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About La Grande evening observer. (La Grande, Or.) 1904-1959 | View Entire Issue (Aug. 8, 1945)
EDITOR! AE PAGE La Grande Evening Observer Frank Schiro, Publisher W EJ)N ICS1) A Y. IC V EN IN(i, AUGUST 8, 1945 'uge Two Too Had They Have to lie Contaminated With It! Ml St ' I ' f r, rr tr. V M JIF i : : - ) EVENING OBSERVER'S PROGRESS PROGRAM IRRIGATION Complete the Grande Ronde Valley irrigation project. LA GRANDE A city of 10,000 Extend the city limits. Atomic Bombing And Civilization Atomic Ixiiiiijinjf has lonjr LkJcii vis ualized by man, but hitherto only in what wore considered the most fantas tic I'liuhts of imaginative destruction. Writers of "horror" and "astounding" stories, patterning lheir conwpts on the earlier pseudo - scientific writers such as Jules Verne and 11. Or. Wells have for many years laid waste entire populations and civilizations, sometimes in fanciful interplanetary warfare and sometimes on our own planet. Today, in actual warfare, the pseudo scientific has become scientific. Today we have bir.z-bombs, rocket bombs, and jet propelled airplanes, This week wo dropped an atomic bomb on Japan, of which a mere de scription of its destructive force stag gers our imagination and leaves us chilled. Read again this description of its power, the conclusion of the scientists who worked with it : One pound of l''2'. would contain as much energy as lo.lioo tons of TNT, or HUH carloads of "ill tons each. If this one pound of Ul2:l.r) exploded within 1 lO.OOillhs of a second, as does TNT, the pressure produced would be of 100, 000,000 atmospheres. This would be about 1,000.000 limes the pressure pro duced by TNT or nitio-glycerine. The atmospheric pressure at sea-level to which the human body is conditioned, is I I pounds per sipiare inch. Multiply, if you will, I I pounds by 100.000. Olio and then try to visualize the effect of that much pressure on man, his posses sions and his earth. If the scientists are right, this new explosive is 1,000,000 limes greater than any explosive force hitherto known to man. The American people are jubilant to day because we feel that the atomic bomb and its destructive force will bring to an earlier close our war with Japan on , the only terms on which we can accept that close unconditional surrender. This jubilation, however, must be tempered with a full realization of what has happened this week. A new era in civilization has been entered. A new era in international re lations is in the offing, created by the atomic bomb. Warfare such as we have known in the past will be of the shield and spear classification in comparison to the future. . liuzz bombs, rocket bombs and atomic explosives will not be conducive to the peace of mind of the American citizen or the world. It is a matter of good fortune only that the United States developed the atomic bomb before the scientists of Germany, who were well advanced. Had Germany reached the point we now have reached, atomic bombs may have dropped as buzz bombs on the centers of our own populations. We may yet at some not too distancl date, wake up some morning to find that our indus trial areas and large cities were wiped out overnight in a sneak attack by some Hitler now an infant or yet unborn. All of this suggests that the United States has a tremendous moral obliga tion to control rigidly the atomic bomb. Our allies, in particular liussin, will now reijliosl it and ils secrets. We, who have been so far, a non-imperialistic nation, living more or less as a moral nation in relation to our altitude toward our international neighbors may per haps not do too much damage with our atomic bomb. What other nation is in the same category '.' Funny litisiness -fillii- lto 4i ii m mv;,Nf t u mt i) i off. SO THEY SAY I waul In stress the (net that tin' worst part of the redeploy ment problem is still ahead. It is expected iliat by December 1, 50(1.0110 soldiers will be using trains ami that the peak of mili tary f i right movements will come next year. John W. Snyiler. War Mobiliza tion Pireetor. All that can help tomorrow it thv eitnen who din's his duty. May their ! a lot of him. Cleveland, O., Press. "My wile' on clionl" Should the war in the Pacific end soon, it will find us largely unprepared to overcome our do mestic problems. - Sen. James M. .Mead, of New York. Hem-rally, men who mil their own business work six full days a week and many of those days stieteh into nights. Kioin Depaitmelit of Commeriv pamplilrt. Washington Merry-Go-Round