The Mail-Journal, Volume 9, Number 4, Milford, Kosciusko County, 23 February 1972 — Page 10

2

THE MAIL-JOURNAL—Wed., Feb. 23, 1972

THE MIDDLE-EAST — Third In A Series

Beirut Is Cross-roads Os Thd Middle-East

By DELLA AND ARCH BAUMGARTNER BEIRUT, Lebanon, Tues., Feb. 8 — Beirut, Lebanon, might be the ancestral home of U. S..’ television cbmedian Danny Thomas, but it is also the place where Saint Paul traveled to address his famous biblical remarks to the Phoenicians We write this only to remind our readers that Lebanon is a country with a famous historic past, but the present, modernday world is also very much in evidence here. Our Study Mission of the MidEast with a group of 28 members of the National Newspaper Association arrived here at 9:50 a.m. Monday, Feb. 7, after an hour and forty-five minute flight from Cairo, Egypt, crossing the southeastern strip of the Mediterranean Sea in a northeasterly direction. We were quickly put aboard a travel agency bus and taken to the swank Phoenicia Hotel in downtown Beirut. 1 Visit American University After lunch our group toured the city of Beirut, the hilly resort and commercial center of the east Mediterranean. We all had the feeling of stepping into a modern, busy city whose prosperity was apparent all around us With land in the costal city being at a premium, most residents live in what are called high-rise apartment buildings, although most of them are five or six stories in height New apartment buildings are sprung up in almost every city block. New structures are going up in Beirut almost as rapidly as they are in Honolulu. A highlight of the afternoon was a visit at the American university in Beirut Founded in 1866 by; the Presbyterian Church, the school has become one of the most famous, outside the continental limits of the United States Os course, we visited Pigeon Rock, famous „as a picture postcard feature A real eye-opener were the Arab refugee shacks where some 325,000 people reside m the most unbelievable squalor. The shacks have scrap Un roofs with stones on the roofs to hold them down These refugees have lived in these condiUons for the past 24 years, driven from their homes in Palestine They have become person na non grata, and are not assimilated into Lebanon society or allowed to return to their homes This situation has been one of the most knotty few the United Nations to solve. In fact, the UN has failed to solve it. but ail this time has contributed to refugee subsistance t 0 firx l out that LebanonTnies not contribute to their welfare, but this countrydoes make its proportionate support to the UN and in this

TERMITES UNIVERSAL TERMITE CONTROL Ph. 257-7372 511 So Unton St Wirww, Indiana ALLIED LBR. CO. (fertnarly Conn £ Buhrt Lbr. Co.) Phdna: 457-3331 Syracuse ANDERSON PAINT AND SUPPLY CO. Syracuse, Ind.

Thank You The Community Nursery School of Syracuse wishes to express gratitude to the following merchants and individuals for their support and generous contributions. Their co-operation and interest have aided in making a success of this project. ' The Weatherhead Company Kinder Realty, Inc. Syracuse Fire Department Liberty Homes, Inc. Klink's Market Augsburger's Food Palace Vega Homes Corp. - Marise’s Ward ware cjft J Anderson Paint Tom Socks The To °* She<i 1 k Burger Dairy Rr \ Chalet Realty, Inc. State Bank of Syracuse Nancy Searfoss

regard they support the refugees. If you haven’t visited a rug warehouse, you just haven’t had any fun at all. We did, and were treated to a real show. Once seated in a room lined with stacks of rugs, all Persian, all beautiful and intricately woven, workmen threw out rugs one on top of another until it looked like we would be covered up. As they pulled them off for our inspection a young rug hawk would say, "You like? You wanna know price? Yes. No? It took one man three (or five) years to make this one. It has a million (or million and a half) knots in it.*' This routine was most delightful, and for sure the rugs were veryrich and attractive. We found out later Bob and Margaret Johanson, members of our group from Plymouth. Wisconsin, made a purchase of a rug Our adv-ice was not to paymore than 60 per cent of the asking price, advice I don’t know if the Johanson’s took or not. Also in the afternoon was a visit to the Lebanese Museum where rooms full of unearthed figures and pieces of sculpture were on display Our guide told us a number Os American universities. plus the Rockefeller and Ford Foundations had contributed heavily toward the work done in this part of the world to restore pieces that predated the birth of Christ some 3 to 4,000 years. Meet With Ambassador This morning, Tuesday. Feb 8, we had a meeting at the American Embassy, first with Robert Oakley„ a native of Shreveport, La., head of the political section of the Embassy, and Boulos Malik, head of the Embassy press section These bright young Americans told us Lebanon has 45 daily newspapers and 45 weeklies, that they operate independent of the government Malik said, in all, there are 300 newspaper licenses issued, although some of them ar< inactive They both called Lebanon the "crossroads of the Mid-East, since commerce and communications from north and south and east and west must cross Lebanon — and Beirut is Lebanon." Lebanon is pro-West, but the Soviet presence is being felt here more and more. Even China now has a mission in Beirut. Moments later U. S. AmBssador William B. Buffum peared before our group, and ake to us on the Mid-East crisis He said several things must be done to accomplish a settlement: acknowledge that taking territory by force is not acceptable. Israel must give up land it occupies illegally, open the waterways of the Suez Canal, and settle the knotty refugee problem He said the 1949 frontiers should become permanent frontiers. He said Jerusalem should become a unified city. He said U. S. Secretary’ of State, William Rogers, tried to get the Suez opened when he was in the Mid-East last May, and for a while it appeared he would succeed. Os the recent news stories that the United States was selling some Phantom jets to Israel. Ambassador Buffum said he had no word of this The Ambassador said there are two million Arab refugees and that Israel will not accept them as full citizens. "Really," he said, "by now there isn't much m Israel for these refugees to return to."

