicans and returned for a second six-year term next year, As all the professional politicians know, the Capehart campaign hiready is under way." A case in point is the Citizens Committee for Capehart organized in Indianapolis some weeks ago with 2d District Chairman Ira Dixon as its wellpaid head man. Franked copies of Capehart Senate speeches already are blanketing the state and almost ~weekly handouts from the Senator's govern-ment-paid press agent, Charles Egenroad, reach the desks of editors all the way ‘rom Gary to Evansville, -

Adjournment Motion LATEST of these is an excerpt from the Congressional Record (not printed at government" expense) -which incorporates the senior Senator's plea for his adjournment motion. He has entitled the colloquy “Eighty-Worst Congress.” It outlines what he considers the fallure of President Truman to put his Fair Deal program acrosé in this first session of the 81st Congress, . No Senator has been more violent in denouncing this program and it may seem odd to damn the, Democrats for not passing it lock, stock and barrel, Since consistency is not usually conspicuous in politicking, however, it may not come as a. surprise to learn that the few pieces of “Fair Deal legistation that have passed the Senate hdl Sen. Capehart's support. On the domestic affairs #fide, which generally

Deal, there have been three bills voted through the Senate. They were federal housing, aid to education and the 75-cent' minimum wage.

Voted for Bills

IN EACH instance when the roll was called, Sen. Capehart was present and voted “aye.” So maybe he is sore because the whole Fair Deal hasn't been adopted. Voting on foreign relations, Sen. Capehart has only” split once with Sem William E. Jenner, his junior Republican colleague and a leader of the Senate antibipartisanship Republicans in such matters. Sen. Capehart voted for the Atlantic Pact but Sen, Jenner said “no” to this and all other foreign programs except the original GrecoTurkish loan, - When it comes to arms aid, Sem: Capehart is expected to be right back voting again with Sen. Jenner, who is ‘Credited here with being the head man of the Republican Party in Indiana despite the fact that he is the junior Senator. g In his “eighty-worst” speech. Sen, Capehart

| listed the things left undone which President

{ Truman promised to deliver in his 1948 campaign. Then he said this about Senate Majority

{Leader Scott Lucas (D. Ill):

‘Worst Congress’ “JF HE does not make a better record in the next four months than he has made in the first eight months, there is no question that the . Eighty-First Congress will be considered to be It certainly holds the record up to this time.” i During this criticism of his leadership, Sen.

WASHINGTON, Sept. 3 Dear Boss—Just

—tdm-pged-to-denote-what-is-meant by the Fair

Lucas entered the chamber and Sen. Capehart—

continued: - Sviiy “I am delighted to see that the able Senator

from Illinois has returned to the chamber. 1°

assure him that I am going to work with him to insure consideration of every bill on the

calendar. I shall vote against many of them.

{+ But never again will hé be able to stand on the

floor of the Senate and say that he is unable to get co-operation, hecause personally I am going ta see that we remain in session 10 or 12 hours a day. Iiwant to see him make-a better -.record than -he has made up to date, As I sald a moment ago, the record up to this time has been almost-as empty as the seat in which the distinguished majority leader was not sitting.” : Playing Politics repeated a charge that the President and Democrats are ‘playing politics” and then sat down while his adjournment motion was defeated. . After the Senators voted the mihimum wage increase Wednesday, the Senate went into nominal recess until next Wednesday,

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| |

Sen. Capehart didn't carryout his threat to i

object. Instexd he flew to Green Bay, Wis, with. Mrs, Capehart to visit her relatives over the long week-end.

PRODUCTION ... By Earl Richert

Farm Surplus

WASHINGTON, Sept. 3 Back in full force, after nearly 10 years’ absence, is the old problem of how to get rid of government-acquired farm surplusés It's much bigger than it was prewar, too, because the government {is buying many more farm commodities to hold up prices. And gone

from dried apricots to dark honey could be dumped overseas for relief feeding.

