PAGE 6A
HERALD AND NEWS. Klamath Fills. Oregon
Wednesday, October 30, 1963
'If Anybody Asks . . . Secretary
Korth Fell Into The Pool . . . !'
Stampede To Disaster
i
gdtiouaf (paq&
Rights
One of the genuine puzzlers for 1964 is
the extent to which President Kennedy and
. the Democratic party may suffer defections
: from among the minority groups which have
helped provide smashing big city Demo
cratic victories for 30 years.
At this stage, short of any election test,
the threat of some defection seems real. Re
ports multiply that considerable elements
of the white urban and occasionally sub
urban population are angry over the Neg
, roes' big civil rights push in 1963.
Up to now this has been most often
heard with respect to Polish descendents in
such cities as Chicago, Detroit, Cleveland
and Pittsburgh. In Philadelphia, Irish and
Italian elements checked in surveys are
said to be complaining bitterly.
Generally speaking, the resentment is
found to be sharpest among those people
who are closest to Negroes in the economic
scale. The competition for jobs, and job
preference, is recognized as growing keen
er as efforts are made to advance the Ne
groes' lot.
The Irish, of course, have been with
the Democratic party for long decades. The
big new increment to the party in the
1930s came from the Poles and other Slavic
peoples. Second generation families, coming
of age as voting citizens for the first time,
'fnrmorl a rnv nnrf nf fhp fahlprl "Rnnspvplt
coalition of that era.
: For nearly 20 years that allegiance was
generally unwavering. The Italians, the Ne
groes (in 1936 and thereafter) and other mi
norities swelled the frequently irresistible
Democratic urban vote totals.
Why Do They Stay Away?
By CHARLES A. SPRAGUE
In the Oregon-Statesman, Salem
Marge Davenport, medical
writer for the Oregon Journal,
;."has picked up a statistical item
; about schools and health and
Mosses out a question. The Item
; is that on the avenige the scliool
student in Oregon missed 10.8
days in the school year 19(2-63,
while the average student over
in Washington state missed only
10.5 days. The figures come
from a compilation prepared by,
Schering Corporation, a pharma
ceuticil firm, for the National
Education Association. Miss Da
venport asks: "Why?" She says
the State Department of Educa
tion can't given an explanation,
;and that the State Board of
.Health reports no general epi
demic which might account for
-the difference. The Schering slu.
dy says the common cold was
charged with primary rcspomi
"bility for Oregon absenteeism.
.'But the very word "common"
implies that colds are no respec
ters of state lines.
It is, of course, entirely un
safe to build a theory on so nar
row a base as a comparison of
one item with a single state for
single year. NevcrUieless I
will oiler one, to "try it on for
site." Could It he that absence
; from school in this state is due
; to less leal for getting an edu
; cation, and less zeal on the part
iof parents to insist on regularity
Jn school attendance? How
Imuch of the absenteeism was
' due to parents taking a trip.
and having their children skip
school to go with them? This is
on the assumption that little
would be missed in a day or
two of absence, and the child
could quickly make up (or the
lost time.
I suspect that even the sug
gestion of this as a possible
cause w ill draw hornets around
my head, as teachers and par
ents deny the inputation, and In
sist that eagerness for an edu
cation is fully as strong in Ore
gon as In any other slntc. Very
well; but please reflect on an
.'other characteristic of Oregoni
ans: they are quite self-satisfied.
Oregon is about as close to
paradise as they expect to find
on earth and by paradise they
don't mean California.
Here the climate is "salubri
ous," as the letters back home
from the first pioneers and the
literature nf land promoters pro
claimed. Oh, yes, considerable
rain; but no extremes o heat
or cold; no cyclones: no severe
drouths: no plagues of grasshop
pers: no fever and ague.
Another contributor to person
al contentment Is ready access
. to the outdoors, for fishing, hunt
ing: year-round golf; recreation
at tlie seashore or mountain
lakes and streams, Portland
Push Benefits
The year 1952 produced a substantial
though not severe break in the ranks. The
Korean war, falling heavily on large Italian
and Slavic families with many sons of draft
age, was deeply unpopular with these
groups. They turned in important numbers
to support Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower.
