Image provided by: Morrow County Museum; Heppner, OR
About Heppner gazette-times. (Heppner, Or.) 1925-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 30, 1943)
4 5 Heppner Gazette Times, September 30, 1943 r 1 AT-S ST Washington, D. C. Sept- 30 One of the new rackets by some citi zens and slick lawyers continues while congress is attempting to curb them. This racket is the "in former" by which a "citizen" or lawyer, who knows nothing about an attempt to defraud the govern ment brings ' a civil suit knowing that under an ol( law, passed in 18G5, he will receive 50 percent of the judgment. At this time there are 35 such suits and they involve millions of dollars. Two suits of this character have been filed against a western railroad and an oil company for a sum represent ing $1,200,000,000. The department of justice is asking a curb on these, racketeers, for on the floor of the senate the activity of these lawyers has been called a racket. It started back in January, this year, when th4 su preme court upheld a judgment for $315,000. The so-called "informer" received half the money under the law. But it is declared that the "in former" contributed nothing to the case; he had simply copied the in dictment -which had been drawn by the department of justice. Recently there was testimony be fore the Truman committee that a certain war contract firm has chis eled the government. The depart ment of justice investigated and found the testimony was; insuffi cient to bring a suit. However, based on newspaper reports of the Truman committee testimony, three different people in the mid west filed suit. Beyond the news paper reports they knew nothing. The senate is attempting to change this ancient law and propo sals have been made to reduce the "informer" cut from 50 percent to 25 percent, or even 10 percent. Ev en a 10 percent, slice of a judgment for a few million dollars would not be "hay." On the other hand, there is a desire to retain sufficient fea tures of the old act to enable a person who by his own investiga tion has "something" on an alleged crooked war contractor and yet at the same time discourage the racketeers. As the situation stands, any war contractor can be sued by an "in former" if some witness tells the Truman or other investigating com mittee that the such-and-such ship building company of Puget sound or Columbia river horn swoggled the government The tanker "Schenectedy", which! split and sank at the outfitting dock in OUR DEMOCRACY Care Saves Wear Shoes were rationed when our. country was founded-not by stamps but by necessity it ' took 3 days to make a serviceable BUT CLUMSY PAIR -A WEEK'S WAGES TO Buy THEM. PEOPLE WERE CONSIOEZEO LUCKY WHO MAP APAIIZ A YAZ. 99 rpTs, by Mat wrinkles which will have to be ironed out before the bugle blows cease firing. The one big wrinkle in any postwar plan is labor costs Most everyone agrees that indus try will not be able to return to the pre-war wage level for labor. On the other hand, industry can't be expected to pay boom war-time wage scales, and that's where the unions come into the picture. La bor unions now have the largest membership ever attained and mil lions of dollars in theij treasury. They will battle any move which would reduce the hourly wage of any craft; and on the contrary may even ask for more money. Unions now hold closed shop contracts with many lines of industry which will be in effect after the war. Wage increases have been written into these contracts and also into federal and state wage-hour regulations. Therefore, any national postwar planning act will have to contain an average hourly wage rate close to the current rate of hourly pay, think the lawmakers. Naturally the revision of any and all postwar wage scales will be downward, and that's the big wrinkle to be ironed out. Shoes are being rationed today so that our armed forces can be well shod. we will, have enough to so around.... its up to us to take care of shoes-keep them in repair.. SHOES ARE WAR EQUIPMENT FOR OUR MILLIONS OF MARCHING FEET; - WE MUST USE LEATHER. FRUGALLY. the Vancouver-Portland area after its test run, is now the subject of an "informer" suit against the Car negie - Illinois Steel corporation which supplied the steel, in which the "informer" writes Senator Lan ger he hopes to recover $25,000,000 for the government. Northwest members of congress are hopping mad over the so-called shortage of wood fuel in Washing ton, and Oregon. They can't see eye to eye with OPA's Joe Dan, nat ional fuel administrator who pre dicts a critical wood and coal fuel shortage this winter for the north west. Mr. Dean cites the manpower shortage as lti4 real factor behind the coming fuel shortage. The many lumber mills of the northwest which are operating at capacity have truckloads of slab wood, mill ends and sawdust stacked around their plants waiting for customers. Many of these mills are located very close to the larger population centers in both states, hence, the train, truck or barge haul in many cases would dot be over 50 miles, and seldoom more than 100 miles- While the lawmakers admit trans portation facilities are not always ample to move this fuel to the larg er cities on schedule, they can't see the critical shortage angle advanced as advanced by Mr. Dean. They also argue that there is enough avail able manower to do the transpor tation job' if OPA would adjust the price ceiling on wood fuel. Fuel dealers would then be in position to absorb the additional transporta tion costs and ample fuel would be available for every home. By the tone of the letters receivd her lawmaker can't see why a fuel shortage when the northwest is chock-full of wood. mm National postwar planning, now in the lap of congress, has many WAR or no war YOU Need a Home WE Can Help You Call or Write First Federal Sayings and Loan Association of Pendleton 148 Main St., Pendleton, Ore. REGISTERED HEREFORDS I have for sale a few head of choice Herefords, including 8 young regis tered Hereford cows 4 polled and 4 horned, bred to calve in March and April; and a few yearling bulls. Most of this stock is richly bred Domino cattle. Roy Robinson YOUR EYES NEED ATTENTION Children start school soon have their eyes "checked now. Highly trained eye specialist with years of experience waiting serve you. is to DR. STKAM OPTOMETRIST Strain Optical Co. 225 South tAa'm 403 Pendleton, Oregon JWIIMWHIW ll'WI'l llll'l I 111 I "ITITfll IH"Tfin11irilTT TT" I - This investment Pays in Security in saving lives . in Victory! Have You Purchased Your Bond? Do you SHARE in Morrow County's pride in once more going over the top? Buy that extra War Bond TODAY! Help wind up this THIRD WAR LOAN drive with a flourish! ...Peterson's.., HARDMAN, OREGON