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The Alamance gleaner Vo1- LXV * GRAHAM, N. C., THURSDAY, APRIL 6, 1939 No. 9 Weekly News Analysis Congress Speeds U. S. Defense: Okay Army Bill, Plan Big Ships By Joseph W. La Bine? editor's note?Wbaa amimlaaa ara ?ipnaN ? tbpaa aahomaa. tbar at* thaaa at tha aawa aaalyat, ami mat nacaaaatilr ai the smpip?r. ! Defense _ On January 1, 1936, Japan scrapped her 5-5-3 naval treaty With the U. S. and Britain. Subsequently an arms race started on both land and sea, precipitated each time Der Fuehrer or II Duce made an ag gressive step. In the TJ. S., even < loud-mouthed congressmen were loathe to think of defense hi terms of actual invasion until self-right eous Germany swiped Crecho-Slo vakia and Memel. Two weeks later congress got down to talking cases, passing an unprecedented $513,188, 000 army appropriations bill in jig time after war talk like this in the senate: Oklahoma's Thomas: "Every na tion must he ready every moment ... to defend itself." Utah's King: "The only possible danger Is from Japan, and . . . Japan is beating her head against a atone waO in China. Even if Ger : . : ?'? ? ' I ?? , ? SENATOR LCNDEEN Hm fmond HUltr mckniqua. many should defeat England, I haven't the slightest Idea that would endanger us." Indians'! M in ton: "Germany might obtain Bermuda or part of Canada." Minnesota's Lnndeen: "Then tot the United States seize Bermuda and Britain's West Indian posses sions to force payment of her war debts. Andrew Jackson set a prece dent in collecting a debt from France by threatening to seize French territory in this hemi sphere." Indiana's Mlnton: "That would be adopting the technique of Hit ler." Having boosted army funds $81, 987,000 over the current year's ap propriation, congress had next to consider navy news from the White House. Admitting Japan's secret naval program was one reason, , President Roosevelt approved two 46,000-toil super super-battleships to cost $99,000,000 each, bigger than any yet conceived and capable of squeezing through the Panama canal with two feet to spare on either side. One good reason: By showing that thfe U. S. is able to out-arm any other nation, Japan might be forced back into a limitation treaty. * Present U. 8. strength includes 15 capital ships (one nesting ob solescence) ranging from 27,000 to 23,000 tons. Six more are author ized. Britain has 19 capital ships in foe same category, plus the 42, 000-ton Hood and nine other boats underway. Last Japanese report (in 1928) showed 10 capital ships, none over 33,000 tons, and three un der construction. Vague rumors since then indicate about live new super dreadnoughts of excessive ton nage. 1 Agriculture Though the house approved an $81C,9U,000 agriculture appropria tions bill ($480,500,000 of which to tor soil conservation benefit payments) the measure was far more signifi cant for two exclusions: (1) Parity. Not included in the President's original budget, but tossed in anyway, was a $290,000,000 grant for parity payments. But no financing was provided, and the house seemed economy bent. Rath er than resort to unpopular process ing taxes die house voted against parity, winning disfavor of the po tent farm bloc and a victory for the President, who insists extra budgetary needs must be met with definite taxation. Agriculture lead ers boned the senate would restore parity; even So, ah embarrassing situation apparently lay ahead. With no money, glum dirt fariners saw only one way to pay off the govern ment loans on which they have pledged 81,000,000 bushels of wheat. The way: To default, making the U. S. the world's largest wheat owner. <2) Cotton. Another rejected amendment called for $80,000,000 "to develop domestic markets and sub sidize foreign exports." This obvi ously referred to the plan President Roosevelt broached a few hours ear lier: To spend $19,000,000 between now and August 1 by paying pro ducers $1.25 a bale (on 8,000,000 bales) for releasing their govern ment-held loan cotton for sale on the world market. Though the 1939 crop will otherwise swell govern ment-held surpluses to 13,000,000 bales, congressional economy appar ently won. Said Virginia's Rep. Clif ton Woodrum: "We might as well repeal the budget and the account ing act, and let pandemonium and chaos reign." Meanwhile, far in the future, southern cotton farmers saw relief in the revolutionary "cottonless" cotton developed at Texas A. & M. college's experimental college. Said to produce an over-large, oil-rich seed without detracting from the grade of the lint, the new product made farmers wonder if cotton couldn't be raised exclusively for oil, whose price is fairly constant. _ A Transportation Among other things, U. S. rail roads blame high taxes, bad busi ness and unfair competition from other media for their present plight. Labor blames the railroads them selves. Most people blame a mix ture of geographical, economic and political factors, in which every body's hands are partially soiled. When railroading reached a crisis lost-autumn and congressional aid became imperative, a Sock of pana ceas arose ranging from the Hast ings "postaHzing" plan to the sub stantial bills of Montana's Burton K. Wheeler and California's Clarence F. Lea. Both management and la bor pressed their particular cases and after two months of haggling the issue seemed little nearer a so lution. The latest voice is that of Joseph B. Eastman, interstate commerce commissioner, who told the house interstate commerce committee that "the government must at least as sume leadership and apply some Airm of compulsion." Whether Mr. Eastman's will be the guiding hand remains to be seen, but Ms com ments were at least clarifying. After I CCS COMMISSIONER EASTMAN Jt guiding ktnd? attacking the apparent reluctance to consolidate or co-ordinate aa "waste ful practices," and after refusing to recognize any benefits from greater freedom to increase rates, the IOC member outlined a few high points for rail recovery: (1) The government should give concessions in taxation and relief in connection with grade crossing elimination and reconstruction of bridges over navigable waters. (2) Elimination of rate conces sions to the government would save about 17,000,000 a year. (S) All important forms of trans portation should receive "equal and impartial regulation," preferably under ICC direction. While the house sped passage of a bill to facilitate voluntary rail re organizations, Mr. Eastman pointed out that creation of a new reorgani zation court would delay rather than facilitate matters. His alternative: Give ICC charge of reorganization d^tie.. ; 1 People Osiglii Fairbanks, ex-movie star, has been ordered to return f72,lM refunded by the U. S. on income tax paytntott In 1M7-2M9. r . '? -*'? ? -? ? -: Europe Few observers doubt that Adolf Hitler's ambition is restoration of the pre-war Hapsburg and Hohen zollem empires. Most agree, also, that his next step will be capture of the Free City of Danzig (now under League control) and the adjacent corridor which is Poland's only out let to the Baltic sea. That Ger many will get these concessions without a fight is further evident because Danzig is already 90 per cent Nazi; Poland, moreover, ap parently recognizes her futile posi tion and is ready to move into the German orbit rather than join a French-British-Russ alliance permit ting Soviet troops to cross her soil. Though German Ambassador Hans von Moltke has assured Po (DAN2JOJ (M/ Baltic SeaJ\ M?UANIA GERMANY POLAND ^1%, | CORRIDOR | DANZIG AND POLISH CORRIDOR Next on HUler's titl? land at Germany's good intentions, Nazi press notes like these sound suspiciously like the start of another campaign: Field Marshal Goering's Essener National Zeitung: "Polish attacks on Germans (in Pole territory) are an intolerable strain on the German Polish treaty of friendship?democ racies puH the strings!" (Similar allegations regarding German mi norities preceded recent Nazi inva sions in Austria, Sudetenland and Czecho-Slovakia.) , Deutsche Diplomatisch-Politische Korrespondenz: The paper advised Poles to continue collaborating with Germany and not to listen to "for eign sirens" lest the results not bo "advantageous." The "foreign si rens" are obviously France and Britain. Labor The unhappy plight of U. S. employer-employee relations may be due either to (1) the Wagner labor relations act, or (2) American Fed eration of Labor's battle with Con gress ef Industrial organizations. Like an impatient school teacher, both congress and the White House have resolved to end this squabble, the White House by sponsoring A,'F. of L.