Medford mail tribune. (Medford, Or.) 1909-1989, April 24, 1962, Image 4

Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page. It is also available as plain text as well as XML.

    """Everyone In Southern Oregot)'
MUI im
Klbllshed fill excejM Saturday bt
MOrORO PRINTING CO
33 North Fir St. Ph SP S-lJt.
Robert w num. Bditor
HERB GREY AdvartUlnt Uanasos
gerald t Latham Bm mt.
ERIC W A1XEN JR.. Mnt Editor
EARL B ADAMS, City Editor
HARRY CHIPMAtV Telet Editor
RICHARD J EWETT, Sport Ed.toj
OLIVE STARCHER. Women'! Editol
DALE ER1CKS0N. Circulation MP
An Independent Newspaper
Entered Aa tecond cless matter at
Medford. Oregon, under Act of
March 3. 1897
ailBSTRTPTInN RATES
atw Mall in Advance. Copy iOe
Dally and Sunday 1 year Sisoo
Daily and Sunday moe SOU
Dally and Sunday a mot 4.JS
Sunday Only Ona year S4.10
By Carrier In Advance Medford
Aihlend. Ontral Point Basle
Point. Jacksonville. Gold Hill
Phoenix. Shaoy Cove Rogue Rn
er Talent and on motor rmrtee.
Dally and Sunday vear IIBOO
Dally and Sunday 1 mo ' .90
Carrier and Dealer copy toe
AU term Caah In Advance
' "Official Paper of City of Medfor
niflrlalPaDer of Jackson County
United Press International
run Leaaeo wire
0J.I. Telephoto Newiplcture
""MEMBER OF audit'bureXo
OF CIRCULATIONS
Advert! tine Reprnentarlve:
wt unif nnnr.RTR a. ASSOC!
ATES Office In New York. Chi
Clio. Detroit. San rraneiico. Los
Angeles oeaiue, raru.uu, w
IWiPAPIl
PUtllSHIKS
ASSOCIATION
NATIONAL tOltOIUAl
Flight o' Time
Medford and Jackson County
History from the files of The
Mall Tribune 10, 20, 30, 40
and 50 years ego.
10 YEARS AGO
April 24, 1952 (Thursday)
The Medford Retail Mer
chants association ha voted
to open Medford itores one
hour earlier, and close one
hour earlier In the afternoon,
effective Monday.
Four options have been
filed giving the Cal-Ore Pipe
line company of San Francis
co a 15-foot right of way
through a portion of Jackson
county.
20 YEARS AGO
April 24. 1942 (Friday)
Medford is one of five Ore
gon cities named by OPA to
go under rent control regula
tions.
From Arthur Perry's "Ye
smnrtoe Pot" column: "Here-
ahouu the weather Is still
(ensured. There are days
when it Is more to be pitied.
30 YEARS AGO
Aoril 24. 1932 (Sunday)
Southern Oregon milk pro
ducers are jubilant as Butter
' price to buyers rises to if
cents a pound on Portland
market.
Eighteen Inches of new
snowfall In Dead Indian area
halts search for bodies of
man and wife missing since
January blizzard.
40 YEARS AGO
April 24. 1922 (Monday)
P.csulis of wldely-he-Jlded
melling match In confusion
as teams captained by Gus
Newbery and Court Hall Botn
claim victory.
Medford police Investigat
ing "crime wave"; homes of
many leading citizens en
tercd.
50 YEARS AGO
April 24, 1912 (Tuesday)
New high-powered wireless
slatlon at Central Point starts
operations; receives several
messages from ships at sea
Members of Medford Uni
versity club bring back favor
able reports after Inspection
trip to Blue Ledge copper
mine southwest of Medford.
What's Your I.Q.?
Nina or ten correct is superier;
seven er cio.ht Is excellent; five er
six is good.
1. In which state was Pres
ident James Monroe born?
2. Are the cross threads of
woven fabric cilled warp, or
woof?
3. Did Abraham Lincoln
ever serve as a member of
Congress?
4. Name the six New Eng
land States.
