The Alamance Gleaner
?
Vol. LXVIII GRAHAM, N. C., THURSDAY, MAY 7, 1942 No. 14
WEEKLY NEWS ANALYSIS By Edward C. Wayne .
Establishment of Price Control Plan
Emphasizes Need for All-Out Effort;
War Office Spokesmen Propose Plan
To Eliminate Class '3' Draft Group
(EDITOR'S NOTE?When opinions are expressed In these eelomns, they
are those of the news analy^ and net necessarily of this newspaper.)
(Released by Western Newspaper Union.) .
Planning their battle strategy, members of the Allied War council
sit in a conference at Canberra, the capital of Australia. Left to right:
Maj. Gen. Richard Sutherland, Gen. Douglas MacArthur,' J. A. Curtin,
prime minister of Australia, and A. W. Fadden, former prime minister
and present member of the war council.
CEILINGS:
Cover Nation
The setting of price ceilings on
practically every conceivable com
modity in the country had* been ex
pected by the business world, hence
it was received with little shock. .
The impact on the public had
been terrific, however, and it is cer
tain that business men were sur
prised at the drastic rules to be
adopted by Leon Henderson to put
"teeth" into the price control plan.
Henderson had made it "life or
death" for business by a very simple
procedure. He proposed licensing
all retailers and wholesalers, and if
found violating a single one of the
price ceilings, they would face an
instant loss of their license to do
-business.
This was a form of control which
was not familiar to anyone living
in this country, in fact without paral
lel in history, and it fell on the busi
ness ear with a sickening thud, and
the merchant could now say "I know
what it is to be at war."
German and Italian commentators
picKea trus up gleeruliy, and called
it a terrific blow "to the American
way of life" as indeed it was, and
the President promptly and frankly
had admitted it.
The American answer was, how
ever, that the American way of life
was but being placed in abeyance
for the time being, pending the win
ning of the war, when it would
be back again in full flower once
more.
The sugar commercial users had
turned out in force to register, and
the nation was on the threshold of
the rationing of this commodity.
Restaurants were planning to
meet the shortage by changing their
cookery and bills of fare; ice cream
makers were going to have to short
en their output, the candy makers
were in for a tough timps
But in general the'spirit was ex
cellent, and while there was some
talk of a growing "black market" in
tires, and the nation was going to
have to cope with that sort of thing,
Henderson's penalties were expected
to be sufficient to meet the need, and
the future 'was being faced with
a good heart by the rank and file of
the country, whether consumer or
prpducer, whether buyer or seller.
WAGES:
Hold Still
With the President giving the
green light to the program to set
ceilings on prices and incomes, set
ting $25,000 a year net as the latter,
the question of ceilings on wages
came in for much comment but no
action.
The President had taken a strong
public stand for the 40-hour week
continuance, revealed that labor in
war industry was constantly work
ing at least 48 hours, and pp in ting
out that as price ceilings were not
retroactive, but were fixed at
March's highest levels, he did
not favor-a program which would
reduce. :the .weekly paycheck.
While'tfiere had been much talk
about the work-week, and some pro
posed legislation, nobody had so far
had the temerity to come forward !
with a program to cut everybody's 1
wages in war industry. i
Labor itself had voluntarily fore- I
gone the double time for Sundays i
and holidays, while holding out for
the time and a half for the sixth I
day of work, and the same for a i
seventh if necessary. (
ARMY:
Dependency
An effort to get into uniform larg
er numbers of men with dependents,
on the ground that men with some
body at home to fight for ought to
make as good if not better fighters
than any, was being made by the
army with the suggestion that al
lowances ought to be made for men
with dependents who are with the
armed forces.
This was a revolutionary idea, but
its proponents declared it was just
as sound as the reverse procedure,
which gave a man exemptions on
his income tax for dependents.
Selective service leaders pointed
out that Class 3 wab the largest
class in the entire draft, and this
was the class they should eliminate.
Allowances for dependents, they
Said, would accomplish this.
The spokesmen for the war de
partment had been Maj. William S.
Richards, and Maj. Francis V. Kee
sling of the selective service sys
torn ?
Keesling had said:
"Sixty-five per cent of all regis
trants are in Class 3. In our plan
ning for the future, we have con
templated the advisability of fur
ther distinguishing between men in
this class."
"If congress should pass allow
ance and allotment provisions for
these dependents, then Class 3 could
be abolished altogether.
"Under such circumstances single
and married men could be inducted
in accordance with their numbers
only."
TROOPS:
Down Under
Heavy reinforcements of Ameri
can troops in Australia had been
acknowledged by Prime Minister
Curtin, and there had been a re
doubling of the air attacks by
American and Aussie planes on Jap
bases.
