g SUNDAY, APRIL 7, 1963 MEDFORD MAIL TRIBUNE. MEOFORD. OREGON
Belgium Is Often Referred to as the Crossroads of Europe
(Edi tor's nett: On a
ctnt Mtaviilon quii pro
gram. Mm contestants could
Dot answor tho question:
Who U king of Belgium?
Can you? How much do you
know of that tiny, historic
country? This it another in
a itriti of ditpatchtt called
"Nation- of tha World."
Thty ara up-to-daia sketches
of tha countries of our
world written by corres
pondents who work and
liva thara.)
By STANLEY KETELE
and HERMAN 8AEN
United Press Intarnational
Brussels - IW- Belgium has
often been called "the cross
roads of Europe."
It eBtraddles the invasion
routes of the continent. For
2,000 years armies have
tramped across It.
It is a bridge between the
two major powers of Western
Europe - Germany on the
cast and France on the south
west - and as a result It has
been forced to take sides in
wars that were not of its mak
ing. Its relations with its other
neighbors have caused It less
national anguish - Holland in
the north and the little duchy
of Luxembourg in the south
east.
Tp the northwest, across
the North Sea, Is Britain
Laroar Than Maryland
Belgium Is only slightly
larger than the slate of Mary
land - 11,500 square miles -but
it is crowded with 9,190,
000 people. Only Japan Is
more densely populated.
To many, Belgium is a sort
of Europe in miniature. Not
only because it is the head
quarters of such international
bodies as the Common Map
ket but because it presents
many features, on a smaller
scale, that can be found in
other West European coun
tries. Sloping down from its high
est point of 2,300 feet In the
southern Ardennes (where one
of the crucial battles of World
War It was fought) toward the
North Sea, it can be divided
Into two main geographical
regions.
The northern half, with its
seaside dunes and beaches, is
part of the great plain stretch
ing from northern France into
Russia. It includes flax fields
in the west, rich farmlands
and pastures in the northeast
as well as abundant coal.
Mountain Chain
The hilly Ardennes in the
south are part ot the ancient
mountain chain stretching
front France into Germany
North and south arc linked by
gently undulating belt run
ning across the middle of the
country.
It is the boundary between
fertile farmland and orchards
on one side and stone quar
ries with Important steel and
W KK
t)TDURMi BELGIUM
SP&M', (toC?TT? c CW
Mrs. Green Proposes Major Surgery
LANGUAGE FHONTIEH This UPI news
map. shows how the "language frontier"
runs through the middle of Belgium, often
called "the crossroads of Europe." To the
north of the line live the Dutch-speaking
Flemings. To the south are the French
speaking Walloons. (UPI)
chemical Industries on the
other.
Less tangible but just as
real is the "language frontier
that runs through the middle
of Belgium.
To the north of this lin
guistic line live the Dutch
speaking Flemings. To the
south arc the French-speaking
Walloons.
Separates Old Cultures
The "line" separates two
old cultures - the Latin and
the Germanic, two anthropo
logical types, two ethnical
groups, one with Teutonic and
the other with Alpine char
acteristics.
There are slightly more
Fleming, just over 5 million,
than Wallons. But the French
speakers constitute a majority
of the population of the coun
try s capital and most im
portant city, Brussels.
There are strongly marked
differences between the re
gional conditions and habits
of these components of the
Belgian-population.
In the Flemish areas people
traditionally have had to work
hard Inr a meagre UveUhOOd
in amall-farm agriculture or
in the depression-prone tcx
lile regions.
Great Battleground
It was mainly front the
Flemish districts thai Belgians
emigrated to the United
States, especially after World
War I, in which Flanders, one
of the great battlegrounds of
history, was devastated.
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The Battle of Waterloo also
was fought in Belgium.
Some people regard Brus
sels, with its population of
about 1,000,000, as a distinct
unit In itself. But the over
whelming majority of its peo
ple are "immigrants" from
cither the Flemish or Walloon
sections and there are very
few "pure" Bruxcllois left.
Generally in Brussels the
Walloons are engaged in ad
ministration and arc employed
in the headquarters of the big
enterprise!. The Flemish
moved in at first as butchers
and bakers, as craftsmen and
industrial workers.
No Dividing Line
There is no firm dividing
line, however, and with the
passing of the years the types
of jobs have tended to merge.
Brussels itself is under
going great structural
changes. Up to World War II,
the population lived as dense
ly packed around the center
of town as possible. Now
there is a flight to the sub
urbs. Residential areas in the
town are being replaced by I
glass and concrete office build
ings.
