Indianapolis Times, Indianapolis, Marion County, 10 February 1950 — Page 22

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A SCRIPPS-ROWARD NEWSPAPER ROY W. HOWARD WALTER LECKRONE

. President

3 ; edica daily $1.10 » month. Sunday. i0e a - Telephone RI ley 5851

@ive Ions and the Paosia Will Find The Own Wes

The Indianapolis Times Fre edonin u. Sr

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HENRY W. MANZ Editor Business Manager

PAGE 22

iv by Indianspoits mes Publish. ied and published dauy, Fi Jblen, Alliange.. NEA Serv:

“Press, Biren of ¢ ward hr cone BE Audit Buresu of Circulations

Price. In M rion County. § certs a sopy. for “Bally and tor Bundey; ry ye daily a .

ally dally aud | gr all Ay. $10.00 a possessions, “Canada and

Economics . . nd Potatoes a XE Wr NOTE with interest that our eorTespondent. Mrs.

Eleanor Roosevelt, has been giving some thought to the potato problem, and while she doesn’t exactly seem to have it solved she does come presently to the same conclusion we did, which is that our government's policy on potatoés Ik a very wasteful policy.

“Fhe policy

in & nut-shell {and no pun intended) is to

buy dt a guaranteed high price all the potatoes there are. It is the same as our policy on eggs and grapefruit and a long list of other foods and it is intended to keep the price

of food high. It has worked so well on eggs, for instance, 2 Ee that an egg now costs the average taxpayer about the same

whether he eats it or not, because if he doesn’t feel he can afford to eat it the government will buy it, with his money, and throw it away. It has worked so well on potatoes that ¢ our government is fight now getting ready to destroy 40 or 50 million bushels it has bought at a high price and not only can't sell but __ can't give away though it continues to buy more as fast as they are offered for sale. That same day we hear about the arrival in New Orleans of a big shipment of potatoes imported from Canada where it seems you can buy potatoes so cheap that even with a couple of thousand miles of freight charges and a big tariff paid, they still cost less than the price our government inisla we ought to pay here.

* ALL this would seem to indicate that our farmers are growing too many potatoes, although our farmers, who _- know a good thing when they see one, are likely to go right on growing potatoes as long as they are guaranteed a high price for all they can produce. The waste that we, and Mrs. Roosevelt, deplore obviously begins right there, in the paying of our money to encourage the production of food that can't be used.

There used

to be a natural law that took care of such

situations. When there were too many potatoes, for in-

stance, the price fell, and farmers, finding the lower price unfittractive, didn't grow so many, and a quick balance was achieved, and a fair price, also.

‘So we can't

proposal that what we need to deal with this is “a food and

completely go along with Mrs. Roosevelt's

agriculture commission of our own.” Séems to us that's what got us into this mess in the first place.

! How about

Think for

= Veterans Administration spends taxpayers’ money at a rate of over $6 billion a year.

inefficiency and

just letting potatoes alone, for awhile?

Yourselves

1 The Hoover Commission found shocking conditions of

waste in the Veterans Administration.

= The commission's task force which studied the Veterans Administration was headed by Col. Franklin [’Olier, first nafional commander of the American Legion. Most of its mdmbers also were veterans. The commission's proposals for making the Veterans the pursuit of truth is stopped and the minds Administration less wasteful and better able to serve the volerasia w were based on the recommendations of this task

—fotce.-

: YET the re Legion's present SRA commandet, George N. Craig, now charges—

: That the “authors and proponents” of the Hoover Com-

isin’ proposals are “men without experience in the mat-

Friday, Feb. 10, 1950

Schools Urged

Report Warns Against =

Censorship and Control =~ rg

: WASHINGTON, Feb. 10 Dear Boss: Amer-

ican school teachers cannot teach freedom un-.

less they themselves feel free. Present tensions may cause hysterical erackdowns’ on free teaching and graye danger to

democracy. in our time, Such, In substance, are the Education Ear! J. McGrath as contained in 4 report today to Federal Security Administra- ~ tor Oscar R. Ewing. Mr. MeGrath succeeded John Studebaker of Iowa as head of the office of education when Mr. Studebaker resigned in a row over what he termed Mr. Ewing’s “dictatorship.” The McGrath report opposes dictatorship of all kinds and frankly agrees that a party-line Communist has no business being a teacher in the public schoels. Here Is why: “The Communist embraces and teaches dogma. He Is, by his party membership and sympathy, committed to a closed system of thought. He had given his allegiance to.a predetermined