Many stayed with him and others joined
the turn in 1956. He was viewed as a guar
antor of peace.
But 1960 was another story. Eisenhow
er was gone from the ballot. Luring these
heavily Catholic peoples back to the Demo
cratic fold was a Catholic party nominee,
John F. Kennedy. He won 26 of the 40 big
gest cities, sweeping wide through the mi
norities. Republicans quickly undertook a
sober study to figure how to woo at least
some of them back.
The question now is whether the great
civil rights struggle of 1963 may not have
done more for the GOP in this regard than
they could ever have done for themselves.
The rumblings of white "national mi
nority" discontent are real enough. But
their size and depth have not been meas
ured. The first major test of any conse-.
quence comes next month in Philadelphia's
mayoralty election, when Democratic May
or James Tate runs up against young, per
sonable James McDermott, Republican. De
feat or even a fairly close squeak for Tate
in a city which can produce massive Demo
cratic majorities would be a powerful indi
cator of trouble ahead for the President in
1964.
General Electric is running a
series of ads in national maga
zines now exploiting Oregon as a
place where "fun and work are
close together." One ad was il
lustrated with a picture of a
man holding up a big salmon
"caught before he came to
work." Add the delights of var
ied recreation to climate and
the self-satisfaction of the aver
age Oregonian is a m p 1 i f i e d
greatly.
Then making a living is fair
ly easy in Oregon. Wages arc
high; work is spread out pret
ty well; unemployment, save for
off-seasons, whose hardship is
pretty well blunted with unem
ployment comp., is nut extreme.
Most everybody works; but he
doesn't work "too hard," or
have to. Rusinessmen are con
tent (on the whole) with rela
tively modest profits. It they
build up a big stake, as in tim
ber and lumber mills, the temp
tation to sell out to a big corpor
ation Is apt to be overwhelming
why not relax and enjoy lite,
and let the other fellow wrestle
with the worries?
This adds up to a lack of
drive among Oregonians. Just
living here has its rich compen
sations, which is true. Why drive
yourself and get heart trouble or
ulcers it you do get that mil
lion. A home, modest savings,
social security what more do
you need?
1 recall quite a discussion
'Man, It Looks
Old-Fashioned
..y.M'A'.yf.;."
sr'i-'-r : '. 'PA
GOP
among Oregon editors around 30
years ago. Then the charge was
made that Oregon suffered from
an inferiority complex. We were
very humble, situate as we were
between flamboyant California
and wacky (then) Washington.
' Today I would say the state
suffers from a superiority com
plex. We huvc it "good" here;
and we aren't anxious to have
too many come in so we would .
have to divide up our resources
and splinter our satisfactions.
Only thing we have to complain
ot, so it seems, is the tax bur
den; and, thanks to the referen
dum, the people can, on occa
sion, take care of that.
New, I wouldn't say that this
self-satisfaction, which invites
indolence, explains why more
Oregon students stayed out of
school Inst year, than did those
in Washington. But children may
catch the easy-going attitudes ot
their parents. One inference
from the late election is that
Oregonians aren't too greatly
concerned with educational
achievement anyway, at least at
higher levels.
Nor do I say that this eupho
ria that attaches to residence
in Oregon is really debilitating.
Maybe e live longer and
move happily thereby. Hut in
this competitive age we do lose
out unless we stand up to the
"competition." And any inclina
tion to indifference to school at
tendance is a poor start for
youngsters.
Like A Real
Halloween!'
wjmm
IN WASHINGTON ...
By RALPH de TOLEDANO
CINCINNATI, Ohio-A veteran
newspaperman, who has seen .
the rise and fall of political for
tunes, says: "Dick Nixon didn't
make it by much in Ohio. Come
14, I think President Kennedy
can take the state."
Another newspaperman com
ments: "The Republicans have
recovered from the beating they
took in 1958. The 1962 election
showed that this state has
moved back into the GOP col
umn. I don't think Kennedy can
make it against a conservative
Republican like Barry Goldwa
tcr." This difference of opinion is
what makes horse races and
elections. At this stage of the
game, no amount of polling by
George Gallup can come up
with any real answers. A visit
ing reporter goes by the feel
and the smell and this can be
deceptive, as many of us will
attest.
