Indianapolis Times, Indianapolis, Marion County, 10 August 1952 — Page 18

‘The Indianapolis Times

ROY W. HOWARD WALTER LECKRONE HENRY W. MANZ President

Editor Business Manager

PAGE 18 Sunday, Aug. 10, 1952

Owned and bits dally by indiana ing Co. 214 Maryland St. Postal United Press Scripps-Howard Newspaper Alliance ice and Audit Bureau of Circulation

11s mes Publish. one 9. Member of NEA B8erv-

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tor Sunday; delivered by carrier daily and Sun week, daily only 38¢c, Sunday only J0c Mall rates in indians daily and Sunday $10.00 a year. daily $5.00 a year Sunday only $5.00; al her states, U 8. possessions, Canada and Mexico daily $1.10 a month. Sunday 100 » copy

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The Fog About Prices

E hear on every hand, these days, that prices, especially food prices are “now the highest in all history” —and are going higher. Checking back, if you want to bother, you'll find that this report, invariably, comes originally from some federal government agency, quite often the Bureau of Labor Statistics, which keeps surveying such things. President Truman has been talking about- calling a al session of Congress “to do something about these just before election time, a stunt which worked four years ago. Our Washington Bureau (Washington Calling, on the next page), finds that the new administration “party line” will be to blame these high prices on the Republicans on the grounds that they took off “price controls’ on many items.

. . ”

gpeci prices” rather well for him

” ~ » FEW have questioned the story about the “highest

prices in history.” : Except as a trick of figure juggling it isn’t true. Far from being the “highest,” prices are actually lower than they have been in a dozen years, especially food prices. The administration is simply trying . .. and to a large extent succeeding . . . in getting them all fogged up in. a smokescreen of rubber dollars. Try translating the BLS’ own figures into hours of work and the result is quite different. In 1940, for example, one hour’s pay for the average worker in Indianapolis would buy 1.825 dozen eggs—today it will buy 2.633 dozen. In 1940 it would buy five quarts of milk—today it will buy six and a half quarts. In 1940 it would buy 1.3 pounds of butter. Today it will buy 1.8 pounds. Those prices are not up—they are down. Here and there a price is up slightly, by the same honest yardstick. Round steak, today, costs the average worker about six minutes more work per pound than it did 12 years ago. Potatoes, manipulated into artificial scarcity by governmental “controls” and at seasonal peak anyway, are up about a minute's work for two pounds above the 1940 all-year averages. Nearly everything else is down, in terms of today’s real income. The home that sold for $7300 in 1940 costs about twice as much in dollars today—around $14,600. In 1940 it cost the average Indianapolis worker 10,000 hours’ pay. Today it costs him 8500 hours’ pay. Up? Not at all— down around 15 per cent.

WHAT the federal administration is doing, of course, is measuring 1952 prices in terms of 1940 dollars. With that kind of statistical juggling you can get any result you may want. Even a special session of Congress in an election year,

maybe.

Advice From Abroad

D® L. DUDLEY STAMP, professor of social geography at the London School of Economics, and one of the world's leading authorities on the utilization of land, suggests the United States may be spending money abroad which could be used to better advantage here at home. The Amazon Valley, where Point Four funds are being spent, he pointed out, is a tropical area with equatorial damp and heat that cannot be altered by any amount of money. The Mississippi Valley, on the other hand, has a climate and soil type highly favorable to the production of food, but is now underdeveloped, he said. » " . ~ » . DR. STAMP estimated the Mississippi Valley alone should be able to provide enough food for 500 million people, with proper land utilization. If increased food production is our aim, that is the place to get it, he said. Another visiting scientist, attending the meeting in New York of the American Geographical Society, cautioned the United States might be rushing into the Point Four program too fast. He remarked we were spending money in Liberia, when we do not even have a good land map of that country. An American making such statements as these would be denounced as an isolationist. But the Trumans and the Harrimans cannot very well pin such a label on English and Dutch scientists who are concerned about how best to supply the world's food needs. 5 . . 8 ~ ~ 4 THE LATE Dr. H. G. Bennett, who headed the Point Four program until his death in an airplane accident last year, did his best to keep this program on a sane, realistic basis. But he was under the constant fire of the ‘eager beavers’ who insisted on spending a lot of money in a hurry, and since his death all brakes have been off. The next President, whoever he is, should call a halt to-all these programs until he has had a chance to look them over. He might even be able to save enough money to begin thinking about balancing the budget.