5. Do peaches, lemons or
watermelons contain the high
est sugar content?
6. Berne is the capital of
which country?
7. Upon what did Little
Miss Muffet sit?
8 Which of Winston Chur
chill's parents was American
born? 9. If one edge of a cube
measures four Inches, how
many cubic inches are in the
whole cube?
10. Would the anterior of
an object be its front, or
back portion?
Answers: 1. Virginia. 2.
Woof. 3. Yes. 4. Main. Ver
mont. New Hampshire. Massa
chusetts, Road Island, Con
necticut. S. Lemons, t. Swit
terland. 7. Tuffet. I. Mother.
9. 84 cubic Inches. 10. Front.
TUESDAY. APRIL 24. 1962
The Wrong Way To Do It
The plan to finance the construction of off
street parking facilities under the freeway via
duct adjacent to Hawthorne park with Medford
park and recreation department funds is clearly
and flatly wrong.
For the last several months, a group of down
town businessmen have been pushing the propos
al, and pushing it hard.
We have watched their drive take shape with
considerable interest, beginning Feb. 15 when
Medford Attorney Otto Frohnmayer lit into the
city council and accused it of dragging its feet
with respect to city betterment.
At that time he said the downtown business
district was blighted and that the most salient
reason for the decay was the lack of parking.
AT THE same time he called for the immediate
restoration of Hawthorne park, which was
all but devastated by the construction of the free
way through it, and for a speedy and general
clean-up of Bear creek within the city limits.
Downtown Businessman Chet Hubbard that
night particularly addressed himself to the matter
of restoring Hawthorne park.
Hubbard said he felt that funds derived from
the state from sale of right of way for the freeway
through Hawthorne park should be used first for
the restoration of the park, and that none of the
monies should be used for
thorne park had been completely restored.
Then, in an interesting piece of logic, he said
he felt the installation of off-street parking facil
ities under the freeway viaduct should be regard
ed as part of the park restoration plan.
CINCE that evening, the group of businessmen
have held various meetings (both public and
private) with members of city government, and
conducted them on a guided tour along sections
of Bear creek.
Last week, their efforts bore fruit: Wednes
day night the park and
though several members
tled about it, recommended the installation of
130 parking spaces under
ly, the commission failed
funds to pay for the project should come from.
The next night, to the
of several members, the city council found the
matter in their laps. Publicly, they finally voted
to approve the project, but carefully allowed
themselves two more weeks to figure out where
the funds should come from to pay for it.
Privately, after the meeting, at least two of
the councilmen said they have some reservations
about taking money from
partment funds to finance
TE MORE than share
" stand clearly opposed to the expenditure
Let's review briefly
that have been presented in favor.
It has been argued that the spaces are needed
to accommodate the cars
1 his is pure fancy. Hawthorne is a small park.
Its principal attraction during the summer is the
pool. Park officials say it is the habit of parents
to drop their children off for their swim time, and
then return for them later.
Park and Recreation
worth said there are probably only about three
or four occasions during the year when normal
parking facilities would
vast parking lots of the
ter, immediately across f
It seems clear that an
es are not needed certainly not desperately
needed just for the patrons of the park.
IT HAS BEEN argued
that indeed the installation of parking facilities
is the only logical and sensible use of the space.
We grant merit to this argument. If one must
have more off-street parking, under the freeway
might seem a tine place
But what possible justification is there for
using park and recreation department funds with
which to pay for it? Installing 130 parking spaces
can hardly be called "restoring the park to its
original condition."
We are at a loss even to understand how the
additional spaces under the viaduct are supposed
to cure or even partially alleviate blight in
the downtown business district.
Assuming the corner of Main and Central to
be the center of the business district, anyone
parking his car under the viaduct would be con
fronted with a five-block's walk to get there.
Modern shoppers just don't walk that far.
The space might, however, be usable, if not
actually convenient, for
businesses. But. again,
provide mat parking space for them? And with
park and recreation department funds?
QNE FINAL thought: If the estimated $35,000
needed to finance the installation of the
parking facility were taken from the park and
recreation department funds, a carefully drawn
up priority list for park development and park
site acquisition would have to be thrown out.
