Capital Adjournal
An Independent Newspaper Established 1888
GEORGE PUTNAM, Editor and Publisher
ROBERT LETTS JONES, Assistant Publisher
Published every afternoon except Sunday at 444 Che
meketa St., Salem. Phones: Business, Newsroom, Want
Ads, 2-2406; Society Editor, 2-2409.
Full Leased Wire Service of the Associated Press and
The United Press. The Associated Press is exclusively
entitled to the use for publication of all news dispatches
credited to it or otherwise credited in this paper and also
news published therein.
4 Salem, Oregon, Monday, January 30, 1950
Oregon Now Depends Entirely on Salem
Oregon's hope to find a way to save an extension of the
capitol zone rests now with Salem.
The perplexing problem of trying to find a substitute lot
for Robert Coates, the Portland builder who has legal right
to build an apartment house in the heart of the capitol
zone, becomes more acute each day. Since Salem is the
city affected and the one associated with the scene of the
problem, Salem has been asked by the rest of the state to
find a way to put through an extension of the two-block
wide capitol zone north past Center street. And that
means, in part, finding another location for the seven-story
apartment proposed by Coates.
Since interested groups in the state have found it nec
essary to call for on-the-spot leadership to save the zone
extension, immediate full acceptance of that call is imper
ative. To date, Mayor Elfstrom has kept in constant touch
with Coates on the search for another apartment location.
"High" prices for suggested lots have hindered the search.
Since the mayor has left the city at the moment, the Salem
contact with Coates must go on.
It would seem logical that four Salem area groups would
join in active leadership of the search for a solution to the
shift of the apartment out of the proposed zone to another
location. Working together would be the governor's office,
city administration, Chamber of Commerce, and the cham
ber's long-range planning commission.
There must be a solution to the problem which is aggra
vated by regulations of the Federal Housing Administra
tion. But leadership of the hunt for that solution must be
handled by Salem itself. In assuming such a leadership,
the city would be acting as the city immediately affected
and as one of the cities of the state seeking to build the
finest group of state buildings in the country. That group
of buildings can reach impressive stature only in a two
block wide extension north from the capitol. If another
suitable lot for the proposed apartment house can be found,
then the obstacle the apartment house would form to com
pletion of the zone extension, would be eliminated. And
in money, that obstacle would amount to more than ?300,
000, the price the state would probably have to spend to
condemn the lot and building if completed.
There must be a suitable lot, at not too high a price,
that exists in Salem on which the proposed Coates apart
ment house can be built.
Setting a Deficit Spending Trend
That the deficit spending in the red policy of the United
States government is influencing the people to follow simi
lar budget making is shown in the federal reserve board's
report that about a third of the nation's iamilies are fol
lowing Uncle Sam's example in spending more than they
earn. The board reports that 15,500,000 families are emu
lating the government's practice of spending in excess of
their annual incomes, an increase of 1,500,000 families
over 1947. And like the administration, they don't seem
to be concerned about running in the red probably believ
ing that under the Fair Deal they will be taken care of
with $ 100 a month pensions for everyone plus other ben
efits. Three out of four of these spenders went into debt, the
survey shows, in buying autos, furniture or television sets
on credit. Thus the red ink trend set by the federal gov
ernment, has accelerated a trend in private deficit spend
ing. One of the causes of the government's deficit spending
spree was revealed in the recent announcment that the
Commodity Credit Corporation has decided on what looks
like a give-away program of its $3.7 billions of farm sur
pluses. It listed eleven government-held agriculture prod
ucts for sale to U.S. exporters at cut-rates for resale abrdad.
Among the bargains listed :
Seventy-three million pounds of dried eggs, originally bought
t $1.30 a pound, now on sale nt 40c a pound.
Potatoes, which CCC is now buying at $2.10 a hundredweight,
available at 1-cent a 100-pound sack.
Thirty million pounds of Mexican canned meat and gravy,
purchased for about 30 cents a pound, price-tagged at IS cents
a pound, etc., etc.