RnR Sen ad AEE

HAMLET: Do “you see that cloud that's almost in the shape of a camel? Polonius: By the mass, and it's like a camel, indeed. Hamlet: Methinks it is like a weasel. Polonius: It is back'd like a weasel. Hamlet: Or like a whale? Polonius: Very like a whale. —Hamlet, Act III, William Shakespeare.

WE CITE the bard merely to show that the amazing ~ ability of people to see spaceships and saucers, flying in formation, in every stray blob of light or misplaced mirage

is a feat of imagination neither new nor uniquely American. ‘wants to see; in 1952, ap-

LL Messe.

parently, he wants to ses saucers.

PLAYING POLITICS? . . . By Charles Egger

Truman’s ‘Campaign Year’ Speci

WASHINGTON — With President Truman talking about calling Congress into extra session, you might think he has a wistful hankering for a repeat of the “turnip day” special of 1948, That was the 11-day wonder that Mr. Truman later used to focus his campaign attack on the Republican-controlled 80th Congress. But this year it would be different. This time the Democrats control Congress and as a party would have to bear the responsibility for what was done or not done at a special session in a campaign year. * © 4%

THE PRESIDENT says he's only considering the possibility of a special session, and that high prices would be the only reason for summoning the campaign-conscious legislators back to Washington's steamy heat. In 1948, Mr. Truman wasn’t so restrained. In fact, he threw the Fair Deal book at the Republicans. His dramatic announcement that he would call a special session that year came in the early morning of July 15 in his speech accepting the presidential nomination at the Democratic national convention in Philadelphia. The political purpose was to ram the Republicans’ high-sounding platform, adopted just a couple of weeks previously, down tHe throats of the GOP congressional leaders. This, it was reasoned, might place Gov. Thomas E. Dewey, the GOP presidential nominee, in such a tight spot that he would never wriggle loose.

“. -P & INCIDENTALLY, Bernard Baruch is cred{ted with the idea for the 1948 special session in

MILITARY ... By R. H. Shackford

‘Volunteer’ for East Reich Army

BERLIN—When. the Communist regime in Fast Germany unveils its promised national army, it' will be plously labeled a “volunteer” army. No conscription, no national service, no compulsion in a Communist state—or 80 the Commie functionaries will say. Just some ‘volunteers” for defense of the homeland. The East German regime already has trained enough officers and non-commissioned officers to staff 24 divisions. Here is what is happening and how the Communists will be able to call the national army a “volunteer” army: 3 ONE—AIll East German children between 6 and 14 must be members of the Communist “Young Pioneers.” They cannot move on to higher schools unless they are. TWO—AIl youths 14 and over must belong to the Free German Youth. They can't go on to

a university or be accepted as an apprentice .

in a trade unless they have been Free German Youth members. The military issue doesn't arise until the East German graduates from high school at about the age of 18. The 18-year-old boy who graduates from high school must now also “volunteer” for the People’s Policé. If he doesn’t he cannot go to a university or take up an apprenticeship.

On Call When Needed

BY “VOLUNTEERING” the youth doesn’t go into the “People’s Police” immediately. But when the Communist regime decides to proceed with an army it will have on {ts records hundreds of thousands of young “volunteers.” They will then be summoned from the universities and trades to fulfill their earlier promise and let the functionaries crow over their “volunteer” army. The East German "People’s Police” now can be divided into two groups—those who do normal police duty in the cities and towns and along the frontier, and those who have been in special camps for training as officers and non-commissioned officers when the army Is formed. The latter group numbers about 68,000. They are formed into 24 “regiments.” When the time comes each of these ‘‘regiments” will be the cadre—officers and non-coms—for a full division. The rank-and-file soldiers of those divisions will come from the ‘volunteers’—those who have had to make that promise in writing when leaving high school. Thus Communist East Germany already was the hard core of 24 army divisions, compared with the 12 divisions for West Germany which the Western powers are still debating. In addition, the East German government op July 19 ordered all former Wehrmacht officers to register for possible service in the “People’s

Army.” These officers will get a political screen- -

ing.

Barbs—

A WEALTHY philanthropist says it's hard to give away a million dollars. We must try that some time. ¢ o> 4 A MODEL husband tries to make his meth-er-in-law feel at home even when he wishes she was. ‘dh OD IT SERVES a political candidate right when he runs on a bluff—and then falls over. ob» THE REAL movie heroes are the folk who

can stand it to sit through some double fea-

tures.

