4 A
-f Tjrtfij in Southern Oregon
t ii Ir.c Tribune'7
urhd Di'." ixeep'. Saturday by
medh'.'H.) ?::sg CO
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ERIC 'l -C. IS JR Mmk Editor
FARl ADAMS Citv tditnr
HAHHV lHirMA'1, Telttf Editor
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Or. IV t & M H HKR Women'a Editor
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An htdpi-ndtnt Newspaper
Entered frond clas matter at
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March 3. ia'i7
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wiJ'lii M
aiajiii willful
Flight o' Time
Medford and Jackson County
Hislory from the dies ot The
Mail Tribune 10, 20, 30, 40
and 50 yent ano.
10 YEARS AGO
Aug. 6, 1952 (Wednesday)
Jon W. Cooper of Medford
was named winner of an hon
orable mention award in the
senior division of the Fisher
Body Craftsman's Guild mod
el car competition in Detroit,
Mich.
Farmers Home adininislra
lion will have S60.000 avail
able for initial operating, or
"production and subsistence"
loans to farmers in Jackson
and Josephine counties during
the fiscal year ending June
30. 1053.
20 YEARS AGO
Aug. 6, 1942 (Thursday)
Building permits In allow
construction of 10 new houses
on a block in northwest Med
ford are issued from the city
building inspector's office.
From Arthur Perry's "Ye
Smudge Pot" column: "The
Kii7.it are reported dying like
flies on the North Caucasus
front while on Ihe kitchen
front where the Older Girls
are canning and pickling, the
flies are dying like Nazis.
30 YEARS AGO
Aug. 6. 1932 (Saturday)
The slale highway commis
sion announces it will spend
more than $100,000 on south
ern highways during the win
ter. Wind storm destroys Rogue
valley pear crop; losses esti
mated from eight to 40 per
cent.
40 YEARS AGO
Aug. 6. 1922 (Sunday)
Banks announce Medford
payroll this week is the
largest in three years.
Copco announces thai its
employees have purchased
$2110,000 ill slocks under the
rompany's new plan to keep
slock within the company.
SO YEARS AGO
Aug. 6. 1912 (Tuelday)
File Chief Amann orders
1h.il all Mcdlovd residents
turn off water when fire siren
sounds
L F. Homer, a Medford
nursci.vman (or many years, is
Inlurert and ho.spuah-'ed in
Rohuig follouing an auto
mobile at I'ldeiil .
Whal's Your I.Q.7
Nine or ten correct it lupcrior;
even et ciqM it excellent; fiv or
lit it qood.
1 Is hror.e a metallic ele-
nirii', "t an alloy'
2 What m thulcicil f mure,
ii prt -vnii il ;ts hearing (lie
(mi t!i on Ins shouldi'is-'
a, NHs.ui Kiirki'lVlli-r the
$in, nr the hi .mrNnn of the
nip ,lnhn V) Itnckcfrllor. Sr."
4 When our eves adjust
thi nv-riv, s to a darkened
rn.irii, ;m e the pupils expanded
or e- n' t hi trd'1
.' Wi.ii treat mountain
r,-ir( li be'wren India-Pii:i;'-';.n
iinfl Chimt''
ti W i Ci e 1 1 1 1; c Wajihmnltm
an n r,K son'1
7 Wiin h of thri- h.i.s hoi'tis
-- rhm"( i i s . ir hippopota
mus '
R 1
it count!. v it Tel-
Aviv
9 How nmy ('i ai" in
a statute nnlri
in V hen 11 is 3 p 111 Stnnd-.
ard Time m New York, what '
tin e is it in S.m Fr.incisio'' I
Answers: 1. Alloy. 2. A!-:
Uit. 3. Grandson. 4. Expanded.
S. HiiTMlayai. 6. No. 7. Rhi
nererot. 8. Israel. 9. 3280. 10.1
Noon ;PST). I
NATIONAL
V-e
MONDAY, AUGUST ft. 1962
Death and Public Opinion
Win Marks of Radio Station KBOY called
us Saturday to report on a poll he had taken.
The pollees were reminded that LeeRoy San
ford McGahuey will die in the gas chamber Aug.
20 two weeks from today unless Gov. Mark
Hatfield exercises executive clemency.
Then the pollees were asked, "Are you in
favor of the death penalty?"
