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4 Salem, Oregon, Monday, February 20, 1950
The President's Serenity
Nation-wide comment has followed the recent exclusive
interview President Truman gave to Arthur Krock of the
New York Times, probably because his column is not syn
dicated and Mr. Truman has recently developed an antag
onism to syndicated writers as well as newspapers in gen
eralthus following in FDR's footsteps. The interview
was disappointing in that it did nothing to clarify his posi
tion on international problems, when hysteria is rampant
over the atomic and hydrogen bombs, to which he has given
the green light.
Mr. Truman, perhaps to reassure the people, expressed
his incurable optimism. He was convinced there would
be no war, that the United States would get an agreement
with the Russians and that "everything's going to be all
right" regardless of ominous warnings. As Krock sum
marized it, "A serene president sits in the White House
with undiminished confidence in the triumph of human
nature" and of good over evil, that he faces the future with
"undiminished confidence that man's better nature ulti
mately will bring abiding peace."
There seems little to justify this wishful thinking espe
cially as the president has many times expressed his lack
of faith in Russia's Soviet government to abide by any
agreements which it might make to avert the crisis, an
opinion justified by its sabotage of the United Nations with
its veto power and aggressive absorption of Baltic and Bal
kan nations.
The AIsop Brothers, syndicated columnists of the New
York Herald Tribune, say that the presidential mood "can
only be described as euphonia," defined in the dictionary as
a psychological state consisting of a "sense of well-being
and buoyancy." They hint that Truman's unexpected elec
tion obviously gave him "an overriding new sense of con
fidence in his own judgment."
In other words, power seems to have gone to the presi
dent's head, as power usually does. As Lord Action re
marked in his History of Freedom, "All power corrupts,
and absolute power corrupts absolutely1."
Perhaps, however, it is not euphonia, but Coueism that
Inspires the Truman optimism. Emile Coue was a French
exponent of auto-suggestion who developed and introduced
a system of psychotherapy known as Coueism that had a
tremendous vogue a quarter of a century ago in this coun
try. All that a sick person had to do to cure his malady Coue
taught was to keep repeating from dawn to bedtime at in
tervals the phrase, "Every da in every way, I'm getting
better and better" and the patient cured himself.
Whether it is euphonia or Coueism that inspires the
Truman sunshine it is evident that he echoes Browning's
"God's In his heaven, all's right with the world."
McKay Should Demand an Explanation
Governor McKay had no alternative but to comply with
the urgent request to put into effect again the air-raid
warning system.
As the governor told publishers of the state Saturday,
he could take one of three actions regarding the request
by Secretary of Defense Johnson for the air-warning sys
tem. McKay could refuse to comply with the "suggestion"
by the man entrusted with looking after the nation's de
fenses. The governor could ignore the "suggestion." Or
McKay could agree to the proposal that has strange mean
ing during these "peaceful" days. i
As governor of a state which has admittedly been plac
ed in the critical defense category, McKay could do nothing
but go along on Johnson's "suggestion." The responsi
bility for not putting into effect a warning system that
must have had the approval of President Truman and must
have been requested only after great consideration would
be too much for the governor entrusted with the leadership
and well-being of this state.
This following o an air-raid warning system pattern
when jet planes move faster than sound still makes little
or no sense. Nor does the international situation on the
surface appear to warrant this extraordinary measure at
this particular time. 'The people who do not have access
to top secret intelligence that comes into Washington have
reason to be puzzled by this request. Furthermore, the
warning system was associated with the slow, out-dated
bombers of pre-World War II days.
Governor McKay should demand publicly a statement by
Secretary of Defense Johnson as to reasons for this strange
request. If the governor is willing to follow out instruc
tions from Washington, then Washington should give rea
sons for the request.
The United States is still supposed to be a republic in
which the authority of the executive department in Wash
ington is limited. And if any request of the importance
and significance of the air warning system is made, then
the states are entitled to a full explanation, when coopera
tion is expected. This is still not a nation run by edicts
from Washington. Oregon has a right to know the reason
for Johnson's warning-system proposal.
