VOL. XXI; NO. 6
—————
CHARLOTTE. N. C, THURSDAY. JUNE 14. 1951
Subscription Price $2.00 Per
CAPITAL REPORTER
1 °!
RALEIGH, — Some prominent
farmers in the State are re
portedly thinking in terms of
setting up a Farmer-Cattleman
Co-operative Bank, if it can be
worked out.
Seems as though it’s pretty
tough to get a loan to purchase
cattle. Some of t he smaller
banks are making such loans,
but the big banks are doing
nothing about, the problem.
And that Yankee outlii that
was supposed to come in and
make it easy for a farmer to
borrow money to get into the cat*
tie business is keeping mighty
quiet.
Many farmers have planted
permanent pasture with the
hope of raising either beef or
dairy cattle to supplement their
income, or to be their primary
source of cash. But when they
go to talk to the banker about
a loan to boy said cattle they've
been getting the brushoff in too
many instances.
So many of (the prominent
farmers are reported as having
an eye on entering the banking
business. They are investigat
ing the possibility of setting up
a co-operative bank, keeping
loan costs low on a non-profit
basis, in an effort to give the
* cattle business the stimulus it
needs in North Carolina.
The state is a natural for
dairy or beef cattle raising, if
the farmers can get the capital
to get started. These same
farmers are thinking in terms
of either state or federal help
in getting their bank started.
It seems to be another case
of private business being af
flicted with a blind streak.
Fast Shuffle
The 1981 Legislature was so
busy politicin’ that ft did many
things halfway. Among thee#
was the grabbing of fflyMO
from a Western Carolina Tfcach
oes College building fund. Seems
that without that money to out*
fit a new building, the college
stood a good chance of losing
its accreditation. So, the Coun
cil of State had to take the $69,
000 from Contingency and Emer
gency fund the other day and
put it back in the school’s bud
get. That's one legislative er
ror that could be—and was—
corrected. Some of the other
mistakes aren't settled quite
that easily, however.
Candidate?
Bill Lassiter, attorney for the
N. C. Press Association and
brother of Tom (Smithfield Her
ald) Lassiter, is being talked
around Raleigh as a possible
candidate for the State Senate
from Wake County next year.
Bill says “it’s news to me,1*
however.
If Bill should ruft, one likely
opponent is incumbent James H.
Pou Bailey. Ironically, Bailey
recently was reported as seek
ing the job of Raleigh's eity
attorney — a post Bill has re
signed.
Bailey failed to get that job,
apparently (although the an
nouncement has not been made
yet as to Bill's successor.)
No Bif Com
Despite all of Colonel London
Rosser’s gyrations, the Highway
Patrol got nothing but Fords in
a recent purchase order.
Rosser had sought bigger cars
for patrol brass, but all his ma
neuvering accomplished was the
appointment of a special Council
of State Committee to study
the overall picture of awarding
what cars (state-owned, that is)
to whom.
This committee—composed of
Secretary of State Thad Eure,
State Treasurer Brandon Hodges
and Insurance Commissioner
Waldo Cheek — will meet this
week and probably will make a
report on a recommended State
policy on awarding automobiles.
It's at least a two-to-one bet
that the suggested policy will
be that the cheapest bid wffl be
I interesting background infor
| mation on the recent capers of
and about Capua Waynick, am
bassador to Nicaragua.
The chronological order comes
something like this:
i^apus wrote menus in*w
while he was not out of the
1952 gubernatorial race, he also
was not yet officially In.
Thurmand Chatham, U. S.
representative from the Fifth
District, stopped by Nicaragua
on the way back from a South
and Central American tour. He
then went by the State Depart
ment on his return to Washing
ton and tells the high brass
there that they’re wasting a
mighty good man down Nica
! ragua way.
1 Next came a note In Drew
j Pearson's column that Capus
| was scheduled for a promotion
i to Ambassador to Bolivia. This
i was followed by an editorial in
the News and Observer — edited
by Jonathon Daniels, national
Democratic committeeman —say
ing in effect “we hope it’s so.”
Add all of this to recurring
reports that Thurmond Chatham
would like to be governor;
along with friends’ reports that
Capus, who would have the ad
l ministration’s blessings, won’t
j run for governor if he gets an
ambassadorial promotion, and it
makes you wonder who’s trying
to do what to whom.
Buggs Island Chatter
i Meantime, last week Thur
mond Chatham and Governor
Scott were guests at a tour of
Buggs Island and a barbecue at
Oxford, both promoted by the
Wildlife Club there.
Thurmond heaped praise on
Governor Scott. He termed him
the best agriculture commission
er in the history of the State
and predicted Scott would go
down in history as a great gov
ernor who always was “for
something.”
All of this brought the com
ment that Chatham sounded
“like a man running for some
I thing.”