Of the 158 responses, 87 were opposed to
capital punishment; 71 favored it.
yi-IIS kind of poll, of course, is not a scientific
sampling of opinion, and cannot be construed
as a necessarily accurate reflection of the views
of all Jackson county people.
But it is revealing, in that it was in the county
where McGahuey committed his murders, and
where he was tried and convicted by a jury which
did not recommend clemency.
It is also reminiscent of the fact that the last
time Oregon voters cast ballots on capital punish-1
tvirtttf it lima rw1t Kit n fin.. w, i v, r' f 1 1 I
mi.ii,,, it aa icaiuuu uiii uy a tiny iiimvji iu.y
some 12,000 votes out of more than 540,000 cast.
And it is also reminiscent of the fact that for
many years Oregon did not have the death
penalty.
QREGON'S basic laws do call for the death
penalty at the present time. But the Constitu
tion also gives the Governor the unfettered right
to commute a sentence; indeed, the duty to do so,
should he feel it is called for.
It is too bad he must
political climate, during his campaign for re
election. This intensifies the pressures on him in
a situation already difficult enough for any man.
Nonetheless, knowing of the Governor's ab
horrence of taking human life, of his sincere and
j deep religious feeling, and of the fact that Ore-
gonians are nearly divided on trie subject and no
one really knows whether, at this moment, a ma
jority approves or disapproves capital punish
ment, it is our hope the
commute McGahuey s sentence. b.A.
The Dignity of Life
How is it possible to oppose the death penalty,
and at the same time favor legalized abortions
under certain circumstances? Isn't this inconsist
ent and contradictory?
At first glance it may seem so. This depart
ment has taken both these positions in recent
days, and we got to wondering about it.
It seems to us that the key to the answer is
one of attitude, of a dislike for human suffering,
as evidenced in one case by a man facing certain
death, and in the other by an easily preventable
birth which could well, probably would, result
in mental and physical anguish for many people
over a long period of time.
IN DISCUSSING the Finkbine case, Max Ler-
ncr writes:
"She (Mrs. Finkbine) cares about children so much
Hint she had four and was planning to have a fifth.
But she also cares about the dignity and meaning of
life, and when she found that a tranquilizer drug she
had taken . . . had caused thousands of malformed
births in Kuropc, she did not want to inflict on life
Ihe indignity of bringing Into the world a limbless,
twisted child which, if he lived, would curse his par
ents for the monstrous Joke they played on him."
"Dignity and meaning of life" that, to us, is
the key phrase. Preventing life is not, to us, the
same as taking life. And while many sincere,
moral and religious people will disagree violent
ly, the cold-blooded killing of a man, and permit
ting the birth of a monstrous child when it can
be easily prevented, both seem wrong to us. E. A.
Communication Satellites
fr.1 , , . ... f
1 lit: lll'itll'll Uiillll 1U1 I UIHIU1 Ul .'Wlll'l lid a j
communication satellite system continues. Sup-j now big a lift-
porters of the bill which would give virtual con- , ";l 'i'"" to
! , e . . . . t P rn i . ; have intrigued the editorial
trol of the satellite system to A I ST have at-' ,.lf( o( ,,, i.lirliiini o.cgoni
tempted to use the recent successful Telstar ex- an. so they got out their slide
periments as proof that AT&T should plav the 1 ri,ll's mu1 u",ir computers
. . , '. , , , , ir ' went to work on the problem.
dominant role m developing and controlling our j,,,,., wnlU tnev come up
satellite system.
The successful Telstar
r 1 . ti
l nut iitiiiotiiiiiii, uinuui, it wut iivt. ut-t-t.-
SaHlv follow that AT&T
Ibonefteiarv of the $170,000,000 public investment 1
:.. . ,i ' : . !
,m satellite eommunciations. !
! lelstar was but one of many experimental ,
nroiects. Tlie National Aeronautics and Snace !