Samuel Lubell's “The Future of American Politics.” Mr. Lubell writes that Mr. Baruch suggested the extra session shortly after the Republican national convention. President Truman was so intrigued with the idea, Mr. Lubell relates, that he sent Clark Clifford, then a White House assistant, to New York to discuss the idea more fully with Mr. Baruch, President Truman himself named the 1948 extra session. He called it for July 26, which

.

al Session

he said was Turnip Day in his home state of Missouri. “Turnip Day,” it turned out, is sup-

posed to be the appropriate time in Missouri

for planting seeds for a good turnip crop in the fall. oP THE POLITICAL crop for Mr. Truman that year was a bumper one. But he laid an egg so far as getting action

‘But Harry, You Had a Law’

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NO TIME FOR PILLS . . . By Frederick C. Othman Textiles, Toys and Trimmings Spell ‘Heavy Sugar’ for Puerto Ricans

SAN JUAN, P. R.—In the Banker's Club atop the ultra-modern building of the Banco Popular de Puerto Rico, I have been eating baked mero with-an enthusiastic young man. Mero is a red fish; it comes with roasted bananas. The enthusiastic one is Teodoro Moscoso, who was appointed four years ago by Gov. Luis Munoz-Marin to run what the Islanders call their operation bootstrap. There is a gleam in Moscoso’s eye. I can understand why. Puerto Rico, which was known for so long as the poorhouse of the Caribbean, rapidly is approaching self-sufficiency. Not a week has gone by in the last three years without dt least one new factory being opened. Forty thousand passengers per month now use the airport where so long ago a flying machine was an unusual sight. San Juan's infamous slums are disappearing in favor of modern housing developments, new concrete roads are darting in all directions. The fabulous Caribe-Hilton Hotel is booked to capacity most of the time and three more such hotels (Moscoso calls ‘them factories without chimneys) are in the works. So many businessmen from the States want to begin operations here that the government is erecting factory buildings on standard plans and stockpiling them.

Getting the Fires Lit = THE GENEROUS tax laws fundamentally are responsible for bringing so much new industry to the Island. As director of the economic development administration, Moscoso is responsible for getting the fires in the boilers lit.

When he was appointed he thought he was taking on a part-time job to operate after hours at his wholesale drug establishment. Since then he has had no time for aspirin tablets. As he explains the legal setup, no industry new to Puerto Rico pays any taxes until 1959.

After that for three years they gradually go .

up to the normal rate. Even now the legislature is thinking seriously about exempting all

THE _PHILATELIST

corporations from taxes forever and depending solely on personal income taxes for government running expenses. “When you look at the profits of business as water running over a dam,” said Moscoso, “this makes sense. On the dam is a water wheel. When you need water to drink, you wouldn't think of taking it upstream. You'd let it turn the wheel first and then take it from below.” , He meant that corporate profits keep the wheels going and they're still there for the tax collector to skim when they reach the shareholders. All this enterprise, of course, was not for benefit of big business; or little, either. The sole idea of Munoz-Marin & Co. was to give work to the dexterous brown hands on this sadly over-populated island and get some eatIng money into the pockets of those who had been hungry for so long.

New Business Wanted

THE NEW INDUSTRIES, now numbering around 175, are involved in such operations as textiles, toys, Christmas-tree ornaments, diamond polishing, synthetic hormones, optical lenses, eyeglass frames, shoes, shirts, dresses, and electronic equipment. Heavy industry for Puerto Rico is no good, simply because most of its products must be shipped 1000 miles or more to the mainland. This means that its manufactures must be high in value in relation to weight. 5 So Moscoso and friends are attempting to get Puerto Rican farmers to turn from sugar, which always seem to be involved in international politics, to pineapples, which are far more profitable. They're worrying about how best to build roads that will withstand tropical rains; they're even trying to persuade an air line— they don't care which one—to put America's first jet liners on the Puerto Rican run. They are so full of ideas that I shall not even try to recount any more. And if you'll pardon me now for being carried away by a story that ordinarily would appear on the financial page, I'll try to get back on the beam tomorrow with an account of monkey island. A Sciabiine project, with monkeyshines, that backred.

By O'Donnell

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Moscow and Asian Reds take the propaganda line that the conference is an imperialist . Washington and Manila. emansiplot-hy--the—tinited--States—to- . extend the Korean War for the conquest of the Far East, So-called Nationalists to this the charge that the Honolulu meeting is an effort to rally the white peoples of the Pacific against the non-

