4 A
.Medford&.Tribuni
Everyone In Southern Oregon
n ! Tk Mall THhnnn"
Published Dally except Saturday by
, MEDFORD PRINTING CO.
''" North Fir St.. Ph 1 SP 2-6141
ROBERT W
HUHL. Editor
KERB GREi
Arfuaf-tl.lnn Manaeer
r.mAi.n t .ATHAM. Bus. Mar. '
FBIC W. ALLEN JR., Mng. Editor
EARL H. ADAMS, City Editor
HARRY CH1PMAN. Teles. Editor
RICHARD JEWETT, Sports Editor
, OLIVE STARCHER. Women's Editor
' DALE ERICKSON, ClrculaUqnMgr
-. & rnHm.niint NewsoaDer
Entered as' second class matter at
Medlord. urenon. unaw t, u
March 3. 1897
CTTUCmmTTnN HATES
By Mall In Advance. Copy 10c
Eaily and Sunday mos. 8.00
. nnllw and Sunday 3 mos. - 4.35
' i nlu On. veflr S4.20
Bv Carrier In -Advance Medford
. Ashland. Central Point Eagle
Point. Jacksonville. Gold hiii
Phoenix, Shady Cove, Rogue Rlv.
.... TnlnntnnH nil motor rOUtCS,
Dally and Sunday 1 voor S1B.00
Dnlly and Sunday 1 mo.- I SO
fni-i-lor and Dealers copy 100
'.! All Terrnsasjv lnJWvance
:" ."oftlciaFPapcr of City of Medford
' otflclaJPaperofcln ounty
- r-'uniterPpress International .
.irnil lneri Wire .
v"0.P.l Telephoto Nrploturmr
-. Member or audit biikeau
or UlrHJUljH.Wl.,
Xdvcrtlslne Representative:
WEST HOLIDAY CO.. INC. Of
flees In New York, Chlcnso. pe.
..: .--I. en w.n-li-ri Aneeles.
Seattle. Portland. St Louis. At-
-, lanta, Vancouver, B.C. ,
NEWSPAPER
PUBLISHERS
ASSOCIATION
NATIONAL EDITORIAL
Flight o' Time
Medford "and Jackson County.
History from the fllo of The
Mall Tribune 10, 20, 30, 40
and SO 'yarn ago.
10 YEARS AGO '
. ,, An Tall IFfffrtavl
. - Arguments on the legality
of Gov. Douglas McKay s
proclamation of Daylight Sav
ing time will be heard Mon
day In Marlon County circuit
court auer uHyiigm, """
into effect.
' An estimated 3,000 visitors
are expected to attend the
Camp White Domiciliary here
Sunday for the 1951 Arts and
Crafts Hobby fair. ,
20 YEARS XGO
April 27. 1841 (Sunday)
rrewa will start laying
base pavement" on' Uhe) main
...... .i McAtnrA'n munici-
ruuwaj sv
nni nlrnort tomorrow.
From Arthur Perry'i "Ye
I smurltfA Pot" column: "Na
tional leaders continue to ad
monish the people to wake
up, face the international sltu-
n nn bravely, display ..uia
spirit of 1776, and forget cam
paign promises about staying
out -of the European war,
made last summer." '
30 YEARS AGO
April 27. 1831 (Monday)
The Rogue river ran red
yesterday after an irrigation
ditch flume broke and the
water washed red clay soil
, into the stream, ''' 11 ''.'.'
Medford has been asked to
submit a proposal site for a
veterans home to be built In
western Oregon.
40 YEARS AGO
April 27, 1121 (Wednesday)
: The local post of the Ameri
can Legion has promised to
back the police force in liquor
law enforcement. .
Twenty new members have
; been added , to .the chamber
of commerce in that group's
recent membership drive.. ,
SO YEARS AGO
: April 27. 1911 (Thursday)
George E. Boos has been
elected manager of the Med
fold Commercial club to suc
ceed Charles E. Malboef, who
resigned. r, ;
The majority of the citizen
ry appears to favor the instal
lation of cluster-type lights on
: Main st. ' ' ;
VMs Your I.Q.?
Nina er ten correct It superior;
seven or eight la excellent) five or
six la flood.
1. Who issued the Emanci
pation Proclamation?
2. Correct the following
sentence: "She dove grace
fully into the lake."