Administration plans to construct and test Uclay. j
SyiH'Oin, and hellO Satellites all Wlthlll the next
few months. No One is now certain which, if ailV,
(if these alternate types of satellites will prove to
. . . . 1 . 1 .
lie tile Ultimate system. What IS certain IS that '
research and deve onment
ntii.no U itviwi.oilin.r uc
TV4ANV questions relating to the Operation ()f a 'THE news drouth appears to j and kepi. Long has been here
AV communications satellite svstem remain un- , be sn Francisco j u years: nog ib
, .,, ,i f, .t ' i 'i' i . also. At anv rale, the Chron-1 These are but a few ex-
answered, shortly after the successful lelstar ex- nle comes up wilh llus head- amples from this primary
neritnent the "New ork Times" reported that the ime s f kohseks a mega- i season winch support ten
White House had just initiated a Stlldv of the in- 'rOLIS. The story under i tral point: (hose trying lo
, . i 1- ' . ii- headline relates. ' raie Northern bit citv power
ternational implications of satellite communica- -.Citv ,,,., nirt tnr i m confess and reduce south-
tioilS. first lime Wednesday with a i em power think (hey can do
Yet the satellite bill before Congress would nll"""s' commiUee named to 'it by forcing congressional re-
five -i iinvile enniiii-iti.Hi dnniiivite.'l he t'l'tT "'U rr,'l",r'' downtown San apportionment. Hut given
, I1 "n'l I01p0l.lt 1011, ( omilUtt d 0 AltVl, Krancisc,. (or u, iUv of tnr evp lhr most fKlrcme kmd
the right to negotiate directly With fOlelgll COUll- megalopolis. This is Ihe plan-!or reapportionment, they will
tries over the construction and use of communica-
tion facilities '
. ' .... . . .
.Many Senators, including myself and Senators
Morse, Hal tlett, Cniening, and KefaUVCr, hav e
asked why it is essential that we act immediately
, , ', ... . .
tO tUI'll satellite Communications Over tO U private
monopoly. No satisfactory answer to this qtlOS-'
tion has yet been given. Senator Maurine Neu-
I ....
DClgll.
make his decision in a
Governor will see lit to
. .,1
experiment was indeed
... I 1
should therefore be the:
11 sate ite eommuni-
l - .m.llv iw mwiiltln j
"Don't Rightly Know
Washington Report1
By William
(el United Feature Syndicate
: seniority
Washington - The Southern
Democratic primaries are re
turning more than familiar
x faces for the
next Congress.
! i 6 ll whole al-
ready - great
power - gain
ed t h r o u g n
t h e congres
sional seniori-
J ty system plus
.n. nign bouinern
nersonal political talent - is
now beinir still more increas
ed through the sheer fact that
again they have survived.
Dixie, thus far in ils pri
maries, is in no mood for
much change in ils congres
sional delegations. Senior
members are being renominat
cd with little opposition or
none. And in the South, still
a one-party region so far as
Congress is concerned, renom-
ination is equivalent in nearly
every case to re-election.
For Dixie understands what
no other section understands
In ihe Day's News
By FRANK JENKINS
What's the big news as this
Is written?
HERE'S an example:
Barbara Fenske, age 16,
and Marilyn O'Connor, age
15, of Indianapolis, have laid
claim to the ice cube tossing
record with a reported 5,599
catches before the cube melt
ed. Don't scoff. It gave them
something to do. If our teen
agers had more to do. they
would get Into less mischief.
Back in the 1600 s, Isaac
Watls, in his Divine Songs,
put it this way: "For Satan
finds some mischief still for
idle hands to do."
I SUPPOSE you've been
reading about the proposal
to cut federal income taxes so
a.s to leave more money in the
people's pockets so that the
people can SPEND MORE and
UlUS KlVe H till 1" UUMIUM.
wilh:
"A 10 per cent cut would
Kive toe jt.t.iuu-H-.veiii whkc
,,. .. ,,j
two children and files joint i
I
,vlurn- -H 'r",s m,,,e H weok-!
I lie S5.0H0 t'arnor would have :
8l) ronlJ ,mm, a w,,lk to
spend, ihe s7.soo one si.64 !
Hnd lhl' si 0.0110 person sa.sst.
CM.d5m XnMnVio i
per cent reduction. The addi-
ll"nal spending money would
"a". '""'' " , ;
above if Ihe smaller cut were :
niadr. The prospei-l of taking !
home ian additional) 14 to 82 1
cellls a week is hardly worth
I shouting about.'
,,,b: lo redesign the
downtown area for what is i
coming No one could say pre- -
ciscly when that megalopolis j
w"ld be upon us bill they ;
""r crr';'"l c"mm? !
Ihe challenge is stagger-
ms and frightening." archi-
M-,n" Ciampi told the
"",'"' f.',n'p i',"r oVd'i"" '
will affect Ihe whole ares, and ,
for years lo come." j
J . fir
If I Can Spare A Nail"
S. Whits
half so well. To have really
potent representation, it is
necessary to let your repre
sentatives stay in Congress
long enough to accumulate
real seniority.
ss
THE meaning of the
South's primary mood this
year is that the already deep
entrenchments of Southern
power in Congress are being
dug deeper and wider. Thus
it is that Southern primaries
have a national significance
not to be found in any other
part of the nation.