Side Glances Br DREW PEARSON WASHINGTON t- With President Tru man's, announcement regarding the new utomic bomb, some of the background be hind the nation's most carefully kept secret can now be told. If the nazis had known Mie detailB of this secret and developed it before. V-F. day, the results of this war might have been just the opposite, As it was, there is reason to believe that the. nazis knew we were work ing on such, an invention, because the eight nazi saboteurs, under cross - examination, admitted that they were instructed to find out what they could about this experiment. Those who have studied the new bomb say its discovery is just as revolutionary as the Chinese invention of gunpowder. It will not only revolutionize warfare, but might wipe out civilization if nations con tinue to resort to war. One new atomic bomb, if dropped on New York city by a transatlantic, rocket, would wipe out the city completely. Actually, the inventors of the bomb are not entirely certain what its future strength may be. While the details are still highly secret, it isweported that the, effect on at mospheric pressure is such that the bomb's destructive force travels in waves in the atmosphere surrounding it. It is also re ported that, if dropped in a bay or confined body of water, the bomb could start a tidal wave capable of inundating whole cities. Part of the experimentation for the bomb was performed at the University of Chicago; part also by British scientists at .pxford. While the bomb was in the process of being developed, trusted workmen had to sign cn oath that they would work in the secret desert bases without visiting their families. The danger of the bomb to future civiliza tion is almost beyond belief, once the secret becomes known. For instance, it is esti mated that a bomb hidden in a safe deposit vault in a New York bank could explode 24 hours later with such terrific force that it would destroy most of the city.' One complication is whether the bomb secret should be given to our other allies. At Teheran it is understood that pre liminary arrangements were made for Rus sian entrance into the war against Japan and that in return the United States was to give Russia knowledge of all our secret weapons. ' Now, many military men, believing the war can be terminated soon, doubt the feasibility of handing over this secret to the Russians. Others believe, however, that an invention of this kind is sure to leak out, just as every military weapon sooner or later becomes known. Poising the Buck One reason for the terrific senatorial blasts leveled at the army is the constant and deliberate run-around given the senate by. war department officials. Senate military investigating committee members recently figured out brass hats summoned to testify have a regular set of "football pluys" they use to dodge questions. The favorite brass-hat play is known as the bucking half-back play. The witness is asked a question by a senator. He pauses, looks anxiously to the left and right to the numerous junior brass hats who accompany him, fails to get any assistance, then turns back to the legislator and says: "We just don't know the answer to that cne, senator. But with your help, we'll certainly find out." Senators describe another favorite as the statue of liberty play, fashioned after the old Notre Dame trick of concealing the ball. When a brass hat is asked an embarrassing question, he replies with, a carefully phrased answer intended to arouse another senator to question the meaning of the first senator. In this play, the two senators get into a tremendous argument between themselves with the witness trying to act helpful, but actually sitting back delighted. A third play, one of the most frequently used, senators call the lateral pass. The wit ness, being asked a tough' question by a senator, replies: "We don't have that information with us today, senator, but we can get it in several days. I'll be glad to send it up to you and have it entered as a part of the transcript." The senator can do little but say "yes." Gen erally, by the time the answer does come up, the committee is working on an entirely different subject and the reply goes unnoticed. WE, THE WOMEN By RUTH MILLETT By the way, whatever become of: Hostesses whose guests invariably wound up with indigestion because second and third helpings were -urged on them with such persistence? Articles that used to tell us how to spend odr leisure time? The persons who smoked only a partic ularly brand of cigarets? Renters who made the landlord