The basis for the variance in
opinions is what's interesting.
Those who feel that Mr. Kenne
dy is now ahead have their rea
sons. Even in Cincinnati, the
largest city in the country to go
consistently Republican, there is
a belief that the President was
hurt seriously only by his han
dling ot the Cuban problem.
But this, it is argued, is pretty
much forgotten. The test ban
Treaty of Moscow seems to
have put him ahead, giving In in
a handle for the "peace" issue.
Civil rights has made little dent
on the public consciousness in
Ohio, the Kennedy optimists as
sert. Therefore, as the incum
bent, he has an edge no chal
lenger can overcome.
This argument is seriously
challenged by others. They
claim that the Cuba situation
is not forgotten, that it is mere
ly quiet. Any flaro-up of trouble
on the island will bring it back
to lite. Civil rights remain a
plaguing but "hidden" issue,
particularly with labor, which is
the backbone of the Democratic
Party here. Given the strong
conservatism of many Ohioans,
the planned budget deficit of the
Kennedy Administration lias
been disturbing to many people.
Ill a recent issue of the Allan
tic Monthly, I was interested in
reading an interview with Stir
ling Moss, the pre-eminent rac
ing driver of our time.
Among other things, Moss con
fessed that his great courage on
tlic track does not extend to oili
er activities: for instance, he
would under no circumstances
dive from a 30-foot board into
the water, even though he
"knew" the water was deep
enough and safe enough for the
dive.
We tend to do w ith the word
"courage" what we do with the
word "intelligence" we assume
that it is indivisible, when actu
ally there are many cktferent
kinds nf courage and many dif
ferent kinds of intelligence.
And those who possess one
special kind of courage or intel
ligence tend to think that those
who lack It (even though kis
sessing some other kind' aie
wholly without the virtue.
Physical courage, for example,
is most admired in our society;
yet a good case could be made
out that not only are there dif
fering forms of physical cour
age, hut also that there may be
superior kinds of courage that
mike the physically brave man
look like a coward.
I was Impressed some years
ago listening to the rebroadcast
of a BBC talk given by Gen. Sir
William Slim, former ..unman-der-in-chief
of the Allied Land
Forces in South East Asia, in
Ohio Being Wooed
By Both Candidates
But more important than this,
say those who feel Mr. Kennedy
cannot take the state in 1964, is
the undefined feeling they detect
of unease about the President,
the abrasive edge of the com
ment about "Kennedy nepo
tism," and Attorney General
Robert F. Kennedy. There are
some, in fact, who feel that
Robert Kennedy is the GOP's
secret weapon.
Criticism of the President's
younger brother was once limit
ed for the most part to insiders,
to Washington correspondents
who had known him when he
w as chief counsel to the Senate
Labor Rackets Committee. But
the Attorney General has been
in the public eye since January
of 1961, and some observers
think he has not helped to en
hance the President's image.
One thing is certain. Unless
there is a drastic change in sen
timent, Ohio is one state that
will not fall to either candidate '
without a considerable struggle.
If the Republican ticket, as a
whole, is strong, that will help
the Presidential nominee .who
ever he may be. At this sit
ting. U.S. Senator Stephen
Young is still determined to run
tor re-election, and the opinion
here is that he w ill be a drag
on the Democrats.
There are, moreover, signs of
Democratic fragmentation, par
ticularly in Cleveland, the stale's
largest city, which is normally
safe for Democrats. There is a
possibility that many Cleveland
Democrats will jump the fence
in local elections.
The stakes are great. If Sena
tor Goldwater is the nominee,
Ohio is one of the states he
must take if he is to make his
South-Midwest Mountain Stale
parlay. The battle will be all
out and, I suspect, with no holds
barred. Perhaps because Ohio
ans realize the pivotal role -they
can play in the next Presiden
tial go-round, they are confusing
and dividing the experts.