-C. I. O. peace talks, congress by amending the Wagner act. When April 11 was chosen start ing date for senate committee hear ings on Wagner amendments, labor peace talks were in full bloom. But so strong are the workingman's feel ings about the proposed changes that many a peace advocate thought hearings might have been delayed until labor's warring factions either make up or draw swords. To amend the Wagner act, con gress can pick from four sets of pro posals, all opposed by C. I. O., three of them submitted by coherent fac tions with special interests: (1) By Massachusetts' Sen. David j 1. Walsh, obviously favored by A. F. of L., which opposes all other pro posals: Curtail the national labor relations board's power to invalidate union contracts; require NLRB elec- ? tions by craft rather than by in dustrial units; permit employer pa titions for elections; permit appeals in representation cases. <2) By Nebraska's Sen. Edward R. Burke, and supported by the po tent, strike-weary National Associa tion of Manufacturers: Require that NLRB have representative from la bor, management and the public; outlaw deduction of union dues from pay envelopes; outlaw "coercion" by either employers or unions; es tablish code of "unfair labor prac tices" for unions as well as em ployers; forbid strikes unless a ma jority of employees approve; require all union officials to be U. S. citi zens; permit transfer of "unfair la bor practice" charges from NLRB to federal district court (I) By Oregon's Sen. Rufus Hoi man: To split NLRB's duties. Ad ministrative and investigatory pow er would be vested in a labor rela tions commissioner. Final decisions would be made by a nine-member labor appeals board. (4) By Kentucky's Sen. M. M. Lo gan, supported by the National Grange and other farm groups: To extend exemption of agricultural workers under the Wagner act to processors and packers of farm produce. Miscellany Figured, by New York's Rep. Bruce Barton, that the stock market usually gains when President Boose volt goes fishing or vacationing, usu ally falls when he goes on a speak ing tour. ~ - ... Brackart't Washington Digett Find Joker in Department of Agriculture Appropriation Bill It's the Soon-to-Be-Famous Food Stamps and Here's How Advanced Thinkers Think It Will Work; Billion Dollars Is All They Want. By WILLIAM BRUCKABT WNU Service, National Press Bld|? WasMnfton, D. C. WAStUNUTUM.?il WU DOT So long ago?six or eight yean, per haps?that the annual cost of the department of agriculture to the taxpayers of the country amounted to something like $40,000,000. There was some talk even in those days about the drain upon the federal treasury resulting from department of agriculture operations. The to tals were questioned; many persons wondered whether the politicians were justified in voting that much money to the department because there was little to show In the way of results. That is, congressmen could show very little except the packages of seeds sent out to their districts. It was in those days, however, that the department of agriculture was seeking to operate effectively. Farming was not regarded by the folks who used to run the depart ment as a subject for politics. The departmental officials were going about their business, rendering as sistance in the form of advice and promoting better farming?when the farmers asked for it. I was reminded of those days re cently when the house appropria tions committee brought out for consideration the appropriations bill for the department of agriculture for the fiscal year that begins next July 1. A Rip Van Winkle who could have slept through the last 10 years would have believed, truly, that he was in another world. The new money bill for the department con tains a total of more than $1,000, 00Q,000. The measure, indeed, ranks as the third largest appropriations bill of this year when altogether there is likely to be almost $10,000, 000,000 appropriated. rv naz 11 riannaa to uo With a Billion Dollar* It is extremely difficult to realize what a billion dollars is. That is, it is difficult tor me to understand what it is. I can write the figures glibly enough. But to comprehend that sum ol money, or a billion of anything, is something almost out side the pale of human knowledge. Yet that is what the department at agriculture seeks this year, and here is how that money is supposed to be divided: $429,960,000 for soil conservation payments. $290,000,000 for parity payments. $191,000,000 for road building. $21,462,000 for soil and moisture conservation and operations. $24,984,000 for the farm tenancy program. $7,179,000 for eradicating tubercu losis and Bang's disease. $6,996,970 for the weather bureau and its services. $4,978,000 for retiring submarginal lands. $1,631,000 for soil and moisture in vestigation. 