The Alamance Gleaner VOL. LXXII GRAHAM, N. C., THURSDAY, JUNE 6, 1946 No. 18 WEEKLY NEWS ANALYSIS Rail Strike Sets Back Nation; Shape Big Navy for Security; Auto Prices Mount With Costs Released by Western Newspaper Onion. (EDITOR'S NOTE: Wkn eptaleas are repressed Is these eelassse. they are these el (Westers Newspaper Uoies's sews asalyns asd set secessarily ef this newspaper.) Despite undernourishment, these daughters of Chinese farmer in famine-ridden Hunan province pull implement in rice paddy. Japs killed their water buffalo and manpower has been depleted by war. RAIL STRIKE: Cripples Nation The greatest railroad strike in history laid a heavy hand on the na tion from one end to the other, curb ing traffic and stranding thousands, imperilling the food supply and fur ther disrupting industry and the staggering reconversion program. Though the government mobilized plane, water and truck traffic, and emergency crews ran some of the trains, the walkout of 225,000 mem bers of the Brotherhoods of Loco motive Engineers and Railway Trainmen over pay demands re duced normal traffic to a trickle. Freight shipments were reduced to minimum of essential commodties and only priority passengers were provided facilities. The stranding of thousands of travelers throughout the nation af forded the first dramatic effect of the walkout. While many passen gers frantically sought hotel accom modations and others curled up on benches in railroad terminals, many railroads permitted travelers to re main in cars on sidings. In the midst of the paralysis, gov ernment conciliators strove might ily to end the walkout after the brotherhood leaders had rejected President Truman's compromise of fer of 18Vi cents an hour and sug gestion for further discussion of work rules changes. In turning down the presidential proposal, union chieftains said that it was even less favorable than a fact-finding board's recommendations providing for a 16 cents an hour raise plus certain ad justments in work rules resulting in increased compensation. The dramatic rail walkout over shadowed developments in the soft rnal f4icnAt? In Secretary Krng 9V?rt o nrnlnn which the govern ment strove to reach an agree ment with the Unit ed Mine Worker Chieftain John L. Lewis for continued operation of the properties. Following the precedent set in 1943 when the U. S. seized the mines to oorl etnnnnan Onnrn. ? f' wvv.v tary of the Interior Krug entered into negotiations with Lewis for a contract, consulting with the oper ators over terms to be offered. It was understood that the owners were assured of price increases to cover higher production costs re sulting from concessions when prop erties were returned to them under the new contract. The dispute over a health and welfare fund found the government favoring such a proposal under Joint management rather than sole union control as originally demanded by Lewis. FOREIGN POLICY: Bi-Partisan Backing Minority leader of the senate for eign relations committee and chair . man of the Republican senatorial conference. Senator Vandenberg (Rep., Mich.) pledged his support of Secretary of State Byrnes' campaign to win the peace by push ing for recognition of U. S. princi ples in treaty making. While admitting the failure of the Paris conference of foreign minis ters, Vandenberg, who attended as an adviser to the U. S. delegation, declared the proceedings had solidi fied American determination to write a peace "for keeps" based on justice and not vengeance. Though based upon the moralities of the Atlantic and San Francisco char ters, the new foreign policy also recognized the practical necessities of postwar rehabilitation, he said. Besides calling for the establish ment of permanent governments to assure resumption of normal activi ties, Vandenberg said the U. S. aimed to settle the Germanic prob lem affecting all of continental Eu rope. While advocating maximum protection against future aggression, he condemned repressive demili tarization. Touching upon the age-old prob lenf of national minorities, Vanden berg declared that the new U. S. policy also favored their incorpora tion into their native countries or oth er suitable recognition to prevent them from becoming sources of con flict or expansion. NAVY: Taking No Chances Calling for a navy adequate to meet any emergency of the future, the house appropriations committee recommended congressional ap proval of naval expenditures of over 414 billion dollars during the next fiscal year ending June 30, 1947, for fleet maintenance. To be manned by 500,000 enlisted men and 58,000 officers, the postwar navy would include 4 battleships, 8 heavy cruisers, 21 light cruisers, 3 big aircraft carriers, 9 carriers, 10 escort carriers, 126 destroyers, 30 destroyer escorts and 80 subma rines. In addition, 2 battleships would be held in reserve along with 5 heavy cruisers, 5 light cruisers, 3 carriers, 1 light carrier, 22 destroyers and 4 destroyer escorts. A total of 632 other warships would be placed on the inactive list. Besides regular personnel, the navy plans creation of an organized reserve of 55,000 men and 3,000 officers. Backing up the regular marine enlistment of 100,000 men and 7,000 officers would be a re serve of 60,000. Recognizing the need for keeping abreast of latest scientific advances in postwar years, the committee provided 250 million dollars for com bined research and developments in the 1947 fiscal period. NEW CARS: Boost Prices Reflecting administration policy of seeking to assure