Most observers believed that the
Japanese had abandoned any hope
of ever setting foot on Australian
soil, but the communiques from
Melbourne and Canberra still
stressed Japanese concentrations of
air power to the north, and a studied
effort was being made, apparently,
to dispel any idea that the men
ace had been removed.
Whether this was just a program
of "playing safe," or to give more
point to the strides the American
Australian forces were making with
their offensive, was hard to say.
The British seemed to feel that
the Japs were making their biggest
play on the Burmese front, but ad
mittedly, if the Burmese campaign
were to be won, then the danger of
Australia being next would be
greater.
But the dispatches seemed to show
that whatever advantage of num
bers or equipment there might be
on the Australian front prdbably
rested with the Allies?not with the
Japanese.
The constant raids on Lae, Sala
maua and New Britain seemed to be
wreaking increased damage, and
the supply lines from the United
States to Australia still failed to re
port any sinkings of American ves
sels, hence had to be presumed to
oe open and successfully moving
supplies and men.
The Australian front, on the whole,
tad so far been a comforting and
successful section of the battle for
our side.
FACTORY:
America Winning
Battle of Production
Men of industry told the nation
that as far as they were concerned,
regardless of what might be the
news from the fighting or training
fronts, the battle of production was
being won.
The top industries in the United '
States, with representatives meet
ing in Chicago, had reported:
Airplanes?on schedule.
Ships?Ahead of schedule.
Coal?Adequate.
Even on petroleum the reports
were that production was more than
adequate, and that the distribution
problems were being solved. Power
and construction projects were re
ported working on schedule. The
machine tools were sajd to be ade
quate in supply.
As to our steel output, it was
called 50 per cent greater than the
capacity of Germany, Japan, Italy
and all the nations controlled by
the Axis put together. ]
: AXIS: ,
Unrest Evident
Turning to the three Axis govern- ,
ments, each of them was showing
serious signs of unrest.
The Japanese had been jittery
since the bombings of their cities |
by American planes, and the cer- I |
tainty that it would happen again ' ,
and again in the future.
The Germans had found Hitler
suddenly calling the Reichstag in
session, not for democratic pur- i
poses, but simply to vote him, in | I
typical rubber-stamp fashion, prac- i
tical life and death power over ev
eryone, and really placing the Ge- | |
stapo in such a position in the Beich i
as even it had never enjoyed be- j i
fore. ]
Mussolini publicly was admitting i
serious disorders in Italy. He cited ;
lack of discipline being reported
from many prefectures, and that i
widespread fraud and "chiseling" l
was rearing its ugly head.
London was advising caution in
accepting reports that there had
been an open break between Mus- | 1
solini and King Victor Emmanuel.
But Mussolini, according to neu
tral press centers and to Italian
broadcasts picked up had spoken
bitterly of the Italian food shortage,
and had called it Italy's most se
rious problem.
It was from Switzerland that the j
report had come that King Victor
Emmanuel had decided to ask both
?MHMUUUM iiu J *1. J mum I J
KING VICTOR EMMANUEL
Break with Mussolini?
Mussolini and Ciano to resign, and
to take over the reins of govern
ment himself.
Other neutral circles, however, 1
had viewed the Mussolini talk as a
simple prelude to a purge of high
Fascist officials.
The Hitler talk had been seen in
the same way, and neutral reports
had been thaf one of the first acts
under Hitler's new powers had been
the cashiering of the general
charged with the Leningrad area of
the Russian front where things had
been going very badly with the
spring offensive of Germany.
In fact Russia had claimed that
on this front German-Finnish losses
had averaged 500 deaths a day.
RUSSIA:
And RAF
The Royal Air force and Russia
had begun to work like a team on
Germany, and the evidence was pil
ing up that Hitler was faced with a
spring offensive that might at any
moment kick back in his face.
Moscow told of her troops making
an "important advance" of 45 miles
in four days on the Leningrad front,
with terrific Nazi resistance over
come in crossing a vital river.
At the same time the Berlin and
Vichy radios were admitting that
big battles were in progress in the
Kurk and Orel sectors, and that a
large-scale Russian attack, well sup
plied with tanks and armored cars, j
had succeeded in breaking through ,
the German lines northeast of Orel. |
Success of Dairy Union
Effected by Price Parity
Farm Authority Believes That 'John L. Lewis
Will Frighten Every Farmer Into Solid
Attacking Front.'
By BAUKHAGE
Netvs Analyst and Commentator.
nnv service, 1W3 m street, n-w,
Washington, D. C.