3. Do the Maoris inhabit
Yucatan, Peru, or New Zea
land? 4. What do the initials S.P.
on an armband worn by some
, Navy men mean?
5. Which state Is nicknamed
"Tar Heel State"? .
6. (The city once named
Byzantium and later Constan
tinople now bears what name?
7. Poi Is a native dish of
what islanders? . .. . '
8. Is the circumference of
the earth greater when mea
sured around the poles, or
around the equator?
9. Does a Lieutenant Gen
eral in the Army rank higher
or lower than a General? -
10. Was Ann Boleyn shot,
hanged, beheaded, or guillo
tined? - Answers! 1, Abraham Lin
coln, 2. "She dived , . ." 3.
New Zealand. 4. Shore Pa
trol, i. North Carolina. 6.
Istanbul, 7. Hawaiian. 8.
Around the equator, 9, Lower.
10. Behead
THURSDAY. APRIL 27, 1961
Fol-de-rol or Necessity?
What does one think of the organized "civil
defense" establishment in this country?
Is it alert, up-to-date-minute, knowledgeable
as to the nation's needs, and a force for good in
event of emergency?
' Or is it, in -the words of Maj. (Gen. Joseph
Hicks, county CD director, largely a bunch of
fol-de-rol? Or, in the words of Portland City
Commissioner Stanley Earl, "not based on the
realities of 1961," and only serves "to lull the
people into a false sense of security"?
COMMISSIONER Earl's remarks were motivat
V. ed by the civil defense "alert" (which, like so
many official activities has been given an asinine
nickname OPAL, standing for Operation Plan
Alert) which begins today.
He said it is "based on the bow and arrow."
- General Hicks largely concurs, saying that
virtually no preparations have been made for de
fense .in case of nuclear attack which, in this
area, would be about the only kind we'd have to
worry about immediately.'
Even if we weren't the target for an H-bomb,
we still would be subjected to radioactive fallout
in this area with no defense,
s v.-.- ,; ..:.,. . :.,, :",';. v ;W' -: '''.'(' 1
IN COMMON with most of the rest of the popu-
lation, we suffer from crashing apathy on the
subject of civil defense in general. This may be
because of a sneaking hunch that it's all valueless,
or hypothetical. We don't know.
But Mr. John Q. Public could hardly care less.
. . The program of shelter construction has got
ten nowhere. This, in turn, may be because, (a)
we all think "It can't happen here or to me", or
because (b) we subconsciously feel that if it ever
came to a point where, we needed-defense, from
H-bombs, all would be lost anyway.
THE whole subject of civil defense needs re
fVnnlrinrr txnA rorlfifiniTiflr ' .
We can see value in
set up to supplement
and welfare agencies in
emergencies such as fire, flood, and explosion.
We can see value in preparing for the hand
ling of evacuees in case anyone is still alive in
populated areas to be evacuated. . ,X; vS..'; ;;;;'
we can see vaiue in emergency communica
tions networks. ... . U. : " ;:' .,.
But we are inclined
Hicks and Commissioner Earl that the evacua
tion of buildings, plans, for abandoning: major
cities, tooting sirens, and rushing around with red
lights, are 'both "fol-de-rol" and a "complete
waste of time and money."
THE CD setup, as it is now, is both confused
nnrl nnTifnamor lnrlHor in woll.rlofinorl ,nnr.
pose and in public understanding and support.
If it is determined that shelters -are Vital to
national defense capabilities,, they should be push
ed on the federal level, perhaps 'even through sub
sidies or at least tax incentives; ' ' "
- If they are not, the agitation for them should
be abandoned. : .-
The role of the military in civilian defense
should be defined and
. And perhaps the distinction now made inter
nationally between, "major wars" and "brush fire
wars" should be extended to the civil defense
field, and responsibilities assigned. v :
As it is, we're caught between urgency and
fol-de-rol; between scare tactics and apathy; be
tween H-bombs and high water. And we all look
pretty silly in the process. E.A.
Republican Resolution
We noted with interest the action of the Mult
nomah County Republican Central Committee the
other day, in passing (unanimously) a resolution
criticizing the John Birch Society. '
,(lt seems to be a sort of national pastime.;
these dasy.) . ' ;
Anyway, their resolution took exception to
"any unethical methods and any untrue or sland
erous charges which may have , been adopted,
ureed or leveled bv officials or members of the
John Birch Society."