redeco rate before they moved into a house or apartment? Articles that urged a yearly separation of husband and wife, via the separate vaca tion plan? The fast talking salesman who tried to shame you into buying his brand of vacuum cleaner by showing you how much dirt he could get out of your carefully cared-for carpet? (He used to dump the dirt in a lit tle round pile on the middle of the rug, remember?) Steak frys? The dogs whose owners bragged they were finicky eaters, and had to ' have' their hamburger cooked just so? The man who raised cain if his shirts weren't done exactly right? The folks who used to get on trains with six or eight pieces of luggage? The dear little dressmaker, who charged "practically nothing" and the second-hand furniture women were always picking up for a song? The people who used to "say "I never travel except by Pullman?" Behind Scenes in Washington By PETER EDSON. La Grand Erenlng Obserrar Washington Conupondsni WASHINGTON, Aug. 8 A great race between Senator Bob Taft of Ohio and San ator Bob Wagner of New York came down the stretch on the last day congress was in session. It ended in a photo finish, or may be Wagner by a nose. It was a race to de velop a post-war housing policy. Senator Wagner is of course the author of nearly all the New Deal legislation on housing destiny of any new housing legis lation that comes up. Taft is a minority member of the bank ing and currency committee, but he is also chairman of a senate postwar subcommit tee on housing. That has made him top man in the long series o hearings on post war housing policy. They began in June 1!M4 and ran until February 1945. They enabled Taft to steal the housing spotlight from Wagner. A natural rivalry, as well as n traditional policy rivalry developed. Twice during the Taft committee hear ings Wagner rose to announce that this was only an advisory subcommittee and had no authority to do anything about legislation, which would have to be referred to his, Wagner's banking and currency committee later on. Taft went ahead, however, and took five months' to prepare a report which he filed on the 1st day the senate was in session. The report is one of the most liberal and far-reaching programs for the development of public housing ever to get before con gress. Taft has a reputation as a conserv ative who is sometimes called a reactionary. He has been the Republicans' number one critic of many Democratic proposals. Know ing these facts, any Washington observer w ill pick up the Taft report and read with amazement what the senator from Ohio proposed for a long-range- government housing program: A single agency with a single head to promote all government housing activities. Tax reductions to corporations owning hous ing developments. Downward revaluation of propel ty in new housing. Development of more rural husing. More assistance to citus in rebuilding slum areas. Disapproval of the rent certiorate subsidy for low in come families. Review of the antitrust laws to eliminate monopoly and racketeering practices of both businessm anagement and labor organizations which conspire to re strict housing productivity. Taft includes statements public housing rhould not compete with private housing. He favors state and local government co operation with the federal government on future housing developments. Also, he does not believe that public housing should be imposed on communities that do not want it. But anyone reading this report and not knowing the author would never guess it was written by Senator Taft. It is that lib eral. It is everything the public housing advocates have been asking for. It is a striking demonstration of Taft's abilities, once he turns his attention to constructive development in which he sincerely believes instead of devoting his ene'rgies to obstruc tion. It would be too much to expect the Dem ocrats would allow Taft to steal this dream house right out of their own back yard. While Taft was writing his report, Senator Wagner, in collaboration with Senator Allan ,1. Ellender of Louisiana, representing the Senate committee on education and labor, were busy preparing a new housing bill. Having sat in on all the Taft subcommit tee hearings, Wagner and Ellender were able to write into their proposed bill many of the reforms advocated by Taft and a few others besides. And the two Democratic senators also filed their bill on the last day the senate was in session, providing the aforementioned photo finish. The Wagner-Ellender bill gets the play because it is a step further