John L. Lewis, head of the United
Mine Workers of America, is well
on the road to uniting the farmers
of America, but not all in the way
he planned to when he started to
organize his United Dairy Workers
under the famous "district 50" of
his powerful UMW.
That is the verdict of a friend of
mine in Washington, an official who
has spent his days with farmers and
farm organization heads and his
nights sleeping with the "farm prob
lem" throughout most of his adult
years. He believes that John Lewis,
by trying to unionize agriculture,
has conjured up a devil that will
frighten every farmer into a solid
attacking front.
Lately the return of gentle parity
to the land had begun to have
its disintegrating effect on the farm
ers. Their long-sought goal reached,
they began to turn back to their
separate interests.
"The farmer won't lay down his
hoe and pick up a pen and sign
membership in something unless
things are going pretty bad. When
he can manage to make both ends
meet he keeps his eye on the fur
row, takes care of his own acres
and follows the old New England
motto that 'good fences make good
neighbors.' In other words, he is
the original rugged individualist."
That is the way my fsiend put it
to me. I was complaining that I
couldn't get any definite informa
tion as to their plans out of the
farm group representatives on this
move on the part of Lewis to try to
organize the dairy industry. The
series of the meetings the group
representatives were holding in
Washington was pretty much behind
closed doors.
"They won't talk about their
plans," my friend explained, "be
cause they don't know what to do.
It's an absolutely new thing in the
American history of the men whose
business it is to make a living out
of the soil and domestic animals?
the idea of making a union out of
capitalists. They don't know how
;? T??? 11.. T J It-t-l
IU u.cci 11. icOUUdii/, 1 uuu I LIUI1K
Lewis will have any success. What
interests me is that his efforts are
likely to bring the farmers together
again, the way they were brought
together in the thirties, when Amer
ica lost its export market for farm
products, or for that matter the
way they were brought together by
the old Granger movement clear
back in the seventies. It takes de
spair to unite the farmers. When
America started to change from a
purely agricultural country to a
semi-industrial country the farmer
had to unite to get his rights. Ever
since then there have been farm or
ganizations but it takes a real crisis
like the one in the thirties to really
bring them together."
I asked him why he thought
Lewis would fail.
"It's been thd history of every
effort to make a union between city
workers and farmers that after the
farmers sign up they find the work
ers are running them," he said.
"They are suspicious."
I have no doubt that a number of
dairymen have signed up. I have
so idea how many and I can't find
out. But they are the men who
just can't make ends meet. They
are the ones who haven't been
able to run their farms productively
or else they are located so that their
transportation costs cut their prof
its to losses. In other words, they
oaven't been able to keep their costs
down. Lewis will have to offer them
something. He can't very well
promise to boost consumer prices at
a time when price ceilings are in
the offing. If he organizes farm
ielp and farm transportation that
will put the costs up, not profits?
and," he added, "you can't put a
cow on a 40-hour week."
? ? ?
Coddling?
Two Vertiont
I have received a number of let
ters protesting against the Presi
dent's suggestion that this war be
called the "Survival War." The
writers do not issue with the argu
ment that this is a struggle for the
turvival of one of two cultures, two
types of thinking, but because the
phrase "survival of the fittest"
which means the fittest physically.
That may be a sound criticism.
I do not contest it. But one thing
is certain: We have to be more than
; physically fit to survive this w&r.
I think we are turning out well
trained soldiers, equal to cope with
any enemy in strength, endurance
and alertness. But there is no doubt
that the nation has been coddling
[ itself during the last few years. The
letters I get from many well-mean
ing people with suggestions of what
to do for the soldiers make me think
that this idea of coddling is pretty
deep. What the soldiers need most
of all is not sweetmeats and goodies,
but the assurances that the folks
back home have faith that the
cause is worth fighting for; and that
the fighters are worthy of the cause
?that it is a duty to protect your
country and not simply an unpleas
ant sacrifice.
I think that kind of an expression
is the one that does the soldier's
heart the most good. I know that
the only letters which I received
in the last war that annoyed me were
the ones which?iojd me what deep
sympathy the writer had for my
many hardships, how I must be
brave and bear it all, that my loved
ones were so impressed with all that
I was going through.
I was reading over some of my
war letters the other day. I recall
the two things in them which helped
me most. One was my mother's re
marks that my "new life" as she
called it, might help me spiritual
ly. She never characterized what
I was doing as better or worse; sha
never discussed it in military terms,
or the painfully inadequate terms in
which a civilian tries to describe
what he or she thinks military ex
perience is. My mother suggested
that perhaps "my new career would
give me a deeper meaning of life."
That gave me something to think
ahnnt. ?
