^ ' "'"^3
The Alamance gleaner
News Review of Current
Events the World Over
Truce Is Called in the General Motors Strike? President's
Reorganization Program Criticized ? Kidnaped
Tacoma Boy Is Found Murdered.
By EDWARD W. PICKARD
? Weitern Newspaper Union.
'"pHROUGH the efforts of Gover
* nor Murphy of Michigan a truce
in the General Motors strike was
arranged, and the prospects for
peaceful settlement
of the trouble were
bright. The gover
nor persuaded Ex
ecutive Vice Presi
d e n t William S.
Knudsen of the cor
poration and Presi
dent Homer Martin
of the United Auto
mobile Workers un
ion to meet in his
office in Lansing.
The conference last
ed more than IS
William S.
Knudsen
hours and at its conclusion the truce
was announced.
The essence of the agreement was
that the union would at once with
draw the sit-down strikers from the
General Motors plants in Flint, De
troit and Anderson, Ind., and that
the corporation would not remove
from the plant any machinery or
dies and would not attempt to re
sume production in those plants
for at least 15 days from the date
of commencement of negotiations.
The joint conferences for a final
settlement of the points at issue
were to begin in Detroit January 18.
Mr. Knudsen said "Negotiations
will be conducted frankly and every
effort will be made to bring about a
speedy settlement."
Mr. Martin asserted "The union
will in good faith endeavor to ar
rive at a speedy settlement."
Governor Murphy announced that
National Guardsmen now in Flint,
following an outbreak of rioting at
a General Motors plant there, would
remain temporarily "but I don't
consider this necessary."
The agreement on the armistice
came as good news to thousands of
idle automotive workers, and other
thousands threatened with tem
porary loss of jobs.
COME 400 representatives of the
~ five railroad brotherhoods gath
ered in Chicago to discuss plans for
obtaining increases of wages. A
committee recommended that form
al demands for higher pay be made,
but said it had not yet decided on
the procedure or the amount of in
crease to be asked.
J. A. Phillips, president of the
Order of Railway Conductors, said
that while the committee had
agreed that a wage increase should
be sought, there had been no con
sideration of hours of work, pen
sions or any other matter.
DLANS for reorganizing the ad
1 ministrative branch of the gov
ernment were laid before congress
by President Roosevelt, and many
Democrats as well
as the few Republi
can members were
quick to express
their disapproval of
parts of the scheme.
It would greatly en
hance the power of
the executive, would
abolish no federal
agencies and would
not result in any
considerable econo
my of expenditures.
Special committees
Louis
Brownlow
oi Doth houses were to begin draft
ing a bill to carry out the Presi
dent's desires, but it was freely pre
dicted that not all of them would
get through.
Louis Brownlow, Prof. Luther
Gulick and Prof. Charles Merriam
constituted the committee that
evolved the reorganization plan for
the President. The major changes
they recommended are:
Creation of two new departments
headed by cabinet members ? a de
partment of social welfare and a de
partment of public works ? and dele
gation to the President of author
ity to "overhaul the 100 independent
agencies, administrations, authori
ties, boards, and commissions and
place them by executive order" in
the ten existing and two proposed
additional departments.
Expansion of the White House
?tall, chiefly by the creation of six
"assistants to the President," who
would relieve him of much of the
routine executive work.
Abolition of the office of controller
general with his power to disallow
administrative expenditures in ad
vance as violative of law, and crea
tion instead of an auditor general
with power limited to reporting an
nually to congress illegal and waste
ful expenditures by the executive
branch.
Extension of the merit system to
"cover practically all non-policy de
termining posts," replacement of
the civil service commission by a
civil service administrator with a
"citizen board to serve as the watch
dog of the merit system," and in
crease of salaries to key positions
to attract superior ability to a ca
reer service.
Development of the "managerial
agencies of the government," par
ticularly the budget bureau and
agencies engaged in efficiency re
search, personnel questions, and
long range planning of the use of
land, water, and other natural re
sources.
Opposition to the first, third and
fourth of these sections was pro
nounced and it seems certain that
introduction of the bill will start a
long and stubborn fight in congress.
""PEN-y ear-old Charles Mattson,
kidnaped from his home in Ta
coma, Wash., Dec. 27 and held for
ransom, was found beaten to death
in 6now covered woods near Ev
erett. The body was nude and cru
elly battered. State and city police
and department of justice agents,
who had been held back to give the
lad's father a chance to pay the
ransom and save his son, immedi
ately begin an intensive manhunt.