XE' DON'T know just how much courage it
" took for the Multnomah G.O.P; to do this.
But two G.O.P. candidates for. Congress in Ore
gon last year (Wallace
ming) were or are associated with the Society.
And we are led to wonder whether the Jack
son County Republican
be motivated to take similar action.
This might be a bit difficult, inasmuch as the
chairman of the committee has identified himself
as a member and supporter of the John Birch
Society. E.A.
Time To Try Again?
The Public Health Service and the American
Dsntal Association have reaffirmed, in strong
terms, their support of the fluoridation of water
as a major dental health measure.
It is, thev repeat, simnle. inexrjensive. effec
tive, safe, and badly needed.
The proven evidence in support of these state
ments is overwhelming. ;
Fluoridation was voted Mown in Medford a
few vears aero, after a
marked by the use of scare literature, misrepre
sentation, and smears.
In view of its success elsewhere since then,
isn't it time for another go-around here? Or shall
we permit a small core of scare-artists to prevent
us permanently from taking this steD forward in
our children's dental health? E. A. ;
a skeleton organization
conventional police, fire
case of relatively minor
to agree Fwith General
made known.
Lee and Leslie P. Flem-
Central Committee could
bitter election camrmie-n
Dennis the Menace
WE'LL TURN THE
Communications
Letters to the Editor must bear the name and address of the writer, although under
certain circumstances the use of a pen. nam or initial for publication is permissible.
The Mail Tribune reserves the right to edit all letters with a view to clarification and
condensation. Letters submitted for publication must not exceed 400 words. The letters
printed in this column do. not necessarily represent the views of the paper) in fact the
contrary is often the case.
Don't Put Up With Them
To the Editor: I surely
thank God for the people like
Mrs. Ernest Santo and Pete
Logan of Dark Hollow, who
take time to object to things
being done wrong.
. First, Mrs. Santo, she is so
right. Whiskey, beer and vod
ka are cheating children of
good clothes, education, health
and mental control. It is the
most to blame for divorce of
all causes. I ought to know,
because I'll have to fight it
from the cradle to the grave,
How I wanted oranges, apples
and other good things to eat,
And I was always cold in the
terrible Montana winters, but
whiskey bottles had to win.
We talk about the rise of
crime in our young set. If
we investigate they are most
likely children of good old
divorced parents and got the
"booze" from their own base
ment. 1
We all know that the men
and women leaving drink
joints are unfit to drive cars,
or go home to frighten the
children, to death. What of the
mother and five children who
ran from- their house out into
the mountains of Montana
and perished In the cold night.
The husband and father came
home from town (in what con
dition) to find the house emp
ty. Did this mother run from
brutal blows? I think so.
Please don't compare a drunk
with nice usable hogs.
Now add Mr. Logan s so
true remarks about coffee
breaks, with thousands of
little cancer causing ciga
rettes, filter or no filters, and
you have a dismal recipe for
brains. for future progress.
Let's back Mr. Logan and
Mrs. Santo in their good
Ideas. In short let's not put
Up with wrong things.
Harrlette Glbbs
1375 South Columbus
i -.: ' ave. ,
Medford
Cougar In The Siskiyous
To the Editor: The year
was 1907. The place was Sis
kiyou Summit at Eileen, be
low the Blue Ledge Copper
Mine, I was 4V4. My ' father
worked at the mine, and my
mother was the -cook at the
Eileen hotel.
There was a high back
porch on the hotel from which
one looked down upon a little
glade. Half way across the
glade stood a seldom occupied
log cabin. A white log formed
a fence, and beyond, a dense
thicket of willow brush and
large , trees covered a down
hill slope. '
One nice day in early sum
mer, while taking a stroll,
Mother and I' discovered a
patch of Lady Slipper orchids,
growing in the shade a short
distance beyond the white log.
Those beautiful flowers In
trigued me very much, and
we did not pick them.
When the evenings became
warmer, groups awaiting sup
per gathered on the back
porch. One such evening, just
before dusk, I was present
when we were surprised by
the terrifying, prolonged
scream of a cougar. They were
also called North American
Mountain Lion, and known to
mountaineers as "the big yel
low (yellar)- cats."