Bomb Aids Plowing
Woodland, Cal., Feb, 20 (U.R) A Yolo county farmer Rot
some unexpected help with his spring plowing yesterday
when an air-force B-25 dropped a bomb In a field Just off
V. S. Highway 99-W between here and Davis, Calif.
No one was in the field at the time and damage was limited
to an eight-foot hole In the ground.
Deputy sheriffs said the bombing apparently was as much
of a surprise to the plane's crew as it was to observers. The
bomber circled the field for 45 minutes until deputies sig
nalled no damage had been done, they said.
The Boy in the Car Trunk
Hawthorne, Calif., Feb. 20 P) A woman called police and
aid she had seen a man stuff a boy In the trunk of a car.
As he drove off, she said, she copied the license number.
Police traced the car to the home of Harry Scroggs.
Scroggs laughed and produced the boy, Harry, Jr., 15.
"The car has a rear-end rattle," said Harry, Jr. "I thought
I could ride back there and find it."
Parachute Brings Valentine
Burbank, Calif., Feb. 20W Mrs. Joan Slater finally got
wind of her Valentine.
Her heart's desire a pound of Roquefort cheese was
found hanging from a tree a half block from her home yes
terday. That's where it landed when her husband, Jeff, flew
over and parachute-dropped it from 100 feet on the 14th.
She'd probably have got it toonet U It had been Hmbuf en.
BYH. T.WEBSTER
The Timid Soul
'PSJ)t'. ' ''' BACKACHE. I '
"imp SSfi
M ' teeyntM. WO, Hw Ynt HwoM Ttil lac " i?-30-
( "HI
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MAI I
KRISS-KROSS
You Don't Have to Go to
The Mountains to Climb
ByCHftiSKOWITZ.Jr.
An adventure in climbing, without leaving the city limits of
Salem . . . Impossible? . . . No, we accomplished as much last week.
Such old landmarks as the courthouse, Washington school and
City hall are familiar sights to all Salemites. Most of us have
been within their walls on several occasions. Far above their
offices, and cor-.
ridors are b e 1
fries and atticst
which beckon
for the curious-minded.
Walking u p
to the statehouse
dome or the
roof of the
Livesay building
will give you a
trood view ofl
the city, true " """
enough. But scaling the less ac
cessible and seldom - climbed
other historic buildings in the
city presents a much more mem
orable experience.
Nearly every person who has
lived or visited in Salem has
heard the courthouse clock toll
away on the hour and half hour.
But how many have seen the
mechanism of the clocks in op
eration? The courthouse dome, besides
supporting the Goddess of Lib
erty, contains a central mechan
ism for all four clocks (one on
each side of dome). The same
mechanism controls the striking
of the clocks. A 3-foot stationary
bell, hit by a mechanical ham
m e r , provides the familiar
"bong-bong-bong" that daily
tells hundreds of people they're
late for work, that it's time for
lunch, or that they're away
from their parking meter for
over an hour, etc.
Running competition with the
courthouse bell at noon every
day is the huge siren mounted
in the dome of City hall. That
siren, which can barely be seen
from the street below, is about
3 feet long, with a huge horn at
either end.
Reaching the City hall siren
requires the climbing of about
25 feet of ladder. And even
then, it's a long, long way to the
WASHINGTON MERRY-GO-ROUND
Lewis Says Coal Operators
Can't Think for Themselves
By DREW PEARSON
Washington During one part of the recent meeting of coal op
erators with John L. Lewis, Lewis challenged Bert Manley,
spokesman for the far west operators:
"Mr. Manley, you know you'll sign anything the Illinois op
erators will sign, the Illinois operators will sign anything the
Ohio mine own- '
the oath of citizenship, however,
he glossed over certain things
which, if discovered in the rec
ord of any other less powerful
person, would cause him to lose
his citizenship and be deported.
