POLLOCK'S
FOLLY
IT HAS BEEN a long time
t since this department took type
writer in hand and went away
; to the journalistic wars but the
smell of printer's ink is a trifle
strong, so here we are again . . .
Thoughts come slowly and
i painfully after so long a lay-off
\ but one item occurs to me which
; might be worth retelling ... it
concerns, briefly, a summer
spent with an oiling crew and it
concerns, more specifically, an
t old gentleman whose Christian
l name I never learned.
In more formal moments we
called him “Dad" but when in a
j hurry he was likely to be called
most anything. Dad was a typ
1 ical oiling crew camp follower.
■, He got from place to place in an
* aegd Model T with which, he
• towed an enormous house trail
) er. Both the Ford and the trail
‘ er were his pride and joy.
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BEING GOOD-NATURED
and old — hence comparatively
harmless—he came in for a good
deal of practical joking ... he
seldom objected, even when the
boys welded a bucket over his
stovepipe and he nearly asphyx
iated himself with a pitch and
kerosene fire . . . Only once did
I see him mad and then all of
us from the lowliest banjo
strummer to the Push himself
looked for cover.
The incident occurred one
night when he mounted his an
cient Henry to return to camp.
The car had been backed up
against a tree and was pointed
down a fairly steep hill —which
saved cranking it. It was his
custom to get under way as
rapidly as possible in order to
be able to make the next rise
in high gear ... as a conse
quence he was making a rattl
ing fifteen miles an hour when
his jalopy came to the end of
the 150 foot chain someone had
fastened to the rear axle and to
tiie tree.
t>: t- *
THE IMPACT failed to pull
the old crate apart - as had been
anticipated but it did project a
considerable portion of Dad
through the windshield which
hadn't been anticipated. Fortu
nately his head, guiltless of
hair, was crowned with a heavy
felt hat and the only result of
the collision with the glass was
the complete destruction of the
hat — which was pretty well
gone anyway.
The old man got out. sur
veyed his car. the shattered re
mains of his windshield and
finally his hat. He said not a
word but strode to the side of
the road, picked up an 18-inch
Crescent wrench which hap
pened to be lying near a dis
abled grader and started in my
general direction because I hap
pened to be nearest. I suppose.
As a matter of fact my part in
the entire gag was confined to
watching ... I hadn’t conceived
the idea at all.
; TUKKF. W AS a look in the
1 eye of the old gent that told me
*‘i about what he intended to do if
and when he got hold of me or
)
anyone else ... it was written
; tl’.ere in 48-point type - he in
* tended to wrap a perfectly good
4, Crescent wrench around as
many skulls as possible.
In bri&f, he was running
amok.
i \Ve wanted to save the com
pany money and we figured the
*, best and easiest way of doing
* this was to keep that wrench
| unbent. So we left, in a digni
fied fashion, but at top speed . . .
4
LEROY MATTINGLY, Editor WALTER R. VERNSTROM, Manager
LLOYD TUPLING, Managing Editor
Associate Editors: Paul Deutschmann, Clare Igoe.
Elbert Hawkins, Sports Editor
Bill Pengra, City Editor
Lew Evans, Assistant Managing Editor
UPPER NEWS STAFF
Martha Stewart. Women’s Editor
lJon Kennedy, Radio Editor
Rita Wright, Society Editor
Alyce Rogers, Exchange Editor
Betty Jane Thompson, chi'rch editor
John Biggs, Chief Night Editor
The Oregon Daily Emerald, official student publication of the University of Oregon, published daily during the college year
erceit Sundays, Mondays, holiday# and final examination periods. Entered as second-class mail matter at the wostmce, Eugene,
Oregon. _ __
''With All Thy Getting..
j^XOWLEDGL is a valuable thing. The
Bible phrases it thus: “Get wisdom, and
with all thy getting get understanding.';
In these days of propaganda, publicity,
ballyhoo, and worse, dependable information
is dear, and the Bible expostulation comes
into greater timeliness. The question is Where
can one get dependable, honest, and impartial
information ?
" During the two-day forum on peace and
other problems the subject of propagandizing
for peace was suggested. Those attending the
discussion were for the most part, however,
unwilling to consent to such a course (con
sidering propaganda in the derogatory sense)
even though they agreed that the ends
reached might be valuable.
# # #
better system of disseminating correct
information was desired by the group,
and a suggestion from Lieutenant-Commander
Bryant upon the matter met with approval.
Commander Bryant told about an organiza
tion of which he is a member, that has pre
pared a list of the most dependable, impartial,
and honest publications of the day. This or
ganization makes a point to read these news
papers, magazines and pamphlets and in addi
tion to distribute them as widely as possible.
In his speech yesterday the ex-navy man
suggested the need for a similar step here,
lie proposed briefly that perhaps the faculty
select a group of the 20 or 30 most dependable
news dispensers in the world, publicize them,
interest students in reading them, and build
up a body of impartial, well-informed ob
servers of national and world affairs.
# $£
rJ"'HE need for such an action is obvious. On
every band one can find evidence of dis
trust in news sources. Those who do read
make it a point to be unconvinced, and many
dismiss their lack of information with the
statement that they cannot believe what they
ready anyway.
Sadly, this skeptical attitude is necessary
in reading many of the popular publications.
The expostulations to take what one reads
with a grain of salt is based upon a real
situation.
Students may inquire as to what can be
done about the situation. The answer is that
there are, even in today’s high-pressure times,
a considerable number of publications without
“axes to grind.” Newspapers such as the
New York Times, the Christian Science Moni
tor; magazines like Amerasia, Institute of Pa
cific Relations, Events; bulletins such as the
Fortnightly League of Nations reports.