Any delay in certain land acquisitions now under
negotiation by the city could end up being very
costlv indeed.
This whole matter is taking on the color of a
first-class boondoggle. We urge the city council
to go slow.
As the council members so well know, the in
terests of all the citizens of Medford must inev
itably take precedence over the interests of a
small, vocal and influential group. G.H.B.
other parks until Haw
recreation commission,
were obviously disgrun
the viaduct. Pointed
to mention where the
apparent discomfiture
park and recreation de
the parking facilities.
their reservations. We
some of the arguments
of park patrons.
Director Robert L. Ha-
be inadequate, and the
Medford shopping cen
ourth st., are available.
extra 130 parking spac
that there is nothing else
for it.
employees of downtown
should the city have to
Dennis the
'See? 1 JQIO -ft HE rWSNT TOO
... Communications ...
Letters to the Editor must bear the nam and address of the writer, although under
certain circumstances the use of a pen name er 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 40Q words. The letters
printed in this column do not necessarily represent the views of the papen in fact the
contrary is often the case.
Thanks Expressed
To the Editor: We wish to
thank everyone who helped
us In the search for our miss
ing boys. The sheriff's depart
ment, the state police, the
Salvation Army's disaster
car, organizations who fur
nished and donated the lunch
es, all our neighbors and
friends, each and every indi
vidual that helped. All of
your help and kindnesses
were greatly apreciated.
Mr. and Mrs. Verne R.
Harper
Mr. and Mrs. Ray Dowell
Route 1, Box 96
Eagle Point, Ore.
Many Helped
To the Editor: The Amer
ican Red Cross Disaster Com
mittee would like to thank
the following people for their
contributions to the Red Cross
Mobile Canteen that fed the
searchers during the hunt for
the two lost boys last week:
John North of North's
Chuck Wagon, Chuck Bate-
man of Bateman's Richfield
Cafe, Fred Beck of Beck's
Bakeries. Mrs. Charles Hoov
er, Mrs. Lindsay Tibblts, Mrs.
A. A. Wattenburg.
Also greatly appreciated
was the assistance with com-
inundations given by Jack
Hall of the Civil Air Patrol
and Alvin Alexander, radio
operator.
Mrs. O. A. Eden,
Disaster Chairman
Mrs. Conroy Fiero,
Canteen Chairman
American Red Cross
Medford
Simple Solution
To the Editor: If your state
ment, that the King-Anderson
Bill is the best solution ad
vanced so far for the problem
of medical care for our aged,
is true, it certainly indicates a
low level of intelligence and
lack of perception at the high
est levels In our federal gov
ernment. Instead of one simple com
prehensive plan to solve this
single problem, we are to
have three separate plans with
three separate groups to ad
minister them. One to care for
those on welfare, one for those
not on welfare and not en
tilled to Social Security ben
efits, and still another for
those drawing Social Security
checks. Such a program would
seem lo be designed more to
solve our unemployment prob
lem than that of medical care
for the aged.
Personally, I don't think
medical care has any place in
Social Security and any such
plan should be financed from
the general revenue rather
than from payroll deductions
alone. You say (he average
cost will be about one dollar
per month to the wage-earner
and an equal amount from his
employer. That may be sta
tistically correct, but it seems
only (air to point out that any
one making $5,200 annually
will pay over twice that
amount.
Mr. Burrill says very few
people over 65 can afford a
serious illness with any con
siderable length of hospitaliz
ation. I would like to say few
people of any age can afford
It, least of all (he wage-earner
with a family to support. Most
opponents of our present Med
icare plan say the oldsters
resent having to answer ques
tions about their financial
status. How such an attitude
could have survived nearly
half a century of filing in
come tax returns and coping
with appraisers of real and
personal property is a mystery
to me. I don't think the tax
payers should be asked to pay
the medical bills of those who
can well afford to pay their
own.
Perhaps one solution would
be for the government to take
over the hospitals and make
them available to everyone
MEDFORD MAIL
Menace
n
1ET
2f
CRAZY 'BOUT C3S."
under the same conditions as
provided for in the King-Anderson
Bill. That would be
fair to everyone and any defi
cit could be made up the same
way as that of the Post Office
department.