The stealthy animal was
Just beyond the white log. We
surmised that it had smelled
food from the hotel and had
crept up as close as possible
without being observed. I was
cautioned and even threaten
ed by my parents and others
not ever to wander alone near
the white log. Thus ended my
desire for Lady Slippers, but
I never forgot the awesome
screams. Cougars were plenti
ful in the Siskiyous then as
earlier.
A few years later there
were two more interesting
itorlea about cougar in the
MEDFORD MAIL TRIBUNE. MEDFORD, OREGON
Oil SPBEDBOKT
same area: : v '
"A colt of the Blue Ledge
stage horses that had been
turned out to pasture on wild
grass, came in one spring with
a cougar's scratch on its hip,
a scar it carried all its life."
"Eric Anderson, caretaker
at the Blue Ledge mine, mar
ried; and was bringing his
wife home in an old model
Ford car, when an 8-foot cou
gar, scared from the upper
side of the road, leaped over
the car's engine and cleared
the narrow road, disappearing
among roadside brush."
Miss Venlta Daley, :
343 North Grape st., ;
Medford. '
Olympics for Deaf '
To the Editor: Will you help
us send four deaf boys from
Oregon to the Deaf Olympics
to. be held in Finland this
summer? These boys are the
first ever chosen from this
state to compete.
Approximately $5,400 is
needed , and already three
fourths of it has been donated
by interested individuals and
organizations in , the whole
state. The boys are Jerry
Buyas and Brian Powers of
Portland, David Wood of
Stayton' and Leo Reld of
Springfield. Jerry and David
are students at Gallaudet Col
lege, Washington, D.C. Brian
and Leo are attending the
Deaf school in Salem. ,
Time for raising the funds
has been extended from April
1 to June 1 and we are hoping
you will want to have a share
in sending these boys. Any
contributions will be grate
fully received and acknowl
edged. .
Donations ' may be made
through the Oregon State
School for the Deaf, Salem,
Oregon Olympic Fund (Supt.
M. B. Clatterbuck). '.
Mr. and Mrs. Leylan T. Wood,
Stayton, Ore.
Filtration Plant Questions
To the Editor: With refer
ence to the question, "Should
We or shouldrt't we have a
filtration plant In Gold Hill?"
let me ask the water buyers
of Gold Hill a few questions
and, also, give them a few
more facts that have not been
brought out in previous re
ports to the paper.
Gold Hill has about 220
water users so let's ask our
selves this question:
Can Gold Hill (population
approx. 600) , grow substanti
ally within the next 20 years
to compensate for an expendi
ture of $240,000? Does It
seem logical? Practical? Will
more people move into our
city if water rates and taxes
are too high?
Do you irrigate? How much
extra will you have to pay
per lot besides the present
$1 charge? Will the added
cost andor additional taxes
be fair and good for the
majority? .
At present, It takes three
days to get our water report
from Medford. With the plant,
we'll have to wait seven days
for one from ForUand and
if the water is contaminated
we'll have been drinking it
for seven days and will con
tinue using it until it s gone
from the reservoir. This was
brought out at the last meet
ing which I attended, April 12,
Also, besides the $4.75
charge per month we'll have
the 50 cent monthly sewage
charge.
There Is absolutely no rea
son for 220 water buyers to
go to the expense of a filtra
tion system meant for a much,
much larger city.
Is the filtration plant the
only answer? Couldn't a city
well or wells be drilled at
much less cost? Wouldn't It
be more practical and fair
to the majorityt since a well
could be used for quite some
time-even If the city should
double its present population?
Those who feel they want
.4
Bitter PHI for U. S. Seen in Laos, No
Matter What the Outcome of Cease-Fire
By PHIL NEWSOM
UPI Foreign News Analyst
The United States Is being
forced to swallow a bitter
pill in Laos. No matter what
may emerge
now from the
agreed upon
ceasefire o r
from any Ge
neva confer
ence of the
interested na
tlons, the
United States
has suffered
a major de
KlWN
feat tor all the world to see.
And the end may be not
yet.
Militarily, the U.S.-support-ed
pro-Western forces of
Premier Prince , Boun Oum
and Gen. Phoumi Nosavan
proved no match for the
jungle fighters of the Communist-backed
Pathet ,Xao,
and with 'the military ad
vantage also went the diplo
matic advantage. :
Today, the Pathet Lao hold
fUtered water could put in a
system of their own.
There's always more than
one solution to any problem.
Why can't the city wait until
the population at least dou
bles? It might- be practical
then! ' .