Mr. MeGratk

—set—of -principles-which-are-not—to-be-evatuated———

In the light of evidence or examined on the bagis of results. He is not free to serve the truth as the evidence may uncover the truth. He has therefore surrendered his right to teach in a pation of free people.” :

Teaching Freedom

WITH the Communist question disposed of Commissioner McGrath moves into other fields

—of dictatorship which thireaten teaching free-

dom. “In our efforts to avoid one danger, we must not embrace another,” he warns. “The pres-

-ent period of hysterical concern must not betray

us into adopting measures of censorship and control which are the essence of the police state, “Some persons have the unfortunate tendency to label as communistic évery idea which they happen to dislike. This form of intimidation through vilification is just as objectionable and just as stultifying as the closed-mindedness of the Communist. Under no circumstances must we permit the constructive effort to keep .the schools. free of Communist domination to «ead, by almost imperceptible steps, to the establishing of thought-control and the limitation of acaderhie freedom In our schools and colleges. .

Rare Quality

findings of Commissioner of =

“THERE are many citizens, many of whom oo

— vigorously deplore communism, who have that relatively rare and highly desirable quality of critical loyalty which enables them to support the nation and social institutions which at the same time they are working fo Improve. r “To create a more perfect union . . . to promote the general welfare . . . to secure the blessings of liberty . , , are fundamental Amerfcan objectives. No person of sober thought could suggest that these ideals have as yet been fully realized. The teacher who is free to ald students in analyzing both the strengths and weaknesses of American life is In a position to train the kind of leadership which will make tomorrow better than today. “Any attempted intimidation of the teacher, any effort to break the independent spirit or quiet the inquiring mind, is more than a viola-

- tion of academic freedom: It Is a betrayal of

American youtn,, And therefore America’s future . . po 2

Minds Perverted

“WHEN the dissident opinion Ff minority groups or Individuals is killed or suppressed,

of children are perverted. “As we fight communism let us beware lest

~ we create our own kind of police state, If, in

-our-efforts-to defeat totalitarianism, we become - totalitarian, we have lost the battle. The nonconformist teacher must not be attacked and his character besmirched merely because he differs from others.

“Teachers rightly repudiating ‘the Communist

Party line must not be subjected to the line of some other party or of a pressure group or

waffairs’ = He That the Citizens Committee for the Hoover report

‘seeks to “destroy and dismember” the Veterans Administration and to bring the veterans into “disrepute.” That the committee and its “paid hirelings” are trying o. "flood the nation with propaganda composed of halftriths and jalsehoods, ”

i THERE are some 19,000,000 living veterans: in this cotintry. If they, or any large proportion of them, actually believe Commander-Craig’s charges they doubtiess can bring” —to;bear on Congress such pressure that the Hoover Commis“sion’s proposals will be turned down. ~~

their own best citizens.

————e—Buat-if they-do-that they-will- in-our-opinion be defeating —

interests as veterans, as taxpayers and as

— We urge the veterans to think for themselves—to study

the proposals carefully and form their own opinions. ; :

= THEY "will find, we believe, no suggestion that any serv-

ice or benefit. to. veterans. should be-abolished or: opgailed;— no: real basis for fear that the Veterans Adniin

ation

would be destroyed, dismembered or deprived of effective control over any of the functions it now performs.

. They will find that the proposals’ whole and only pur- -

pose ig to stop waste, improve the quality of hospital, insur“ance, housing and other services, and help the veterans to: get full value from each tax dollar spent o on their behalf.

Keep Them Here OON after the war, the United States and Russia started a race to grab off the best scientists of Germany.

There has

been considerable speculation which coun-

try won this peculiar contest for the brains of a defeated country. But judging from the news story yesterday by Seripps-Howard Staff Writer Jim Lucas we've done all right. : In fact, science-wise we've got a tiger by the tail. About

500 of our imported experts now know so many of our mili-

tary secrets that we can’t risk letting the scientists go home,

_ They came voluntarily, and under their contracts they’ re en-

titled to return.

ol BUT if they went back they'd be welcomed with open rms by the Russians and milked not only of their scientific rls but of the information they have picked up in

this country.

As for their ‘value, a War Department report in 1947 said they had put the United States 10 years ahead of schedule in some fields of research and had saved millions in

research costs. They have

contributed greatly to developments in the

Sdlaety of supersonic planes, jet engines, guided missiles, pho- -

~ tography, meteoro!