A Real Plus A real plus came to our group of NNA tourists when we unexpectedly had a press conference with Saeb Salam, prime minister of Lebanon. We were taken into a large paneled room where chairs were around a long table with microphones set up at one end. When we were seated and a host of television and newsreel cameras moved in, we knew the prime minister wanted home news coverage on this meeting. Prime minister Salam was a real character. Friendly to a fault, he puffed on a long cigar during the whole press conference all the while strong kleig lights were focused on him and with television cameras whirring. A fairly short, rotund man, he would be sure-fire central casting for a part in an underworld movie. His jovial, yet direct, manner, makes us think he would like this characterization. Going right into” the "war issue,” the prime minister said, "I see no solution. War has been going on all the time. One can’t expect peace." Then he asked his American journalist listeners to tell the truth when they get home. He said the Palestinians were savagely pushed out of their homes in 1948. He said Israel has designs on the Arab world, and is planning more aggression, more expansion. “Israel has a Nazilike form of expansion in the Mid-, East," he said, adding that “there isn’t a home in Israel that doesn’t have a map of Israel of tomorrow.” He called Israel a country with a design for expansion from the start, and it has U. S. backing at that. He said Lebanon is not afraid of 100,000 Jews in Israel but of all the Jews of the world they are. "All of the Arab world is afraid of Israel," he said. Answering a question about having to sit down at one time or another to solve the Mid-East proMem. the prime minister said this is an Israel trick. "I would certainly like to see the American sense of fairness brought into play in the Mid-East conflict,” he said. Prime minister Salam said internal problems in Lebanon are the most pressing things facing his people at the present time. "Our democracy is free and our free economy is dear to us,” he said. He pointed to 78,000 people on a new medicare program, adding, "and we are proud of this.” He said his small country of 2.7 million people has a budget of only S3OO million. He declined to state how large an army Lebanon supports, but we learned unofficially it is about 25,000. He told us most education is in private schools, a [dan that has worked out well in Lebanon. He said there is 78 per cent literacy. At the same time, he added, the government is taking a more active roll in supporting schools. The prime minister closed his remarks by stating he thinks it is important to awaken the American public to the problem of the Mid-East, stating he knows of our great interest in the MidEast. "Israel lobbies in America to an unfortunate degree." he said. Democracy In Action During the dramatic press conference the prime minister was flanked by Riad Taha, chairman of the Press Association, and Milhem Karam, chairman of the Journalists Association. When Salam was speaking, puffing on his cigar intermittently. and in full view of the television cameras. Mr Taha reached in front of the prime minister for one of his cigars. He reached back again to get one of his matches. "Could this happen in America,” we’re thinking? This is real democracy, indeed. Pretty little Barbara Richardson of Babylon, N.Y., a member of our party, buzzed the prime minister on the cheek as she passed through the line as we

