People of Leipzig Awaiting
Moving In of American Forces
Bv Lvl C. Wilson
UnlUd Press Correspondent
Leipzig, Russian Zone, Ger
many, Mar. 14 KU.R) The resi
dents of Leipsiz are hungry, they
do not like the Russians, they
wish the Americans would move
into the Soviet sector but they
don't expect it and likewise they
don't see much future for them
selves or their city.
That in general is the attitude
the traveler discovers when he
takes a trip behind Russia's Euro
pean iron curtain.
Together with three other
Americans, I motored from
Frankfurt northward approxi
mately 100 miles through the
United States zone to the first
Soviet Russian road block.
Papers Examined
It was about 115 miles from
that first Russian check point to
Leipzig. Eight times we were
halted for examination of our
papers. The principal stop lasted
nearly an hour for a thorough,
polite but not cordial going-over.
That included a complete state
ment of any money we .happened
to have along. Everything was
noted in our papers for reference
when we sought to leave German
Russia for the west.
The Russians, and their Ger
man police representatives, were
especially interested in the sum
of American dollars or travel
lers' checks we might have. They
hoped we would spend them in
the American zone'. That is a
part of American capitalism they
like.
Twice a year foreigners arc
permitted by the Russians to
penetrate beyond the iron cur
tain as far as Leipzig. The occa
sions are the spring and autumn
trade fairs in that once great
commercial city. Red stars, red
banners, red propaganda by loud
speaker and pamphlet dominated
the commercial exhibits of Euro
pean manufacture, most oi it
from communist eastern Europe.
People Interesting
The people of Leipzig proved
to be far more interesting than
the fair.
As we loaded our car to depart
for Berlin a group of German
men and women waved and
shouted loudly enough for every
one nearby to hear:
"Can't we go along with you?"
Our appearance and automo
bile tags identified us as Ameri
cans. If Leipzig is a fair sample of
Russia's new democratic world,
the people of eastern Germany
would swap instantly for the old
democratic world of the west.
The average Leipziger has no
hot water. So far this year the
head of each household has re
ceived about 350 pounds of coal
for heating and for cooking.
Our party was billeted in pri
vate homes.
With two Swedes I'd never
seen before, I was billeted in a
fifth floor apartment belonging
to two elderly women. They must
have needed the money badly,
or perhaps they were compelled
to take us in, because both of
them sat up all night so that we
might sleep. Neither would dis
cuss the Russians or anything
about living conditions.
Best insight into their lives
was the apologyvone made next
morning for not offering me
breakfast. She had nothing to
offer, no tea, no coffee, nothing.
Not Afraid
But the Leipzigers do not
seem to be afraid. A woman en
countered in one of the fair ex
hibits said quite loudly:
"In our hearts we hope the
Americans will come. Do you
think they ever will?"
There was a liberal display of
anti-American propaganda, but
also a great window show of
1
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Thanks so much for a very busy past week.
CRATERIAN BEAUTY SALON
41 S. Central Ave. Med. 2-4830.
world flags which included the
stars and stripes.
Fair visitors received a color
ful pamphlet called "The U.S.A.
in Word and Picture." The cover
girl was described as Mrs. Frank
Herderson. an aging woman.
shown with her leg lifted to the
top of a table at a Metropolitan
ODera nremiere during an inter
view with an American gossip
columnist.
A smaller pamphlet contained
an HDK-likp cartoon of an Ameri
can with tall silk hat marked
bv the dollar sign. A pretty Ger
man girl dressed in the uniform
of Soviet service handed me
mine. I inquired if I really
looked like that. The girl laugnea
and said I did not. We were hav
ing some friendly conversation
about the cartoon when an offi
cial called -the girl away and
gave her a lecture which brought
a blush and pernaps a tear or
two.
Leipzigers call the food store
displays for the fair, the food in
the Russian intounst noiei,
"propaganda food." We were
told that lor tnree nionuis De
fore fair time Leipzigers had
nothing much but bread and po
tatoes, and not much more than
that for several months there
after. In that way the Russians
make up for food deficit caused
by fair visitors.
Shortaae of Caviar
With dollars or travelers'
checks we ate well. But there
was a shortage of black caviar
even for the fair. The vodka was
ample and powerful.