American buyers may export the foodstuffs to any coun
try, provided no ECA funds are used in payment. But be
cause of high shipping costs the CCC is not sure that much
will be exported. What will become of these surpluses is
anyone's guess probably they will be destroyed as pota
toes have been.
Meanwhile the CCC is going ahead to increase these sur
pluses to insure good prices to the farmers and maintain
high living costs. It is now worried by the slump in hog
prices, prepared to support them at $14.90 a 100 pounds
on the farm. Thus the futile attempts to repeal the eco
nomic law of supply and demand will help continue Uncle
Sam's deficit spending.
Declining Value of the Dollar
Commenting on the diminishing value of the dollar, the
United States News says that its buying power has fallen
to a third of its value in the first half of the century and
that if it continues at the same rate of depreciation during
the last half of the century, its buying power will be only
18 cents in the year 2000. It summarized:
The family dollar in 1000 went three times as far as it goes
In 1950. Dollar now is just under 60 cents by prewar measures.
Prices show the difference Bread was a nickel in 1900 and
$15 a month was big rent. A family could save money on $700
a year.
Dollar, in another 50 years, will buy less than a third of what
It buys now if it follows trends of the past.
Compared to the 60-ccnt dollar of today, the dollar of
1900 was a $1.94 dollar. The dollar today is therefore
worth a third less than in 1900, and if the trend continues,
may be worth less than a third in 2000 what its buying
value is today.
Therefore, the Truman vision of a family income of $12,
000 in 2000 will be less than today's average of $1000, and
about the same value ng the $1200 of 1900 if the same de
cline in value continues.
The value of the dollar is not constant in terms of things
It will buy. Its purchasing power changes in price rise
and fall, but the downward trend has been constant. An
other war might come close to wiping out its value, as the
currency value of other countries has been wiped out.
Without another war, money no longer available in gold
and being dished out to more and more pressure groups in
larger and larger quantities from printing presses devalues
itself by inflation into worthless money, as his torn repeats
itself.
BYH. T. WEBSTER
The Timid Soul
f hm .' i b eerrei refold tSis fRe. )
Iowa- eeFOKE someoue ares e -moo V
throws MB cur of Te woSHRoty bp ) .- -T--i-.
DISOBEYING CHOCKS f IFT.
LJJ lKS- -Z wo1. ,m,
KRISS-KROSS
Today's Weather Affects
Many People in Many Ways
ByCHRISKOWITZ,Jr.
Snowtime oddities: It's funny . . .
. . . How the folks who drove to Mt. Hood and frolicked in
the snow all day yesterday found the weather too, too terrible
to go to work today . . . how so many kids got over their colds
so quickly this morning when they found school was called off
how so ma-
WASHINGTON MERRY-GO-ROUND
Political Fixes in Tax Frauds
Arranged by Biggies Revealed
(Ed. Note President Truman's tax message to congress significant
ly followed up a point repeatedly emphasized in the Washington
Merry-Go-Round that crackdowns on tax violators would yield bil
lions In greater revenue. Here is another in Drew Pearson's Important
series on tax frauds.)
By DREW PEARSON
Washington Probably 99 per cent of the treasury department's
vast army of hard-working, underpaid revenue agents are honest.
However, political fixers of tax frauds arranged by certain of the
big boys in Washington have had bad repercussions in the lower
ranks. '
graham and Morris Sherman,
partners in the auto firm, who
admitted receiving the $300
check and also expressed con
cern that if this fact leaked out
they might lose their Chevrolet
franchise.
No further investigation was
made, but according to a sworn
affidavit in the hands of this
column, Harry Brickman, assist
ant Borough Works commission
er for Manhattan, arranged to
have the whole matter ended.
Thereupon $4,000 was paid to
Bessell by Sherman's brother-
BY CLARE BARNES, JR.