MCNIAIU r INSURED BONDED P PREPAINTED ALUMINUM CONTINUOUS GUTTERING SERVICE 533-6373 607 W. Plymouth Gosbea, Mao

left the room. This delighted His Excellency. At noon our party of 28 were > guests of the minister of information at a luncheon the like of which most of us had never imagined. In all, there were 35 or 40 in attendance and the multicoursed meal lasted a full two hours. I will not attempt to describe the many dishes on the taMe, for to do so would reveal an utter ignorance of famous Lebanese dishes. Anyone with an interest in cuisine is aware of the fact that Beirut is famous for its many eating places. And, unlike America, they do not hang out expensive neon signs to attract customers. Clintele easily finds the way to these out of the way places to delight the palate. After the meal got underway and a spirit of friendliness set in, I asked an American across from me attached to the U. S. mission why the Arab countries don’t get together and gang up on Israel and settle their hash once and for all. He reared back and said, “That’s a good one. It sounds typically American. Why didn’t you ask the prime minster that?” Frankly, I hadn’t thought of it until just then. My new friend went on to tell me this is one of the major problems in the Arabic World: these people can't get together. "Nasser couldn’t get them 4 together, and if he can't, no one can,” he said. Visit Byblos Unless you are a student of history, you wouldn’t know that the great Crusades passed this way many years ago. And our group visited an ancient Crusade fortification located 25 miles north of Beirut, called Byblos. Our guide reminded us that there were .three great Crusades, coming from Italy. Europe and England, from 1099 to 1291 AD. This is a sordid chapter in world religious history. These thousands of Europeans swept across the Mid-East pillaging, killing, raping and plundering, all in the name of religion, and all that remains are old fortifications like the one we visited at ByMos. The old fort was located on the water front where its defenders could ward off incoming ships. We were to wind up our brief visit to Beirut on Tuesday night, but before we did, Bob and Margaret Johanson persuaded us to go to a night spot Bob had read about in a magazine article. It was called the Crazy Horse Saloon. The name is a misnomer, for it was not a saloon and had little to do with a crazy horse. Psychodelic lights and loud, screaming music gave us a headache. A very charming belly dancer 'and an unusually good magician made the evening worth while. This, in spite of the fact that we failed to ask a cabbie how much the fare would be the Crazy Horse Saloon before we got into his cab. Ten pounds ($3.50) for a ride of about two blocks should tell us something if ever we visit Beirut again. On Tuesday night, Feb. 8, the night before we left Lebanon for Cyprus, NNA held a reception atop the Phoenicia Hotel, and it was here we had the pleasure of meeting Samy H. Abboud, a native of Beirut. A free lance writer, who contributes articles to the San Francisco Chronicle, National Geographical, and other papers and magazines, we were thrilled with this diminuative man. He had an expressive face and twinkling, rolling eyes that held one's attention. To emphasize a point, he would look heavenward and close his palms in prayerful emphasis. One of his recent "Mg stories" was covering the plane hijacking on the Jordanian desert last summer Samy, a bachelor, appeared to be the perfect man to serve as a free lance reporter. He promised to be our Beirut "contact man" and said he would send us some stories we could use. A visit to this famous East Mediterranean capital reminds us again of the importance of the American presence here. What a delightful city! Mr and Mrs Glen Treesh, Milford, assisted by Mr. and Mrs. Dan Levemier, Milford, were hosts Saturday to the Wawasee wrestlers.

FILE FOR SCHOOL BOARD — The three men pictured above have filed for the Whitko school board. In back are incumbent members Byron McCammon and Maurice Scott while candidate Donald Slater is seated in front.

Three File For Whitko School Board In Upcoming Election

Two incumbent Whitko community school board members and a new candidate filed Tuesday for election in the May primary. Maurice Scott, representing Washingtai and Monroe townships, announced his candidacy for the Washington-Monroe district.

Electric Energy is a CLUNKER JUNKER . Qi ha Z yr

A sight for sore eyes in 1962 —an eyesore in 1972. This is the story of many an automobile. Someone's pride slowly turned into an abandoned hulk of rusting and rotting metal, fabric and rubber. But electric energy to the rescue? With swift, crushing motions, electricpowered machines compact, shred and bail this fugitive from a decaying junkyard into a recycled, usable chunk of raw material. There's a lot of clunkers lying around our country today, and electric energy is part of the answer to solving this pol-

Byron McCammon, representing the Cleveland township district, also announced his candidacy. Donald Slater, who lives in Jackson township, joined Scott and McCammon in a team effort and he will be a candidate for the Jackson township and Richland township district.

The Whitko school board consists of five board members, two at large and three from specific districts. In the up coming election, three are to be elected — one from each of the districts. The three districts are made up as follows: District No. 1 is composed of Washington and Monroe townships. District No. 2 is made up of Jackson and Richland townships. District No. 3 is Cleveland township. One member must be elected from each district and must be a resident of the district. In a joint statement these candidates stressed the importance of maintaining harmony between all members of the board. The incumbent board subscribes to three guiding principals, the foremost being adequate facilities, for a good curriculum, and a good teaching staff. A first class educational opportunity for all students is the first consideration. However, no school board should forget the taxpayer. This on-going school program should at all times strive to achieve the

CALL US Before You Sell Your Hogs WE BUY HOSS DAILY MAX M. KYLER Phone: 839*2108 Sidney, Ind. P. B. Stewart & Co. 2100 DURBIN ST. WARSAW, IND. PHONE: 267-6054

lution problem — just as it is in cleaning up the air at factories and mills, operating sewage treatment plants and recycling tons of trash and refuse. More electricity — not less — is needed to help solve our pollution problems. This is why NIPSCO is planning and building today to meet tremendous demands for a cleaner, healthier tomorrow.

Northern Indiana Public Service Company

first objective but should always do so within the tax payers ability to pay. A third objective, and an important, yet difficult goal to achieve is the bringing together of people in the various communities into a united Whitko School Corporation. Future goals include expanding of the curriculum, especially in the area of vocational education, special education for the handicapped, and improvement from time to time of the teaching staff. Scott, McCammon, and Slater all subscribe to the above principals. Graduates At Great Lakes GREAT LAKES, ILL., - Navy Seaman Apprentice Thomas R. Golden, son of Mr. and Mrs. Robert Golden of r 2, Nappanee, graduated from recruit training at the naval training center in Great Lakes. A 1971 graduate of North Wood high, Nappanee, he is scheduled to report to fire control technician school, Great Lakes, m.