?. ; 1
The Alamance Gleaner
.
VOL. LXXII GRAHAM, N. C., THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 5, 1946 Na 31
WEEKLY NEWS ANALYSIS
U.S. Cracks Down on Red Bloc;
OP A Girds Against Black Mart;
Army Plans for Next M-Day
? Released by Western Newspaper Union. ?????J
(EDITOR'S NOTE: When ?pinions are expressed In these columns, they are these ef
Western Newspaper Union's aews analysts and not necessarily sf this newspaper.)
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Vital waterway connecting: Mediterranean and Black leai, Dar
0?See loom ai new tfooble spot. (See: Foreign Affairs.)
FOREIGN AFFAIRS:
V. S. Stays Tough
If the Russians sought to test
American temper on their aggres
sive postwar diplomacy, they re
ceived ample indication that this
country would stand fast on a stiff
ening of its principles.
Even as the state department pep
pered Russia and its satellites with
strong notes, four U. S. cruisers,
six destroyers and the giant aircraft
carrier Franklin D. Roosevelt hov
ered in the Mediterranean, joining
the British fleet in an impressive
show of strength.
Yugoslavia? Strongest U. S. ac
tion was taken against Tito's Com
munist-dominated Yugoslav govern
ment for shooting down two unpro
tected American transport planes
which strayed off their course while
en route from Austria to Italy.
I.ashing Belgrade for shooting at
.the defenseless planes of a friendly
'nation, the U. S. demanded release
;ef fliers of the stricken craft within
41 hours or threatened referral of
?the case to the United Nations
with Yugoslavia charged with ag
. gressive acts. Ridiculing Belgrade's
reference to the incidents as "un
happy accidents," the U. S. stated
the attacks were deliberate.
Convinced that the U. S. wasn't
fooling, Tito ordered release of the
v fliers and hastened to tell American
newsmen that he had commanded
his armed forces to desist from fur
ther attacks on planes.
Dardanelles?With the Rus
sians backing up their demand on
Turkey for joint control of the Dar
danelles straits connecting the
Black sea with the Mediterranean
with a show of military strength in
the surrounding territory, the U. S.
warned Moscow that an assault
i^>on Turkish soil would be consid
ered a threat to world peace.
While rejecting Russia's proposal
for joint control of the vital water
way with Turkey, the U. S. indicat
ed its willingness to participate in
a conference to revise existing reg
ulations and expressed agreement
with the Soviet on these points:
1. Merchant ships of all coun
tries should be allowed to use
the straits.
t Warships of the Black sea
powers should always be al
lowed passage through the
straits.
3. Special permission should
he needed for passage of the
warships of other powers
through the straits.
Poland?Charging irregularities
In counting ballots, censorship re
strictions and persecution of non
Communists, the U. S. note to War
saw accused the Russian-dominat
ed government of violation of its
commitments to hold free and un
fettered elections.
To achieve such elections, the U.
S. said, fullest freedom must be giv
en to such parties as the Polish
Workers, Peasants, Labor and So
cialists. Further, representatives of
those parties must be granted po
sitions on electoral commissions;
local results must be announced
and adequate appeal provided for
election disputes.
The latest U. S. protest followed
curlier assurances of Polish Ambas
sador Oscar Lange that Warsaw
would conduct free elections while
he was negotiating a $80,000,000 loan
from this country.
MEAT:
Bolster Enforcement
Reimposition of OPA controls on
meat led the big packers to predict
a revival of the black market, but
agency officials replied that a
strengthening of its enforcement
powers would enable it to cope bet
ter with illegal operations.
With meat ceilings scheduled for
September 9, OPAdministrator Paul
Porter reported that the agency
would employ 2,500 investigators to
check against black marketeers.
Although doubling the number of
agents, Porter stated that it would
be impossible for OPA to curb il
legal operations entirely.
Prices of choice cattle soared with
announcement of re-establishment
of meat ceilings, one load bringing
the unheard of top of $28.40 per hun
dredweight in the Chicago yards.
Big packers complained that high
bidding of smaller operators would
compel them to remain out of the
market rather than violate price
ceilings, reducing the flow of meat
to normal retail channels. Some
relief was expected during the
heavy fall runs, however.
MOBILIZATION:
Plan Ahead
Warning that the U. S. will have
little time for preparation before
the next war, army and navy mem
bers of the services' industrial col
lege issued a 37-page report outlin
ing tentative ^ plans for economic
mobilization in event of hostilities.