White Collar Zoo
A few agents
have figured f
that since the "
""Wf.'S
1
WW I
top were getting
theirs, the mile
fellow at the
bottom might as
well get some
too. One result
has been an out
break of brib
ery in New
York City, "'""'
where one T-man has been in
dicted and four others suspend
ed. However, despite the fact ed tod-wb th to chief Ganney a
tne suspensions iook piace six in-law and this amount was
months ago, the case appears to handed to chief Ganey. He kept
have been put on ice. $1,200 for himself, gave $1,200
Some of the charges against to Galgano, gave another $1,200
the five include "forgetting" to Bessell and kept the remain-
r V "Wf ' " ' '' " ,
, '' ' - 1 . " ' '
ny business ex
ec s suddenly
discovered they
had to take a
trip to warm-1
er places
how everybody
takes back all f"fj.
the thines theva
said about the f "
heat last Julys
and August
how the stove chrl Ko"'"' ''
They'll get there, come rain
or snow.
But if one flake of snow their
walk besmirch,
It's far too stormy to go to
church.
For the past several weeks,
the state highway department
has been issuing advice on the
necessity of tire chains on cer
tain highways. The department
makes a continuous study of
always runs out of oil in the road conditions, and issues daily
middle of the night ... and how bulletins.
the lad next door that couldn't So when David Don of route
make the baseball team can 6, Salem, took a trip to Redmond
throw those snowballs so last week, he was careful to
straight. check the highway department
One old proverb takes a beat- bulletins. Finding that chains
ing today: "The grass is always wcre mandatory on the route he
greener on the other side of Planned to travel, he slipped
the hill." Now we hear. "Whv chains on his car and encoun-
does the snow always have to tered n0 trouble with the snow,
be deeper on MY side of the In fat. Jus' about every vehi-
hill'" cle he saw that day was wearing
If the census takers make chains and making excellent
their rounds before today's Prore- That 's, until he came
snowmen melt away, Salem's a "pon ne of e J""'8 where
cinch to hit the 60,000 mark. ihef Wasu"ed-
... , . .. , What was blocking the road?
After observing the number Truck3 stuck in the snow be
of people in the theatre Satur- 4w t;ij
day and the number in church Don reports that tire chains were
yesterday we re inclined to be- dangling quite conspiciousiy
neve tnat . . . Irom the gides of the trucltSi
If people have tickets to the right next to the sign that says,
show, "State Highway Department."
MacKENZIE'S COLUMN
Adventures of German Treaty
lnl918WereFullofThrills
By DeWITT MacKENZIE
VP) Foreign Affairs Analyst)
This, my eager seekers after thrills, is the adventure of the
German armistice.
The armistice of November 11, 1918, had just been signed. The
grim-faced Germans wcre withdrawing their defeated armies
slowly, and the allies wore following methodically. We corre
spondents at-p
ing $400 for "George."
Sherman and Ingraham, when
interviewed by this column,
were frank In their comment:
"You've got the story right. It's
water over the dam. We'd rather
about tax cases on the request
of Tammany politicians. And if
President Truman really means
business about cracking down
on tax violators, as I am sure he
does, here is one place to start.
And just in case Secretary of forget about it."
the Treasury Snyder doesn't Special Favor
know all the facts, here are some In January 1948, Ganey or-
that will interest him. dered an investigation of Char-
"Squeal Letter" cs Navlen, doing business as the
In New York's Third Internal Rex Refrigeration Service Co.
Revenue Collection District in at 3097 Third Ave., New York.
February, 1948, an informer's The investigator, James A. Bes-
letter was received stating that seiit iater reported to his su-
Kenmoor Inc. Cloak and Suit periors an unreported tax lia-
Manufacturers at 512 7th Ave., bility of approximately $10,000.
New York, had made unreported But when he confronted Nav-
income on the black market. ien witn this, Navlen became
William Ganey, division chief of hysterical, picked up the tele-
the special investigating - unit, nhnne and slammed it nirainst
turned the letter over to T-man
James A. Bessell, explaining that
the "squeal letter" actually had
been written by another T-man,
Thomas Cannon, who was ac
quainted with the Kenmoor
the wall. When a clerk rushed
in, Navlen shouted: "If you don't
get out of here I'll throw it at
you."