"For Instance, Costello did
not tell the government when
he took the oath as a citizen,
that he had previously served a
term in jail for carrying a con
cealed weapon.
"Even more important, a new
citizen of the United States takes
an oath to uphold the laws and
constitution of the United States.
"Yet at the very moment
Frankie Costello was taking his
solemn oath as an American ci
tizen, he was also engaged in
the largest scale violation of the
Volstead act and the 18th
amendment in the history of
prohibition.
"The 18th amendment at that
Lewis said the operators J? ?ffJm
tello was holding up his right
hand and solemnly swearing to
uphold the constitution, he was
also engaged in violating it."
BY CARL ANDERSON
Henry
L '1
Drew Pearson
ers will agree
to, and Ohio
will follow1
Pennsylvan i a .
That brings us
to George Love
(pre s i d e n t of
the Pittsburgh
Consolida t i o n
Coal company).
When Love
signs, the whole
lot of you will
fall down like tenpins.
"The trouble with you gentle
men is you don't know how to
think for yourselves. You're too
easily coerced by the big bank
ing interests that control you."
"Speaking of coercion," acid
ly shot back Love, "how about
all those men on your picket
lines who are keeping the mines
from reopening? I guess you'd
call that coercion."
II, , I JUST MADE A NEWl
SLIP COVER FOR-CTT
THE OTTOMAN, (fZ ,
PI IH 1 1 "I lam- P b 1H I p
"1
top of the dome. Up and up . . .
story after story of vast space
... no floors . . . just supports,
beams and ladders . . . you'd
never imagine the tower was so
tall until you start climbing
those ladders. From the top
step of the top ladder, one can
peer all the way down through
the maze of beams and rafters to
the third floor. If more space is
ever needed at City hall, they
certainly have it.
Hundreds of Salem citizens
are alumni of old Washington
school near the Capitol Shopping
Center. We spent six studious
years there ourselves, but never
got around to going all the way
to the top of the knowledge edi
fice until last week.
The Washington school belfry
is now loaded with pigeons and
evidence of pigeons. A few ini
tials, obviously carved there by
boys and girls of many years
ago, are still clearly visible . . .
also the old hygiene chart which
teachers once used to preach the
evils of tobacco . . . and an artistically-carved
ornament which
has been sitting there since 1887
without falling adherent to a
paint job . . . age of ornament
and lack of paint indicates it
was probably intended to be put
on the building in '87, but in
stead was laid in the belfry and
hasn't been moved since.
Unfortunately, public tours of
the tops of these old buildings
would be too hazardous, and
will have to, for the greater
part, be left to the mice and pi
geons. . . . Even all that wasn't
enough for us. On a trip to the
coast over the week-end, we
weren't satisfied until we'd
climbed the mast of the "Cap
tain Ludvig," the largest boat
we could find.
would have to meet two "condi
tions" before he would consid
er a new contract: 1. All law
suits against him by operators
who are demanding damages for
their strike losses would have to .
be dropped; 2. Any operators Name on Iour Bi
who held back payments into Dynamic Georgia Neese Clark,
the miners pension-welfare fund treasurer of the United States,
during the strike must pay up faced her first closed-door gril-
pronto. ling from a group of males when
Lewis somberly read the list sne appeared before the house
of lawsuits against him, running appropriations committee,
into millions of dollars. "Georgia Neese Clark is a
"I trust that you gentlemen Pretty name," remarked young
will see to it that these suits are ReP Gordon Canfield of New
dismissed," he served notice.
"The United Mine Workers'
lawyers will await your pleas
ure. As for those deadbeat oper
ators who have held back their
honorable obligations to the
Jersey. "And it looks good on
the paper currency of the United
States. I am glad to greet you
as the new treasurer.
"Your predecessor (the late
W. A. Julian) always indulged
Ed, the Squirt Man, Hopes
Coin Idea Doesn't Fizzle
By HARMAN W. NICHOLS
Washington, Feb. 20 (U.PJ Edward Walsh Mehren, president
of the Squirt Company, hopes his idea doesn't fizzle.