Bureaucrats thrown out of
work by this plan could be
used in the hospitals to carry
bed pans.
Howard Wilson,
Route 1, Box 280,
Central Point, Ore.
Always Welcome
To the Editor: Thank you
for the very nice announce
ment regarding the Easter
Sunrise Services that we had
here at the Sanctuary. How
ever it was printed that they
were to be held on Table
Rock mountain, while actual
ly they were held on top of
the mountain here at the
Sanctuary.
We do sincerely hope that
this mis-print did not cause
anyone inconvenience, espe
cially at that hour of the
morning. Actually most peo
ple know us so well now that
they were not confused by
the mistake. Thanks to John
Stafford's articles we have
become acquainted with peo
ple from all over the United
States and Canada.
If anyone did plan to visit
us Sunday and were unable
to make it, they can always
be assured of the fact that
they are welcome to come up
at any time. They will find
their trip will be quite worth
while for the scenery here is
spectacular and we LOOK
DOWN on the Table Rocks,
being several hundred feet
higher than they are.
We appreciate the new
friends that we made Sunday
and we hope that like the
many other visitors that we
have had, they will return
again and again.
Again, let us say that I am
very sorry for any inconveni
ence that anyone might have
had.
Dallas Purcell
Route 2, Box 572-C
Central Point, Ore.
Library Needs
To the Editor: Will you
please print the following
copy of my letter to the
Members of the Jackson
County Budget Committee:
Gentlemen: In expressing
my hope for favorable con
sideration of the proposed
budget for the Public Library
of Medford and Jackson
County, 1 would like to stress
the point that by the greatly
expanded county-wide use of
the library facilities through
the growing Branch Library
system, the problem of the
adequate budget becomes
more and more the concern
of the county.
An excellent review in the
Medford Mail Tribune Sun
day by Mr. Gilbertson, on the
increase of library usage
shows a rise of 143 per cent
in book use in two years by
the people in the county out
side of Medford.
The same report also shows
an unfavorable comparison
with our neighboring coun
ties in the number of books
per capita available and the
expenditure per capita in the
library budgets.
Mr. Bacon and his tine staff
have done a remarkable job
in making it possible for
more people to use and en
joy more books and the other
facilities of a good library
system. This costs more
money. But the continuing
and increasing interest and
I appreciation of these efforts
j as shown by the residents of
i the county, clearly indicates
I approval of an Increase in
the budget.
I.ec E Carson
Star Route. Box 60
Prospect, Ore.
TRIBUNE. MEDFORD. OREGON
De Gaulle
Sentence
Br PHIL NEWSOM
UPI Foreign News Analyst
It is a quirk of history that
President Charles de Gaulle
is being called upon for the
second time to
pass upon a
s e nt e n ce of
life or death
for a great
French nation
al hero. It was
at 4:15 on the
morning of
Aug. IS, 1945,
that a jury in
Newiom Paris return
ed a verdict of death against
Marshal Henri-Philippe Pe
tain, hero of Verdun in World
War I, Nazi collaborationist
in the Vichy French govern
ment of World War II.
Then, as he must now in
the case of Gen. Raoul Salan,
it fell to De Gaulle to make
the tinal decision.
It was near the end of De
Gaulle's first term as the
first premier of the French
Fourth Republic.
He communted the aged Pe-
Retain Known System
To the Editor: We have ob
served the taking over of gov
ernments in various parts of
the world when pressure
groups decide to move in. One
of the first steps is to have a
non-partisan election from
single list of candidates
and, of course, the helping
of those candidates who are
friendly to the cause. After
these elected assume their
seats in the presidium, coun
cil or commission, they ap
point and perpetuate in the
various branches of govern
ment the persons who will
be subservient to their mas
ter - the pressure group.
