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About La Grande observer. (La Grande, Or.) 1959-1968 | View Entire Issue (July 9, 1959)
iTime to EDITORIAL PAGE LA" GRANDE OBSERVER Thursday, July 9, 1959 "A Modern Newspaper With The Pioneer Spirit" Pri.Mf.HRD bt the RILEY D. ALLEN Publisher tK GRANDE 1'L'BLisiiiNO com pant . GEORGE S. CHALLIS .. Adv. Director TOM HUMES Circulation Mgr. They Didn't What individual has had printed more often than anyone else in all history? We raise this quiz show type question because this individual has had his pic ture printed an astonishing 496 billion times, and now, all of a sudden, his pic ture will appear no more. Who is he? George Washington? Abraham Lincoln? No, he is PeWitt Clinton. Never heard of him? That is strange, because if ever you, or your father be fore you ever bought a pack of cigarettes it had a picture of DcWitt Clinton on it. His was the face that adorned the federal cigarette stamp that until June 2 1 had to be affixed to every package of cigarettes produced. Because of the phenominal numlx-r of cigarettes sold, Clinton's picture has ap peared more often than that of anyone else. Not even Lincoln, Washington, Thomas Jefferson and Martha Washing ton, whose portraits apH?ar tm low tie nomination postage stamps, can come anywhere near Clinton in the number of times his picture has leen printed. , How did Clinton happen to be so honor ed? "Tobacco news" explains in its cur rent issue that in 1873 when the Cigar A Problem For The Queen, How to treat royalty has always leen a problem for Americans. We fought a war to get royalty off our backs 18.") years ago and it has been part of our heritage ever since to look with some de gree of scorn on the king and queen system. Yet we recognize European ti tled heads as celebrities who deserve to be treated with a special kind of respect when they set foot on our shores and it is not easy to figure out how to do it right. Chicago had the problem for 13 hours Monday with Queen Elizabeth. No British monarch had ever been in Chi cago before perhaps never dared to go and the big city was as much a-t witter as it ever gets. It handled Elizabeth the same way the The Worm Has well, someone s iiniuiy An outfit in Washington, D.C., has worked out an arrangement for travelers to get discounts for cash. The organization has put out a travel card which allows the holder to get dis counts if he pays in cash for restaurant, hotel and other bills. The idea was a natural. Those who use the Diner's Club and other universal type credit cards pay the full, going rate. But the stores, restaurants, etc., have to take discounts from the outfit putting out the cards. This new bunch has figured the dis count might as well go directly to the Hit the Field of Clover Know Who his picture ette tax was raised from $1.50 to $1.75 per thousand, it happened to be the iiOth anniversary of the opening of the Erie Canal. Clinton, who had been mayor of New York, a U. S. senator and governor of New York was chosen because he had been probably the most prominent pro moter of the canal. , v rui merely putting one's picture be fore' the public is no assurance of fame, as was demonstrated when "Tobacco News" interviewed 60 persons on the streets of Washington, 1). C, recently. Only Jiine of the 60 recognized where they had seen Clinton's picture before. None of these was exactly sure who he was. Incidentally abolishment of the cigar ette tax stamp doesn't mean that cigar ette, are no longer being taxed. Instead the "cigarette makers will be required to pay. the tax on a semi-monthly basis in a lump sum, rather than have to tie up so ntych of their funds in advance tax payments by purchasing stamps. ftamp collectors, we foresee, will sud donbjf create a demand for DeWitt Clinton cigarette stamps. For, despite the fact that nearly TiOO billion of them have leen printed, they are probably a scarce item already. Pacific Northwest handled a visit from Queen Marie of Rumania some 30 years ago. That is, they rushed her around on a sightseeing tour and keeping so much on the move that if anyone doesn't know just what was the right thing to say or do, it would be overlooked in the hurry to keep up with an overcrowded schedule. There's no way to know, but we would imagine that royalty, visiting in a coun try which believes one man is as good as another, would be just as nervous as those wondering whether to bow low, tip their hat, offer to shake hands or just drop dead when ushered into such august company. The brevity of the queen's visit in dicates she didn't want to venture over the lairder into Yankee land any longer thah-Khe had to. Turned-All The Way none u. customer, so neW.fciVd. The result, of course, is that if every one is going to grant discounts for one thlny; or another, the prices w ill just be raiiMMl that amount. So uo one wins, in the end. ; But, for the present at least, it's com fort irft to know the worm lias turned. Barbs We've never been sure whether those batltitu; suits were Bikinis or reekinis. 