This is so because no one
man's vote automatically
equals another man's vote in
Congress. The true decision
rests in the legislative com
mittees - and the kernel of
the true decision rests within
the chairmen.
These chairmanships do not
fall mostly to Southerners
through dark conspiracy.
They fall (hat way because
seniority of service is the
route to chairmanship, and
the Southern fellows have a
way of coming back and back
here to become incredibly
"senior."
Thus, little Arkansas, in re
electing Sen. J. W. Fulbright
-except for the formalities of
the November election - has
seni back a man whose voice
in the great affairs of the
world will easily surpass
those of all the six senators
from our three biggest states
-New York, California and
Pennsylvania.
FOR FULBRIGHT Is chair
man of the Senate Foreign
relations committee. As such,
his views on the proper
conduct of foreign pol
icy are more nearly deci
sive in the vital, inside stages
than (hose, say, of Senators
Kenneth Keating and Jacob
Javils of New York. Thomas
Ktichel and Clare Engle of
California and Hugh Scott
and Joseph Clark of Pennsyl
vania all put together.
Similiarly, in re-electing
Rep. Wilbur Mills again - ex
cept for the November for
malities - an even smaller
number of Arkansas voters
has returned a man whose in
fluence over the economic af
fairs of this nation is greater
than that of all the junior
congressmen from several
slates. For Mills is chairman
of the House Committee on
Ways and Means.
Apart from largely deter
mining who shall pay what
lax and what tariff and what
welfare payroll deductions.
?nd mean has one other
ll a funMinn II hn i. Ho nr.
litlle function. It helps deter
mine what new congressmen
shall have what assignment
lo any other committee of the
House.
i gain, look at Louisiana.
aX Tp thumping return there
ot two moderale veterans.
fZ- Zw XcTi P.'
M'le liok.., is pri .venlert as a
Vlrlnlv over right-wing chal-
"-users, mn 11 is someining
else. (oo. Again it shows dial
Dixie savvies how congres
sional nower i urriveH hi -.
sun confront a basic (act
The urbamtes will never:
make it unless (hev ran per- I
suade Congress lo abandon!
the seniority system (which Is j
"" ""icssi or icam , let .
their congressional people,
stay there long enough to!
learn what it is all about and!
10 s',,,,rr '""b,uy to be ahicj
to do something about what
it is all about.
MLLFOHD MAIL TRIBUNE, MEDFORD, OREGON
COMMUNICATIONS
World Common Language
To the Editor: I read, with
much interest, your article by
Don Dillon (UPI) of 7-26,
about international language.
We have 2700 languages in
the world. Obviously we can
not teach or learn any appre
ciable part of them, go we
pick out three of four of the
2700 and ignore the balance
(not the most important, ei
ther), certainly not a policy
to make friends or influence
people, and most unbusiness
like to the point of plain stu
pidity. If we would spend a
fraction of the money we
spend on our foreign lan
guage program on a world
common language like Es
peranto, we could really ac
complish something.
I almost lost, not only my
shirt, but all my laundry, in
Mexico City because I thought
nearly every one in Mexico
understood English. Mexico
borders us for hundreds of
miles, with practically no bar
rier, they teach our language
for three years in their
schools, and we teach theirs,
but that maid certah.ly didn't
know it, though she nodded
her head when I asked if I
could have my laundry done.
Of course the British didn't
try to teach English to the na
tives. They didn't try to teach
them manufacturing, either
They want to keep the natives
down and build England up.
I have no trouble with the
small difference of pronun
ciation between Maine and
Georgia, Don't worry about
that.
If you want further infor
mation about Esperanto, the
world common language, ask
your library, or write to us.
The Esperanto Club,
H. E. Dillinger,
Box 792,
Placerville, Calif.
Knows Ha Is Innocent
To the Editor: Will you al
low our side of the story, con
cerning the Claude Chase ar
rest, to be put in the paper in
the next couple days? I
would like to see It hit the
front page like my husband's
arrest did, but I know I will
be lucky if it even makes the
communications column.