In the case of smaller gov
ernments where the premier,
chairman or whatever title
he may have, is the only full
time leader, he tends to as
sume dictatorial control since
the part-time members of the
governing group assume his
recommendations are in the
best interest of all and thus
these members through lack
of time, and the pressure
brought to bear, became "rubber-stamp"
approvers of all
actions desired by the group
controlling them.
In practically all of the
propaganda to which we have
thus far been subjected in fa
vor of the County Home Rule
Charter, the admission has
been made this proposal Is not
perfect and will need changes.
One of the most glaring im
perfections, in the opinion of
the undersigned, is the re
moval of the county govern
ment from partisan politics.
By retaining party politics
we can assure ourselves a
choice of candidates for of
fice and if we refute the char
ter proposal we will continue
to select the persons we want
to serve us.
The proponents of the char
ter would have us believe a
non-partisan list is the best
way to select office holders
but a quick look at Medford
will show the deterioration of
interest in politics since non
partisan lists were adopted.
It might also be well to
rcstudy some of the countries
of the world where "free elec
tions" were had from a sin
gle list of candidates without
party affiliation. After city
and county government it can
well be the next two steps
will be state and federal.
then the prophecy of conquest
from within will be fulfilled.
It is not the intent of the
writer to be a orognosticator
of doom, but it is better to
rciain me Known system we
have than to pass to an admit
tedly imperfect and untried
charter.
Dan F. Krotz II,
Chairman.
Legislative Committee
Steelhead Post 6881
Veterans of Foreign Wars
Shady Cove, Ore.
Population Emergency
To the Editor: During the
coming decade one billion
children will be born, the
great majority of them to an
existence of poverty and
want. In the crucial areas of
Asia, Africa and Latin Amer
ica, where per capita incomes
fall as low as 20 cents a day
there in no margin for shar
ing. Illiteracy and misery are
the norm. et the human fam
Uy continues to grow at an
unprecedente rate, multiply
ing and intensifying the ten
sions under which the world
lives today.
Hungry people affect our
conscience. Huncry nations af
fect our future. Thus, the pop
ulation explosion presents a
global threat which tran
scends national boundaries,
endangering the freedom of
all mankind. It must be check
Again Must Pass on Death
of French Hero-Turned-Traitor
tain's sentence to life im
prisonment. Petain lived with his dis
grace for two years, finally
dying at the age of 91 on his
prison Island of Yeu off the
French Atlantic Coast.
The parallel does not end
with Petain.
Petain served the Vichy
government as chief of state.
Under him as premier was
Pierre Laval.
It was upon Laval that the
chief blame fell for the crimes
against Free France and he
also received a death sentence.
De Gaulle refused to inter
vene and Laval died before a
firing squad at Fresnes Prison
Oct. 15, 1945.
The firing squad or the
guillotine also awaits Salan
and his second in command
in the outlawed OAS, Gen.
Edmond Jouhaud, who was
captured a month ago in Oran.
Jouhaud already has been
tried and his sentence passed
on to De Gaulle for review.
Salan, sentenced to death
once in absentia, now will be
tried in person, with the ver
dict a seemingly foregone con
clusion. There is special tragedy in
the case of Salan.
Before he turned to the
AOS and its assorted atroci
ties against Moslem and Eu
ropean alike, he was entitled
to wear more decorations than
any other officer in France.
He had served as De Gaulle's
ed before the damage be
comes irreparable, for If free
Institutions cannot provide,
the essential needs of the peo
ple they will Inevitably seek
another way out, even at the
sacrifice of their freedom.
The poverty in which mil
lions of human beings have
lived for centuries must be
alleviated if our world is to
escape social, economic and
political chaos. Yet it is a
tragic fact that expanding
populations are frustrating ef
forts on the part of the devel
oping nations to expand their
economy. Even with massive
foreign aid, they cannot grow
enough food, build enough
housing or schools or hospi
tals, or provide enough jobs
to keep pace with their grow
ing populations.
It took all of the vast
reaches of time to build to
day's population of more than
3 billion. But this figure will
double by the end of this cen-
truy if present rates of growth
continue. Unless we recognize
and constructively attack the
population problem now, we
shall suffer the consequences
of a world so crowded and so
inadequate in resources that it
may well be impossible for a
free society to meet the ensu
ing needs.