- Remember the food stamp plan? No one, for the présent at least, is urging re-enactment of that scheme. But one congress-

man after another -is. saying that something | nrust be worked out to get surplus perishable |

foods into the stomachs of needy Americans. -

New Farm Bill . CHAIRMAN HAROLD COOLEY (D. N.C.) of the House Agriculture Committee says this problem will. demand. the ful] attention of. the House-Senate conference committee— where the

new farm bill will be written after the Senate

.. has acted on the Anderson Bill

are the “easy” postwar days when everything’

Chairman Elmer Thomas (D. Okla.) of the Benate agriculture committee has come pp with .|

4 new scheme which he intends to try to add the Anderson bill in the Senate. He would instruct the Agriculture Department to give surplus foods to State Welfare Departments and the Bureau of Indian Affairs for | distribution to needy persons, “This wouldn't hurt the retailers any,” he sald, "because the recipients would "be people without incomes whe wouldn't be buying anyway." ; { ‘Largely a Gesture’ AGRICULTURE DEPARTMENT officials say they don't want to deflate the Senator's

to

scheme but adoption of his amendment would

be “largely a gesture.”

"We're doing now as much ‘as possible what *

1 | he suggests,” said one. | It was admitted, however, that the Department doesn’t go to a State Welfare Agency and ask it to take surplus dried eggs, for example, | for distribution to persons on relief rolls. Most of the surpluses that are given away go to in-

|

Agriculture officials think that their boss, Secretary Charles Brannan, has the ideal

stitutions and the federal school-lunch program. |

scheme in propesing to let prices of perishable | farm commodities fall to their market levels |

and pay the farmers the difference between the price received and the government support price;

This way, the government wouldn't acquire any -

surplus of .perishables. Senator George Aiken, (R.. Vt.) has his own scheme of disposing of these surpluses. It has received a lot of comment, but no legislative attention. It would set up a “minimum national | diet.” If 40 per cent of a family's income failed to provide enough food to meet the diet, the family could get coupons from the government for the additional food needed.

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(Note: The story of Fanny Van de Grift, the precocious Indianapolis Girl who later married Robert Louls Stevenson, told in this column several weesk ago, brought a letter from Mrs. Stevenson's daughter, Mrs. Salisbury (Isobel) Field, who now lives in California. Today's column concerns Mrs, Field's letter in which she corrected earlier impressions. here about Mrs. Stevenson's criticism of the author's first draft of his “Dr, Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.” The original story related that Mrs. Stevenson's criticism of the author's first draft of the novel caused Mr. Stevenson to burn up the manuscript. Mrs. Field's letter gives a new angle.)

MY VOICE is vibrant with tender emotion today, all because of a distinguished lady's message which I received by way of an accommodating pixie in the person of my post man, a ? The letter (postmarked California): “A friend sent me an article you wrote about my mother — Mrs. Robert Louis _Stevenson— so charming and interesting that I was surprised to find an oid “spite” story. revived. . . ) “As you know, R. L. 8. dreamed the story of ‘Dr. : Jekyll and -Mr, Hyde’ and was so excited tha he sat up In bed and wrote it out in about two sheets of MS. paper. What he dreamed was

_that”a man changed from his good to his evil

nature by taking a drug. He sent the two sheets to his wife who was dressing in another room, He had written that it would make a good magazine article. She sent the paper back with a penciled note saying it was too good for a magazing—begging him not to send it to Cornhill, but to make a novel of it. >

“The maid Valentine took her note back to R. L. 8. and saw him throw the sheets into the fire. My mother hurrying to his room was appalled by what he had done, but he reassured her. He would take her advice and not sacrifice’ good material on a magazine article.

‘You Write It’

“WHEN the novel was finished, which it was very soon, he gave her the MS to read and sald: ‘Have you any criticisms?’ She read it and sald she had. He had described Mr. Hyde as doing terrible things. At least one of his evil deeds should be told and not left to the imagination "of the reader. Her husband sald: ‘You write it. And she did. ; “The account of Hyde tramping on a fallen child was written by Fanny Stevenson and he

left it in with no corrections. The story ia not

hearsay. I heard my stepfather tell it several times—to an Irish poet who visited Samoa and took that long journey to meet ‘The Master,’ and to various authors who came to the Oxford Hotel in Sydney to pay their respects to R. L. 8. and, of course, to ask many questions about his books. : ———n "I . “I am writing you this long letter because you write well and entertainingly. Your description of Fanny Van de Grift's childhood in Indianapolis was true, and I could not bear to have you think she was anything but a devoted admiring wife to R. L.,S8. to the day of his death.