At any rate, Ed has the assurance of at least one senator that
it will get a hearing.
Squirt is a soft drink. Ed's idea has to do with money 2',i
and 7 V-i cent coins which he :
thinks the government ought to ence.' A big percentage of the
mint to "save the public be- goods we buy is paid for with
tween five and eight million small change coins which are
dollars a year." convenient for the buyer and the
Sen. Sheridan Downey, (D merchant to handle.
Cal.,) said he had requested the "As a result, the pricing of
senate banking and currency many popular commodities is
committee to hold hearings on based more on convenience than
several bills for intermediate on the actual value of the com
coinage sometime in March. modities."
Mehren, a handsome, strap- Ed looks at it a little deeper,
pling fellow who used to be a even.
football player, hopes the start If we were to eliminate the
of the hearings will come around nickel, dime and quarter and
March 15th the day we give use only pennies for all sales
Uncle Sam his income tax dues, under half a dollar, many prices
"It would point up the issue," would be changed immediately,
he said. The people would see to that.
Most prices, by popular demand,
Ed really gets to fist-pound- would have to be in odd penny
Ing when he starts talking about amounts, rather in five, 10 or
his pet subject which is the 15-cent amounts in order to sell,
odd-sized coin. "This," Ed says, "would elim-
"If these coins are added to inate the general business tend
our minor coinage, they will ency to over-price items in order
mark a significant advance in items in order to use convenient
enabling Americans to buy more coins."
goods with current consumer in-
come," he said. The Squirt man already has
"Thus," he said, "American coin names ready for Secretary
business could price goods close of Treasury John Wesley Snyder,
to value and diminish over- in case the congress approves
charges based on convenience." the proposed coins.
The Squirt man is hepped on A 2 Mi cent coin would be
the matter of convenience. He called the "Ben" after the thrifty
maintains that it cost us around Benjamin Franklin. The IVi cent
$55 a head a year because we piece would be the "Link," for
have no in-between small coins. "Honest Abe" Lincoln.
Ed goes on and on if you
He even goes farther than that, let him about the convenience
"The biggest chief in Ameri- of having tokens for the trans
can business today," the busi- portation systems with a half
ness man said, "is ... an ap. cent denomination. And so on
peeling thing called "convent- and so on.
welfare fund, they had better in a little saltv laneuaffe. " con.
repay their indebtedness if they tinued the New Jersey repub
expect us to meet with them in lican. "While we do not expect
good faith." that of you, we do hope that
you will have one pet aversion
Frankie Costello that he had namely, to an en
Some of New York's high- ormous public debt."
powered publicity experts have Mrs. Clark replied that she
been touting a Hollywood actor's would do her best to emulate
recent attempt to have Frankie Julian regarding this aversion.
Costello deported. Here is what Note When Mrs. Clark was
this columnist said about Costel- divorced, her husband wanted
lo on July 21, 1947, alumost her to take back her maiden
three years ago. name But Mrs clark said she
The kingpin of American had used the name for some
gamblers, once the biggest liquor years and didn-t want to change
racketeer m the country Frank He yielded gracefully. So when
Costello, cou d be deported from the first greenback was issued
the United States if anyone real- bearing her name, Mrs. Clark
ly,Z S V?"81 about sent it to her friendly ex-hus-Frank.e
Costello migrated band wlth a notation ..clark
m Ita(yarU!5d95a"d t a bad t hve on
boS? 1 at"rah2d Uncle Sam's currency."
1925. At the time Costello took (copjrtoht isso
POOR MAN'S PHILOSOPHER
Ives, Ballad Singer, Wants
To Run a Real Fun City
By HAL BOYLE
New York VP) Anybody got a used tovAi for sale cheap?
Burl Ives, the big, bearded ballad singer, is in the market for
a second-hand small town, in good condition, if it has a moun
tain or two around it and the price is right.