Elaborate groundwork for M-Day
would be laid during peacetime
under the plan. Headed by the
President, a national security coun
cil would formulate diplomatic and
military policy; a resources board
would develop policies tor control
ling wartime economy; a central re
search agency would co-ordinate
scientific work, and a civilian plans
board would fit together the activi
ties of the various groups.
In addition, a national intelligence
authority would furnish planners
with necessary information; a for
eign resources board would evalu
ate the requirements of countries
aiding our economy, and a public
relations agency would keep the
public informed on mobilization
plans.
Complementing the services'
work, Donald M. Nelson, former
war production chief, will undertake
a civilian study of economic mo
bilization at the request of President
Truman.
HOUSING:
Materials Problem '
Pressed by the American Veter
ans' committee's advisory council.
Housing Expediter Wilson W. Wy
att declared that more materials
would be diverted from commercial
construction for private dwellings to
meet the huge demand for living
quarters.
At the same time, Wyatt revealed
that' the government has been
forced to slash its provision of tem
porary dwelling units in some lo
calities because of increased costs.
As head of the AVC delegation
which met with Wyatt, Franklin D.
Roosevelt Jr. asserted that during
the first seven months of this year,
commercial construction totaled
over 3 billion dollars in comparison
with only 1V4 billion dollars for pri
vate residences. He called for
channeling of 90 per cent of ma
terials to dwellings.
PARIS:
Present Claims
New claims were advanced
against the vanquished at the Paris
peace conference by smaller na
tions seeking geographical, security
against potential aggressors and
compensation for war damages.
Hitting against award of the South
Tyrol to Italy after World War I
Austria asked the conference to
settle the territorial status of the
region in a manner satisfactory to
the predominantly Austrian popu
lace.
Basing its claim on maps dating
back to 1327 A. D., Egypt demand
ed the return of the oasis of Giaru- i
bub, ceded to Italy in 1925, and also
asked for the plateau of Solium, in
vasion pathway from Libya. In ad
dition, the Egyptians requested rep
arations from Italy for the bom
bardment of cities and ports.
Albania demanded Italian repara- j
tions totaling over 900 million dol
lars and called for stringent reduc- ,
tion of the Italian army, navy and
air force to guarantee against fu
ture aggression. At the same time,
Albania flatly rejected Greece's
claims for a rectification of their
southern border.
REFUGEES:
Come Long Way
Immigration authorities agreed to
consider the admission of 18 Eston
ian refugees to the U. S. after first
turning down their plea to enter
this country following their arrival
in Miami, Fla., on a 38-foot sloop
from European waters.
Comprising 11 men, six wives and
a flaxen-haired five-year-old girl,
the Estonians first fled their native
country when the Germans took it
over. Declaring that the Russians
were equally repressive, the refu
gees refused to return to their Com
munist - dominated homeland and
left Sweden for the New world May
30. They were at sea almost con
tinuously for 2V4 months.
Unon first being denied admit
tance to the U. S. by Immigration
Director Francis J. H. Dever, Skip
per Felix Tandre heroically an
nounced: "If we must go on, we
will, even if we must travel all the
way to Australia. Our ship is small,
but it has taken us this far. They
can't take the sea away from us."
Reject Baseball Guild
Big bow-legged Honus ("Hans")
Wagner, once the greatest shortstop
in the business and now a coach
with the Pittsburgh Pirates, point
ed up to the clubhouse blackboard.
It announced that the team had re
jected the American Baseball guild
by a 15 to 3 vote.
The disclosure that the Pirates
had voted against unionization in an
election conducted by the Pennsyl
vania labor relations board did not
deter stubborn, soft-spoken Robert
Murphy, guild chief. Though the
Wagner points to results.
nations! labor relations board had
thrown out his earlier complaint
against the Pittsburgh management ?
of unfair practices, he filed similar :
charges before the PLRB.
The Pirates' action constituted :
their second rejection of guild lead
ership. On June 7, they had re
fused to strike before a game with j
the New York Giants. If nothing
else. Murphy's organization threat !
did spur the big league magnates
to meet with*player representatives
for discussion of improved terms.
PRITAIN:
Control Steel
Pending formulation of plans for
nationalization of British iron and
steel operations, the labor govern
ment announced the formation of a
special board to control production,
distribution and prices of the indua- i
try.