We hope the government will see that they don’t

logy, metallurgy’ and textiles. : get

_ away from us. particularly now. Not only do we need them, Dev Saige sy ime do Surin anise Kinin Puch ta Biman,

CIARE OF race. A free soclely must be made up of free men. There is no other way.” » While this is good old American doctrine, there may be some men in Congress today who. might consider it so sinister as to demand an Investigation of both Commissioner McGrath and Jack Ewing, as they used to call him back in Greensburg and at IU,

ASIA DEFENSE . . . By Clyde Farnsworth

TAIPEH, Formosa, Feb. 10—The fate of Formosa hangs by--- ~ two threads— economic and military, They are intertwined. If one breaks, the other also will snap. Of the two the economic

thread appears to be the weaker.

The Chinese Nationalist strength for military defense isn't determined yet but it seems to be growing. [There are signs of

_ heightened morale in the

armed services, of co-operation for

Formosa as well

Tin hi hen end

TL i

EL A

SS 18 J

LY, ie

et md eb A A bn A rem

Ld es sl

How to Make’ a Potato Souffle Sem

= ~ADD. 219 MILLION DOZEN EGGS-

AND Q6 MILLION POUNDS OF BUTTERPLACE IN

4 3 ATH + Bu

BUILDING LOAN PROGRAM . Co-operative Housing Opposed

WASHINGTON, Feb. 10-The housing industry is making an all-out attack on the administration’s bill to create co-operative housing projects for middle-income families. The proposal under fire would set up a new government corporation, which would borrow $2 billion from private sources and thes lend this

Spokesmen for major building and real estate groups can see nothing worthwhile or necessary about the proposed program.

Their main objections: It is not necessary. :

It provides for basically direct mortgage lending’ by the government. It is class legislation. It will provide an over-expansion of mortgage credit. It will make the government compete with itself —3 per cent loans to co-ops will conflict with VA and FHA-underwritten loans for 4 and 415 per cent. There is little demand from the people for co-operative housing. And, finally, private industry is providing adequate financing for housing for middle-income families.

‘Live in Groups’

“THE proposed bill has the effect of encouraging people hy unnecessary and unwarranted preferences to live in groups as against the traditional American patterns of living.” John C. Thompson, West Caldwell, N. J., told the House Banking Committee. Mr. Thompson, who appeared as spokesman for the National Association of Real Estate Boards, said the real estate and building groups were not opposed to co-operative housing as such. They oppose the bill, he said, because it provides “absolutely unnecessary” financing of

co-operative housing.

Mr. Thompson said he would like to have “docurientary evidence to Show there 18 a L general demand for the proposal. Most of the pressure, he said, comes from labor unions with tax-exempt incomes and surplus funds which they could Invest in rental housing. “It is rather ironic that so few of these

_ unions testify to a critical need for middle.

income housing invest their funds in residential rental property,” he said. Many unions, however, were investing in office buildings which are not under rent controls, he said.

Discrimination Charged HE charged that the bill was discriminatory in many ways, particularly in that it defines the

SIDE GI ANCES

. By Earl Richert

types of organizations which may secure the proposed mortgage money. “It attempts to create groups of people that presently de not exist and it discriminates against the individual in favor of those groups,” Mr. Thompson said. (The administration says residents of co-operatives would get $6000-to-housing units about 25 per cent than in the private market because of the lower interest rates and other savings). Mr. Thompson said a 428-city survey showed that 45 per cent of the new homes being constructed today sell in the $6500 to $8000 price class, the same class as would be covered by the co-op housing program. " " The House of Representatives last year defeated a proposal to advance up to $1 billion in direct loans for co-operative housing. The new proposal seeks to skirt the objection to direct loans by having the new corporation borrow the money, with the government guaranteeing the bonds to be sold by the corporation.

‘Just a Sham’

MR. THOMPSON. contended that this was

just a sham, that the proposed plan would still be direct government lending. He said taxes represent $3000. in the cost of a $10,000 house, and that if Congress wanted to lower housing costs it could do it by making lower taxes possible,

What Others Say—

. WE are convinced . . . that the majority of the members of Congress want to see the vari-

“ous (Hoover) reorganization plans go through. Ta We know. that most of their constituents are sold on the idea of greater economies im all the executive branches of the federal government. Robert Johnson of Temple Uni-

~President versity.

that the workmen are inclined to vote for anyone who promises them free services from a federal bureau.—Sen. Robert Taft (R. Ohio)

THE steel industry is not justified in levying a new tax on the economic system of the United States.—Sen. Joseph O'Mahoney (D. Wyoming), on steel price hike.