If I sound a little bitter, I
don't intend to. I'm .just a
little saddened that in this
society of ours, it is no longer
true that "a man is innocent
until he is proven guilty," but
after all the publicity, "a man
is guilty until he proves him
self innocent." But I'm not
bitter. I know your staff is
just doing their job and writ
ing the exciting, sensational
news the public likes to read,
although I would have liked
to have seen the whole story
in print.
Did you know that Claude
went willingly, when he was
called in for questioning? And
that Tuesday night when the
State Police came to the house
and said they wanted to see
Claude that he was at work
and when he came home from
work and Itold him they
wanted to see him, he said to
call (hem and tell them he
would be down in one-half
Drummond Reports
(Wjjlrcr Lipoma nn It on vacation. Roscoe Drummond raoorti from
Washington in hii bit net.) (c)
HOW TO GET
A FARM PROGRAM
Washington - The Kennedy
administration should not feel
too distressed because it has
not been able to get from Con
gress the kind of farm bill it
wanted. This is nothing new.
The Eisenhower administra
tion couldn't either.
Secretary Ezra Taf't Benson
wanted a freer market for
farm products, but Congress
would never permit sufficient
flexibility of price supports
to bring it about.
Secretary Orville Freeman
wants a less free market for
farm products and greater
controls over production, but
Congress refuses to vole him
the needed powers.
Throughout this ten-year
period U.S. farm policy has
been half right, which means
that it has been half wrong -and
overwhelmingly unwork
able. Mr. Bcnsnn wanted to
reduce government controls
over farm production but was
never allowed by law to re
duce price supports sufficient
ly to keep surpluses from go
ing up and up. Mr. Freeman
wants to maintain high price
supports, but is not being al
lowed by Congress to exercise
the control over production to
keep surpluses from going up
and up because of high price
supports.
This half-right, half-wrong,
almost wholly unworkable
farm policy has been going on
a long time. Isn't it about time
to draw a logical conclusion
from this long and costly fail
ure of the politicians to devise
a farm program which will
serve the whole nation and ar
rest the growing gap between
farm and non-farm earnings?
It seems to me the logical
conclusion is thai the develop
ment of a farm program ought
to be Ukrn out of partisan
politics I believe there 11 a
way to do it.
hour. And he was, because I
drove him down myself. And
did you know that Claude, in
all nil 41 years, has never
been in any kind of trouble,
not even traffic violations?
So he went willingly be
cause he is innocent. Some
might say, you're his wife,
you're prejudiced in his fav
or. Well, if loving a man and
having faith in him, after 18
happy years of marriage, to
know he would never "will
fully and maliciously" start a
fire anywhere, then I am
prejudiced. And If our seven
children can hear and read
what is being said about their
father, and not let it affect
their lives, because they know
their father would never do
such a thing, then they too
are prejudiced.
And also in this time of
trouble to feel so proud of the
man that has caused my phone
to ring constantly in the last
two days, from neighbors,
friends and people that he has
worked with in the last eight
years, since we have come to
the valley, assuring me that it
is absurd and anyone that
knows Claude, knows he
would never do this thing.
So I, his wife, know he is
innocent, his children know
he is innocent, his friends
know he is innocent, and
above all our dear Lord
knows he is innocent.
With the Lord's guidance
and the many prayers that
have gone out in Claude's be
half, we know that justice
will be done and his inno
cence will be proved. Thank
you for your time and space.
Mrs. Claude Chase
Route 2, Box 668-B
Cen'.ral Point, Ore.
Movies Taken Seriously
To the Editor: I would like
to give my view on the ques
tion of movies.
I certainly do not agree
with the statement which
Kathy Bevls put forth, "that
TV and movies are our great
est outlet of feelings Sure
ly Kathy cannot believe
that watching a television
movie could possibly surpass
the peace of taking our prob
lems to God in prayer. Cer
tainly this is our "greatest
outlet of feelings."
I do agree with Kathy, how
ever, on the point that all
actors are not bad. I don't
think that a person can take
a group of people and say
that they are ALL bad. Cer
tainly some, and I might ven
ture to say, most of our enter
tainers are at least headed
down the road of immorality.
' I do believe that many of
our youth do take movies
seriously. I doubt that it is a
conscious act, but if you stop
and think about it, you will
find that those movies are
leaving their mark, particu
larly the romances.
I don't think we can say
that movies aren't taken se-riously-they
are.
Terry Birman,
243 Beatty St.,
Medford.