manufacturers of fair profit returns by granting increased prices to offset higher production costs, OPA authorized a boost of from 4 to 8 per cent in ceil ings bn new automobiles. Principal factor determining OPA action was the $5 per ton increase in the cost of steel, allowed by the government to cover the indus try's 18Vi cent an hour wage boost. Higher costs of other "materials and parts figured in the OPA grant, how ever, with Packard and Studebaker afforded relief for wage adjust ments. With OPA hinting of additional price boosts to come, the latest in creases averaged about (75 per car, and ranged from til for Chevrolet! to $167 for Lincolns. Because re tailers' margins already have been trimmed 4% per cent under prewar levels, the public will pay the latest price hike in full. FAMINE RELIEF: U. S. Share Government expectations of ship ping 400 million bushels of grain to needy areas during the year ending June 30 prompted the U. S.'s deputy member of the combined Allied food board to tell congress that "this country need not feel ashamed of the job that has been done" in aiding the distressed. Indirectly slapping at foreign crit ics of the U. S. relief effort, D. A. Fitzgerald pointed up the extent of America's overseas contribution by revealing that this country will have a reserve of only eight-tenths of a bushel of wheat per person at the end of this crop season compared with Canada's three bushels, Ar gentina's'two, and Australia's one and one-half. In addition to shipments under the relief program, the U. S. has fur nished 72 per cent of the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation funds and 83 per cent of the wheat UNRRA has purchased, Fitzgerald said. While the grain trade expected an extension of the government's bonus payment for delivery of wheat, de partment of agriculture officials de clared there was no thought of car rying over the premium except in cases of farmers unable to make immediate shipment because of crowded elevators. BIG BUSINESS: Ford Balance Sheet The Ford Motor company fell from the ranks of billion dollar con cerns in 1945 but still possessed over 800 million dollars in assets, a study of the firm's annual balance sheet filed with the Massachusetts tax commissioner showed. In the absence of yearly Ford dis closures of sales and earnings, the Massachusetts report constitutes the only indication of the company's financial position. The Ford family holds the major bulk of the 3,452,900 shares of capital stock of $5 par value. A breakdown of the Ford assets of $815,515,214 as of December 31, 1945, showed a cash account of $421, 712,270, including notes, receivables, patent riglfts and trademarks; ma chinery and equipment valued at $188,267,325; real estate, $115,160, 512; inventory, $101,926,042, and re serves, $22,720,090. Though under the one billion dollar mark of 1944, total assets increased approximate ly 125 million over 1939. Mother Love Wins Out Feeling that she would be unable to show her new-born baby to peo ple because he was not "sweet and pretty." Mrs. Marjorie Ashe at Chi csgo, HI., left the infant behind and vanished from Illinois Central hos pital on the day she was to return home. After her broken-hearted husband, James, 27, took the gar gling 10-day-old child home, Mrs, Ashe was 'found wandering in a daxed condition in the Union depot in Burlington, Iowa. Quick to for give, her husband lew to bring her back and after they embraced each other and enjoyed a good ery, ho exclaimed: "Am I happy now! She's been siek, bnt she's all right now. And we both think we got the most beautiful baby in the world!" TEXAS HAIL: Extensive Damage A record number of insurance claims piled up in Texas following recent violent hail and wind storms which swept through the state for 10 days and caused millions of dol lars of damage to buildings and field crops. With the National Board of Un derwriters setting up a special of fice in San Antonio to handle the mounting claims, insurance loss in that city was set at about $2,500,000. Hail-stones hitting San Antonio ranged in size from golf balls to large stones, measuring 0 to 15 inches in circumference. Wind ve locity was reported at 82 miles per hour. Lumber yards averred that there was not enough stock on hand to repair the damaged roofs already reported. In Fredericksburg, roofs were so badly battered that MM homes were made untenable. Crop damage in East Texas alone eras estimated at $1,000,000 News^k By- PaulMallon^^ Released by Western Newspaper Unke. FEEDING STARVING WOULD TOO BIG A JOB FOR DS WASHINGTON. ? The food cam paign is running into ever-deepen ing difficulties. The sweeping publicity campaign to induce Americans to save for the hungry in the rest of the world ceased the moment tf.e coal strike became serious, but only temporarily. There was no use con sidering food saving when a fuel tie-up and transportation curtail ment threatened spoilage of in definite proportions. But the tenor of the campaign had made every one believe that the problem of alleviating world hunger was simply dependent upon a resolution by the American people to eat less. Any objective investigation will prove these following greater facts to the contrary: (A) No matter what our sav ings, we will not be able to give the world the bulk of foods we have promised. (B) We have moved so late that we are not simply taking food from our tables, but have become involved In promises which will cause a fast and sharp decline in our own food proaucuon.