/Itt Editorial
AThe Voice with a Sneer'
Our favorite newsmagazine reports a plan
to send “Friendship” cigarettes to Europe.
Object of the plan is to offer cigarettes to
European workers as “incentives,” and at
the same time to give a badly needed shot in
the arm to the American tobacco industry. It
seems that many of the small cigarette man
ufacturers are operating at only a fraction of
their production potential, and that this
country is faced with a yearly tobacco sur
plus, the presence of which could be serious.
So the plan looks foolproof. Everybody
gains and nobody loses, assuming of course
that the Marshall plan (when and if) aims
at sending cigarettes of some kind to West
ern Europe. It also presents the enticing
possibility of helping to crack the cigarette
black market that has been so flagrant in
Europe since Salerno.
The cigarettes, so the newsmagazine tells
us, would be packed in 20 s, just like home.
In the case of the shipments to France each
pack would bear the word “Amitie,” which
is French for friendship. Now that's fine. Rut
there is also a proposal,, and it is just a pro
posal, our magazine goes on, to put some
thing like this on the packs, too:
This is one of X million packs of American cig
arettes which your friends in the United States
are sending to help restore your economy. We are
also sending you X million tons of grain, X mil
lion tons of coal, X million tons of steel.
This seems dangerously near to the “voice
with a sneer” attitude that Americans have
already been accused of more than once, and
perhaps with good reason.
If aid to Europe is to be of any real value,
we must give it freely, without rubbing the
noses of the Europeans in their own mistakes.
They are well aware of them—much more so
than America is. For that we may all get
down on our knees and thank God.
Ostensibly there are only two reasons for
helping the Europeans at all:
1. We are a charitable people who wish
to practice the Christianity we shout about
so loudly on Sundays.
2. We are canny businessmen who want
Western Europe on our side, when and if
the cyclone conies again. That is the old
“containing Communism” argument.
Patronizing explanations of the type pro
posed for the cigarette packages are hardly,
likely to promote either end. They will ap
peal to opponents of the first line of reason
ing—to people who remain unmoved by the
French woman who trades her wedding ring
for a couple of cans of Yankee spam. They
will appeal to the opponents of the second
line of reasoning, to the group that would
isolate the very real gratitude that might
otherwise be forthcoming.
But primarily they appeal to the citizen
with that great American virtue of showing
everybody else how wrong they are and how
big and strong and right and virtuous and
natural-resourceful we are. They are the
people who have never earned the American
a name as a sophisticated citizen of the world
who is willing to let his neighbor be wrong.
The tremendous public relations job a
head—Marshall plan or no—is to spike this
impression of America, for it is the all too
dominent impression abroad, and the im
pression that will serve us ill should the cy
clone come again.
uautosUal
Oreaon Grows Cosmopolitan
Some students of French and French lit
erature met last term to discuss the possi
bility of organizing a French club. They de
cided there was student interest among the
language pupils, and a French club was or
ganized. Called Les Thelemites, from Ra
belais' satirical “Abbey of Thelem,” the club
has derived its slogan, “Do what you please,”
from the book. The motto is thorougly satis
factory for a foreign language group, for its
members are encouraged to do just that—
they may listen to French records or sing
songs of the country, read poetry to improve
diction at the same time they broaden their
reading scope, play games in French, learn
bridge in the language, or just hold conver
sations.
Speakers well-versed in topics of interest
to the group will be entertained by the stu
dents, and later in the year French plays will
be presented. Movies in the language will be
sponsored and by the members.
Les Thelemites President Elizabeth Kratt
who has announced tentative meeting times
as the first and third Tuesday of each month,
has encouraged all students interested in fur
thering interest in and knowledge of the lan
guage and culture of France to attend.
A Spanish club, a German group, and now
a French club—how cosmopolitan can we
get? —J.B.S.
A Metten. to tlte ttditoA,
The Continuation of a Fable
To The Editor:
Could it be that you didn't have space enough to
' print all of Larry Lau’s fable in Friday's Emerald ?
Here is the conclusion of the fable.
After laboring some time at becoming wise, all
the animals in the Oregon kingdom decided that
their efforts were fruitless. They called for reme
dial action, so Harry the Bear and his advisers held
a conference. The conference lasted far into the
night, and from it evolved a plan. Harry the Bear
• called his subjects together and said:
We are going to build a great institution to
which you may come and be educated by the wisest
animals in our fand. Of course not all of you may
attend, for this great place will be supported by
tax money. Many of you must continue to work
] and to pay taxes.
• This brilliant plan was acclaimed by all the ani
mals and soon it was carried out. The older ani
mals went back to their jobs and worked hard to
earn enough money to pay taxes to send their
children through the great place of wisdom. The
children went eagerly to the institution to become
wise.
At first they pored over their texts 12 hours a
! day, seven days a week. Instructors had difficulty
getting them to leave the classrooms at night. But
this reaction was not to last, for a shrewd entre
• peneiip named Lagor.Baas built, an eatallJildweHt.
near the institution for purposes of relaxation.