One suspect was arrested in San
Francisco and others were being
traced. A car in which it was be
lieved the lad's body was carried
was found.
President Roosevelt expressed
the horror of the nation over
this brutal crime and authorized a
reward of $10,000 for the capture
of the kidnaper and murderer. Ber
nar McFadden added $1,000 to this
amount.
T* HE latest general European
war scare has subsided. It was
caused by France's announced de
termination to stop, by force if
necessary, the al
leged infiltration of
German troops into
Spanish Morocco,
and Great Britain
was ready to sup
port the French
with its fleet. But
Hitler and his am
bassador to France
were able to con
vince the nations
that the stories
were false and that
Germany has no in
Gen. Goering
tention of trying to grab any Span
ish territory. Paris cooled down
at once, and to add to the peace
atmosphere, negotiations were
started for a trade treaty between
France and Germany.
Then, too, Col. Gen. Hermann
Wilhelm Goering, resplendent first
minister of the German reich, went
on an official visit to Rome and
was informed by Mussolini that
the recently signed Italo-British
Mediterranean agreement does not
change Italy's friendship for Ger
many or its collaboration with the
reich on the major problems of
Europe. Goering and Mussolini
were supposed to get together on
the future course of their govern
ments concerning the Spanish
civil war.
T OSING the radio beam in foggy
weather, Pilot W. W. Lewis pan
caked his Western Air Express
plane with a crash on a hill near
Burbank, Calif., and two of his
passengers were killed. Everyone
else on the plane, eleven in num
ber, was injured. The dead are
Martin Johnson, famous explorer,
and James A. Braden of Cleveland.
Mrs. Osa Johnson, who accompan
ied her husband on his adventurous
expeditions in Africa and Borneo,
was among those most seriously
hurt.
There will be searching inquiries
into this and other recent air dis
asters. Senator Copeland of New
York blames the Department of
Commerce. Airline operators have
long complained that certain radio
beam stations in the Far West
are inadequate. Officials of the
bureau of air navigation deny this,
asserting: "Radio beams some
times play queer pranks in cer
tain areas and in certain moun
tainous territories. Every pilot
knows these peculiarities."
Down in Mexico there were three
airplane crashes within a week,
and it was believed eleven persons
had lost their lives.
TP HE Simpson affair has been r?
vived by news that Ernest Simp
son, who was divorced by the fa
mous Wally, has filed a slander suit
in London against Mrs. Joan Suth
erland, beautiful wife of Lt. Col.
Arthur Sutherland. The suit is
based on a remark, said to have
been made at a luncheon attended
by Mrs. Sutherland, that Simpson
was "well paid" for permitting the
divorce.
The United Press correspondent
was told: "The case is not expect
ed to break' into the open for sev
eral weeks. It is now sub judice
(before the court). It will not be
open to the public until after it is
set down for hearing and pleadings
have been terminated. No state
ment has been delivered yet."
IN ONE of its periodic analyses of
the economic situation the Brook
ings institute, non-partisan research
foundation, summarizes proposals
for "a consistent program of fur
ther recovery," the seven points of
which are, briefly:
Re-establishment of a balanced
federal budget.
Continuance of the present policy
of maintaining a fixed price of gold
and the establishment through in
ternational co-operation of a system
of stable foreign exchange.
Extension of the reciprocal trade
agreements "as the most practical
means of reducing artificial barriers
to commerce and reopening the
channels of international trade."
Preservation of the "generally
favorable ratio of prices and wage
rates."
Maintenance of prevailing hours
of labor "as the only means of
meeting the production require
ments involved in restoring dur
ing the next few years the stand
ards of living of the laboring masses
and promoting the economic ad
vancement of the nation as a
whole." ,
Elimination of private and public
industrial practices "which tend to
restrict output or to prevent the in
crease of productive efficiency."
"Shifting of the emphasis in agri
cultural policy from restricted out
put and rising prices to the abun
dant furnishings of the supplies of
raw materials and foodstuffs re
quired by gradually expanding mar
kets."
CUGAR processors are making
^ "unduly high profits", accord
ing to Secretary of Agriculture
Henry A. Wallace, and so he pro
poses a tax of $10 to $20 a ton on
all sugar processed in the United
States. This, he says, will be sug
gested to congress. Mr. Wallace
says the profits are from 10 to 12
per cent and he estimates that the
tax would yield approximately $70,
000,000 a year. Of this about $13,
000,000 would go to producers in
benefit payments.