Give this some thought so
that when you vote May D
you'll . know how and why
you're voting as- you are. -
Don't, say this doesn't con
cern youTif you're a water
buyer, it does! Why chance
the possibility of paying $10
or $15- or more monthly for
water? .
After the milk is spilled is
too late, for - you'll end up
crying because it's too hard
to clean up. Investigate-then
vote the 9th!
Mrs. R. P. Corona, '
904 Fifth ave.,
- Gold Hill, Ore. ;
Started Again .' :
, To the Editor: Well, they
have started it again) They
treat us as if we were an
inanimate object. '.
They say, Medford and
Phoenix got together and de
cided . we should still be In
Phoenix school district.
. They speak of 97 children,
and $700,000, as If they were
theirs exclusively.
In the first place when they
(Phoenix) so strongly did not
want to be included in Med
ford district, most of us in
the Barnett area reasoned
with ourselves, believing -if
we voted that Phoenix and
Talent united that would def
initely stop any further at
tempts to take that entire
district into Medford.
Now we knew all along that
we, the Barnett area, did want
to go to Medford schools, and
knowing our own reasons so
well we understood Phoenix
people who did not want to
travel so far to a school when
they , could have one there
close. : '-. vy . .
Now why ,-cari't' they, in
turn, look at the situation on
our side. It is our 97 children,
it is our $700,000, and we
are only asking to go to school
close at hand instead of spend
ing more of our money, as
well as their money, going
farther away than is neces
sary. .
We have always considered
our country as being very
democratic.
Surely -we should be free
to do what 100 per cent of
this area want to do, when
it is a reasonable request.
We can't . believe we . are
so Important to Phoenix that
they can't do without us.
They probably would hard
ly miss us once we leave.
Mrs. Horace L. Root,
1025 Ellendale dr.,
. Medford.
Try and Stop Mo
By IENNETT CERF
OLIVER WALTON, well-known Boston horse dealer,
agreed to buy fine steed from a Maine breeder for
$900. "How are you going to lead the horse away?" the
breeder inquired. "With
the halter you have on
him," answered Walton,
counting out the $800.
"Nothing; doing," pro
tested the breeder. "I
didn't sell you the halter.
That'll be $3 extra."
"Okay," said Walton.
"Here's $3 for the halter
but I've decided not to
buy the horse." And oft
he walked with the halt
er. .
The next time the
breeder wasn't so greedy.
V
A grumpy boss hired a young man and told nun. Tour first
job will be to sweep out the office." "But rm a college graduate,"
protested the young man. "All right," grumbled the boss. "Pass
over the broom and I'll show you now."
O UO, ty Xeaattt Cert, DistsOated by Xnf feature Sjadkate
- I 1
or can control' approximate
ly half of Laos.
In . P e I p i n g, : neutralist
Prince Souvanna Phouma and
Red Chinese Premier Chou
En-lai announce that Laos and
Red China will establish dip
lomatic relations.
Prince Snubs Washington
The Soviet Union and Red
China support Souvanna Pho
uma as the legal premier of
Laos. Souvanna Phouma
snubbed Washington last
week after earlier expres
sing a desire to explain his
position to .President Ken
nedy. -
. In this the hand of Mos
cow appeared evident.
It seems likely the Soviet
told him he had only to wait
until the whole of Laos came
into his hands without the
necessity '- of compromising
with the pro-Western forces,
or perhaps even of Including
them in his government.. ,
; ' In any event, if or when
the 14-nation conference on
Laos opens ; In Geneva, the
Communist hand will be in
finitely stronger than, last
August . y .
It was on Aug. 9" that a
young American-trained para
troop -captain, Kong Le, . top
pled the government in - a
bloodless : coup and ' called
upon Souvanna Phouma to
form a neutral regime.
The people, hesaid, were
tired of civil war.' ,' , .
U.B. Bent Aid
. The - Unltetd States denied
support to Souvanna Phouma
and, instead, began supplying
military aid to t pro-Western
and bitterly anti-Communist
Gen. Phoumt Nosavan. When
Souvanna Phouma. fled the
country it quickly recognized
Prince Boun Oum -premier.
Souvanna Phouma bitterly
accused the United States of
sabotaging his efforts to bring
Vocational School Need
7 To the Editor:. We have nu
merous programs ,and educa
tional facilities for our young
people and children in Jack
son county. These range from
welfare-foster home programs
to scholarships for- those who
wish to enter college. With
all of this, there is an area we
are neglecting.