The World Population
Emergency campaign is work
ing to alert the American peo
ple to this crisis. We are seek
ing to help private citizens'
groups working in 32 coun
tries to initiate and expand
their population control pro
grams. We have already made
grants totaling some $225,000
to national movements in Ja
pan, Ceylon, Korea, India,
Malaya. Indonesia, and to oth-
er groups in Asia and Latin
America. We must do much
more if we are able to meet
the many urgent calls for
help coming from overseas.
Contributions (tax deducti
ble) to the World Population
Emergency campaign will be
utilized without delay, and
will be deeply appreciated by
myself and those friends over
seas who depend upon us for
aid.
Margaret Sanger
501 Madison ave.
New York 22, N.Y.
Try and Stop Me
By BENNETT CERF
p ROUNDKEEPER Harry Earnshaw, of the Halifax Cricket
J Club, England, had a harrowing experience one rare
day last June. He finished mowing the cricket pitch and
climbed over the fence
to the greyhound track,
confident that racing had
finished for the day. It
hadn't.
The electric rabbit
knocked Mr. Earnshaw
over and six greyhounds
ran over him. The race
was declared void, and
Mr. Earnshaw, when he
regained consciousness,
was fined two pounds for
illegal entry to the track,
e e e
A number of S-veax-old
Timothy's playmates gathered beneath his window and shrilly
Importuned him to come out and play. Timothy finally appeared
at the window and replied, "Can't you see I can t come down
nowT I'm taking my nap."
A rueful observation by an old Japanese philosopher: "Parting
begins with the first meeting."
a e
The town's most notorious deedbeat boasted at the weekly
pokr game. "I give the little woman a, check regularly every
Saturday night o she can put it aside for s rainy day." "That's
nice." commented one of his many creditors sardonically. "She
can sew them all together and make a rubber raincoat"
O UO, ajr Beuatt Cert Distributed by aCtaf Tenures Brneloete
emissary in Algeria and he
had served France as a soldier
at home, in Africa and in the
Far East.
As Petain before him, he
will plead that he acted for
the good of France.
This, and not the glory of
the battlefied. is Salan's mo
Drummond Reports
(Walter Lippman h la Europe. Roscee Drummene' reports free
Washington in his absence.) (c) 1962 New Yerk Hereto' Tribune Inc.
THE GENEVA GAP
Washington - Obviously no
one would expect the Soviet
Union to accept out-of-hand
the draft treaty for "complete
and general" disarmament
which the U.S. presented at
Geneva.
It is not surprising, there
fore, that the immediate re
sponse of the chief Soviet del
egate, Deputy Foreign Min
ister Valerian A. Zorin, is
cool, negative, and disdainful.
He was disdainful in describ
ing the American draft treaty,
which was packed with orig
inal and constructive pro
posals, as "containing nothing
new. He was negative in that
he announced - after taking
a cursory look - that the U.S.
proposals for verification
"are not acceptable."
Thus the first word from
Moscow on a verifiable dis
armament treaty is a double
nyet.
THIS may or may not be
Moscow's last word.
Whether it is or not, the
United States has done Itself
and the West a good service
by putting before the whole
world a concrete, comprehen
sive, careful program for
achieving disarmament pro
gressively - if the Soviet
Union wants to end the arms
race more than it wants to
maintain total secrecy.
It can't have both. That
might as well be recognized
at the outset. There must be
means of verification, or there
can't even be a beginning.
The U.S. draft treaty shows
that we earnestly want arms
reduction, as well as arms
control, and that we stand
behind a practical means of
bringing them about.
It gets us off the partial
negative stance we have been
occupying too long. It re
moves the impression that the
U.S. was demanding massive
inspection for minute disarm
ament, that we were more
interested in building ud in
spection than In dismantling
arms.
We are now advocating sub
stantial stage-by-stage disarm
ament, and we are advocating
only a degree of inspection
equal to each stage.