been your daughter whom he abused in his

“I do not agree with a word that you say, but | will defend fo the death your right fo say it." Semm——————

‘Keep Bu Bonds’ ep Buying Haggerty, City ; Our government cannot and will not ge

broke just so long as 60 million good Americans

keep on buying U. 8. bonds. They know this is the safest, best investment one can make. The bigwig with a bloated pocketbook would like to

Hoosier Forum

scare these 60 million hard-working as 10

into cashing their bonds and buying no more

‘because, you see, they have billions of idle dol- * lars that they would like to loan their govern. ment because it is safe. They would also like to _... name their own rate of interest and brother

thére iswt a loan shark in. the country who would have the courage to ask a higher rate, Then they would like to sit back and twiddle their thumbs and see 60 million hard-working

Americans pay them “this exhorbitant rate of in-

terest. These people who are always worrying about our future generation and what will become of our grandchildren are not worried about our future generation. I have heard no one except the Republican leaders worrying about the future generation out of one corner of their mouth and future elections out of thé other, That is the whole thing in a nutshell folks—future elections, And since there hasn’t been a Republican occu pying the White House for 20 years, some are worried there will never be another.

The Democratic leaders ‘know they can't:

starve the present generation and raise a good crop of grandchildren so they are trying to take

take care of themselves,

‘Wholesale Destruction’ By Charles W. Burton, 911 E. Maryland St. In regard to ‘the building of the hydrogen bomb, 1000 times more devastating than the atom bomb, it must be intended for any unconventional country that does not believe in the American way of life. During World War I gas was used and left

the victim maimed for life. So gas was not used

in World War II as ‘it was inhumane. But when the atom bomb was perfected this country had to try it out on human beings. After this Hbomb is perfected, tested, and in mass produc. tion, it will then be produced in huge quantities, shipped to our established bases and lines of defense that form a huge arsenal around the world. : After the first bomb is dropped, both sides will unleash a wholesale amount of destruction and bombs that will annihilate our bases and the people. When this insane atom and hydrogen bomb war is over and an inventory is taken of

the remains, they will find few people all over:

tne world able to work and produce the thingy necessary to sustain life.

‘Keep Stephenson in Jail’ By John J. Holmes, Kingsley Drive Keep D. C. Stephenson in jail where he belongs. How would you feel about it if it had

abnormal fashion resulting in her death. In his bulldog way he keeps fighting to get out. What if other murderers kept up this constant fighting. If we let him out, then open the doors of all prisons and let everyone out, lifers and all, All guilty of murder should go free if Stephen son is freed, and I am certain that the Clemency Board will again reject his plea if they have a drop of blood in their veins,

WHAT DO WE NEED IN 1950?

Less Accidents

~By Joseph M. Howard, Judge of Municipal Court 8 What Indianapolis needs more than anything else in 1950 is less traffic accidents, and to accomplish this there has to be full co-operation between the motorists, the traffic officer, and the courts. Indianapolis needs this co-operation. With the disgraceful nume ber of property damage accle dents, ‘personal injuries and —-deaths caused by the careless and reckless motorist, I think ‘every good citizen of this city should carry this indelibly impressed upon his mind every Judge Howard day of 1950: “I will obey every traffie

“to do to me.”

What are your ideas on ways to Improve If

dianapolis during 1950? Send your sugges-

*, tions to:

“1950 Editor,” The Times, 214 W. Maryland st.

By Galbraith CHEAP DOLLARS... By Fred W. Perkins

as for

“Retirement ‘Losses’

% WASHINGTON, Feb. 10--Lots of ‘people have felt the lure of ‘advertisements telling how a man can buy a retirement income _ fand-ietirevyoung'¥nough to enjoy a lazy = “ te on a beach or ranch. - The trouble is that the dollar isn't what it used to be. A man . who cashes in this year on an annuity he began to buy 20 years ago finds he is getting dollars worth not much more than

‘ployers find it necessary to

1 will Ee others as I would want others

- Which wis

between islanders and mainland newcomers and of ingenlous self- Thelin MERIAL com-

LI » 3 : MEANWHILE, there are national and provincial budgets to. balance, agricultural production to be increased, foreign exchange to be won and conserved and expenses of defense to be met, if Formosa is to survive. Life could be squeezed out of Formosa's resistance by economic pressures, looks as if the Communists may be counting on that to win this rich and strategically placed Pacific island. While the armies are being” trained better than they ‘ever were in China, while shore defenses are being raised and while materials and weapons of war ingeniously are being extracted from Japanese leftovers, as well as from rusting piles of Pacific war junk sold to the Nationalist government by the United States, the economic problem has emerged to haunt the Nationalists. . "o» . A GRANT of $28 million

from the, Economic Co-opera- : | ; creased to 6 million, but the

tion Administration will not solve this problem. The as-

sistance would last until June.