He'd like it for a purpose to see if he can build a community
where Amen
of any kind, his parents right
away want to put him in the
entertainment business."
Burl said if he couldn't afford
to buy a town he'd start out with
a dude ranch, one "without any
phoney atmosphere." He hasn't
decided what to name his village
yet, but it definitely won't be
"Culture City."
"I hate that word culture,"
' Ives said, making a face through
overflowing his whiskers. "It started as an
MacKENZIE'S COLUMN
Life in Trenches During First
World War Not Filled with Joy
By DeWITT MacKENZIE
UP Foreign Affair Analyst) '
Warning that when World War III breaks we shall have to
scurry into the bowels of the earth for security isn't so strange
after all.
It will be history repeating itself on a bigger scale. Those who
can remember World War I will recall that millions of soldiers.
on both sides, r
lived under
ground during
much of the
four years.
When the
fighting finally (
became rela-s
tively stationary
after the early t
rushes, the op-!
posing front-line
defenses were
elaborately fitted out with fine
furniture and Persian rugs. It
had electric lights, electric fan
and electric heat.
Incidentally, on the lawn was
a trench with a parapet along
which the Kaiser used to strut
and pose in the midst of "shot
and shell," while movie cameras
ground out the story of his hero
ism for the folks back home. But
tn epr. hark tn the real trenches:
great trenches in the undereround "village"
which ran more or less parallel previously mentioned I encoun
to each other, sometimes only tered one of the odd stories of
a few yards apart and sometimes the war. It was the experience
widely separated. Naturally the 01 a y0Ung English captain who
troops manning these trenches related it to me. The main char
had to have places in which to acter was Adolph the Rat,
"live." So great chambers were though Captain Bob's batman
dug down into the earth at the (personal attendant), who was
back of the trenches. an eager collector of cast-off
clothing, also played a memor-
- Of course these underground able role.
abodes were pretty awful. They Captain Bob had a lot of book
were muddy and damp and, in keeping to do, and he perform
wmter bitterly cold. And they ed tnis work on a deai table in
were infested with trench-rats. a small room lighted oniy by a
Still, those holes in the ground candle in the neck of a
were home. bottle that stood on the table.
In some places the under- Soon after he was asigned to this
ground chambers were extended job he had an unexpected visi
until whole villages were made, tor a huge trench-rat which
I recall one which even had a sniffed about for food and final
railway with little push cars, ly, quite unafraid, climbed up
This was the scene of the ad- on the table and continued his
venture of Adolph the Rat (no hunt,
relation to Hitler), of which
more anon.
The most famous trench was
,1. ui.jMki. i;nn ; i,
across France southward from fte with va! apia"n-
Captain Bob provided some
biscuit crumbs which Adolph
began a beautiful friendship
which brought Adolph as the
cans can have!
some real down
to - e a r t h fun
again.
"People don't
have real fun
anymore not
honest - to - God
fun," complain-:
ed "the way
farin' stranger,'
as he sat in ;
slippered ease
comfortably
an overstuffed chair in the Hotel honest to God word, but it has
Plaza.
lost its strength. It is already
'I'd like to build a place where !?!nk tea' and has a curse on
tllV nnillH fun anrl An H
the things they want a cre
ative place,
"It would be an
place rather than an outside-in
place. By that I mean I'd want
Just how he'll find time to
develop his project, Burl doesn't
.. know. Last year he gave 131 con-inside-out
, j ".. , ... .
mances, made 75 radio and tele-
DeoDle to eet the snirit of havine V"""
ihiV .nwtninn,.;. f. aeews 01 note engagements, ap-
their entertainment come from
inside rather than from outside
themselves."
Burl, who earns more sing
ing folk-songs than Beethoven
peared in one movie and three
plays, recorded 20 folk songs,
learned to fly an airplane and
finished the first draft of his
second book, "Capra Corner."
This would keep the average
did writing symphonies, explain- fat man thin. But Burl not only
ed he thought people had less gained weight on the scheduli
fun nowadays because "they are
expressed at instead of express
ing themselves.