91.900,000 for wild life restoration. $300,000 for co-operative farm for estry. $250,000 for the water facilities program There were some other odd* and ends embracing items of 20 or 40 or 90 thousand dollars, amounts so small that men almost smirk be cause they have forgotten how to speak in such limited numbers. Then, and here is the Joker which is hidden away. I really should not say "hidden" because no reference is made in the agriculture bill lan guage. The joker is that there are almost countless millions of other dollars with which the department can play around, including approxi mately 1100,000,000 of money for use in" getting rid of farm surpluses. That is the money from which Sec retary Wallace and his advanced thinkers will draw funds for the soon-to-be-famous food stamps. the country got its belly full of blue eagles before the NRA was plowed under. But the undis tinguished, yet befitting, end that came to the NRA blue eagle has not deterred the advanced thinkers from attempting something else that is blue?a blue stamp for relief food. Yes, relief workers will have the same wages as before, but they will receive tree blue stamps with which to buy surplus products for foods. How Wallace't Men Think Bine Food Stamp Will Work I must write a little bit about that blue food stamp, about how the ad vanced thinkers think it will work, before I report on the main depart ment of agriculture appropriation bill. ? seems to oe secretary waiiace s idea of a more abundant life to des ignate certain farm products each week as being "surplus" and to help get them off of the glutted market by making them available for relief workers' kitchens. The first trial of the scheme trill be limited to six cities. In those areas, the relief supervisors will be supplied with books of blue stamps. They are rather pretty stamps, too. Each WPA worker will get a book of stamps of a specified value. He can take those stamps to his gro cery store and use them just like they were quarters, or half dollars or dollars. The groceryman will take them and he will be paid hon est-to-goodness United States mon ey for them. Thus will the surplus stocks of food products be reduced and the remainder will bring better prices. Or so say the advanced thinkers. When I read the explanation of the program that was sent me by one of Mr. Wallace's publicity staff, the first* thing that struck me was the extreme discrimination that will result It is easy to see. Take any man who is trying to hold down a private job. It may be paying him only $90 a month, or about the same as the relief worker gets. Natural ly, he would like to be making more money. Who wouldn't? But he sticks on his job and stays off of relief. Then, when he gets paid he goes to the grocery store to buy some food. He pays cash, and gets his food. Sm Po?ibility of Creating A Lot of Boottaggoro There is another phaae of the pic ture which was mentiOMd to me by Representative Hope of Kansas, Qoe of the ranking members of the house committee on agriculture. He sug gested that the blue stamps are go ing to create a lot of bootleggers. For example: the relief workers are not permitted to buy liquor with the stamps. They won't be redeemed if they are used to buy anything but food. However, Mr. Hope could see no reason why a relief wetfcer couldn't use the stamps to buy liq uor from a liquor store and the gq uor store owner might possibly be a crook. It is possible, you know He migbfcown a food store, too, or he might have an understanding with a food store owner who would take the stamps at a few pennies discount. What is to stop such pro cedure? It's your guesa. The whole thing strikes me as be ing so silly as to defy one's powers of imagination. It is dealt with here at such length only because I re gard it as typical of a great many things that are going on within the department of agriculture for which more than $1,000,000,000 is soon to be appropriated for a ypar's opera tions. The blue stamp scheme is destined to fail, even as the plow ing under of crops and the slaugh tering of 6,000,000 pigs was doomed