The Belgian school system
offers ample opportunity in
both state-run or denomina
tional schools. Schooling till
the age of 15 is compulsory
and there is no illiteracy.
Flemish leaders complain,
however, that although 60 per
cent of the school-youth is
Flemish it provides only 40
per cent of the university students.
The Belgian government is
appointed by King Baudouin.
Legislative power rests with
the two houses of Parliament
- the Chamber of Representa
tives and the Senate.
Strong Political Parlies
The strongest political
parties arc the Social Chris
tians and the Socialists with a
smaller liberal center group.
There is a small Flemish
party on ihe right wing and
a Communist group on the
left.
Although there Is chronic
friction between the two
language groups, Belgians are
united in their desire for an
integrated Western Europe or
stale aid for illness and on
I job accidents, unemployment
benefits and state provision
I for family allowances and old
J age pensions.
Sense of Freedom
An industrious people with
I a strong sense of freedom, Bel
gians are famous for "making
the best of any situation.
They are wedded to free
enterprise and like to credit
it with most of their pros
perity. Belgian shops display
one of the widest ranges of
foreign products to be found
in Western European coun
tries. They have one million tele
vision sets and 1,100,000 pri
vate automobiles. The Bel
gians like to eat well - it is
almost a national sport. Their
love for good food is sur
passed only by their apprecia
tion of a good pint of beer.
They hold the world record
for per capita beer consumn
tion with more than 100 liters
(176 pints) a year.
As there arc more than 80,
000 pubs or cafes in the coun
try - five per square mile -
the Belgians need not travel
far to slake this national
thirst.
Typical Belgian
A typical Belgian is Ed-
mond Tielmans, a 38-year-old
skilled stucco worker who
lives with his wife, Emma,
36, and their three children in
a third floor apartment in a
Brussels suburb.
Mrs. Tielmans works two
or three times a week as a
seamstress. This brings the
total family income, including
family allowance to between
$210 and $220 a month.
Mary, who is 16, helps her
mother. Peter, 11, is in pri
mary school. Jan, who is three
years old, is taken to a
kindergarten on the days his
mother works.
Trie Tielmans apartment, in
a 25-year-old building, can
not be considered quite mod
ern, but Tielmans manages to
improve it in his spare time.
The biggest of the two bed
roonU is partitioned off to
make one bedroom for the
gui and one for the boys.
There is no bath but Tiel
mans installed a shower. The
By ROBERT BUCKHORN
United Press International
Washington -OIPli- In Con
gress, Caesar's wife is a much
discussed lady.
The 535 lawmakers in
House and Senate are agreed
that they, too, should be
above suspicion. But they
can't agree on what some
limes makes a congressman
suspect.
Should a legislator hire his J
brother-in-law to work in his
office? Is it ethical to spend I
the taxpayers' money in a
Paris nightclub?
Some legislators would an
swer "no" to both questions.
Others might say "yes." Still
others would answer "yes and
no."
Hardly a week passes that
a member of Congress doesn't
make a decision connected in
some way with ethics. If the
decision is made public, the
lawmaker can expect to be
praised or damned, depend
ing on how a voter gauges
ethics.
Reaches Plateeu
Congress, says Rep. Edith
Green (D-Ore), has reached
the plateau where it needs
a policeman to tell it right
from wrong. To back up her
opinion, she dropped a legis
lative reform package into
the hopper, including a pro
posal to set up a 15-member
commission on congressional
ethics. The commission would
study conflicts of interest and
XT w, W
ffc
advance notice on contract
decisions and then notifying
constituents that the award
ha been made, leaving the
impression ihr congressman
sressman boasted tnat n
slipped out of a committee
hearing as soon as he learned
what the government wanted
and telephoned his broker to had something to do with the
buy a house in the area. decision.
The use or misuse of con- Good politics, say the pup
gressional influence is one of porters of this policy. U net hi
the most complex and contro-cal say the critics,
vcrsial phase? of the ethics1
question. No one has come j
up with an answer to these
questions: how far can a con- j
gressman go in obtaining a I
government contract for his i 1
rtate? Or what type of out-1 j
side pmolovment la comnati- !
ble with a committee assign
ment? And when docs a
speaker's fee reach thc point
where it could be considered
an unreported campaign con
tribution? Liliie Can Be Done
Lawmakers say there is
very little a congressman can
do to influence a contract de
cision by the Defense depart
ment. But critics point out
that some go a long way to
create the impression they
can do something.