The Elkin manufacturer told
one reporter he was interested
only in “being the best repre
sentative’ this state has.” Other
| folks thought Chatham either
had his eye on the governor’s
chair or the Senate seat now
occupied by Clyde Hoey.
Gleanings from the Buggs
Island trip included reports
from some tobacco farmers that
activities of the warehouse as
sociations are slowly but surely
sounding the deathknell of the
auction system of selling tobac
co. . . . Consolidation of schools
is a major problem. One poli
tician said it was a necessity,
“but I don't know whether to
come out and fight for ft—kill
ing myself politically — or to
just sit back and see what hap
pens.” . . . Farmers also were
talking about the increasingly
high cost of getting started as
a farmer—due to high labor and
machinery costs. They expresed
a fear that North Carolina may
be moving into an era of big.
machine-worked farms because
of economic conditions. . . . And,
according to Dairyman Kerr
Scott who ought to know, now
adays it takes an inwestment of
about $1,000 a milking cow to
get into the dairy business.
Sm*« J a loppy
The new |4,000 Cadillac for
the governor has arrived and
been put into service. It's
mighty fancy, with all kinds of
push-buttons, which most folks
agree is as it should be for the
State’s chief executive—even if
he is a farmer.
But even more interesting to
this reporter was the stuff that
the Governor carries along.
There’s • copy of a farm mag
azine, a Raleigh telephone book,
a Ink aid kit, a box of cleansing
tisstle, memorandum pads, a
road map, one «f those thin
raincoats that yon can fold op
ths dag t ’poepod^T withered
rosebud that the Governor ap
Put On the Heat . • •/
UNION LABEL WEEK—SEPT. 24}
"Liberty” Prints
RR Unions’ Side
NEW YORK. —“Why Railroad
Workers Get Sick," the first in a
series of labor articles, appeared
in the May issue of Liberty Mag
azine as part of that publication’s
newly-developed policy of provid
ing an opportunity for “labor’s
side of the news” to reach the
general public.
The railroad article, written by
veteran labor reporter Ruben Le
vin. presents a step-by-step re
port of the latest flare-up in what
new has become an ancient con
troversy. Levin is a staff writer
for "Labor," national weekly
newspaper ef 15 railroad brother
hoods, and president of Labor
I Press Association, a co-operative
news service for the nation's la
bor publications.
A thorough discussion of the is
sues leading up to the “Switch
men’s Sickness,” together with
recommendations for eventual so
lution of the chronic problems of
the railroad men, completes the;
article in the current issue which
represents the first appearance in
any general publication of the la
bor side of a public controversy.
! “While the ‘switchmen’s sick
ness’ was a malady not defined
in any medical encyclopedia,” Mr
Levin points out that “there could
be no question that the switchmen
were siek—sick, angry and dis
illusioned at the long and endless
delays in their wage case.”
Government seizure eras hoped
by many to be a step toward
early solution. Its failure, Levin
reports, has best been explained
by Senator Wayne Morse as a re
sult of his findings during the
Senate Labor Committee hear
ings.
“These government seizures are
a farce,” said Morse, “they put
the White House on the side of
the railroads. That is where the
White House has been ever since
in this instance.” Then he added
less lengthily, “It stinks!”
NEW ENSIGN TOTAI,
Under a four-year-old plan, de
vised by Rear Admiral James L.
Holloway, Jr., the Nary will get
the largest group of aew officers
it erer had in any peacetime year.
Under the plan, candidates for
Navy commissions are given a
four-year education in colleges!
and university* throughout the
nation at Government expense.
This year, 1,949 such students
will graduate and are .required.
to accept commissions as ensigns j
in the regular Navy for two
years. In addition, 994 midship
men win graduate from the Naval
Academy, making a total of S,
645 new ensigns.
APPROPRIATIONS
I Ilf?
CHICAGO PRINTERS
DENIED BENEFITS
AFTER LONG STRIKE
A circuit court judge has ruled
that members of the International
Typographical Union who were
out for 22 months on strike
against floe Chicago newspapers
are not entitled to state unem
ployment benefits because they
were jobless of their own edition.
The payments would have been
around $400,000.
KNOXVILLE TYPOS
NAME SCALE COM.
Knoxville Typographical Union
No. Ill at its last meeting named
Fred Comer of the Journal chap
el, and Hollis Clapp and Jack
Bonner of the News-Sentinel
chapel to be members of its cur
rent scale committee. Both
Fred Comer and Hollis Clapp are
former presidents of the Knox
ville local.
The Knoxville local of the ITU
also voted to contribute 10 cents
per capita to the Tennessee
League for Political Education.
The Knoxville Stereotypers Local
No. 128 is also contributing to
the league.
