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About La Grande evening observer. (La Grande, Or.) 1904-1959 | View Entire Issue (June 16, 1945)
o o .' - : . -iii ini i ' it ii.ii ni r Ti ji i M, 'in n r ml ijiniffNMmwflit i ! gfr ; EDITORIAL PAGE La Grande Evening Observer ; Frank Sehlro, Publisher . .. : ..-..Page Two SATURDAY EVENING, JUNE 16, 1945 "Thanks for t he Lift, Joe!" EVENING OBSERVER'S PROGRESS PROGRAM IRRIGATION Complete the Grande Ronde Valley Irrigation project. LA GRANDE A city of 10,000 Extend the city limita. TODAY'S TEXT But rather seek ye the kingdom of God ; and all these things shall be added unto you. Luke 12:81. What Government For Germany? The Germans are unsuited and op posed to democracy, says Pastor Martin Niemoeller. "The greatest shortcom ing of the Weimar Republic," he cx . plains, "was that it never could impose authority on the German people, which longed for such authority." Pastor Niemoeller knows what he is talking about. And history bears him but. Germany's brief and restless in terlude of democracy found most of the people backing one or another faction seeking absolute power. Few wanted the sickly republic, or defended it. They'd probably do as badly again. So what will be Germany's future govern ment? There isn't much choice. Perhaps a communist dictatorship or, as former Ambassador James Girard suggests, a British-type monarchy, The latter would impose on the Ger mans the onerous responsibility of par liamentary self-government. It might work, though, by giving them a figure head of authority and a certain amount of pomp which, as Mr. Girard points out, might counteract their former adulation of the military. l!ut such an arrangement would scarcely please Kussia any more than a communistic Germany would please Britain. Whatever the solution, it will inevitably be preceded by more head aches for the conquering allies .who, without any desire to coddle or please the Germans, must seek for them a government that will provide a mini mum of unrest and potential trouble which would upset further the peace of Europe and the world. Footnote on the Battle of the Bulge First newspaper accounts of the Ger man breakthrough in Belgium last De cember were serious and concerned. But soon we civilians were given to unr derstand that the whole operation had been a "calculated risk," that the attack had been expected, and that the trap which the allies eventually sprang on the nazis had been deliberately set. , Now we learn that the attack really was a stunning surprise. General Hodges and his staff narrowly escaped both capture in Spa and death on the bomb-blasted road to Liege. The Ger mans came within 500 yards of a 3,000,-. 000-gallon gasoline dump which, if taken, might have made the counter--attack's eventual outcome a different story. The discrepancy between the two ac counts is past history, of course, and perhaps not worth worrying about. But it does seem that the army might have believed that the civilian public, told the real story within bounds of security, would not have thought the less of our generals because on one occasion they didn't behave like omniscient heroes of fiction. However, it docs seem proper, before dismissing the subject, to pay belated tribute to the soldier cooks and bakers and the military censors who dropped their skillets and blue pencils to take up rifles and stein the German tank attack. Their now-it-can-be-told exploits make belter reading, it seems to us, than the earlier version of the same storv. Funny Business .... f" con iwtn nUuivici ihc t m tti u m or) ..C-v.-kifAA- J 1 ' O SO THEY SAY The democratic form of gov ernment suitable to govern the German people has not been dis covered. Martin Niemoeller, recently freed Berlin Lutheran pastor. We have come, at last, into an international age. The present generation of youth is the first generation of an international character in history. Dr. John R. Molt, president, world alliance of YMCAs. Japan does not want to enslave the American people or extermi nate them. Isuir.u Inoaye, Jap spokesman, in dcclariuK Japan would soon be in n position to demand un conditional surrender of thcr United States. Washington Merry-Go-Round Side Glances "No nalivo'i going to outdo me. ilrt" Why, the amateur diplomats who represented the United States at the confeivnee last summer were babes lost in the Hretton Woods, ltep. Jessie Sumner, Illinois. Br DREW PEARSON ' WASHINGTON Harry Truman is facing the same kind of mess which, as a senator, he used to investigate