111 He Was Too mat s the reason for the Shni-pening your lawn mower will en able you to cut the grass at a fast clip. DREW PEARSON SAYS: Complacency In Danqerous BOSTON As the result of a traffic accident this writer spent art of the Fourth of July week end in the Massachusetts General hospital in Boston. This does not mean that New England automo biles are more deadly than bur eaucrats' brickbats, but rather that my wife should be more careful about riding such an old f.ishioned means of locomotion as the bicycle, However, thanks to the skill of Dr. V. H. Kazanjian. the olas tic surgeon who has worked such miracles with wounded Gl's, and thanks also to the kindly effi ciency of Massachusetts General nurses, Mrs. P. emerged battered, t ut all in one piece She is pon dering my advice that jet planes are now safer than bicycles. Af ter all, times change. While 1 was sitting in the hos 1-ital, the people of Boston, leav ing lor long weekends or sitting on tne banks of the Charles riv cr listening to those delightful pop concerts, were .only mildly interested in tne statement of Nikita Khrushchev to Averell Harriman that Russia would gain supremacy over the United States in a relatively few years. They seemed more concerned over news that Mike Higgins had been fired as manager of the Boston Red Sox. You can't blame them. Simul taneously their leader in the white House had left for an even longer weekend in Maryland ap parently with no pressing cares ether than the rubbers of bridge and the holes of golf he was go ing to play with his camp David guests. Embattled Americans Out at Lexington, now 15 min utes from Boston, though a long, tough ride when Paul Revere had to make it on horseback, tourists inspected the village green where embattled farmers tried to fight off British Red coats in those days when we weren't interested in long week ends and when the only bridge that meant anything was that at Concord where another group of farmers fired the shot heard round the world. Things have changed since then. The shot that would now he heard round the world, if fir ed, has been transferred to Ber lin, far from the suburbs of Bos ton. At Lexington when Captain Parker said "Stand your ground. Don't fire unless fired upon, but if they mean to have war, let il begin here," a total of 11 Americans were killed. But at Berlin if Secretary of State Hertor says "Weil stand our ground. If they mean war, let it begin here," around 48,000,000 Americans might well be killed. That is the figure propounded by the Holifield committee re garding the consequences of ato mic war. Yes, things change. Over the horizon of the Bos ton business section looms a new skyscraper, the John Han cock Life Insurance building nam ed for the first signer of the Declaration of Independence. Re cently that insurance company was charged with being part of a conspiracy by a strong Republi can newspaper to squeeze an in dependent, pro-Democratic news paper out of business, thereby in creasing the trend toward a one party press in the USA. In Russia, which Khrushchev says will triumph over the USA, there is a one-party press. But in those days when the Ameri can colonies burned for freedom there were scores of little news papers published by Tom Paine, Ben Franklin and other patriots who cared not about TV or radio stations or other means of mon opolizing the news. They cared only about building a new free country. Again, things have hanged. Crippling Complacency What Khrushchev was saying when he told Harriman that the USSR would surpass the USA was that the USA was on the road to becoming a second-class power. Some months ago this writer co-authored a book, "U.S. A. Second-Class Power?" which warned of this same danger. Some people were shocked at the title, considered the authors scare-mongers. In Boston some people seemed a bit shocked at Krushchev's boast to Harriman. They couldn't believe that the .ounlry built up by the courage ind energy of those who battled it Lexington could be in danger ef becoming a second-class pow or. But things change. Especiallj 'hey change if we get complac nt. Let's look at the record of complacency and change. It has now been almost two .ears since Russia launched its irst Sputnik. Oct. 4. 1957. and ;he USA has not launched sate llite anywhere near the size of lust first Sputnik. In that same period we have not yet launch d a long range missile. Russia ROMAN GALLEON SIGHTED GHOSSKTO. Italy l'Pl An Italian diver Wednesday reported finding what appeared to be the ruins of a 2.000 year-old Roman galleon. The find was made by t'apt. Leonardo Fusco at a depth bf 170 feet in the Mediterranean off Hub's west central coast. Puts U.S. Position las launched a dozen. Our sec retary of defense has even stat ed publicy that we have no plans for catching up with Russia on long range missiles. To develop missiles and Sput niks requires the development of scientists, which in turn re quires accelerated, intensified ed ueation. Our commissioner of education, Dr. Lawrence Derth ick, an Eisenhower appointee, has officially reported that Rus sia has made amazing strides in education, that her teachers are excellent, that her average of students per classroom is lower than ours. Simultaneously, an aid to ed ucation bill improving both teach ers and classrooms is blocked in congress by Speaker Sam Ray- burn, a bachelor, and Democra tic Leader John McCormick cf Boston, the latter on religious grounds. If you count the gains of Rus sia realistically, the Khrushchev boast, distasteful as it is, was based on hard, unpleasant facts. However, facts can be changed. No one dreamed that the little bind of farmers who fought at Lexington or the political up starts who signed the Declaration of Independence could build a country that would surpass the British Empire as the most pow erful nation in the world. We still are. We are not yet a second-class power. And we don't have to be if we substi tute the spirit of Concord and Lexington for the spirit of complacency. Penniey's Wait Baskets Embossed metal, In 4 decorator color. Pants Creator 2 sets! Adjustable, .Rust-resist metal. Cutting Boards Decorated wood; 1,15 H by 9 by Inches. ! 