But Formosa needs more than the gradual effects of rural rehabilitation, the shipments of fertilizers and the lift in basic

commodities which that $28 ° million is expected to provide.

According - to Formosa's

_ hard-driving governor, K. C. : Wu, the island needs revival of

‘the ECA rehabilitation plan Shelved last pring

Er es

and jt ’

China's mainland. ‘Many of the Nationalist arguments have been directed

$100 ‘miljion_ for industrial rehabilitation which, although allocated to China by the ECA, is now frozen (Congress is considering a bill to extend the expiration date to June 30.)

. -n & ~ ” \ : . MR. WU feels that if such

an allocation is spent. on the .

rehabilitation of Formosa's in-

‘dustries, transport and power

supply, it probably would make within two years—and Formosa could get off the American dole. Formosa's economy is basically agricultural. The economic situation can be appreclated through a few simple

‘statistics.

‘When Japan detached For-

mosa. from China in 1895, the -

island's population was less

‘than 2 million. Formosa then

island was such a surplus ares that ‘its sugar and rice were

making up deficits in the Jap- - anese home islands.

«Just after Japan’ went to war against China in 1937,

ning release. of. about...

Formosa self-sufficient

ore 1940 IY WIA SERVICE. 8. 1. W.REQ. U & PAT. OFF.

“Your personality has made quite a favorable impression on

2:10

my niece, Mr. Baldwin—aren't you the young man with the 1950 convertible?"

bombers, there was a sharp decline in However, the Chinese Nationalist _ government, starting in 1945, "made considerable progress in rehabilitation. oh Pr a LAST year's results were 600,000 tons of sugar and 1 1210,000 tons of © rice. For this,

invested, as against a peak investment of 600,000 tons under

duction under the Japanese. The population increase since 1945 to about 7,500,000, counting perhaps 300,000 Na-

. . tionalist troops, has been a drag on Formosa's reviving

economy, Te wi . The Nationalist government has driven through a firm pro- - gram of rural rent reduction, -

habilitation.

" half the ones he paid in. For

“*jnstance, a $200-a-month an- " nuity now buys only 59 per pro 0ent=4$118)—as- muchas. it...

would have bought in 1939. > . =» =»

THAT year is used because it is the base year for living-

tics. It says the 1950 dollar

represents only 59 per cent of

the 1939 dollar - power. These facts are being included in testimony before the Senate Finance Committee, which is considering a broadening of the Federal ‘Social Security system. If a man retires this year at 65 and with his wife is entitled to draw $60 a month from a system that he helped finance with deductions from his pay. What they get will amount to only $3540 a month on the basis of the dollar's value 11 years ago.

. . = THE change is disturbing

in buying

also to the insurance compa- -

nies that have sold annuity policies to individuals and

handled the group plans part-

ly financed by employers.

~— Thomas I. Parkinson, presi-

Assurance Society of the «+ U. 8, has been among those who have attacked ‘the inflationary policies of the government, saying they “dilute the purchasing power of the savings entrusted to insurance ~ companies and tend toward an

SRE vs

add to the normal retirement benefits. -In a majority of cases employees are permitted 10. defer retirement because

are inadequate.

It can work both ways, too; For example: A man is financing his home through a mortgage loan made by" an insurance company. He has a personal annuity contract with. the same: company. He knows that when his annuity becomes payable the dollars he gets won't be worth as

- much as most of those he in-

vested.

is collecting low-value dollars on a .loan negotiated when dollars had nearly twice the

purchasing Power they now.

have, CI

ANNUITY contracts almost tripled in number in the past dozen years. But the annuity business isn’t doing 50 well. One agent who wrote $750,000 worth of business in 1947, nearly all of it in annuities, did the same volume last year, hut only 25 per cent of it was in annuities. He made the volume by selling ordinary life policies. Insurance men say the de-

cline in annuity business is

due not so much to the ‘ing value of the dollar as te two other factors—low interest rates on investments of

insurance companies, and

Zreatey life expectancies.

These make annuities cost

—-aare-of-the-present-and let .the future generation --

the pensions to be provided =