along a defi nite proposal for legislation. But it is 65 pages long and it takes a lawyer to figure out. That Taft report, on the other hand, is onlv 2.1 pages long and extremely read able. Both are recommended reading for for anyone interested in public housing and postwar private housing, too, builders, con 1 1 actors, realtors, landlords and building trades union leaders who start reading be fore bedtime shouldn't count on getting too much sleep. There are things in these pro posals to keep them awake anil worrying for some time to come. WW. 1M4 T HIA tlHHCf, INC T. H Ml U. . HI. Off. ' "She'll be famous soma day, watch and see, avery time I start singing to her she joins in and harmonizes perfectly!" o McKENNEY ON BRIDGE By WILLIAM E. McKENNEY America's Card Authority CUE-BIDDING OFTEN LEADS TO SLAM We in New York were all deep ly shocked by the sudden death of Erno Rupee, the great orches tra leader and father of George Rapee, one of the Life Masters of bridge. He was quite proud when George won the individual cham pionship in 1944. In my opinion A AQJ9 86 2 . A 985 43 Rapee 4k None VQJ943 7 AKQ 10762 10 7 5 N W E S Dealer 87 k q j to 32 4 98 K432 AK1065 64 J5 Duplicate Neither vul. 8outb West North Ban 1 1 Double 2 0 2 V Pass 3 Pass 1 Pass 7. Pan Opening A. t George Rapee is one of the great est players in the country today. He puts a tremendous amount of spirit into a game of bridge and his daring and maneuvering have a great deal of thought behind them.' . When his partner on today's hand opened the bidding with one heart, Rapee immediately began to plan how to get a grand slam. o BARBS He doubled one spade to lead the opponents to believe that he held something in that suit. East's two-diamond bid was exactly what Rapee had hoped for. When South b i d two hearts, showing a sound heart suit and a rebid, Rapee made his one-bid of three diamonds. Having dou bled spades, his cue-bid in dia monds gave tha opponents the impression that he had no dia monds. For his opening, West selected the ace he-thought more likely to win a trick the ace of spades and the hand was a spread for seven-odd. IN FORMER YEARS Thirty Years Ago Today, Aug. S Officials hoped to stop perman ently the petty thievery of chick ens, etc., by removing campers who occupied during the summer vacant tracts of land in the val ley. Transient campers were not to be bothered, but anyone who camped out for any length of time, would have J:o "ac'count-. for his diet " Some excellent catches of fish were being made in nearby wa ters by the Wing, Fin and Fleet foot club members, including 14 inch trout caught by Roll Baker and Ed Boylen. Elgin branch of the railroad was 25 years old and an anni versary celebration was planned. Enlisted men may get 30 gal lons of gas at the time of dis charge. It'll take more than that, however, to get them any place a job, for instance! Even if you spend your vaca tion in your own back yard you can do it up good and brown. Just sit in the sun! Plenty of people will question Cooling's heart attack. Since when has he had a heart? Fifteen Years Ago. Aug. 8 About 600,000 trout and salmon were liberated in Union county streams, announcements by the game warden said. Trout were placed in the Grande Ronde, Mi nam, Catherine creek, Mill creek and Looking Glass creek. Drum corps and drill teams of La Grande and Baker paraded for a half hour, in practice for the state American Legion con vention to be held the next week at Baker. A busk, which does a neat job of squeezing the waist line, is back on the market. And the women don't mind being taken in! The question is, how long will the Japs prefer to have our B-2()s overhead to our G. I.s on the ground? Ten Years Ago, Aug. B First aid auto donations climb ed to $886.25 today, with dona tions from the theater employes. American Legion officers nom inated included C. J. Shorb for commander, Dr. Fred Earns, vice commander; Clarence Green, chaplain; Homer Leffel, finance; C. A. Rosenbaum, adjutant. This Curious World oppressive r AIM i. ATMOSPHERE -Jl Jr&7 JUST BEFORE A RAIN ACTUALLY L ;' SJllfl kWS6 l THAN THE AIR K M i &, SiScZ OHActA,er&& day. JcSvtESl JSM 'Vl copw. i w by he stnvict. tug fYn BlVnuLr I ! J I VnaaCir AT V.AN," WAS fitlVEM BY ESTES PARK, COLORADO, NAMED FOR EARL OERR SEVEN KEYS TO 8ALDPATE" THE WALLS AND CEILIN6 OF ONE LARSE ROOM ARE HUN6 WITH MORE THAN O.OOO MAILED FROVt R?RER &LESTC FROll ALL OVE THE WiPRLO. t. m. c u. a Ml. Oft. ANSWER: Horace Greeley. t NSZT: How big in the Pacific? 54 Like in-rrail ntyr -- in my Ulcl