"And that ain't good for the
soul.
he found time to indulge in
his hobbies, sailing, photography
and amateur painting;
"I travel so much about the
only thing I can paint is the view
"I always ask for an outside
room."
His other pleasures are good
food, good beer, good cigars
"Radios, movies, television, from hotel windows," he said.
sporting events they re all
good, but they don't allow peo
ple to give out with their own
talent."
So he'd like to create a com
munity where they could come, and good talk.
either to live or spend a vaca- "All I need to get fun is to
tion, and develop their talents, have something to do that gets
They'd sing folk songs them- me excited and they keep corn
solves, learn square dances ing along. I get a lot of fun
"they're ten times more fun than out of living."
ballroom dancing" and paint, Right now he is engaged in
make pottery, do leather work, his annual diet to cut his
weaving or any other type of Weight from about 300 down to
handicraft. 240. When friends warn him
"The big need today is self- his present pace will kill him,
expression just for the fun of Burl says:
it," he said. "The trouble is now "Well, nothing shortens life
if a kid doee show a little talent more than living."
Lens to the Aisne. This was
, 1 r i .......
supposed to be impregnable """"
until British, American! Cana- dugout everydav
dians and Australians smashed Finally came a time when the
through it in 1918. captain was busy and didn't
This line was fitted in many notice his pal. Adolph climbed
places with elaborate rooms. Of- on the table and shuffled about
ficers' quarters were so comfy until he overturned the bottle
that some occupants used to en- with he lighted candle,
tertain their lady friends there. The candle dropped out and
fell down into an open box of
The most elaborate bomb very lights, a sort of Roman
shelter I ever saw was that built candle of various colors used for
for Field Marshal Von Hinden- signalling. The very lights start
burg deep under the lawn of his ed to explode, and before you
headquarters at Spa, Belgium, could say Jack Robinson the
This concrete refuge, which was small room was filled with balls
reached by a long tunnel from of fire whizzing in every direc
the house, was a large room, tion.
British Will Be in Washington
In Few Months After Dollars
By JAMES E. ROPER
(United Press staff Correspondent)
Washington, Feb. 20 (U.R) The Britsih and their dollai prob
lems will be back in Washington before many more months.
This may cost the United States more than last fall's round
of dollar talks. At that time, the United States, Canada and
Great Britain attacked "fringe" issues.
The "fringe" program, plus " "
devaluation of the pound sterl- balances. Great Britain now
ing, has helped ease Britain's owes commonwealth countries
dollar shortage but not enough, about $9,000,00,000 worth of de
Both American and British valued pounds for services re
sources agree on that. They also ceived during the war.
agree that more dollar talks will These countries have been
be needed urgently as soon as usln8 the sterling balances to
domestic politics in Britian and buy goods that Britain otherwise
the United States allow. mlsht sell for cash.
British officials can not act . Th Bhr.itistn whe" thev me
until after the British vote ? .Was hnf on- w!" wan h!
Thursday, and a new govern- Umte.d Stae? do somDet
ment-either laborite or con- eye thij, drain on British
servative-is formed. Then Produ5t,on- Thev . w'" ar8ue
American officials will start get'
that they cannot cut off the flow
ting skittish because of this fall's lthf ?ds. to Indi' OT ln"
congressional elections. f''"-.e' Z
... , the standard of living there and
One reason is that the British inviting communists to take
may want another loan $2,000,- over
000 000 to $4,000 000,000. Or the British exports to the United
British may seek direct aid for states SpUrted BIter the pound
the sterling area a kind of was devalued in September. Brl-
Marshall plan under some other tain als0 has improved its dol-
name- lar reserve, but they still are
The British and Americans about 15 per cent below what
will have to wrestle with Bri- the British call a "safe" level.i
tain's biggest' single dollar prob- And the effects of devaluation V
lem the so - called "sterling shot-in-the-arm are wearing off.