a-borain' and as the limitation of crop production was certain to flare back on those who were sucked into the maelstrom of nit wit plans. Learn Beaattfal rhratet Bat at Rather High Coat I mm not prepared to amy that the wild lite restoration program is wholly bad. It seems probable that the country ought to tsbuild the wild life stocks that have been wan tonly destroyed in the days when people could go out and shoot ducks or deer or what have you without thought at the morrow. It la a pro gram for which considerable Justi fication can be advanced. But it Is to be noted that most of these items are small. Neither the department of agriculture adminis tration nor the members of the house and the senate have seen fit to do more than maintain them. I have seen the inmates of the capi tol squirm and fuss and scowl about some of them, while swallowing the items reaching into hundreds of mil lions with the greatest of glee. As I said, it was not so long ago that department of agriculture ap propriations were regarded as huge if they totalled 40 millions. As far as I can see, agriculture is no bet ter off today than it was in those years. Of course, a very great number of farmers have learned that the beautiful phrases like "the more sbundant life" and such, are meaningless. But I venture the as sertion that the education has been rather expensive. Speaking of Sports 'Hutch'Remains Level - Headed Despite Praise By ROBERT McSHANE FREDERICK CHARLES HUTCH r INSON, Detroit's $50,000 pitcher, has one outstanding virtue which will do much to save him from his friends and well-wishers. "Hatch" Is a saJid, unimaginative player. Much more so than the av erage youth his age, which is V. Imperturbable and unemotional, the ysongster has been the subject of more publicity pieces than any pitcher of his age in the history of the game. So far this spotlight hasn't da h led him in the least. Most of the stuff written about the Seattle youth has been in superla tive praise. One author gave him the "pitching magic of Christy Mathewson in his right arm." An other article was titled "The "Noth ing Ball' No One Can Hit" Hutchinson still has to prove him self in big league competition. Un FEED HUTCHINSON questionably his admirers had very worthy motives in heaping praise an his head. But they also succeed ed in putting the boy on the spot To live up to his publicity would re quire die skill of a genius. If he falls it will be largely the fault of his friends who have, built him up into a pitching juggernaut. Be will need all his eemposnre &nd itctiiiiMt. American lei|M wits are practicing far Hutchinson. A high prised and highly publicised player, he offers a fair target for their "riding." And they won't be gentle when they start ribbing him about his "nothing ball" ut his "magical right arm." Best in Minors? Termed the greatest pitcher in the minor leagues last year, Hutchin son's claim to that distinction?or rather his friends' claim to that hon or for him?can be disputed. Paul Trout, Sandcut, Ind., idol, won 23 games and lost 6 in the Texas league. Hutchinson won 39 and lost 7 in the Pacific Coast league. Trout's victories were gathered in three and one-half months of play while Hutch inson's were compiled in six months at competition. All in all. Trout* s record for the year was the more formidable. Nevertheless, Hutchinson is a great ball player. He was beaten only once as a high school pitcher, twice as aa American Legtea pitch er, twice while haritng for Yakima and seven times last year. That is a great recced. His immediate future would be in less doubt if the superlative praise would come to a sudden end. Few things are as harmful to a young athlete as extravagant, over-done acclaim. His personal cheering sec tion would do well to soft pedal its applause until the season is under way. Sport Shorts HASKELL Indian Institute has bowed out of the big time with an announcement that hereafter the school will meet only prep teams on the gridiron. Haskell, in former years, played Notre Dame, teams of the Big Six and the Big Ten . . . Prof. Herbert Olivecrona, Swedish brain specialist, says boxing is no more dangerous than any other sport, but that a fighter should re tire from the ring for at least ? I year after being knocked out . . . Three Florida golf courses, aban doned during the depression, have been reconditioned and reopened . . . Stagehand, winner of the Santa Anita handicap and derby, was the leading money winner of 1938. Prior to that Joseph E. Widener sold him for only $8,000 . . . Sixty-five year old Tom Sharkey, heavyweight con tender in the days of Corbett, Fito simmons and Jeffries, is appearing as a strong man in the Golden Gate exposition. a Court Puzzler BASKETBALL'S rale* msnipss L> la tors mm may be faced wttfe another tack?that of devising come method to make goal tending illegal. Ac the rule* now stand any unusu ally tall player can station himself beneath the basket and with no more than a slight jump bat opponents' shots away from the danger zona. This was tberoogtdy demonstrated during the past season by Mike No vak, six-foot-nine-inch center of the Loyola ani?ersity team in Chicago. The altitndinons Mike sUNonql him self nnder the basket and when the would merely raise Ms loqg light arm, lump about two and a half feet off the Soar, and tip the baU away. Novak's contribution wasn't only to the defensive side. His tremen dous height enabled hen to tally something bettor than 10 points a game to Loyola's total Officials and fans are generally agreed that too great a premium is placed on height. It gives a player an almost tin surmountable advan tage, demoralizing members at the opposing team. On the other band they argue that it isn't fair to pena lize a player because he happen# So reach nearer the clouds than his tal low-athletes. There isn't quite as much danger in'the situation as fa seen m the surface. A majority of abnormally tall athletes are physically handi capped is that they are often stow, awkward and a trifle freakish. Thfa Is not true ef Novak. Nat Helmsa, the old Celtic hero and for M years coach ef City College baskethaB, calls Novak a Baa athlete and the best c allege player he has ever seen. The argument is one that Can stay fresh for years. And it is doubtful if the rules committee will tnfce dras tic action on the question in the very near' future. Plus One \X7 ILLIE TURNESA, national ' golf champion, recently was singled out tor the Metropolitan Golf association's top honor* when ha was ranked at phis one in the honor role of loading mashie wielders. Wee Willie, the enly amateur lag family, re- , eeived the highest tukhi aver ac corded ? New Ink ???yer, tadicattar that la the eye* at oflcialdom Willie Is a stroke better than par arary Haas he tees a*. The Metropolitan Golf Association's ratinps are spart's slipperiest pole. It's even harder to stay there. A ranking golfer has to pro duce in tournaments to keep his place. la addHiaa te the pins rating af rated at'scratch, despite the slip af Rap BUIews, who was dropped mo stroke. At scratch alk Frank Straf acl, who defeated Tniasss te tea metropolitan innrttfff Baal at Bidgwoed, N. J.; Dick Chap man, amatear darkherse, and Mm Barke, handicapped bp M. G. A. for the trst time. Burke captured the intercollegiate championship in Louisville, Ky. That feat shouldn't be underestimat ed, however, as Turners failed te turn the same trick in three pears of effort. Bracketed in the two stroke handi cap are E. H. Driggs, Tommj Good win, John Parker, Mark Stuart, Jess Sweetser and Charles White head. No. 1 Contender TONY GALENTO, the animated * beer eat from Newark, has re tained hie National Booting associa tion ranking as the No. 1 heavy weight title challenger. Association records show that Jee Triner, Illinois committeeman, vot ed to leave vacant the No. 1 post which the N. B. A. first awarded the New Jersey hesvywai^st laet year. Two-Tan Tony's high raakteg pssi ttaa earths little glory wKh.lt. No's Tony to teed the Mat. They made K etefer teat Tany easnet be eea sidered a vary grave threat to ChanplsB Jee Lewis. Heavyweight boring's sorry state ot affairs is evidenced by the first 10 ranking fighters. In addition to Galento the committee ranked, hi order, Bob Pastor, Lou Nova, Max Baer, Red Burman, Maurice Strick land, Nathan Mann, Roscoe Tales, Johnny Paycheck and Tony Musto. Not long ago the antics of these Contenders would have been laugh able?at least as fighters they i wouldn't have been taken seriously, j Now they're the cream ot the crop, which doesn't speak well for the crop. jj.
The Alamance Gleaner (Graham, N.C.)
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
April 6, 1939, edition 1
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