While Supply Minister John Wil
mot revealed that the industry's i
leaders had agreed to accept posi
tions on the new board in order to
familiarize themselves with nation
alization proceedings, he said that I
they would not advise the govern
ment on plans for public owner
ship. Pending nationalization, the
industry agreed to push moderniza
tion of facilities to step up output.
Announcement of continued gov- I
eroment regulation of Britain's iron i
and steel operations came even as
London revealed that the British had I
taken over the entire German iron '
and steel industry In their occupe- '
tion zone. * l
Editor'! Note: While WineheU
is on vacation, Jack Lait is act
ing as guest columnist.
Recriminations, Reflections?
Ruthless, rapaeions James
Caesar Petrilio seems hell-bent to
wreck the nightclubs of New York,
which cannot meet his latest de
mands and live. . . . Petrilio hasn't
been getting his name in the pa
pers lately, and has apparently de
cided to see to that. ... I have long
observed this egomaniac. . . . His
union, though in the AFL, is auton
omous and he is its absolute duce.
. . . He defies economic laws as he
defies the nation's laws, which he
now is doing flagrantly and blat
antly ? and he loves it; he loves
that sensation of dictatorial arro
gance: "Hah?I'm bigger than all
America. Nothing can touch Pet
rilio. The world can't live without
music?and I own the music. I
have millions of dollars and don't
account to anybody. My voiceless
fiddlers and drummers and horn
blowers worship me. Congress
passes a special law just against
me?and that law I break. ... So
this is a republic. ... No king. . . .
What a laugh!"
Meyer Davis, the society
maestro, wires me a lengthy
defense of James Caesar Pet
rilio, who, he says, "has abso
lutely no jurisdiction over pro
posed raises in N. Y. night
clubs." He adds; "There Is too
much hooey about Petrilio, just
because he is colorful." If that's
what's the matter with Petril
io, I'm eolor-bUnd. I'm also
dumb. But I retain my sense
of smell!
The dynamic six-footer, Walter E.
O? a? ivi-J ti_. ?
ouuui, is ui iuwii again, uuiu uiuv <
in two weeks he's flown hither. !
. . . "I got a nap in the plane," he
tells me. "I hadn't been to bed in
four days and nights." . . . Smith,
whose hair is pretty white, is only
40. But he does more things than
anyone I've ever known. . . . With
in the year he has bought and con
verted a Hollywood cafe into Tom
Breneman's, run the morning
breakfast broadcast there into a
national sensation, had it filmed
for a feature; promoted rodeos,
signed Gene Autrey for five years
and will publish his biography;
bought a hotel and cabanas in
Palm Springs; tied up "Pappy"
Boyington for his book and picture
rights, and has a $190,000 Warner of
fer on the latter; organized a com
pany to publish a magazine devoted
to western movies; incorporated
a company to produce Nils T.
Grandlund's picture, "Rhythm
Ranch"; bought Chestertown, fa
vorite in the Hambletonlan, for
$40,000, highest price ever paid for
a trotter, to add to his large stable;
founded the association which con
verted Santa Anita to trotting; con
ducts the largest enterprise in the
West making aluminum furniture
and luggage. . . . And nobody can
play harder than he?or work half
as hard. ,
Dnrocher, says Lew Parker, ,
acts aa though he were fighting .
Joe Louis, not St. Looia!
Lt. Col. Gregorx (Pappy) Boy
Ington'a book ia finished and in the j
hands of the busy Walter E. Smith, '
who seems to have about eight
hands. Not only will Smith publish, 1
but he'll do the movie himself, aa '
an independent, perhaps as a road- '
?hew entry. Admiral Nimitz has of- 1
fered Smith any fleet facilities re- '
quired for the screen adaptation.
The title, first time announced any
where, is "Where Are We Now?"
Even Stalin's spies don't knew
? Margaret Truman's calls
from Missouri to Washington
are person-to-person ? and the
person is Marvtn Coles, counsel
for the merchant marine!
Gwendolyn Stone is a beautiful
and talented i^ancer. . . . She has
appeared in several west coast re
vue creations and in films, includ
ing "Night and Day." ... No one
seeing her would imagine that she
is a deaf mute and has been since
childhood. . . . She picks up rhythms
with her feet, via vibrations. . . .
She takes direction and cuee by un
failing lip-reading.