so efficiently. The president has told close friends that he dreads the possibility of some big war scandal being connected with his adminis tration, and today a situation pregnant with . possibilities is brewing right under his nose in the surplus war property board.. It isn't Truman's fault; he Inherited It. But it may boomerang against him just the same.' Billions of dollars of surplus war prop erty are to be disposed of war plants, ma chine tools, airplanes, steel mills, aluminum works, airplane factories. Not only is there room for graft, but the companies who get these plums can influence economic history for a decade. ; .. ;. Not much graft is known so far. But the backstage lobbying for pipelines, synthetic rubber plants, high octaine gas plants can result in greater scandals through favoritism than mere graft. . Eagle-eyed Senator Joe O'Mahoney of Wyoming, alert defender of the public inter est, has been scrutinizing some of these things. , Here are some of the backstage de velopments Which he is probing: Best protector of the public on the sur plus property board Is general counsel Wes ley Sturges, who last week was excluded frdni meetings of the board. He objected to too much big-business favoritism by board members . . . Sturges is a former Yale pro fessor, former U. S. foreign economic admin istrator in north Africa, former czar of the liquor Industry ... He and ex-Senator Gil lette of Iowa were the chief protectors of the public on the board; but now Gillette, - tired of the battle, is retiring. Chief opponent of small-business-protector Sturges is Col. Alfred E. Howse, Wichita, Kan., banker and furniture magnate. Howse had a fine, forthright record in the south Pacific. .: He helped expose graft and inefficiency in the air forces, ad his operation of surplus property is equally honest . . . but he be longs to the old big business school which would like to see the Sherman anti-trust act at the bottom of the Potomac . . . Along with Howse are numerous colonels he has re cruited from Gen. B. B. Somervell's army of economic royalists to help run surplus prop erty. Their idea is to get rid of war gooos as fast as they can, no matter who gets them ... To some extent this is necessary . . .On the other hand, congress set up an excellent set of principles in the surplus property act by which small business is not to be left out in the cold, while veterans, schools, univer sities and municipalities get first crack at the vast grab-bag of left-over war goods. Civil war over the aluminum corporation is the best illustration of the big business vs. little business row inside surplus prop erty . . . The big business group was ready to let Alcoa buy some of the best machine tools in the country, now government-owned and loaned to Alcoa for war prductin .... This question of Alcoa's monopoly has raged bitterly ever since Andrew Mellon, father of the giant company, was secretary of the treasury, with an anti-trust case against Al coa hanging fire in the courts for twelve years . . . Same battle continued between Jesse Jones and Secretary Ickes regarding the new aluminum plants built during the war, which Ickes feared would increase Al coa's monopoly . . . Despite all this, the big business group inside surplus property was quite willing to let Alcoa keep the valuable government-owned machine tools, thus in crease its grip on aluminum. Attorney General Biddle finally stepped into the Alcoa battle and threw his weight behind llttle-busincss-defender Sturges . . . Biddle reminded the board that congress, in setting up the surplus property board had ruled against any concern which the attor ney general considered a monopoly. Alcoa, said Biddle, was exactly that ... this seem ed to be conclusive . . . but another back stage fight followed ... Some board mem bers objected to naming Alcoa by name in the order withholding its machine tools?. They won their point. The final order mere ly referred to companies making aluminum and alumina . , . Day after this order was issued June 7 the board held a secret ses sion and adopted regulations by which little-business-protector Sturges was barred from further meetings ... Sturges was not present to object .... Then the board wrote up its minutes mak ing it appear that he was present . . . Stur ges, however, has registered a protest, mak ing it clear that he did not concur in barring himself from board meetings. Interesting aftermath is Colonel Howse's attempt to get a new general counsel replac ing Sturges. Discouraged, the