Maid Sent Home

“THE maid Valentine, a middle-aged, very plain French woman, was taken on the Casco with the Stevenson party, but she made so much trouble between the sailors and the captain that she was sent home when they reached Honolulu. I overheard R. L. 8. say to her when she was impertinent: ‘Another word out of you, Valentime, and I open your boxes!" (In case you youngsters have to be told, the Casco was the vessel Fanny Stevenson chartered for the South Sea Islands. crulse,) Ni “The Stevenson love story was as beautiful

and romantic as that of the Brownings. Some day it will be written. “Yours sincerely, Isobel Field.”

The significance of Mrs. Salisbury (Isobel) Field's letter is, of course, the established fact that nobody living today is in a beétiér position

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Capehart Maps oor of Opportunity

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OUR TOWN .-. . By Anton Scherrer

New Angle on ‘Dr. Jekyll, Mr.Hyde’

“

to tell the story of Robert Louis Stevenson and his wife, the Indianapolis-born Fanny Vandegrift (colloquial spelling). Isobel, the -first_of Fanny's children, was born 90 years ago (or thereabouts) in a trim little white cottage at St. Clair and Tennessee Sts., Where the Kahn people now do.business. Her father was Samuel Oshourne, who had served two Indiana governors as private secretary. : Thus, Mrs. Field's richly endowed memory

reached back to include not only the two decades |

of her mother's marriage to Samuel Osbourne, but also the courtship and subsequent marriage to Robert Louis Stevenson. Indeed, Isobel was a young lady of 17 or thereabouts when her mother first laid eyes on R. L. 8. in Grez, a village hidden in Fontainebleau Forest qn the river Loing.

When Fanny and her two children, Isobel

and Lloyd, ‘arrived in Grez, they found in the recommended inn only one guest, a young American student—Walter Palmer by mame. Mr. Palmer, it appears, belonged to a congenial group of young men, four in number and for the most part. artists, who had a habit of spending their summers in Grez. Except for Mr. Palmer, who had lingered to paint one more picture of the lovely river garden, the group had returned to Paris to resume studies. When news reached them that an American woman had invaded Grez, a thing unheard of up

. tb that time, they sent a scout in the person of

Robert Aalan Mowbray Stevenson to learn what was delaying Mr. Palmer's return. When “Bob” Stevenson failed .to return, they sent

“another ‘scout—this time Sir Walter Simpson.

He didn’t come back either. ‘That left only one member of the group in Paris.

Party of Carefree Men

ONE evening in the late summer of 1876, the little party—three jolly carefree men, two American children and their Indianapolis-born mother—sat at the supper table in Grez. The air was soft and velvety. Outside, the fireflies were playing. Inside, the lamps had just been

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A daughter describes romance Bf her inothae

Suddenly a spasm of coughing was heard and looking through the open doorway, Isobel saw a tall, tired man (possibly 10 years her mother's junior) come lumbering up the path, He turned out to be Robert Louis Stevenson, an obscure author, who up to that time had relatively little of his work published. He had come to learn the whereabouts of his cousin

and the other scout sent in search of Walter

Palmer, Te — A courtship with such an auspicious start (and subsequent sustained continuity) goes far to support Isobel Field's sound conviction that

- “the Stevenson love story was as beautiful and

romantic’ as that of the Brownings.” Indeed I,

for one, like it even better.

“Mrs. Fanny Van de Grift Stevenson.

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_|-_poor, weary trolley riders. &

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| Hoosier Forum

“I dé not agree with a word that you say, but | will defend to the death your right to say i*

By Marion Blakeslee, 740; Weghorst St. To Indianapolis Railways Co.: I ride the Minnesota trolley, and this morn. ing had to wait 35 minutes for one, i Soule t be writin u if this were the . time I Hoi of ation service,

;

late many times. Just when I think I have figured it out, something like this ‘morning happens. - :. PENNE RADON. ov time you raise, the fare, the service gets worse, The most arrangement in regard to your schedule is having two or three trolleys come in a bunch. The first is packed, the second somewhat full, and the third has many empty seats. Maybe I have no head for business, but I don't see anything but poor-management in that kind of a

the fare in order to make any money. Why not stagger the trolleys, and let each one carry a comfortable load—meaning each seat occupled? If some of your officials could or would ride one of ‘your vehicles at the rush hour, you might learn something. We riders are not fooled by your various . excuses, when with our own eyes we see so much évidence of incompetent management. All your promises of more and-better vehicles, po. lite and careful drivers, and complaints of a drop in patronage, add up to just one thing— another raise in fare. I sure did not get my 11 cents’ worth this, morning. And I would just like to hear a reasonable explanation for this _ morning’s miserable service. Both my boss and I are patient souls but the Indianapolis Ratl« ways is enough to try the patience of a saint, Under those conditions, I think the least you could do is erect benches and. shelters for us