1962 New York Htrald Tribunt Inc.
NORMALLY, the partisan
political process is the
best method of obtaining a
national consensus on national
policy. But there are two cir
cumstances when political ap
proach to determine policy
should be suspended.
1- When the partisan politi
cians agree so subs(an(ially
(hat partisan controversy no
longer exists - as in foreign
policy today.
2- Whcn the partisan politi
cians disagree so substantially
as to prevent agreement on a
consistent and workable
course of action.
Because for at least a dec
ade the partisan politicians
have been unable to agree on
a consistent and workable
farm program. i( is impera
(ive to tiy a non-political ap
proach. Since the politicians have
been unable to produce any
solution to mounting surpluses
and declining income, why
not give the non-politicians a
chance?
aMIE praclical step would be
for (he President and the
Congress to join in creating a
Hoover-type commission on
agriculture which would draw
upon the most objective tal
ent and report within six
months its findings on a farm
program.
I Such a commisison would
1 need a respected and trusted
f" figure who understands acn
1 culture but is not beholden to
j the pressure groups - such a
man as Judge Marvin Jones,
a former member of Congress.
a student of agriculture, an
! experienced public official
'with a judicial state of mind.
The commission would need
j fresh brains and fresh faces -
and ought not to be packed)
j with the battle-scarred veter-
ans of the farm lobbies j
j 1 believe that such a step:
as this is vital for the nation.
j The American farmers' politi-j
;cal power is steadily waning.!
land their legitimate Interests
Matter of Fact By j0sePh ai,op
(CI New Yor Kereid Tribune Syndlcete
By ROBERT J. DONOVAN
(Joseph Alsop is on va
eatiCi. During this period
hit column will be written
by reporleri expert in na
tional and international af
fairs.) -
MID-TERM: FDR. JFK
Washington - Everyone re
members how mightily Frank
lin D. Roosevelt swept over
Alf Landon to win a second
term. What we forget and
what Is interesting to recall
at this time of political trou
ble for John F. Kennedy is
how things stood for Roose
velt when he was at that point
in his first term that Kenne
dy is approaching in his.
One - fifth of the labor
force was still unemployed.
The national income was near
ly $40 billion below 1929.
Some 389 cases involving
challenges to New Deal laws
were pending in the courts.
The NRA and the AAA, twin
pillars of Roosevelt's recov
ery program, were not only
in turmoil but were in the
shadow of death. Many voters
were annoyed by Roosevelt's
family. Worst of all, Roose
velt was already in trouble
with Congress (how familiar!),
which Democrats controlled
by a greater majority than
they enjoy under President
Kennedy.
The Republicans, then as
now, had begun to recover
from their defeat in a presi
dential election and were
uniting against Roosevelt's
legislation. Southern Demo
crats were marching off the
reservation, which has a fa
miliar ring too.
V
IT IS a fascinating exercise
to read "The Politics of
Upheavel," the excellent his
tory of that period by Arthur
M. Sehlesinger, Jr., and make
believe that the man he is
writing about is not Franklin
Roosevelt in 1934-'35, but
John F. Kennedy in August,
19R2. For example:
"These were hard days for
(he President. He knew that
things were going badly. On
every side he was assailed
with demands for action."
"The outlook . . . was in
creasingly troubling. The
country already seemed in
a condition of economic stale
mate. A political stalemate
was threatening in the new
Congress."
"The latent discontent pre
sented a challenge to the
President. He too sensed Ihe
national mood: worse, he evi
dently shared the national
bafflement."
"As Congress reconvened,
it appeared that the President
had no bold new proposals to
send to the Hill."
"The new session had bare
ly begun when Roosevelt
found himself in trouble."
(Wi(hin two week ihe. Prct.
dent suffered the humiliation
of seeing his World Court bill
defeated in the Senate.)
"Iekes reported Roosevelt
about this time as 'distinctly
dispirited. I have never seen
him in quite such a state of
mind. He looked tired and
he seemed to lack fighting
vigor or the buoyancy that
Strictly Personal
By Sydney
lei field Enterprises, Inc.
NEGATIVE CASE
What is called in some cir
cles the "negative case"
method is finally beginning
to receive the
attention i t
has long de
served. Per
haps it was
too simple for
academic
i AS" ! i minds to both-
Sf . - . . r ...1,1.
tsiiK J How d we
try lo deter
Hr,is mine the
"causes" of juvenile delin
quency? Well, we do a statis
tical survey of 50 or 100 or
500 delinquents. We compare
their educational back
grounds, their family life,
(heir intelligent quotients,
their personality structures.