Soon the young animals became very interested
in relaxation. It had unlimited possibilities. They
began to lose interest in their classes. The wise
instructors set aside a whole day for relaxation,
so the young animals could get it out of their
system.
But the young animals liked it so much that
they clamored for more. Finally they were granted
one day out of seven. Soon the instructors were
forced to allow an additional half day. But even
this did not appease the young animals and soon
their demand for nightly relaxtion was granted.
Next the summer months were sacrificed, then
two weeks at Christmas and two more in spring.
The wise instructors became worried. Wisdom
was becoming secondary, relaxation a menace.
Then one day the young animals came before
the wise instructors with a plan for a super- ob
servance of relaxation. We must stop classes for a
few days, they said.
The wise instructors met and refused to cancel
classes for the great festival. Wisdom is our goal,
they said, and we believe relaxation can be carried
too far.
The young animals looked very disappointed,
but the wise instructors felt that as the youngsters
grew older and wiser they would realize the merit
of this decision.
.. John Harlan
/J JleAt&i to- the C'ditob
Writer Observes Senators
Must Watch What They Say
In Wednesday’s Emerald there appeared a letter to the editor en
titled, “Writer Says Senator Morse Didn’t Say Anything.” Perhaps
she didn’t realize it at the time of writing, but the writer seems to
have committed herself to the same crime of which she accuses Sen
ator Morse—namely, not really saying anything.
The writer displays all the symptoms of having expected a speech
which would have incited revolution. Seriously, when we stop to think,
none of us could possibly expect a dynamic speech from a senator or
any other person representing his people. This assumption would be
based on the fact that we are not fortunate enough to have within our
ranks an Abraham Lincoln. But we are fortunate enough to have
within our ranks legislative bodies composed of cautious men, one of
whom is Senator Morse.
Very seldom has our country been blessed with the election of a
people’s representative who possessed the powers to express and carry
out phenomenal ideas. In this case I don’t believe it fair of the writer
to place Senator Morse on a pedestal and ridicule him for not saying
anything. He is a cautious man, as any of us would be if placed in a
similar position.
If the headline above Miss Timmens’ letter has any bearing upon
her subject this writer would believe it to be false, for if Senator
Morse said nothing, how could a person possibly find justification for
writing a lengthy letter upon the subject?
' Using the phrase which Miss Timmens employed I would reverse
the situation and say that she was the person guilty of attempting
to “squeeze blood from a turnip,” with very little success.
Stan Klein
/7 Jletttesi to the Cditob
Democrats Have a Club
Which Proves Somebody Cares
To the Editor:
The Thursday Emerald carried an editorial about the lack of po
litical activity on the University campus. The opinion of the editors
seemed to be that very little activity was going on at the present
time.
The Lane County Young Democratic club was re-activated last
year. It is the local chapter of the Young Democratic clubs of America,
and organization which was founded 15 years ago as the agency for
young people in the Democratic party. The membership is composed
of persons between 18 and 40 years of'age. Registration as a Democrat
is required of members over 21. Before the war an active club was
operating in Lane county, but the military forces took so many mem
bers that the club ceased to function.
The Lane county chapter was reorganized last term and met sev
eral times. We are now embarking on an ambitious program of meet
ings and social functions. We will feature prominent Democrats and
other experts in the field of politics.
January 14, Dr. L. A. Wood spoke to the club at the YWCA. His
topic was the economic policies of the Democratic administration in
foreign trade. We will hear Monroe Sweetland in February and Dr.
Schleicher in March. The public is invited to all of our meetings.
We are not a recognized campus club, but our membership is com
posed entirely of students. We hope to represent the younger portion
of our Democratic citizens, not merely as students, but also as an
important segment of our population.
We hope the Emerald will convey these statements to its readers
and show them that at least the Democratic Party is striving to be
active in the University community.
Robert D. Davis, President.
(Editor s Note: The Emerald will welcome similar statements from
other campus organizations of this type.)
The Dai]y Californian observes that “A used car is like a
keg of whiskey; the longer it ages the more it costs.”
OregonH herald
__ALL-AMERICAN 1946-47
My during the'colfeKTvar “ryr'ent pilh,i?ation °f me University of Oregon, published
y during ‘h| college year except Sundays, Mondays, and final examination period..
Entered as second-class matter at the postoffice, Eugene, Ore.
Member of the Associated Collegiate Press
BOB FRAZIER, Editor
BOB CHAPMAN, Business Manager
BILL YATES
_ Managing Editor
JUNE GOETZE. BOBOLEE BROPHY
Co'-News Editors
DON FAIR FRED TAYLOR
Co-Sports Editor
walt McKinney, Jeanne simmonds, maryann thielen
____ Associates to Editor
HELEN SHERMAN
_Assistant Managing Editor.
WINNY CARL
Advertising Manager
DUNA DYE jIM WALLACE
.__ AssiWant Nws Editors
Office Manager ...Marge Huston Foster
JoIlnny Kaliai‘a“ui. Bert Moore, Ted Goodwin, Bill—
’ *°®' * ' • - — ' - - a >