Nothing so sets up a state or a
city as the knowledge that it is
being wooed, and Ohio is aware
that the courtship has just about
begun. Kennedy or Goldwater,
it's going to be fun.
STRICTLY
PERSONAL.
By SYDNEY J. HARRIS
which he began by saying that
"Moral courage is a higher and
rarer virtue than physical cour
age." He went on to point out that
no other army has ever pos
sessed "massed physical cour
age" as the Japanese did. The
Japanese generals, he added,
shared their men's physical
bravery, but lacked moral
courage. "Thus, we played on
this weakness and destroyed
their armies.
Moral courage must be taught,
he said, because so few, if any.
have it naturally and "most
men w ith moral courage learned
it by precept and example in
their youth " The outstanding
impression ot courage he carried
away from the retreat from Bur
ma in 1942 "was that of Indian
women refugees, and not of the
fighting man."
One man (ears heights, anoth
er speed, and still another wa
ter. One man will make the
most heroic attack and then
faint if a hypodermic needle is
plunged into his arm. Physical
bravery or cowardice are more
a matter of childhood experi
ences than an indication of ba
sic character.
Humanity has always respect
ed physical courage, but high
moral courage usually meets
w ith contempt or martyrdom
in its own time. How many men
have been "brave" in an unjust
w ar simply because they lacked
the moral courage to resist the
force of public opinion?
By DR. JOHN A. HOWARD
President, Rockiord College
What is a stampede? It is a
rapid mass movement. It is en
gaged in thoughtlessly. It is
caused by fright. It is danger
ous, and it is exceedingly diffi
cult to stop. The press toward
federal subsidy of education, in
my judgment, meets precisely
each of these qualifications.
We are being rushed into ill
advised remedies for education
that violate the nature and neu
tralize the vitality of the educa
tional system which has ably
served this country's needs un
der circumstances the most
various.
If our nation permits our edu
cational system to be circum
scribed and distorted by federal
involvement as the agricultural
system has been, the destruc
tive consequences will be seen
in every aspect of our lives.
The qualities of the education
al system strength or weak
ness, wisdom or folly, diversity
or uniformity will inevitably be
reflected in the society some
years later. As we may under
mine the effectiveness of our
schools and colleges, we reduce
the potential of our society and
alter its character. It is my be
lief that we as a nation are un
wittingly placing in jeopardy
our entire system ot education.
As the federal government be
comes the largest single source
of funds for college after col
lege, and there are a number al
ready in this category, the in
stitutions" become beholden to
the government. This is not a
chimera born of a doctrinaire
distrust of government.
Recently I wrote to the pres
ident of a well-known universi
ty inviting him to join a group
of college presidents in making
known the arguments against
the ever-growing federal subsi
dies of education. He replied
that, although he was in full
agreement with our position
that subsidies arc not in the
long-range best interests of the
colleges or the country, his own
university was now so depen
dent upon funds from Washing
ton he could not take a public
stand on this issue without jeo
pardizing the university he
served.
Think of that answer, if you
will. The mere flow ot money
has silenced the opposition. The
loss of political freedom on the
part of those who depend on
government for their income
was the reason for refusing suf
frage to the residents of the
District of Columbia.
Project the federal aid pro
grams ahead, not too many
years the way things are go
ing, to the time when all col
leges and universities will re
ceive the largest part of their
budgets from the U.S. Treasury.
It is likely that all faculty mem
bers in that day w ill feel some
obligation to vote for whichever
party promises the largest
EDSON
By PETER EDSON
WASHINGTON (NEA There
is no justification whatever for
an increase in the U.S. price of
bread as a result of wheat sales
to Soviet Russia and Communist
bloc countries, say Department
ot Agriculture grain experts.
Rumors of an i m p e n d i n g
bread price rise have sprung up
in various parts of the country
as a result of wheat flour price
rises recently announced at Min
neapolis. Kansas City and Tex
as milling centers. These in
creases arc seen as seasonal ad
justments and not big enough to
warrant a rise in bread prices.