The other kind of letter I liked to
I get was from my father with things
like this in it: "If you have to sleep
on the ground hollow out a place for
your hips. Then you won't be stiff
in the morning." Or "remember
this, obey your officers but try to
make -friends with the sergeant."
Cakes and cookies are nice but
they get pretty well bashed up and
you have to open them in the pres
ence of some hundred other guys
so nobody gets enough. Coddling
the stomach doesn't Jielp one's in
testinal stamina.
Here in Washington I find that this
coddling goes for the girls, too.
Thousands of girls have come
here to work. They didn't have to
come. They are getting so well paid
that girls in private offices quit and
go with the government. But the
papers are full of long, tearful arti
cles about how the poor things are
so homesick they can't stand it.
They haven't enough boy friends to
amuse them. All in all they have
a terrible lot.
A series of highly thoughtful meet
ings were held recently by some
anxious people in this vicinity
where 80 per cent of the civilians
employed by the army in the last
five months have been women.
When the army and havy auxiliaries
are founded a lot more men will be
replaced by women. So it makes
Washington society slightly bogged
down on the distaff side.
"We can't create men," said one
employee's service officer, tersely.
The answer to that of course is,
"well, not immediately."
"The men exist," another official
interested in the happiness of gov
ernment employees delicately sug
gested, "but the problem is to pre
sent them to the girls in as normal
a way as possible and without pa
tronizing anybody."
Back in Colonial days it was dif
ferent. Women were so scarce that
when a boatload arrived there was
heavy bidding and many a bale of
tobacco had to be offered for a good
wife. Since then, however, in most
communities I think the supply has
at least equalled the demand. And
yet somehow the ladies used to get
by without pining away and dying.
But now it's problem?a national
problem in the national capital?and
maidens are languishing for dates
because nobody can figure out how
to "present the boys to the girls
without being patronizing."
Does that make it a "survival"
war, too?
?Bay Defease Beads?
?
Army Initiates
Savings Drive
Voluntary Pay-Roll Deduc
tions to Raise Bond,
Stamp Sales.
An army-wide campaign designed
to stimulate and encourage volun
tary purchase of defense savings
bonds and stamps has been an
nounced by the war department. All
military and civilian personnel un
der the department, including those
at overseas stations, will be given
the opportunity to authorize payroll
deductions for the purchase of
bonds.
As an initial gtep, the war de
partment has directed an education
al program throughout the entire
army to acquaint both military and
civilian personnel with the objec
tives to be achieved and the bene
fits to be derived from the purchase
of stamps and bonds, and the pro
cedure to be followed in purchasing
them.
EducaUonal Material.
Army authorities will be responsi
ble for direction of the campaign,
both as to the educational phase and
the actual sales. Educational ma
terial will be made available to des
i ignated authorities. Regulations
have been issued describing the
manner in which voluntary deduc
tions from pay may be authorized.
Although the campaign is not de
signed to be one of competition, the
educational program will be so thor
ough that all army personnel and
civilian employees will be fully in
formed as to the desirability and
methods of purchasing stamps and
bonds.
Air Raid Training for
Deaf Given at Atlanta
ATLANTA, GA.?They will not be
able to hear the wail of the air raid
sirens or even the thunderous crash
of bombs?if such events do trans
pire in the Southland city of Atlanta.
But should such a time ever come,
scores of deaf mutes will be stand
ing by, ready to meet the crisis.
Currently, classes in first aid ap
plicable in case of an air raid, are
being held twice weekly in Atlanta
for a group of 40 of these handi
. capped citizens.
In this unique class, believed to
be the first of its kind in the country,
these people who cannot hear tell
the story of their work with their
hands. The class-instruction is be
ing offered by the Red Cross, in co
operation with the Atlanta division
of the National Fraternal Society of
the Deaf.
The original class of 40, after the
standard 20-week course, will con
tinue into an additional 10-week ad
vanced first aid course, and many
of them will then go out among other
deaf persons in the vicinity as in
structors.
Former Mayor at Last
Takes Citizenship Oath
YOUNGSTOWN. ? Lionel Evans,
who served four years as a mayor
of Youngstown, has finally become
an American citizen.
He was graDted citizenship rights
under a federal law which permits
such action in cases where persons
have lived for many years in the
belief that they were citizens.
Evans a Welshman, was brought
here as a baby and thought his citi
zenship was established years ago.
During his term as mayor his citi
zenship was questioned but it was
not proven that he was noi an
American citizen.
"I took this step to clear up any
possible doubt about my citizen
ship," Evans declared after he was
granted his papers.
Air-Raid Lookout Post
Started as Tree House
SEATTLE.?Quinn Anderson and
Franklin Couch meant it for just a
tree house.