TIESE are just a few of the dependable
sources available for those who really
want information. These periodicals and pa
pers are in the library, they are well-estab
lished as authorities, and they await only
student use to spread their messages, the most
accurate in the world today.
Perhaps it may not be necessary to go as
far as Commander Bryant suggested in the
compiling of the best sources of information
of the world. But on the other hand it would
not be too difficult to do so. and the potential
improvement of misinformed minds seems to
make the service of value.
The suggestion deserves further considera
tion.
For Posterity
^^UTIOX of the .senior class in voting' down
the endowment idea presumptorily was
not exactly unexpected. However, it had been
hoped that the class would give the idea
more consideration.
flic value of an endowment, the Univer
sity's need for such a monetary aid. and the
other arguments in favor of a move in this
direction were recently expostulated in these
columns. The realization that little would
actually be accomplished was not absent from
tin' mind of the writer. But even so the lack
oi sig-niheant discussion or consideration of
the problem by the senior class is discourag
ing’.
following' the precedent set by nations at
disarmament conferences, the seniors agreed
that an endowment would be a splendid idea
but saw no possibility of their taking action.
l’>y pursuing such a course the class is indeed
blocking the way to future progress. The
altitude Oi its a good idea, but let someone
els.- start it " is characteristic of many groups
I --
and many situations in need of advancement
or improvement.
# # #
CONSTRUCTIVE action will be delayed
until a groundwork for the future is laid.
The class of 1938 had an opportunity to begin
the work at least, with the consideration of
types of endowment, and recommendation—•
if nothing better could be done—that future
seniors consider the subject.
As it is the question of endowment remains
at the impasse from which the seniors picked
it. Nothing for the future has been acconi- >
piished ; if the matter is revived by another
group of graduating students they will have
to start from scratch.
However, it is not too late for some retri
bution. Granted that the class of 1938 has
disposed of the question, they could yet ren
der a service to the campus if they would
leave for posterity their consideration of the
topie. their reasons for stopping action on
the subject, and possibly their recommenda
tions for future plans.
In the Mail
o
QUIET PLEASE!
To the Editor:
The Pacific northwest leads
the rest of the country with a
literacy rate of one per cent
illiterate: but in the matter of
literacy in musical appreciation
there seems to be something of
a lag'. This is unfortunate be
cause we get treated to some
wonderful music, especially here
on the campus. Tonight’s ora
torio, •‘Saint Paul,” by the poly
phonic choir and conductor Paul
Petri, was no exception. But
there was much to much noise
in the gallery.
There is nothing mystical
about appreciation. Anyone cap
able of a degree of mental and
^muscular relaxation and atten
tion can enjoy it (and so can
those around him.) But it is
difficult to lose oneself in a
musical experience and sway to
the varying moods if others in
I
the audience are unaware of
some of the basic proprieties. It
isn’t necessary to go into a
trance and is equally unneces
sary to make overt noises.
It is no trick to hold off a
cough until a pause or an inter
lude. The ideal is absolute si
lence and it can be approximat
ed only in the degree that each
individual present is aware of
tiiis as a personal goal for his
own enjoyment and that of his
By JIM BRINTON
The way things look now
Germany’s new lighter-than-air
ship will have to be floated by
some other lighter-than-air gas
than U. S. helium.
The first part of the week
Secretary of Interior Ickes
said “nix” to a big order from
Germany for enough helium
gas to inflate the German
queen of the skies, the LZ-130.
He stated that the gas could
not be shipped because of the
existing law prohibiting the ex
portation of helium in quanti
ties great enough to be of mili
tary importance.
Wednesday President Roose
velt upheld Ickes’ ruling and
stated that a decision as to
whether or not the gas could
be sold was in the hands of a
six-man munitions control
board of which Ickes is a mem
ber.
Dr. Hugo Eckener, German
dirigible expert now in Amer
ica to plead the case for the
LZ-130, stated that the decision
not to sell the gas to Germany
would deal “a death sentence
for commercial lighter-than-air
craft.” He said that he would
not fly a passenger dirigible
without helium.
His opinion is probably true,
as nearly all major develop
ments in dirigible building have
come from Germany.
’Twould be too bad to see
further developments in iight
er-than-air ships fall by the
way-side, together with all that
they mean to fast trans-ocean
travel. But ’twould also be a
sad thing, think Ickes and
Roosevelt, to have European
cities bombed by one of the
huge floating silver cigars.
Now I wonder if their action
was wise. Here’s a couple of
reasons why it might not be:
(1) Had the party wanting
the helium been England or
France what would Ickes’ an
swer have been? I’m inclined
to think that right now the
Fort Worth, Tex., government
controlled helium extracting
plant would be filling the order,
and that in a week or two Eng
land or France would have
their helium.
(2) Lighter-than-air ships
have outlived their usefulness
as modern engines of war. Re
cent developments in anti-air
craft guns and pursuit planes
make a bomb-toting dirigible
mighty vulnerable—even with
helium replacing hydrogen as
the supporting gas. ;
By their 'actions the men
have set a precedent that will
be hard to break down. The
United States, with a virtual
monopoly on the gas, will not
be able to sell it to any other
nation without being slightly
hypocritical.
To do so would be the same
as saying to that nation: “We
don’t think that you’ll use the
gas for military purposes, but
we are quite sure that Germany
would have used it to float air
ships to bomb London and Par
is.’’
fellow listeners and tries to lis
ten quietly. I am only an ama
teur and play no instruments
but enjoy good music and feel
that those who render it deserve
good audiences. W.W.