Millers and bakers would be
playing with dynamite if they
used the Communist wheat pur
chases as an excuse to raise
flour and bread prices in the
United States.
The rumpus caused by steel
price increases afler the last
strike settlement and the fed
eral grand jury investigation
into more recent steel rises
would be nothing compared to
the uproar over a bread price
rise now. Experts point out.
however, that in a free world
market, there arc bound to be
some fluctuations reflecting
changing conditions.
World wheat prices advanced
(mm an average of S1.79-J1.81 to
S2 l6-$2 40 a bushel on a purely
speculative basis when Rus.via
made its first half billion dollar
purchase from Canada. Previ
ously, Canada had sold wheat
to Red China and some to Rus
sia at $1.74. The U.S. protested
this low price.
But wheat futures did not ad
vance further when Russia let it
be known she wanted to buy
U.S. wheat and President Ken
nedy announced that such a sale
wmild be approved.
Wheat flour price fluctuations
are another story. A year ago.
flour sold in Minneapolis at So 95
to SB a hundred pounds. Last
July, when the 1963 wheat crop
amount of additional education
al subsidies, regardless of other
partisan differences. Political
freedom is sacrificed by those
who depend upon government
resources. Can we afford to for
feit the political freedom of the
whole academic community?
There is no need to depend
upon conjecture or ascertaining
the effects of federal funds in
education. There is now a man
ual of almost 800 pages devoted
to a brief description of each of
the educational programs in
which the U.S. Government is
already engaged. College execu
tives may subscribe to a peri
odical solely devoted to the pres
tions of changes in old pro
grams. The scope of current fed
eral programs offers plenty of
opportunity or observation.
Early this year an issue of
"Nation's Business" contained
an article describing the in
consistencies, the distortions and
the general confusion which
characterize the aggregate of
government educational pro
grams. The source of that ar
ticle is John F. Morse, who not
long ago completed a n i n e
month study for the Higher Edu
cation Subcommittee of the
House of Representatives. I
urge you to read Mr. Morse's
statement.
The inescapable conclusion .
seems to be that we must have
a Washington super-authority to
make plans for the academic
. segment of our society and to
coordinate as well as pay for
education through a central bu
reaucracy. This will be the dis
aster referred to in the title.
The predominant characteris
tic of American higher educa
tion has been its diversity. Each
collegiate institution has its own
particular nature, totally distin
guishable from every other. The
degree to which spiritual con
cerns affect the student during
his undergraduate years ranges
on different campuses from pre
dominance to insignificance.
Similarly, the political impact
upon the student varies from
pure conservatism at one col
lege to extreme liberalism at
other institutions. College
curricula differ to a much great
er extent than is generally rec
ognized. I am convinced that it
is a convergence of diversely
educated people in each of the
different enterprises of our so
ciety that has been the one con
dition w hich more than any oth
er has made ours a dynamic,
successful and altruistic nation.
What fosters this diversity?
Principally it is the autonomy
of the various institutions. As a
college conceives' or receives a
new idea that seems promising,
it has to sell it only to its own
board of control. However, each
new educational undertaking of
the federal government provides
a single board of control and
thus diversity of American edu
cation is curtailed.
I do not know of one college
IN WASHINGTON
Justified
o Increase
began to be harvested, the price
dropped to $5.50-$3.55. The Oct.
23, 1963, price was $5.75-$5.80.
Bakers did not lower the price
of bread when flour prices went
down last summer. Presumably,
bakers bought wheat ahead last
summer, before recent grain
price increases. Bakers, there
fore, have no justification for
raising bread prices for at least
six months, or even longer if
there are no further increases
in wheat and (lour prices.
The recent 20-ccnt price in
crease on ino pounds of (lour
warrants an increase nf only
one cent on a five-pound bag of
flour. The comparable, justifi
able price increase on bread
would be about one-fourth cent
a loaf.
Payment will not be made in
cash, but in wheat, which grain
dealers can market for whatev
er they can get.
But in getting rid nf this
Al
manac
By United Press International
Today is Wednesday, Oct. 30.
the SKird day of 1963 with 62
to follow.
The moon is approaching its
full phase.