We know that compulsory
hiah school training has many
good points, but they are not
all good. In talking to irienas
and neighbors, many feel
there is a great need .for a
vocational training center in
this county which doesn't re-
aulre a high school education.
Some believe that a large por
tion of youth-power in skins
is being lost 'because we do
not have such a school.
. There is also a feeling that
some juvenile delinquency
can be prevented if a child
who can't or won't learn his
academic work, could attend
a vocational school and learn
a skill he enjoys and be better
equipped to earn a living. '
Eugene has a technical vo
cational school which Is a unit
of the Eugene school system.'
It has proved very successful.
This school offers technical
and occupational training key
ed to the present and future.
It started small in rented and
donated buildings, it opened
this school year in a new
modern plant. Some of the
courses offered are diesel me
chanics, machine shop, auto
motive repairing, aircraft, car
pentry, electrical appliance
repair, photography, electron
ics, radio and T.V. service,
business education and prac
tical nurses training. Students
must be 16 and over to enter.
A tuition fee of $12 is charged
district residents and $15 for
non-residents per month.
An alarming number of stu
dents drop out of high school
for various reasons. Many of
them oould further their edu
cation and usefulness it a
trade school were established
here. A start In this direction
can only grow. The young peo
ple of Jackson county should
not be deprived of such an
opportunity.
. Mrs. Grover T. Mulkey,
I ' Route 1, Box 262, -Gold
Hill, Ore.
about the only real solution
possible for Laos.
U.S. policies in Laos were
opposed not only by the Com
munists but , by Britain and
France as well.
Now, the three-nation Truce
Control Commission is to be
Strictly Personal
By Sidney
(o) General
REASON IS A TOOL, - '
NOT A FINISHED PRODUCT
It Is true that we should
be guided by the rule of rea
son, but it is equally trUe
that reason
cannot teach
us to reason
only emotion
al experiences
can do that;
for no man is
more unreas
onable than
he who tries
to live his life
on the plane
of logic,
suspect that
Karris
Those who
most are usually those who
know the least; suspicion goes
hand in hand with ignorance.
When we are young, we
wish we had a crystal ball to
enable us to look into the
future; as we grow older, we
recognize that foreknowledge
of the future would be a
ghastly gift, giving us hot a
moment's peace if we knew
the date of our death or the
times when catastrophe would
visit us. ' v."
' '"
- Those who scorn the pomp
of the world before they know
it are really suffering from
premature envy rather than
exhibiting simple righteous
ness. It is easy to deride what
you do not, or cannot, have;
much harder to dismiss what
already belongs to you. - ;
When lovers make vows,
they have already , begun to
doubt their love.
I have sympathy and ad
miration for those pacificts
who march, demonstrate and
Matter of Fact y Joseph aip
(e) New York Herald Tribune Syndicate '
THE NEW ALGERIAN 1
TRAGEDY
Paris - It is easy enough to
give a superficially ; rational
explanation of the terrible, ir
rational trag
edy which al
most overtook
France. The
e x p 1 anation
lies in the re
cent formation
of the French
army , and
especially i n
the formation
of the ..para
Alsop
chute and Foreign Legion
regiments which were .the
prime movers of the coup
d'etat In Algeria. , : i ,
In the long, grim, fruitless
war in Indochina, .and again
in the fighting in Algeria, and
yet again during the various
Algerian crises, this reporter
has spent , a fair , amount of
time with French soldiers of
the sort who rebelled against
their own government.
Man for man, they are prob
ably the best foot soldiers in
the Western world, being dash
ing, ' hardy, ing'enious, and
brave. -. - :
Their trouble is, "quite sim
ply, that history has uprooted
them.
- a. a
rpHE parachute and legion
-- regiments, particularly, be
ing entirely professional out
fits, have been at war in one
place or another ever since
the- Germans laid down their
arms. The same holds true for
almost the entire officer and
non - commissioned officer
corps of the French army as
a whole.
Thus the roots of these
French soldiers are not in
France any longer. Their roots
are in the war which is their
life. When you talk with
them, you find that they seem
as ' remote from their own
country, as wholly out of tune
with modern French life, as
foreign mercernaries might
be- Yet their uprooted state
is deeply painful for them,
precisely because they are not
foreign- precisely because
they are Frenchmen by birth
and passionately p a t r i otic
Frenchmen at that.