latter want ed to go back to Yale but not until October. Not waiting until then, Howse rushed to pick Col Joe Johnston of Birmingham, Ala., son of famous Liberty leaguer Fourney John ston, to whom the big utilities paid large amounts to fight the Tennessee valley authority. WE, THE WOMEN By RUTH MILLETT Every serviceman who returns to civilian life is not going to be able to find in his peacetime job and notch in life the same amount of satisfaction he found in the Serv ice. Just being "another civilian" is going to be hard for some men used to the special treatment and admiration from civilians which they rightfully had when they wore their country's uniform. Many young men who went into the serv ice right out of college and attained a fairly high rank during the course of the war will have to step down both as to pay and the comparative importance of their work when they start as beginners at civilian jobs. For those who expect to have to make that kind of adjustment, the going won't be too hard. But it will be hard on the man who has become dependent on the prestige of his uni form and his rank. Any wife who finds her husband having trouble making that kind of adjustment will want to help him. And she can, too, believes Dr. Wilbur R. Miller, who is head of Iowa's state psychopathic hospital and head of the department of psychiatry in the University of Iowa colelge of medicine. He believes the wife who sees that her husband is not getting to use in his job all of his army-developed ability as a leader, or who realizes that her husband is carrying a chip on his shoulder about the way things are being run here at home should encourage him to become active in the affairs of the community. "The best thing to do with a person who isn't satisfied with the way things are being run is to see that he gets into a position where he can help run them," says Dr. Mil ler. And he also points out that communi ties and states will need the help of the re turning servicemen as much as the service men may need to put their energy and ideas to work. Behind Scenes in Washington Br PETER EDSON, La Grand ETenlng ObierTtr Washington Correspondent WASHINGTON Poor old congress got combat fatigue. The battle of Washington is just too much when taken in unrelieved tours of duty and the C-men are beginning to show it. Over a fourth of the members of both houses are absent with or without leave. On the day somebody threw a lunch eon for the new secretary of the senate, Les li L. Biffle, Senator George was the only Democrat present on his side of the asile, while five lonely Republicans listened to Senator Harold make a heavy speech on the big five veto. Total attendance, seven. Over in the house the record was better with 300 out of the 400 on hand to pass repeal of the poll tax. But that was so hot for some of the southerners they wished they were home and it was a futile gesture besides, because the senate will probably kill it. Adjournment of congress in July is likely, however, and it's about time because the distinguished members are all stir crazy and they need to go home fo a check-up and to be checked-up on. The battle neuroses now show on the con gressmen in the things they do. The house is always unpredictable but when the senate goes haywire as it did in passing the price control amendment which would guarantee n profit on all produce, then you know it's time for a change. Even Ed O'Neal of the farm bureau retched at this proposal, call ing it unworkable, and when that cagy old codger calls any piece of legislation benefit ing the farmers no good, it really must be bad. What you an really be thankful for is the bicarmcral system which permits one house of congress to check the rash acts of the other. The lower house was clear off form and doubly surprised everyone by (a) passittg the Bretton Woods agreement and (b) tak ing a terrible hack at the president's powers to cut tariffs under the reciprocal trade agreements program. The first was consid ered as good as the latter Was disappoint ing to the administration. What seems to have happened to both the reciprocal trade renewal in the house as well as to the OPA renewal in the senate is that the solons were unable to look past their own noses. Both were considered as purely local issues instead of matters of which there should be a national policy. Everybody wants price control, everybody wants tariffs reduced except on those par ticular commodities in which he deals. And when congressmen listen and react to such pressures, the only