This propaganda is causing concern in diplomatic circles here because of its superficial plausibility, and because the racial issue could retard development of an effective Pacific defense pact against Com- | munist aggression. . It could be especially destructive to American-Philjp-pine relations, which are basic to Washington's collective security policy in the Pacific. . Fortunately the'facts are the the three are joined and éx'v.> _ opposite of the Laurel-type tended. :

on the program he submitted to the special session. He asked for nearly everything. One package was an eight-point anti-inflation program, including price and wage control and rationing authority, consumer credit curbs, restrictions on commodity speculation and stronger rent control. Some of the other requests: Renewal of the wartime excess profits tax, an aid-to-education program, higher social security benefits, an in. creased minimum wage, a civil rights program, an elaborate housing bill, a displaced persons program. A revised federal pay scale and restoration of appropriation cuts for public power and reclamation projects. If Congress still had time after those things were disposed of, Mr. Truman said, he had other suggestions which it might consider. de. wb ob BUT THE PRESIDENT got only a fraction of what he sought. Congress approved installment buying restrictions, regulation of bank credit, a small part of the requested housing program and a $65 millon loan to the United Nations for construction of its new headquarters. The civil rights proposal was filibustered to death by Southern Democrats. The President was quick to assail the Republican Congress for ‘serving special interests” and said the special session was run by a “do nothing” Congress. But Mr. Truman went on to harvest his political crop, partially through his attacks on the 80th Congress. In fact, he still campaigns against the 80th (this is the 82d) as much as Democrats usually do against the business de. pression of the early 1930's,

Hoosier Forum “l do not agree with a word that you

say, but | will defend to the death yourright fo say it."

Favored Sales Tax MR. EDITOR:

Was it in 1948 or 1950 we were privileged to vote on whether we should have a sales tax to help pay the soldiers’ bonus? Didn't the majority of those who voted favor that sales tax? But didn’t Gov. Schricker decide “not enough voted” to make it ‘conclusive’? So Indiana citizens were sentenced by him to pay all, and not receive any aid that could be derived from visitors within our borders. Did he not flout the will of that majority. —A. R. 8, City.

Is This the Saucer Answer? MR. EDITOR:

Could it be possible the flying saucers could be the vision of the flying rolls that's written about in the Holy Bible?

In Zechariah, the fifth chapter, it says:

“Then I turned and lifted up mine eyes and looked and beheld a flying roll. And he said unto me, What seest thou? And I answered, I see a flying roll; the length thereof is twenty cubits and the breadth thereof ten cubits.” A. R. M,, City.

Political Hypocrisy

MR. EDITOR: The people of this nation should be very grateful for the medium of television during the Republican National Convention. By this they were enabled to see for themselves the largest gathering of political hypocrites that ever gathered under one roof. They say that convention struck the highest note of political hypocrisy when it introduced Herbert Hoover as one of the greatest Presis dents of the United States. No political double-talk will win the election for the Republican Party, but will assure their

defeat on Nov. 4. —Bill Holmes, Shelbyville.

You Can Lead a Horse to Water

MR. EDITOR: . In glancing over an old edition of The Times, I came across an article by Robert Ruark entitled “Was Adlai the peoples’ choice?” His sentiments are mine exactly and I hate to say that about the Democrats as I've always been a good Democrat, but I'm sure fed up with that mess in Washington. Believe me, I'll vote for the man from now on, whatever he is, black, white, Jew, Catholic, or what have you, and anyone with the least bit of common sense knows who the man for the job is now. Eisenhower, of course. God bless him. I prayed for him all the way through and am still praying for him. Right will win over might. You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make him drink —A Hot Hoosler.

ENVY

IT SEEMS to me that envy is . . . the meanest of emotions . . . and none will. doubt me when I say ... it's spread to all the oceans... for when someone is envious . . . their minds are on a shelf . .. so dusty are their brains that they ... think only of themselves . .. and there-

fore they cannot be true . . . or happy for their friends . . . and so they do the obvious... and set the lowly trends . , . the trends that cause ill feeling . . . and make this life a sorrow... for envy is a bitter weed . . . for us to lend or borrow. —By Ben Burroughs.

PROPAGANDA . .. By Ludwell Denny .

Reds Work Hard to Kill .. Pacific Defense Pact

WASHINGTON — Extreme ’ Nationalists in the Far East are using the Honolulu conference of Australia, New Zealand and United States to increase racial divisions and

propaganda. Instead of the Philippines being excluded or demoted, the purpose of the Honolulu conference has been to provide co-operation between the United States and Australia-New Zealand approximating that which has existed for a long time between

(ANZUS)

much closer than is likely to result for ANZUS in the near future. The ANZUS meeting carries ‘out the ANZUS security treaty signed last September, which provided for the crea~ tion of consultative machinery. The American-Philippine . security treaty contained no such provision - because those facilities already existed and were operating very successfully. ! Of course it is true, as frequently pointed out in these columns, that implenienting our three separate defense pacts: with the Philippines, Japan and Australia-New Zealand, cannot be adequate until

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