Then Navlen proposed to Bes
sell that the case be settled,
Company and felt they would be "Any price you name is all right
an easy touch
Bessell then called on Rosen
thal and Montello, partners in
the Kenmoor Company, examin
ed their books and said he found
unreported profits on his sec
ond trip to Kenmoor Inc. How-
with me," he said. In this case,
however, there is no evidence of
any payment.
Almost immediately there
after Chief Ganey introduced
Bessell to Carl Sandberg, 1019
East 179th New York, a leader
Junior Partners
POOR MAN'S PHILOSOPHER '
Want to Make $500
A Week? Write Top Jokes
By HAL BOYLE
New York VP) Would you like to be a top comedy writer and
make $1000 or more a week?
It is very simple. All you have to do is think up jokes funny
jokes, by the hundreds.
However, jokes are much like people. They are very perish
able. mmMW&ms&mma
i' loi" a Program classy or trashy," he
said. He sparks it. It all be
gins with him. The comedian's
art lies in editing the material."
Bergen himself looked a little
hollow-eyed as he sipped his
11:15 a.m. breakfast coffee.
"I worked from midnight un
til 3:30 this morning editing
the jokes we wrote yesterday,"
he sighed. All this time Mc
Carthy and Snerd dozed soundly
in a trunk.
The joke industry is equally
wearing on comedian and writer.
"It's imnortant to nhanffn
dummies Charlie McCarthy writers," said Bergen "You get
and Mortimer Snerd burn up tired o eacn other and you
jokes like they were giveaway find you are going down the
matches. , , , same channel too often."
.u. ,.. . , He estimates he has been as-
,7 MIL "hi "V listed by some 20 writers In hi.
career.
"There is no question of the
need for more comedy writers,"
1 nU 1 1 T, un
T, . , , lie Hiu. ib van irevci uc an
c'ee U" " T y overcrowded profession.
nalinn Thon Ufa u rita ncr morn, '
"Stra n g e r s
are always
mailing me a
joke and asking
me to pay them
if I use it," said
Edg a r Bergen,
the radio ven
triloquist. "Usu-1'
ally the joke is
old. But if it
were new who
wants to buy
jokes one at a
time?"
His famous
wooden - head
the tense problem of getting
ha-ha material for a half-hour
program:
"I work with three writers.
ever, he was told by William of the Star Demneratie rlnh at
Ladenheim, an accountant, that 1029 East 163rd St., and asked
the investigation would cost his Bessell "how bad is this case?"
clients a great deal of extra time Bessell replied that it was bad.
and inconvenience. Later in the To which Ganey replied: "Let's
same day, Cannon, the T-man ciose this case as a special favor
who had written the "squeal let- to Sandberg."
ter," brought in an envelope con- The case was then closed,
taining $3,000 in cash. Navlen, when interviewed by
According to a sworn affidavit this column, called in his law-
in the hands of this column, yer Leonard Prose, who ranted,
Ganey, chief of the investigat- roared, threatened and cajoled,
ing unit, split the $3,000 four He neither affirmed nor denied
ways $900 going to Bessell, anything. An investigation by
$900 to Cannon and $300 going 0ther treasury officials indicated
to a man whom Ganey described that Navlen paid Sandberg an
uttuuu. xucu wc wine us many i.
1 . 1 .1 . . ,ikio van b tic niaiiuiaiibtu
jokes around it as we can Usu- h t th b developed
ally we get between 700 and 800. lik'e any other talent. I have al-
"We trim these down to 300, ways thought that colleges could
then we go on pruning until teach two things that they don't
we end up with the 80 or 90 teach now how to have a suc-
jokes we actually will use on cessful marriage and how to be
the program." comical on purpose. And they
For 12 years Bergen has dealt should have a post-graduate
with this problem of creating course in how to be very comi-
three laughs for every minute cal."
he is on the air. Oddly enough,
he retains
about it.
a sense of humor
as "George.'