JS THERE any prospect that
the Soviet Union will r.
cept? Will it go along with
sufficient verification so that
there can be no perilous risk
that one side is disarming
wnue tne other isn 17
The U.S. has gone far lo
meet the Soviet argument that
limited disarmament means
unlimited inspection. We have
measured inspection lo the
amount of arms reduction at
each stage. We are not asking
to subject the entirety of the
Soviet Union to inspection
when disarmament is only be
ginning. Each country would
be divided into zones, and the
international disarmament or
ganization would select with
out advance notice the zone
to be inspected. The more dis
armament, the more the veri
fication. ON THE basis of the posi
tions the Soviet delegate
has been taking so far at
Geneva, even these conces
ment of truth.
And from grim Sante Pris
on already is emerging the
picture of s man anxious to
disavow himself of the blood
of the innocent, realizing too
late that his was not the
guiding hand of destiny, but
rather its victim.
sions will not satisfy Moscow.
Here is the tremendous gap
which still exists:
U.S. proposes verification
on both sides be carried out
by an international agency.
U.S.S.R. rejects any inspec
tion on Soviet soil except by
Soviet officials.
U.S. says that arms retain
ed as well as arms destroyed
must be verified.
U.S.S.R. says only arms de
stroyed need to be verified.
U.S. advocates a permanent
UN peace force which could
only function if there were no
UN veto.
U.S.S.R. seeks to expand
the UN veto and has always
opposed a UN peace force.
One may hope that the wish
to end the spiraling, ever
more-costly arms race may
persuade the Soviets that dis
armament is better than se
crecy. But it will be a long.
tortuous negotiation before
the end is in sight.
Strictly
Personal
By Sydney J. Harris
c General Features Corp.
AMERICAN MEN
VS. ENGLISHMEN
"I was watching the Jack
Paar show that was taped in
London," said the woman
sitting next to me at dinner.
and I was
struck again
with the vast
d i s similari
ty betw e e n
American
men and Eng.
lishmen." "In
H what way?" I
said uneasily,
adopt 1 n g a
Harris clipped Brit
tish tone. "Well." she said,
"Paar interviewed three Eng
lish political figures, all ot
whom disagreed with one an
other. All of them were quite
passionate and persuasive in
their ways, but they sounded
so very different from Amer
ican men I have heard on po
litical forums and round ta
bles." "You mean they were more
educated?" I inquired.
"Not just that," she answer
ed, "although that's part of it.
What I mean is that they
seemed so much more grown
up. They were urbane; they
spoke with some grace and
precision - and with a lot
of humor.''
"Maybe we don't think pol
itics is funny over here," I
ventured.
"I don't mean that," she
shook her head. "They were
utterly serious in their views,
but they didn't put on the
mock solemnity, that turgid
style we're so accustomed to
hearing. And they didn't give
out with a lot of cliches about
patriotism and the British
way of life and all that."
"We don't like wit and hu
mor in our public men," I of
fered. "Apart from other fac
tors, it was Stevenson's ready
tongue that hurt him in the
presidential elections. Ameri
cans seem to distrust a man
who expresses himself well."
"That's part of it," she nod
ded. "It also has something to
do with security. Those men
felt secure enough in their
backgrounds and accomplish
ments so that they could fore
go the dreadful ponderous
ness of our politicians. They
were dry and witty and sar
donic - and delightfully self
deprecating. I guess Steven
son is the only American poli
tician who deprecated himself
in public - which is, appar
ently, not a trait we admire
here."
"I'm sure many British po
litical speeches are deadly
dull." I put in.
"I'm sure they are. too,"
she said, "but, ail in all, our
public figures seem like lit
tle boys compared to theirs,
It's hard to imagine Church
ill's splendid prose - at once
subtle and masculine - being
duplicated in America. And
yet it was the inspiration of
his prose that gave the Brit
ish the courage and spirit dur
ing Dunkirk and before."
"You prefer Englishmen to
American men, then?" I asked
nasally.
"Not in many respects."
she said, "but American men
are duller to talk to. They
wax lyrical only about busi
ness affairs and golf, and the
humor is strictly locker room.
No wonder we have so many
dissatisfied women."
fl&e''-'