The secretary believes the sugar
processors have been "unjustly en
riched" under the quota system
which rations imports and is sup
posed to maintain the domestic
price against foreign competition.
D ECOMMENDATIONS for legis
lative action during the pres
ent session of congress have been
presented to the President and con
gress by the executive committee
of the American Farm Bureau fed
eration. The program involves the
ever-normal granary, commodity
loans, adjustment of production
to effective demand, soil conserva
tion, the strengthening of market
ing agreements, postponement of
state administration of the soil con
servation and domestic allotment
act until 1940, and a "permanent"
revenue policy to meet the cost
of these measures.
IT IS pleasant to turn from poll
tics, strikes and war and record
the fact that Charles Hayden, New
York banker who died recently, left
about $45,000,000 to establish a
foundation for the education of
needy boys and young men, "es
pecially in the advancement of their
moral, mental and physical well
being." Mr. Hayden, who was ?
bachelor, also gave $1,000,000 to
Massachusetts Institute of Technol
ogy, $2,000,000 in trust to his broth
er and nearly $2,000,000 to friends
and employees.
UNCLE SAM has begun storing
his gold in the bomb-proof de
pository built at Fort Knox, Ken
tucky. The first train, heavily
guarded, carried about $200,000,
000 of the precious metal from the
Philadelphia mint and it was re
ceived by the motorized Seventh
cavalry and put in the great vaults.
The gold was forwarded by the
Post Office department as parcel
post.
Announcement u made by
the United States Maritime
commission that it will dispose of
four shipping lines by June 28 next,
rhey now operate 34 vessels in di
rect competition with private Amer
ican shipping.
Pennsylvania Bossy and Her Triplets
The proud mother, a Holstein cow, owned by Nathan Folk, farmer of Stony Creek Mills, near Reading, Pa ,
is shown with her three babies. Although triple birth to a cow is distinctly rare, all three calves are normal.
All Thornton W Burgess
?
THE RATS START A FIRE
t) ATS are born thieves. They not
only steal food, but they carry
off many other things, things for
which they really have no use at
all. Now it happened that one of
the young rats in the farmhouse
found some matches and took them
to his nest under the floor of the
shed. There, having nothing else
to do, he nibbled at them to see
what the queer stuff on the ends
of them might be. His sharp teeth
caused one of them to light, and of
course that instantly lighted all the
rest of them. With a squeak of
fright the rat ran away, for like all
the little people of the Green Forest
and the Green Meadows a rat fears
the Red Terror, which we call fire,
more than anything else.
Now that rat's nest was made
chiefly of chewed up paper and
old rags. Nothing could have been
better for the Red Terror. It blazed
instantly. The floor just above was
of very, very dry wood, for the
boards of that floor had been there
many years. In no time at all that
shed was afire.
All the rats under the floor fled
in terror into the house. Smoke be
gan to pour out of the open door
of the shed. The farmer at work
in the barnyard saw it find ran as
fast as he could to try to put the
fire out. For a while the farmer
and his wife had a hard fight with
the Red Terror. They pumped wa
ter as fast as ever they could and
carried it in pails to throw on the
fire. At first it looked as if the Red
Terror would be too much for them
and their house would be burned
up, but after ? while the water
Sophisticated
Amethyst satin U molded to the
figure with extreme simplicity in
this sophisticated dinner gown. The
jacket and the decollete are of self
cording.
was too much for the Red Terror
and drowned it out.
"Whew!" exclaimed the farmer
as he and his wife sat down to rest
for a moment. "That was a nar
row escape. How under the sun
could that fire have started?"
"I haven't the least idea," replied
hi? wife. "I was upstairs at the
time. There wasn't a thing in that
shed that could have started it. Do
you suppose anybody could have
set it?"
The farmer shook his head. "No,"
said he, "that fire started under the
floor." Then a sudden thought came
to* him. "I know how it started I"
he cried angrily. "It was those
pesky rats I It was those pesky
rats as sure as I live. They must
have found some matches some
where and taken them to a nest
under the floor. Then while they
were nibbling at them they set one
going. We've got to get rid of those
"Those who are fortunate enough 1
to retain their shirt in the business
of a day," says pertinent Polly,
"return home only to find the laun
dry man has lost it for them."
WNU Service.
rats or we won't have a house left
over our heads. I don't know how
we're going to do it, but we've got
to get rid of those rats!"