Rosenthal and Montello, when case.
attorney's fee for settling the
interviewed by this column,
stated that Cannon had offered
to fix the case and that $3,000
was agreed upon as the price.
Last summer the treasury in
dicted Bessell, and suspended
Ganey, Cannon, Galgano, and
Fiscella. However, no action
Bergen himself is always
. ,.,, v.!. scouting for fresh talent. Where
Originally he wrote all his rio h it,
"Well, once I went to an em
ployment agency in Los Angeles.
I asked for two-page sample
scripts. I got 90. Only three
of them were any good. I hired
two of the people.
'One was a young girl named
own material. But in time h
like Jack Benny, Bob Hope, Mil
ton Berle and other popular
comedians had to holler for
help.
Unlike some laugh merchants,
tached to the
British had
headquarters in
Lille, France.
Things wcre
relatively dull
and so I sug
gested to the
British captain
who was my of
ficial escort that
we motor into
Brussels. The
Germans still were there, and
. DeWltl Mackeniifl
ficers so they couldn't reach us.
Our guide took us by a cir
cuitous route to a fine resi
dence in a quiet street. Our car
was quickly concealed in the
courtyard behind a huge iron
gate, and we were taken into
the house. It was the home of
our rescuer, M. Marechal, a
prominent government official.
That night I told my host I
should like to see the city. I
had to wear my uniform, with
iw hart hnon no nnw nf ,hat trench coat and military boots,
the Belgian capital was like after but he loaned me an ordinary
all the years of occupation. cloth cap not a disguise which
The captain raised his eye- w0,uld have fooled Sherlock
brows. The Germans were in Holmes, but better than nothing
unpleasant mood and would use or was "
us rough if they caught us. It was a memorable excur
Therc might oven be shooting, sion, b u t without untoward
However, having thus done his event except for one incident,
official duty, the captain grin- As we were walking along under
ned as said: "All right; let's go." the street lights by the bourse
It was a strange adventure. 8 German sergeant came swag
There were no troops at all be- goring toward us He was big and
tween us and Brussels. How- he wns tough, with a pistol hol
evcr, the country folk were stercd on hls hiP
eagerly watching the roads for The sergeant spotted me when
advent of allied troops, and we he was thirty yards away. His
made a triumphal progress be- Baze first took in my cloth cap
twecn lines of cheering people, and then traveled slowly down
vtiu, i the military coat until those
we reached Brussels. German
troops were everywhere and we
accursed boots were reached. He
had me catalogued. However, he
worked through the outskirts d.idn'' challenge me but Just
until we came to a big square .....i:U
which was strange to us and we Well, that's the story,
had to ask directions. A crowd stopped by the curb,
of civilians, recognizing the al- Marechal and I kept on walk
lied uniform, quickly surround- ing but 1 could see the German
ed us. Simultaneously a party t of the corner of my eye. He
of German officers suddenly ap- was looking after me and his
pearcd on the other side of the hand rested on his automatic,
square and, seeing the crowd, It seemed like an hour that
started toward us. Things he pondered the problem. Then
didn't look good. suddenly his hand dropped from
At that tense moment a Bel- his gun, he shrugged his shoul
gian pushed through the crowd dcrs expressively and stalked
to us and asked if he could be away. The war was over why
of assistance. We explained that worry?
we had to get away from those The next morning the Ger
Gcrmans and also needed, a hide- mans wcre rushing to evacuate
out for the night. He gave some the city and, with Mr. Marechal
instructions to a friend, pushed as guide, we drove to the city
the latter up on our running hall where we wcre presented
board as guide, and signaled to the famous Burgomaster
the crowd to open up and let Max, one of the war heroes. He
us through. The people not only addressed a crowd in the court
did that but they deliberately yard, and then led them in giv
blocked the progress of the of- Ing us a rousing send-off.
This was placed in an envelope has been taken since then, and
and turned over to (Jannon by wnen their chief, James W.