All food is rationed. But there
is not even the pretense of a ra
tion for coffee, tea, milk or cook
ing oils. Supplementary food
may be bought at official. Rus
sian-run black market stores at
from seven to 15 times ration
prices. Butter, if available, costs
30 to 32 eastmarks in such a
store. The rationed butter price
is three and one-half marks. But
try and get it. For comparison,
a skilled factory worker in the
brave new Soviet world around
Leipzig makes slightly more than
one eastmark an hour
Officially the westmark
backed by the French, British
and Americans and the eastmark
backed by the Russians are of
rciual value. Actually the ex
change rate is approximately
seven eastmarks tor one west
mark. In American money a
westmark is valued at slightly
more than 24 cents.
One of the privileges conferred
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MEDFORD
GRANTS PASS
You're Probably 1
Too Dumb To Fill
Out Income Tax
Chicago, Mar. 14 (U.R1
Chances are two to one that
you're too dumb to fill out your
income tax form properly.
Dr. David P. Boder, psychol
ogy professor at Illinois Institute
of Technology, said that roughly
30 per cent of the population has
the mental ability to understand
the forms.
It takes an I.Q. of 110, he esti
mated, to understand the govern
ment's instructions for filling out
the longer tax forms "so you're
lucky if you have it all taken out
by withholding tax."
Mentality Lacking
More than 65 per cent of the
population "simply does not have
the mentality to follow the legal,
technical language," he said.
That's not all. Even persons
with the mental ability to under
stand the instructions may fall
down because they lack "num
bers facility" or suffer from re
pressions. It is the "tendency to repress
unpleasant experiences" and not
laziness that makes people put
off their income tax figuring un
til the last possible minute, Boder
said.
Boder had sonic suggestions
that might make the annual or
deal easier.
Get Several Blanks
1. Get several blank forms, not
just one, "so you can tear it up
if you make a mistake."
2. Keep your old returns as a
future guide.
3. Don't try to do the whole
job at once; that only increases
nervous tension and makes it
more difficult.
4. Follow the directions "me
thodically and step-by-step as
you would a cooking recipe." If
you don't understand the direc
tions yourself, buy a tax guide
or consult a government tax adviser.
Death Of Man, 110,
Withheld From Public
Chicago, Mar. 14 (U.R) Fear
that curiosity seekers would dis
turb the funeral caused a rail
way mail clerk to suppress un
til today the fact that his second
cousin died at the age of 110.
William Williams, born Oct
10, 1839, in a log cabin in what
is now Chicago's Lincoln park,
died March 8 of a heart ailment.
But Hugh B. Holcomb, his sec
ond cousin, did not tell the pub
lic until after the funeral.
Williams died in the Holcomb
home, where he was interviewed
on his 110th birthday. Williams
attributed his long life to herb
juice, and after newspapers car
ricd the stories the old man was
besieged by telephone calls from
people who wanted to know
where they could get some.
Herbs for many years were
Williams' source of income. At
the age of 10 he began assisting
his father in a medicine show
and learned how to compound
the medicines. He estimated, Hoi-
comb said, that he sold more
than 1,000,000 bottles of herb
juices.
Holcomb said army records
authenticated Williams' age. He
said he served in the Indiana na
tional guard during the civil
war.
Williams up to the time of his
death was clear-eyed and smooth
skinned. The undertaker said he
looked like a man 30 years
younger.
by the communists on east Ger-
mans is working at "voluntary'
i community jobs such as street
clearing or erecting government
buildings. This work is done on
Sundays on call of Soviet offi
cials. It must be done without
pay. From time to time Leipzig
ers do additional unpaid labor
for such special events as Stalin's
birthday or the red October revo
lution anniversary.
East German! Left Cold '
All of this leaves the east Ger
mans colder than the cold war.
The Russians long have been
howling for unification of Ger-
! many.
U. S. High Commissioner Jonn
.1. McCloy began last month to
call their bluff. He told the Rus
sians in effect:
"Okay, let us have unification.
But first let us have free elec
tions throughout Germany to
discover whether the Germans
want unity under the Russians
or under the western democra
cies." Now McCloy is banging away
at the sound propaganda claim
that the Russians are blocking
nation-wide unity elections. Con
ditions in Leipzig probably are a
l good example of why the Rus
' sians dare not risk a free elec
tion among their captive sub
jects.
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Tuesday. March 14, 1950
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