One case in point, critics
say, is the practice of getting
The birds
Mi
is coming!
4
M
proposal to prohibit use of
federal funds to pay any
member of a congressman's
staff who doesn't work in
outside income of House and Washington, or in the repre-
MRS. EDITH GREEN
Proposes Commission
mittee recently approved a! retainer" while the bank was
5352?
AT OUR NEW
LOCATION:
4th & Fir
close political and economic I apartment itself is simple but
unity - The Common Market. I well-furnished. There is no
Tho Belgian worker has a ! central heating - heat comes
higher standard of living than j from stoves In t lie living room
his colleagues in muny other
European countries although
prices are comparatively high.
A skilled worker earns an
average of 70 cents (Ameri
can) an hour.
The maximum working
week is 45 hours. There is
and in tho kitchen. They
have television.
Recently Tielmans acquired
a second-hand car and this is
often used on Sundays for
family outings. He thinks Bel
gium is a fine country to live
Senate members
Mrs. Green said bluntly
that "major surgery" is need
ed to keep Congress honest.
A focal point for much of
the recent uproar over con
gressional honesty is Rep
Adam Clayton Powell (D
N.Y.). The Negro legislator
triggered a barrage of criti
cism when he left in the midst
of a congressional session for
month-long tour of five
European nations. Powell is
chairman of the important
House Education and Labor
committee. He said the pur
pose of the trip was to gather
facts on the European Com
mon Market.
Mixing His Responsibilities
However, while most of his
fellow lawmakers were trying
to get Congress adjourned,
Powell was reported mixing
h i s information - gathering
with night club visits and sun
bathing. Along the way he
spent $1,543. Two female
aides who accompanied him
spent $2,428. Neither figure
included transportation costs,
according to congressional rec
ords.
Answering his critics, Pow
ell said they were using a pot
calling - kettle - black type of
logic. "I will always do what
every other congressman has
done, is doing, and will do,"
he said. And as far as junket
ing goes. Powell had a Lot of
congressional bedfellows.
In 1962, 101 law-makers
and nearly as many aides
toured the world. They re
ported lo the House Adminis
tration committee that they
spent a total of 5257,514.
Nepotism Controversial
If junketing is controversi
al, nepotism is none the less
so. In the current 88th Con
gress, payroll records show
wives, daughters, sons, broth
ers, and in-laws all working
for congressmen.
There is no secret about
the practice. The House pay
roll records are open to pub
lic View. Some congressmen
even go out of their way to
tell their constituents they
have a relative on the pay
roll. But not all them think
the practice is ethical and
have moved to curtail it.
As part of this drive, the
House Administrative com-
sentative's home state.
If the proposal becomes
law, it would affect congress
men like Powell, whose wife
earns $13,308 a year as his
aide, but" lives in Puerto Rico.
Rep. George Mcader (R-Mich.),
would have to stop paying
his daughter $167.54 a month
to mail out letters while she
attends college in Florida.
Not a New Problem
Ethics is not a new prob
lem for Congress. The law
makers have been wrestling
with it almost since the gavel
sounded to bring the first ses
sion to order in 1780.
Thomas Jefferson laid down
one of the first codes for
lawmakers. Said Jefferson:
"Where the private interests
of a member are concerned
in a bill or question, he is
to withdraw.'' But a genera
tion later no less a historical
personage than Daniel "Web
ster felt free to ask a bank
In Philadelphia for his "usual
involved in a controversy in
the Senate over the renewal
of its charter.
In recent years, a few con
gressmen have ended up in j
jail when they twisted the
code of ethics too far. In 1947.
Rep. Andrew J. May (D-Ky.),
wag indicted on bribery
charges and later sentenced
to prison. In 1949, Rep. Par
nell Thomas (R-N.J.), was con
victed of payroll padding.
Last year, lamcduck Rep. ,
Frank Boykin (D-Ala.), was j
indicted on charges of trying j
to influence the Justice dc- j
partment to drop prosecution
of a central figure in a sav-
ings and loan scandal. Boykiiv
has denied the charge and
went on trial in late March
along with former Rep. Thorn
as J. Johnson (D-Md.), who
faced tho same accusation.
Last month, in a copyright
ed article published by Pa
rade magazine, an "anony
mous congressman" accused
one of his colleagues of turn
ing a $4,000 profit on the sale j
of land for the new House
office building.
The author said the con-i
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