‘Ex-Hoosier in Sorry Plight’ By G. Mattison, 3845 Woodstock Drive I have neither the time nor .the length of

" |"typewriter ribbon necessary to make a remark

.on each statement made by “Ex-Hoosier” in Hoosier Forum recently, but I will say that I am glad this person has made himself an ex‘Hoosier. I would absolutely hate the thought of that poor man living in a town that so bothered him. : . Imagine the poor -soul walking down the street, eyes constantly trained upward to fore stall any possible “pigeon droppings.” , Perhaps even carrying an umbrella. And the amount of eye strain he would contract from staring protractedly into police cars to see whether, concealed about the vehicle, there were several dozen females. This poor human, ‘who is now “ex” to our lovely state, would be loaded down with numerous -articles if he lived in Indian. apolis.

His daily walks would be accompanied by a gas mask to be worn constantly so that our “polluetd air” would not affect him; ear plugs, to cut out the “petty bickerings” of our judges; a large supply of pamphlets, to be given out at random, on “How to Acquire Civic Pride”; a .long (unsigneéd) petition for the return of John Gunther to the “dirtiest city inside U.. 8. A:" * This may be so, this tirade of “facts” that Ex-Hoosier puts before us, but they can all be

| found in the pages of any Hoosier newspaper,

and it's tRe Hoosiers that want them bettered. Perhaps we overlook them occasionally because «+ +» well, they say Jove is blind.

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WORLD TRADE . . . By Charles Lucey British Crisi WASHINGTON, Sept. 3-—A British pledge to cut government spending probably will be the first proposition laid on the barrelhead at forthcoming talks here on Britain's economic crisis, Then the British delegation, headed by Foreign Minister Ernest-Bevin and economic boss -8ir. Stafford Cripps, is expected to propose-dis-cussion on such other matters-as: U. 8. action to give Britain better tariff and customs treatment. This is not just a question of paring the average 25-30 per cent tariff squeeze, but of changed attitudes, too. The Brit-

is so tough as to make it seem the U. 8. “doesn’t want to buy anything from anybody.”

materials—tin, rubber and a dozen others—from the British Empire. "The British fear depressed prices and apparently would like to see some kind of price guarantee.

‘More U. S. Capital

ENCOURAGEMENT of greater investment

, .of U. 8. private capital abroad. Some British

officials say our role in the world néw should be the same as that of Britain a century, ago when she was financing railroads, cattle ranching, mining and other developments afound the globe—including the Us 8. The British figure that: no matter where U. 8. dollars are spent, some of them will flow into the British-sterling area. Furtherance of the Truman Point Four pro-« gram for development of the world's backward areas. Here again, Britain figures that dollars spent abroad anywhere would help in some de-« gree within the British commonwealth. British sources say there is no thought of coming here for a loan. The British themselves are said to feel now this would be no solution at this point, and they are good enough politicians to know there would be violent opposition to such a proposal-in Congress,

Must Cut Spending

ON THE MATTER of cutting back gavern=ment spending at home, it is not merely a trading point—the British know they've got to do it regardless. There are suggestions of Britain cutting those taxes which affect produétion costs, and of getting costs down so British goods can compete in dollar markets. This is one of

Buying more raw materials to pour additional dollars abroad is no easy way out. Congress would hdve to pass on any expanded program and put up the money for it. : --On the British side, there has been some critieism of U. 8. businessmen for heing rather timid about going abroad with risk capital—a contention that U. 8. capital is so much concerned with security that it”is unwilling to take calculated:

| risks. : ‘One reply is that the “climate” for prudent socializa-

‘risks in England and elsewhere, with tion and nationalization rising, is hardly aging. British officials agree on the need to cut production costs on goods to be sold in this bountry. But they seem to place even more emphasis on the need to do a smarter selling job—better packaging,

. \

‘Waited 35 Minutes on Trolley’ |

set-up; No wonder you have to keep raising

ish say our tariff and customs administration

A long-range program of buying needed raw -

the fundamental approaches to British troubles... -

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Key Crisi Talks Rolie

WASH next week's U. 8.

~~“ Britishacti

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