Add to this a further fact -the
extreme narrowness of
their experience; for unending
war is an exceedingly narrow,
Intel lectually cramping ex
perience. Because their ex
perience has been so narrow,
even the ablest of them are
capable of almost inconceiv
able mistakes about the real
world outside the war which
has become their world.
-
GENERAL Challe, for ex
" ample, was not only the
real leader of the rebellion.
He is also a soldier of excep
tional capacity, who made a
brilliant record when General
de Gaulle named him to the
I
reinstalled In Laos, giving the
Communists a built-in veto
over the West.-'
And It seems certain that
any new government in Laos
will demand withdrawal of
U.S. military advisers and all
U.S. influence. ;
J. Harris
Features Corp.
sacrifice for their beliefs; they
may be wrong, but they are
devoted to their convictions,
they are motivated by love
rather than by hate, and they
are profoundly activated by
some ideal greater than their
own personal welfare." Would
that we non-paclf lets could
demonstrate the same courage
in behalf of our passive be
liefs.' -
...a -. a. x .
A pedant turns to the
classics to escape- from his
contemporaries; an educated
person turns to the classics
to shed more light upon his
contemporaries; and this is the
chief difference between pe
dantry and genuine learning".
- It used to be that a man
was known by the company
he keeps; now a man i
known' by the company he
works for. ' , ' ... ;
''The fox ; condemns ; the
trap, not himself" observed
William Blake; and likewise,
a man does not blame his
own greed, but curses the
tax laws. (Despite stringent
tax laws, more new million
aires have been created in
this country since the end of
World War II than at any
other time in U.S. history.) r
Men of science often sug
gest that religion keeps peo
ple from thinking; but sci
ence can keep people from
thinking too most scientific
advances have been dogmat
ically opposed by the prevail
ing scientific trends of their
own time, as r men like Pas
teur and Freud quickly found
out.
chief command in Algeria iri
1958. . :
Yet not long aeo. when rfic
cussing some articles which he
admired by an Itinerant Amor.
lean reporter whom he knew,
this same General. Challe ac
tually offered the following
explanation. This reporter, he
said, had a "network" of over
a hundred "agents," also itin
erant, whom he sent on ahead
Of him tn rfr lkA Aa
gathering informatinn tm.
concluded General Challe, waj
wny tne reporter was worth
reading when on the road,
It reminds you of the story
of Dr. Samuel Jnhnnn'
sponse to the unfortunate man-
wno approached him with h-
remark, "Mr. Smith. I be
lieve." The great doctor Indig-"
nantly tenlier). "Sir i
can believe that, you' can' be.
iieve anyming."
Undoubtedly Challe and his
co-plotters believerl thaf trtov
might well secure American
support by "playing the antl-
v-uiumumst card," to use their
common phrase. Undoubtedly,
thev also believer) tw th
American government had lost
patience with General de
Gaulle because of his hostility
ra xnaxu. undoubtedly, they
made a whole series of other
fantastic political miscalcula
tions. i . ,
Thus genuine patriotism,
and moral displacement, and
the warped views of war
blinkered eyes all combined
to produce this tragedy. Lis
tening to General de Gaulle's
speech to the nation the other
night was precisely like heari
ing a personage from a drama
of Aeschylus's, heart-rending-ly
reciting his part in real
life.-
a , . J;
TT is hard to believe that this
Is real life. And even
though the rebellion was
ouicklv renre.Merl the horrl
fact of the army's rebellion
win always remain a heavjr
defeat for De Gaulle. 1
It is too early, Indeed, id
begin toting up this tragedy's
cost. But it is not too early to
note a Doint whleh mnv hnva
even greater long range slg-
nuicance. in brief, a super
ficially rational explanation
of the behavior of the Algeirs
rebels is not really a suf;
ficlent explanation. ''
One may cast Ileht unnn the
seemingly irrational behavior
oi sucn individuals as General
Challe, but this does not ex
plain the general tendency to
wards Irrationality that seems
to mark the present juncture
in history. The course of his
tory in the post-war era has
been characterized by vast,
violent,' self - damaging erup;
tions of. Irrationality air over
the world. In truth, the tidy,
optimistic Victorian view
about the rules governing the
human political animal is nd
longer supported by the facta
of our time.