thing that will do them much good is a good long rest mid quiet surroundings. The two things which President Truman has specifically asked of congress unlimit ed power to reorganize the government and increased social security payments will probably have to ride over until congress re convenes in the fall. The president needs both these authorizations to deal with im mediate problems, but both seem headed for a fight and congress is in no mood to tackle such large orders at this time. Even with congress out of town for the summer, things aren't going to be dull. Sen ator Robert F. Wagner's banking and cur rency committee is fixing to hold elaborate hearings on Senator James E. Murray's con troversial full employment bill, and there will be the United Nations charter written nt San Francisco to argue about. That, too, will probably have to wait until fall tiefure the senate will feel like considering it for ratification. it in" n irt-m I taw. wiv mx uma:m t.n.'o: o. mi:'w 6-B. "We wouldn't think of having a neighborhood picnic without in viting you and your wife and you will brl.ig some wieners and. bologna sandwiches, won't you?". McKENNEY ON BRIDGE By WM. E. McKENNEY, America's Card Authority OPTIMISM PAYS WHEN TOP NEEDED The last board in the Ohio pair championship this year proved a real thriller. We will have to ad mit that tha four heart contract was certainly an optimistic one to get to, but both Elmer Babin and Sid Fink, the defending champions, realized they needed 743 V108 AQJ108 Q72 Fink I I Babin AKJ N A1o8 VKJ63 W E VQ975 7 S 0643 J 10 8 6 Dealer A 53 AQ9652 VA42 K52 K9 . Duplicate N.-S. vul. South West North East 1 lit Pass 1 N. T. Pass Pass Double Pass 2 V Puss 4 V Double Pass Opening A 5. 18 a top to have a chance to win. Babin played the jack on the opening spade lead and it held the trick. He then cashed the ice and king of spades, discarding a club. A small club was played to the ace and a club returned,' South winning with the king. South played the king of dia monds and led a small diamond, Questions & Answers Q What Chinese city, recent ly recaptured from the Japs, is known as the "City of Willows"? A Liuchow, former big Amer ican bomber base. which Babin trumped in dummy with the three of hearts. A small club was played and when Nortn played the queen of clubs, Babin trumped with the nine of hearts. Tha five of hearts was returned, dummy winning with the king. He led the ten of clubs, which North trumped with the ten of hearts. This was overtrumped by Babin with the queen, and over trumped by South with the ace. At this point, Babin spread the hand and claimed the balance. Even though they won top on this hand, it was not enough: Clare H. Smith and Miss . Florence Stratford won the evenl. O IN FORMER YEARS 30 Years Ago. June 16 Heine Meidenrich, track and glee club man at the University of Oregon, Jimmie Stoddard, student body editor, and Russell Ralston, a prominent figure in soccer football circles at the same schol, arrived home for the sum mer vacations. Paul Schwaiger, of North Platte, Nebr., arrived to visit his uncle E. O. Polack. Q What percentage of Amer ican prisoners of war survived the rigors of German prison camps? A An estimated 09 per cent. 15 Years Ago, June 16 Sixty La Grande young men, members of Company E, com manded by Captain W. A. Bean and Lieutenants Jesse Andrews and Porter Webb, detrained at Camp Clatsop station for their six weeks training period. Miss Eleanor Cleaver is a graduate of the University of Oregon this spring in the depart ment of psychology with a minor in physical education, in which department she has been espe cially active and interested in interpretative dancing. She is the daughter of Mr. and MVs. H. H. Cleaver of this city. Q-A- What is a precentor? -A choir leader. Q How many members are there of the British house of com mons? A Over 600. These are elect ed to represent county and bor ough districts based on popula tion, as are members of the U. S. house of representatives. 10 Years Ago, June 16 . With approximately 2,500 in attendance, the Elks charity circus came to a close in the high school stadium. Announcement was made that N. K. West and Herman Siegrist had purchased Falk's men's store. George Singer, foreman of the Grande Ronde packing plant, went to New YYork on a two week business trip. This Curious World c TMESS AZE 25 SPR-INGRELDS IN THE UNITED STATES. iMCST PEOPLE DSIVIN6 UNDER 3S 1 uv 45, says R. BILL WILLIAttSON, - fl K 'Iiiiii 4 " I X I I I I s . NEXT: Our puzzling animal names.