The evening stars are Jupi
ter and Saturn.
Those born today include for
mer U.S. President John Ad
ams, in 1735.
On this day in history:
In 1929. heavy selling was ob
served on the New York Stock
Exchange lollowing the "big
bust" ot the day before.
In 1938, actor Orson Welles
caused a national panic with
his radio dramatization of an
invasion of New Jersey by men
from Mars.
In 1941. a German submarine
torpedoed and sank a U. S. na
val destroyer, although the
United States was not yet at
war with Germany.
executive who would not quick
ly agree that programs now sup
ported on our campuses by fed
eral funds could be carried on
at least as effectively by a com
parable amount of funds from
oUier sources and, in many,
many cases, could be conduct
ed with more imagination, more
flexibility, less bother and at
a much lower cost. Why then,
do not the same executives op
pose federal aid? The answer
is money.
Money is a good servant but
a dangerous master. The only
legitimate justification for fed
eral aid is Uiat education lacks
money and the federal govern
ment is far more prodigal with
its funds than are other sources.
If only the proponents of fed
eral aid would come right out
and state this fact, we could
face the issue head on and meas
ure what the easy money buys
against what we must sacrifice
in order to obtain it from Wash
ington. It is undeniable that our in
creasingly technical society re
quires an increasingly skilled
and knowledgeable population
and, to accomplish this end, a
larger part of gross nation
al product must be invested in
education.
The issue is whether this ur
gent objective is to be achieved
through congressional action
which forces people to pay
more for education and at the
same time diminishes the diver
sity and circumscribes the cre
ativity of the separate colleges
or whether the nation can
be persuaded to provide the
necessary funds through tradi
tional sources and thus preserve
the freedom and the strength of
American education.
1 cannot believe that my col
leagues in college administra
tion would so readily forfeit the
full potential nf their respective
institutions if they fully rea
lized what was at stake. As diffi
cult as their financial future
may appear to them, it cannot
be the reason for abandoning in
tegrity. The course of education
al statesmanship is to protect
the greatest creative potential
and the greatest institutional in
dividuality. That course does
not lie via the federal treasury.
The college executives and the
officers of the government who
may have a part through their
silent or vocal support of fed
eral subsidy will have to answer
to history for the consequences
of their work.
May this nation recognize in
time the stake it has in keeping
education decentralized and un
federalized. If these views
make sense to you, I urge you
to do everything in your power
to defeat additional federal sub
sidies of education and also to
increase the flow of funds to
higher education through other
channels. The accomplishment
of both objectives is essential to
the strength and vitality of this
nation.
wheat, the government saves on
storage costs.
At an average of 26 cents a
bushel per year for storage,
maintenance and handling, the
saving on 150 million bushels
would be $.19 million a year,
or $195 million over five years,
the average time CCC holds its
wheat.
The total purchase price on
150 million bushels of wheat, in
cluding transportation charges,
is expected to be $260 million.
This would show up as about a
$200 million saving on the 1965
fiscal year U.S. budget and an
improvement of that amount on
tlie balance of payments.
Though there is now an in
creased world demand for wheat
from Communist bloc countries,
there is no short supply justify
ing any price increases.
Tlie U.S. wheat supply is esti
mated at 2.3 billion bushels for
the 1963-64 crop year. With do
mestic use of 600 million bush
els and normal exports of 800
million bushels, the carryover
as of July 1, 1964, would be 900
million bushels.
Russia and its satellite coun
tries' have been talking about
purchases of four million tons,
which is 150 million bushels.
Most of this wheat would have
to come from U.S. government
stocks, acquired at a cost of $2
a bushel, average.
The government's Commodity
Credit Corp. is prohibited by
iaw from selling this at less
than 105 per cent of the present
support price of $1.82 a bushel,
which is $1 91.
With world market prices run
ning below this hcure, CCC
makes a daily determination of
the export subsidy it will pav to
make up the difference. This 'has
been running from 50 to 60
cents bushel.
If Russia & Co. buy 150 mil
lion bushels of U.S. wheat. CCC
will have to write off a loss of
M million.