Then we try to identify and
isolate tnose traits and ten
dencies thai are common (n
most of (hem - broken homes
or drunken fathers, or some
such pattern.
Unfortunalely. this kind
of survey doesn't get us ery
far. The statistics are loo
easily manipulated and too
glibly inlerpreted. In most
cases, we are left pretty
much were we started - for
everyone already knows
that certain general types of
environment are more like
ly to breed delinquency
than other types.
What the "negative case"
method does is to try to
find out wny certain boys
don't became delinquents.
mav well be run over by im
patient city voters who are
(ed up with paying $7 billion
a ear for a non-solution lo
the (arm problem. The need i
to set non-partisan (a,m
program before it is too late
hat always characterized
him." For the first time sinca
he had come to Washington,
Congress was defying him
and getting away with it."
fDRNEST Gruening, Direc-
J-i tor of the Division of
Territories and Island Posses
sions in the Department of In
terior, expressed to Harold
Ickes his concern over the de
cline in the popularity of the
President . . . Gruening learn
ed from Col. House that Cor
dell Hull, the Secretary of
State, Homer Cummings, tha
Attorney General, and Dan
iel Roper, the Secretary of
Commerce . . . had already
waited on him (Col. House)
with similar worries."
"The expert consensus was
that the administration 'was
drifting and losing popular
strength.' "
"Oscar Chapman, the polit
ically astute Assistant Secre
tary of Interior, declared that
the tide was running strong
ly against the administration
and that 'unless the President
did something to change the
current during the next 30
days,' he could not be reelect
ed in 1938."
"Vice President Garner
said in Cabinet that he had
not seen so much trouble
since he had been in Con
gress: no sooner did he put
out one fire than another
broke out somewhere else."
"The despondency w a s
spreading fast from Washing
ton to the country. Thomas
Amlie, the Progressive from
Wisconsin, reported 'a very
distinct change' in his letters
from home: 'The people who
write to me express the most
profound discouragement
about Ihe national administra
tion.' "
CEN. Key Pittman thought
that "the fault is a lack of
confidence in the success of
the administration."
Obviously, in the light of
the Landon debacle, the situa
tion was deceptive then. What
we do not know for sure is
whether Ihe situation now is
equally deceptive. Quite prob
ably this is the case. It was
one thing when FDR was
struggling in Washington with
a coalition of Republicans and
Southern Democrats. It was
altogether another when,
backed by the very different
kind of coalition that tha
Democratic party can assem
ble in a presidential election,
he went into the ring asainst
a particular Republican can
didate. When (he conservative co
alition was harassing Roose
velt after only two years in
office, he appeared even to
the experts to be weaker than
he was when he had been
elected. In reality, as we were
to learn, he was much strong
er. In a lesser degree the
same may be true of Kennedy
today, though he has some
very treacherous ground to
tread. Between mid-term and
the 1936 election Roosevelt
had to act boldlv lo eel nut
of the doldrums he was in.
Ihe same challenge now con
fronts the President, and ha
will have to meet it in his
own way.
J. Harrit
even when all the faetort
seem to be predisposing
them toward it.
Hundreds of studies have
been made of delinquent
boys who come from brok
en homes. wt,oi.e father
are drunks, and whose
mothers work - but scarce
ly any research has gone
into the non-delinquent
boy with this backgrounds.
Why has he not succumb
ed to his environment?
What factor went into hit
make-up, or his early train
ing, that prevented him
from becoming a delin
quent? What are the posi
live attributes that enabled
him to resist the pull of hit
environment, what secret
source of strength did he
draw upon?
The answers to such
i questions are hound to be
! much more fruitful than the
j present method. And. of
I course, the technique applies
j to many more areas than de
linquency. For instance, why
; don't the majority of cisaret
! smokers acouire lung cancer?
j Why do certain marriages,
I that seem doomed at the start.
turn into good and permanent,
relationships' Why do some
children soem relatively im
mune to virus diseases
Instead of being so concern
ed with pathology, the social
sciences should turn more of
their attention to health. rt
a rigorous examination of
i those who have successfully
resisted infection, even when
heavily exposed to it.
We can all see the multiple
causes '.hat result in the fail
ure of a marriage: w..ai s
hard to detect is the cohesive
factor that enables one to
hold together. Only this kind
jof research can help us.