But with news of aerial bombard
ment of Hawaii, their shelter under
went hasty remodeling.
They now man Seattle's first
schoolboy air-raid lookout post,
complete with field glasses and wall
silhouettes of enemy planes.
Travels 150 Miles Each
Night to Play Badminton
ATLANTA.?W. J. Graham makes
a nightly trip of about ISO miles to
compete in the Atlanta Athletic
club's annual badminton tourna
ment.
Operator of an air school at Amer
icus, Ga., he comes and goes each
night in his plane. Qraham was
badminton champion in Pittsburgh
; in 1938
I '
Uncovers Secret
Of Wool Elasticity
Research Points Way to New
Synthetic Textile.
CHICAGO.?The secret of the
molecular structure which give*
wool its elasticity and warmth has
bepn discovered by the laboratory
and the way is now clear for pro
ducers of synthetic textiles to tackle1
the problem of making an artificial
wool, Dr. Milton Harris of Washing
ton said.
Dr. Harris said that another re
sult of the research of more imme
diate importance because of the
war-time scarcity of wool was the
development of a method of stabiliz
ing wool's peculiar chemical and
physical structure so that it would
resist damage from laundering.
Application of the process, he said,
promised to double, triple or
quadruple the durability of wool,
depending on the use and method of
cleaning.
"We have processed small pieces
of wool and the results look ex
tremely promising, almost too good
to be true," Dr. Harris said.
After three or four years of re
search, he said, the foundation dis
covered that wool molecules are
flexible and derive their elasticity
and strength from the way some of
the molecules form ties or bridges
across others. The elasticity ac
counts for wool's warmth, creating
air spaces which hold heat and re
forming the air spaces when wool
is stretched or compressed. Other
textiles lack the ability to reform
the air spaces, the research showed.
"We have put the finishing
touches on the work of finding out
what makes wool 'tick,' " Dr. Har
ris said. "While we have not made
any attempt to produce a synthetic
wool, that being outside our field,
our discoveries are the first basic
step toward that objective. The
manufacture of synthetic wool is
now entirely feasible."
British Wren Surrenders
To Old Dan Cupid in U. S.
PHILADELPHIA. ? An English
lass and one of His Majesty's sailors,
who nevar met until they came to
the United States in the war serv
ice of their government, were mar
ried after a two-month courtship.
Kathleen Mary Benbow, 22, of
Bromley, Kent, was led to the altar
under an arch of swords in the Epis
copal Church of the Epipfiany by
23-year-old Lieut.- Philip H. May,
R.N., of Warsah, Hampshire.
And in faraway England, friends
who had been notified of the wed
ding, had arranged to drink a toast
at the appointed hour.
The bride is a third officer in the
Women's Royal Naval service?the
"Wrens"?and a daughter of John
N. Benbow, a commander in the Brit
ish navy. Lieutenant May is the son
of Percy R. May, rubber planta
tion owner in Ceylon.
The service was conducted by the
Rev. G. S. Nason, British naval
chaplain.
? V ? - 1 kt . ? ftl It I t
united nations now Mold
Most of Wheat Surplus
WASHINGTON.?The United Na
tions hold about 1,271,000,000 bush
els of the world's known wheat sur
plus of 1,524,000,000 bushels, the ag
riculture department reported.
The remaining 253,000,000 bushels
are held by a Western hemisphere
neutral. Argentina.
The United Nations' surplus is
about 210,000,000 bushels larger than
a year ago.
The surpluses, representing ex
pected holdings when the 1942 crop
starts moving to market, were
divided as follows: United States,
640,000,000 bushels; Canada, 488,000,
000; and Australia, 145,000,000.
Assemblyman Has Case
For a Good Mapmaker
PENNINGTON GAP, VA.?When
Guy A. Kauffman, member of the
Virginia house of delegates from
Lee county, is home from the gen
eral assembly he's nearer to eight
other state capitals than to the state
house at Richmond. Pennington
Gap, 390 miles by auto from Rich
mond, is closer to the following
state capitals: Atlanta, Ga.; Indian
apolis, Ind.; Frankfort, Ky.; Ra
leigh, N. C.; Columbus, Ohio; Co
lumbia, S. C.; Nashville, Tenn., and
Charleston, W. Va.
Virginia Legislators
Are 67 Years Apart
RICHMOND, VA?Members of
the Virginia general assembly have
an age range of 67 years between
the oldest and youngest member.
State Sen. Henry T. Wickham of
Hanover county, president pro tern
of the senate, is the oldest at 93.
William Shaffer, member at the
house of delegates from Shenandoah
county, is the youngest at IS.