1 Vinyl Oorment Bag Jumbo, 14 -garment) Full 64-inch tippera m HOMEMAKER. ? I ADDS! m I rK r-- '1 ' " ' ' 3 Textbook Explains The Between Communism, By LYLE C. WILSON UPI Staff Writer wAcuivr.TOV (L'PI This essay is an unabashed plug for a text book whicn is Deing usea in about 1.000 U.S. schools but which should be used in many thousands more. The book is "Democracy versus r,nnmiin " It was prepared and published by the Institute of Fiscal and Political fcducauon. u. Von x!nctrnri Co . Inc.. Prince- ton. N.J.. prints and distributes the book for the instittue. It i simDlv written, well with in th romDrehension of high school freshmen or. even, eighth grade students. This book is rec ommended reading for interested adults, however, because it ex plains effectively what are the great basic differences between Democracy and Communism. Tn mn adults, interested or not, are not sufficiently aware of these differences as to be able to explain to themselves or to others what these differences are. II would he pood for the United States if all citizens would obtain and read this book. Ninon Should Read It If vou think vou are a superior type who understands and can simDlv exDlain the basic differ ences between Communism and Democracy, then, friend, pause right here and have a go at it. If you are unable to state at least some of these basic differences simply, quickly and easily, then vni i nu-p it tn vourself and to vour fellow citizens to buy this book and to read it. Foam Rubber Mot Marbleized. Cush iony foam floor mat. Shredded Foam Plastic filler for pil lows, toya, etc. isi I ;-:. o-,i ,-, ,-v jf Iron Pad, Cover Cotton pad, easy-iron .treated cover. . .. Big Utility Pall 8 gallon. Glitter plas tic. 5 colors. Skirt Hanger Set of 61 Plsstl coated grips. Wood Suit Hanger 18-incbes. Plated hooks, lock device. Wicker Basket All kinds, hand, woven I Imported I i laundry Bushel. ethylene Vice President Richard M. Nix on is a knowledgeable fellow about Communism. He could do worse, however. I bun to get a copy of the institute's book for airplane reading when he flies this month to Moscow. IVrhaps John Marshall, who Is president of the institute, will send a copy to the vice president for free. QUOTES FROM THE NEWS: NEW YORK Nobel prise winner Ralph Bunche. on the re fusal by an all-white tennis club in Forest Hills. N Y, to admit him and his son to membership because they are Negroes: "Neither I nor my son regard it as a hardship or a humiliation. Rather, it is a discredit to the club itself." HAMMOND, Ind. Russian First Deputy Premier Frol Koz Inv. nn I hp dimensions of the American sirloin steak: "I know you arc a hospitable nonnla htit I hstvi HtlP rPUllfSt. " " ' " 1 " Could you please reduce the size of the beefsteaks? The helpings are loo tag. MEMPHIS. Tenn. Willie' D. Jeffries, 65. who had just 'Wed Mrs. Frances Pitcher, 74: "What's so unusual about get ting married at 65? We can get around just as well as anybody else." Tidy up . . . brightest up . . . lighten up every job around the house 9-Pair Shoe Rack Heavy steel wire.i Plastic tipped. Suit Hangers Set of 5! Plastic, Wire swivel hooks. Wood Pant Hangers Set of S! Felt lining. Plated "locks". Baskets Soft, poly plastic. Waste Baskets 14 quart. Glitter, plastic. 4 colors. Differences Democracy If so. Marshall might also send one to the White House. Presi dent Eisenhower flunked his big j;cst test on the difference be twecn Communism and Democra cy. Ike was frank enough to make a public confession. He told a news conference in 1957 that be :ind Soviet Marshal Zhukov had many long discussions about our respective doctrines." Ikt Had Trouble "I was very hard put to it." Ike confessed, "when Zhukov in sisted that their system appealed lo the idealistic, and we complete ly to t!ie materialistic, and I had a ery tough time trying to defend our position." A student in any of the 1.000 schools where the institute's book is being used as a text would have represented the United Slates better than Eisenhower in those talks with Zhukov. Students in the multi-thousands of schools in which the book is not used, however, probably would be no better informed on this subject than Eisenhower, which is faint praise, indeed. The president has some ideas on the subject and they are good ones. For example, he said in 1956: "Competition tor men's minds begins when they are students. This is when they must be taught to discriminate between truth and falsehood. Specifically they must be taught to discriminate between the American form of government and the Soviet fprm." That is exactly what "demo cracy Versus Communism' seeks to tea h. Dress Hanger Set of 8! Plastic; wire swivel hooks. , pn v. , w . Handy Wood Stool Fold-away! 12 by 8H by 9-inches high. i . . - -J. Rubber Bath Mat Suction-cup, IS br' 23-inches. 4 colors. Oblong Dish Pan 11 quart. GlitUr plastic. 4 colors.