Rosenthal. The partners said Johnson, collector of internal
they had not been guilty of tax reVcnue for the 3rd district, was
evasion but were the victims of interviewed, he refused to com
a shakedown. ment on who might be protect-
Smooth Workers jng them and why no further
This trio of Ganey, Cannon action had been taken,
and Bessell, plus two others In facti Johnson refused even
John Galgano and Anthony Fis- to give the name of his chief
cella organized a smooth work- field deputy, though admitting
ing partnership in collecting this was a matter of public rec
from scared income-tax payers. ord- i wouldn't give you any-
Almost simultaneously with thing to help with this story,"
the Kenmoor shakedown, John he said.
Galgano, another investigating "Then I am beginning to see,"
agent, uncovered a $300 check j0hnson was told, "how these
paid under-the-table to the Sher- shakedown artists were operat
man Chevrolet company, Inc., lng right under your nose."
561 Central Park Ave., Yonkers, ..you are making an accusa
N.Y., as a bonus on the pur- tion and I resent it," snapped
chase of a new ear. the collector of internal revenue,
Two T-men, Galgano and Bes- and tnat ended the interview,
sell, then called on Jack In- (copyright 19M
Things Are Tough in the Yukon
Lillooct, B. C, Jan. 30 U.R A bearded trapper-prospector
known as "Yukon Joe' and his faithful dog "Duffy' were
familiair seasonal visitors in this Interior Canadian settle
ment. For years the inseparable pair worked the rugged Cariboo
country north of here. Joe, his dog at his heels, hiked into
town occasionally for supplies.
Nobody knew Yukon Joe's real name or much about him.
He never said much.
Yesterday, Joe stumbled into a ranch near here. He was
nearly exhausted. He had spent '0 days fighting through
blizzards and subzero temperatures from his mountain shack.
After he had changed to dry clothes and eaten some
soup, someone asked him, "Joe, Where's Duffy?"
"1 'et him," Joe said. "I needed food."
Bergen has a vast and vocal re- Dorothy Kingsley. She started
spect for his writers. at $40 a week. In a year she
"A guy who can write comedy was getting $150. In three years
has a real future today," he said, she was making $500, And she
"And there is no unemployment left me to go to work for the
problem. There are no $2,000 M-G-M Studio at $1,200.
a week comedy writers sitting "A good comedy writer doesn't
around waiting for a call. They have to wait until the senior
are all working." partner dies to get promoted."
He means those who can keep Now if you want to go to work
steadily shucking fresh jokes for Bergen don't mail him a new
week after week and month after joke. Mail him a thousand
month and year after year. if you're really serious about
"It's the writer who makes a wanting to write comedy.
Capital jkjJournal
Joking Ad Backfires
East Liverpool, O.. Jan. 30 VP) An East Liverpool auto
salesman is considering a "walkout" Russian V. N. style
on his latest deal.
Eddie Lane advertised a 1947 coupe at S1.275 in the ortho
dox manner. Few prospective buyers were interested. He
"humorized" the ad and listed as extras a "Siberian radio"
and "salt mine heater." He said the car was bought with
"filthy capitalist money," but he was offering it at a "bargain
price of 1,275 rubles."
That brought results.
Mrs. Ruth Rayl appeared at the salesroom, punked down
two 1,000 ruble notes and demanded the car. She said her
husband, Edward, obtained the currency while with the ma
rine corps in China.
Eddie said he was only fooling about the rubles but Mrs.
Rayl said she was serious and Is considering steps to force
Eddie to make good.
(Pre-war rubles were worth about 55.5 cents in Russia.
Bankers say they have only souvenir value In the U. S.)
A Personal ad in the
Wichita Eagle lured
Jake Fleagle, notorious
Midwest bank bandit of
the 1920's, Iron his
Ozark- hideout. It was
run by an old crony at
behest of the FBI. G
men killed Fleagle when
he boarded a train to
meet Pinky, his false
pal.
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