C T W BurgeM- ? WNU Serrlca.
FEEDING THE FAMILY
TP HIS seems to be the principal
*? work of at least twenty million
housewives, but feeding the family
on the proper food is not a light
job to be undertaken with no
thought.
Food is not necessarily nutritious
in proportion to its cost. The high
priced foods appeal to the eye and
imagination, so they seem most de
sirable.
Going marketing is a wonderful
education as well as a great devel
oper of will power, or resistance to
temptation, for it takes real self
denial to pass by the crisp ard
green cucumber or the box of straw
berries, when the price is beyond
the purse.
The mother of a family should, of
all people, understand food values,
for she is in a position to build up
or tear down bodies and ruin diges
tions. "Bad habits ruin life as do
weak bones the body." -
The protein foods such as meat,
eggs, fish, cheese and milk are
the most expensive and complex.
Carbohydrates are the starches and
sugars ; potatoes, rice, macaroni
are our principal source o: starch
and the sugars we get from various
sources ? honey ? from fruits and
such vegetables as beets.
An excess of meat is very bad
for it clogs the system and causes
self-poisoning.
Brain workers and the young as
well as aged need easily digested
fowls. Active muscle workers need
coarse foods, which are better for
their needs; however, all need
roughage to give bulk and increase
the intestinal activity.
The growing child needs milk,
butter, eggs, green vegetables and
fruits to supply all the food prin
ciples and the vitamins which pro
mote growth.
The diet should be varied as well
as mixed. Substitute rice and mac
aroni for potatoes, not serving any
two at the same meaL
C Western Newspaper Union.
KNOW THYSELF
by Dr. George D. Greer
DO MOST PEOPLE KNOW WHY
THEY BUY THE THINGS
THEY DO?
ERY few people know why they
buy this thing or that thing. They
often rationalize afterward, and
give what they think to be the rea
son, but the true reasons are al
ways in the subconscious mind? in
the instincts ? says Dr. Donald
Laird in his valuable book "What
Makes People Buy." Clothing and
personal adornments are sold on the
instinct to be admired and to at
tract attention; insurance on the
instinctive fear of death; travel
tours on the instinctive craving for
romance; and automobiles on the
instinct to show power and exhibit
it through possessions. Everything
we' buy has an instinctive basis for
its appeal, and most of us never
realize this. An intelligent sales
man studies these instincts and
makes use of them.
?-WNU.Vr.ln.
ONE OF THOSE DAYS
By DOUGLAS MALLOCH
ONE of those days we just recall'
The heavy labor of it all,
Behold our task with downcast eyes
We once uplifted to the prize.
One of those days we look too near
The task to either see or hear
The beauty of it ? darkly gaze
And say, "It's just one of thos*
days."
One of those days the things unkind
Come quickest to the weary mind.
Forgotten all the joy we met.
Remembered all we should forget.
One of those days we see the past
As something good that could not
last.
The future something that delay*
Too long, and say, "One of thos*
days."
One of those days. We know not
why
A cloud will visit any sky.
But this we know, that not a one
Has ever overcome the sun.
One of these days we yet shall learn
If nights descend that dawns return.
And with that thought our souls so
raise
We never know "one 01 those days.'*
e Door." MaEock.? wxr Sarriea.
Two Princesses
Princess Olga of Yugo-Slavia with
her youngest child. Princess Jelisa
veta. in a recent photograph which
was the first to show the two to
gether.
I
LANGUAGE .
OF YOUR HMD
A By Leicester K. Dafia
? NMttU4nr. Ik
%
1 A S YOU progress in your under
* ' standing of the revelations of
the hand, you will become more and
more impressed with how well the
builder of our destinies has given
us each a preponderance of thoM
i qualities required to offset what
| otherwise might be a disastrous
temperamental deficiency.
Thumb as Index of Legic vs. WtB
The first two joints of the thumb,
as you have learned, denote the bal
ancing qualities of will and logic.
One often is found to offset com
pletely an almost hopeless deficien
cy in the other. For example, you
may find a short, flexible nail Joint
denoting impulsiveness, extrava
gance and other undesirable reao
. tions to environment quite neutral
ized by the greater-than-average
length of the middle joint.
Or the reverse may be shown,
in which case a naturally self-de
preciating tendency to let things go
because of menta! laziness is stung
to action and kept in working order
| by a stubborn will which refuses
to submit to a temperamental de
fect.
Witt) Scrrle*.