Santa Fe Skyway is carrying spe
cialized cargoes, including perish
ables. ... No schedules will be
made. . . . Flying personnel will be
mostly veterans, 11 of whom have
signed on. . . . One plane has re
frigeration equipment, which
weighs only 1 per cent of the gross
tonnage and can register 120 do- >
grees below zero.
By EDWARD EMERINE
WNC Features
States, like men, should not
be judged by hearsay. If you
have been reading stale joke
books, or listening to radio
comics, you may have some
preconceived and erroneous ideas
about one of the greatest of the 48
states. It is time for you to re-ap
praise Arkansas.
A few weeks ago I made an auto
Tiobile trip through Arkansas, fol
owing the general course of U. S.
Highway No. 67 from Poplar Bluffs,
Mo., to Texarkana. We visited Corn
ng. Walnut Ridge, Newport,
Searcy, Little Rock, Arkadelphia
snd other towns.
We saw fields of rice, com, cot
ton and other staple crops on
and that was black and rich. We
teard the sharp ring of saws biting
nto both soft and hard woods. We
leard factory whistles, too, and saw
Kindreds of men carrying dinner
pails. Horses, mules and tractors
furnished power for farming,
while huge trucks hauled loads
of giant watermelons, fat cattle,
nilk, oil, lumber, logs, poles, crates
of fruits and berries and other
products. Fruit trees were heavily
laden, the boughs bending low.
Progress is Evident.
We traveled over splendid paved
roads, across rich coastal plains
and through mountain scenery as
majestic as any traveler could ever
want. There were fine homes, big
barns and well-kept* acres on either
aide of the road. There was con
struction everywhere, for Arkan
sas is building new homes, stores,
garages and other structures. Steel,
cement, brick and bright new
lumber were going into those build
ings. New homes, in every stage
of construction, were to be seen.
Some were near-mansions, while
others were simple structures.
Rami ahrH* otui fanrM war*, ffnin*
up too.
When we talked to the people ot
Arkansas, we found them friendly,
lourteous, intelligent. They amiled
;asily, were proud of their state,
and sure of its future. Tourists who
lad visited every part of the Ozark
and Ouachita .forest and mountain
?reas in the northwestern part of
he state as well as the lower coast
al plains in the southeast had seen
ust what we saw ? construction,
>rogress and resolute faith.
First settlers of Arkansas were
he Indians, the Quapaws who
ived south of the Arkansas river
and the Osages who lived north
>f it. They called the land Akansa,
>ut somewhere along the way an
'r" was inserted and a final "s"
idded. 4t is pronounced Ar-kan
ww.
After discovery by De Soto in 1541,
Arkansas was tossed like a ball
jetween Spain and France. The few
>eople who came to the area were
loldiers and traders. There were
10 farmers and few merchants. No
lermanent settlements were made
except around military posts.
After the United States came into
mssessioo of Louisiana territory,
ncluding Arkansas, the country
vas settled rapidly by Anglo-Saxon
pioneers.
Territory Formed.
In 1819, Arkansas was organized
is a separate territory, and the cap
iat was moved from Arkansas
Post to Little Rock. (Incidentally,
Little Rock was so named because
if a ledge of rocks projecting into
the river and to distinguish it from
Big Rock, about three miles up
the river.) Population was about
14,000. It may be noted that Arkan
CLASSIC STRUCTURE . . .
Originally occupied In 183C,
Arkansas' old state boose, now
concerted Into a war memorial
bonding, is one mt the classie
rsionlal buildings of the nation.
NATIVE RESIDENT ... Ben
Lucy, governor of Arkansas,
b 1 native nod life-long resident
of the state. He wss born In a
small rural area of Onaehita
county called "Cooterneck." Bo
fore Us election u governor, ho
was a school teaeher, drag store
operator, oil man. agriculturist
and twice mayor of Camden. Vet
eran of World War I. he la mar
ried and has three children.
sas was a part of Louisiana from
1804 to 1812, and from 1812 to 1818
a part of Missouri. In 1834, Arkan
sas became a state.
Arkansas is a great agricultural
state, with soil new and fertile.
Levees, ditches and canals have
redeemed alluvial lands along the
St. Francis, the Arkansas and Mis
sissippi rivers. The state has an
almost inexhaustible timber supply,
with forests of pine and hard
woods covering nearly two-thirds of
the state. At Eureka, Heber and
Hot Springs, health-giving waters
have long been used.
Industries of Arkansas are de
voted almost entirely to extracting
or processing products which origJ
inate within the state's boundaries.
There are 28 oil and gas producing^
fields in six southern Arkansas
counties and 16 gas fields in fives
western counties. Petroleum re-}
serves are estimated at more than
300 million barrels and reserves ad)
natural gas at ever 1,000 billion)
cubic feet.
Climate, scenic attractions,
recreational facilities and cura
tive waters combine te bring
great numbers of tourists and
health seekers to Arkansas
each year. The state's meat
widely known attraction is Hat
Springs National park, contain
ing 47 bet springs with temper
atures np te 14S degrees.
Adjacent to Hot Springs are Lakes'
Catherine and Hamilton with mere*
than 450 miles of shoreline. Ananas
spring racing meets are held at Oak
Lawn jockey club. Golf is played*
the year around.
The state's scenic highlands fca-i
elude two mountain groups, the)
Oxarks and Ouachitaa, both eas
ily accessible. State parks provide)
exceptional recreational facilities.
Sportsman's Para diss.
Arkansas' duck shooting is na
tionally famous. Rice fields in the
prairie section attract mallards dar
ing 'the winter migration. Dtp,
quail and turkey provide plenty ?
hunting, and fishing may be en
joyed in the numerous lakes aad>
streams. "Float fishing" on the
White river and some of its tribu
taries is a unique Arkansas pastime,
which is becoming increasingly pop
ular with visitors.
"I am fully convinced that Arkan
sas is destined to become one odj
the great playgrounds of America."
said Franklin D. Roosevelt at
Booneville. Ark., when he visited'
there in 1838.
And many of the rest of us who,
have visited that state can heartily!
endorse the late President's wordsl
AM
ifr%i. $g" .
'l O U l S I ?. K 1^
.]
De Soto's Futile Quest for Gold
Brought Exploration Of Arkansas
niMiiBaa was uiic ui uic caiucsv
of the Mississippi states to be ex
plored. The first white man to i
touch Arkansas soil was Her- <
nando de Soto, the Spanish ex
plorer who discovered the Missis- i
sippi river. In May, 1M1, he came
to a river so broad that he called
it, in Spanish, the Rio Grande, or
great river. The Indian name for
the stream, Meschacebe, ''father
of waters," has come down to us,
however, as Mississippi. De Soto
crossed the river to the Arkansas
side.
For nearly a year, the last year
of his life, De Soto traveled over
what is now Arkansas, through a
vast wilderness inhabited by wild
animals and equally wild savages.
Beginning near the mouth of the
White river, De Soto went up the
western shore of the Mississippi
beyond the mouth of the St. Francis
river, then journeyed southwest
until he came to the Arkansas riv
er. There is a tradition that he was
defeated in a battle with the In
dians tear where Jackson port now
stands, and that he was compelled
to turn north again.
Learning that there were moun
tains to the northwest, he continued
toward northeast Arkansas where
he hoped to find gold, traveling
through swamps and dense for
ests and crossing mountain streams.
Disappointed in not finding (aid, he
hujucu buuui, pasaca aver me oaa
ton mountains, craned the Arkan
las river near Dardanelle Rock, and
came into the land of the Cayaa.
Here, De Soto fell seriously ill, and!
a friendly Indian chief brought him
to a lake of "very hot water" artier*'
he was healed. This lake waa
doubtless the now famous Hot
Springs.
On Ouachita river near thar
springs, De Soto and his party fowad?
salt which the Indians gathered and!
?old to their neighbors. The ex
plorers spent the winter of 1541, a/
severe one. in an Indian village on,
the Ouachita. De Soto's faithful in-'
terpreter, Juan Ortiz, died. Dis
heartened by not finding gold and
losing so many of his men, De Soto
resumed his journey south in the
spring of 1542. He followed the Oua
chita to the Red river and then
went downstream to the Mississip
pi. Exposure brought on a fevecf
and De Soto died, his survivors'
burying him in the great river he
had discovered.
Spain profited little by the ex
plorations of De Soto. Through her
negligence, the Mississippi valley
had remained unsettled for nearly
a century and a half. But while
Spain slept, the French were active.
After securing the lands bordering
on the St. Lawrence river, France
had pushed southward along the
Mississippi.