Olin Moore, Fred Conner, and
Ed James reported on the South
eastern Allied Printing Trade
Conference in Atlanta, saying
that co-operatio* in negotiations
among the printing crafts is
closer than at any time in his
tory.
Oscar Edmonds reported on the
Tennessee Federation of Labor
convention in Nashville.
Charley Crowder and Ed Wells
reported on the Virginia-Carolinas
Typographical Conference in Nor
folk. pointing out that Knoxville
is lagging behind in scales for
this area, being ffi.00 per week
under Newport News, Va.
Editor’s Note: The editor is
a former member of the Knox
ville local and congratulates his
former associates upon the line
progress they are making
Cl SCHOOLING
Veteran* who interrupted GI
bill training and later went beek
Into military service may con
tinue the same studies after they
are discharged the second time,
ewm though July 25 is the dead
line for starting new GI training
courses, according to the Veterans
in* after the deadline date
be renamed within a reasonable
of> kbae after the rsteran
to civilian life
hy Jaly
2». ltM. | , * i*>
*4*. I
t I
*
Southern Bell, Union
Arrive At Pay Accord
Confessions Of
A Strikebreaker
By E. W. SCRIPPS.
Founder of Scripps-Howsrd
Newspaper Syndicate ’•>
I was 19 when I was Interested
in a certain corporation that em
ployed skilled labor. The work
men declared a strike. There were
less than 40 laborers, nearly all
known to me personally. I had
little respect for their wisdom or
common sense. The strike began.
It was significant of my self-con
ceit and my cheek that I went be
fore the board of directors and
told them that I had a way of
breaking the strike if I were per
mitted to do certain things. I
laid out before them my plan
which seemed to them good.
Inside a week I had replaced
every striker with as good a man
as himself. No matter how! Then
the old workingmen came to me
to tell what their agreements had
been and what their present hard
ships were. As I said ‘I knew all
of them personally. At their so
licitation I visited a number of
their homes. I saw things that
made me feel ashamed at the
part I had been playing.
Without saying anything to the
old-fossil directors. I undertook
to make the acquaintance and
learn something about the char
acter of the strikebreakers. All
or nearly all the strikers were
married men with families. Every
one of the strikebreakers'*** un
married and comparatively young,
some of them very young. By
one means and another I and the
old workmen persuaded every one
of these newcomers to leave. In
order to save the faces of the
dignified, superior men who
formed the directorate of the
company, the old workingmen
made some concessions in their
demands and were allowed to re
turn. It was not more than two
weeks later that business as usual
was going on in that institution.
The men whom I had been deal
ing with were members of the
union. For the first time I
learned from them what unionism
meant and what its history had
been. And then I had had this
experience with the directors, who
were really not directors, at all,
but merely old foos-foos, who
were themselves directed by an
employe manager.
From that time on in such a
small way as I could, I have been
leveling my guns at the employer
class, whether they be capitalists
or mere borrowers of capital.
MEAT CUTTERS RISE
POINTS NEW POLICY
WASHINGTON,—A new waff*
stabilisation policy is evolvinff.
Latest important link to be
forged was Wage Stabilisatoin
Board approval of a 9 cents an
hour general wage increase for
more than 200.000 workers in the
packing-house industry.
The workers are represented by
the AFL Amalgamated Meat Cut
ters and Butcher Workmen and
the CIO United Packinghouse
Worker*.
WSB approved the 9 cents,
which pierced the old 10 per cent
ceiling set last February 'Jt re
ferred to a special panel an ad
ditional two cents an hoar pay
boost to correct intra-plant in
equities.
Public and labor members ap
proved the contract over industry
opposition. WSB Chairman George
W. Taylor said:
“We are fully aware that this
decision looks in the direction of
a general policy.* *
Earlier, Economic Stabilization
Director Erie Johnston had ap
proved a eoet-of-Kvtng escalator
for 1,000,000 railway workers and
had given ins tractions to Mm new
ly-reconatitnted tri-partite wag*
beard to revise the February II
decision which frene wages at 10
MAURICE J. TOBIN
Secretary. U. S. Department ef Leber
Tobin Lands The
The Merchant Marine
WASHINGTON, D. C.—Secre
1 (ary of Labor Maurice J. Tobin
| saluted the achievements of the
; American merchant marine in a
1 National Maritime Day statement
I issued May 22. He said the rec
‘ ord of these seamen both in times
l of stress and in peacetime “will
remain forever indelibly imprinted
in the minds of free, peace-loving1
1 and brave men.”
Tobin’s statement follows:
“When the record of the cur
| rent tense period we are going
through in the inceasing struggle
| to hold aloft the glorious banners
of democracy and freedom is fi
nally etched in history, the Amer
ican merchant marine will be
prominently mentioned on many
pagos. <
"The heroism of the sailors who
man our merchant ships has been
| exemplified on more than one oc
casion during the past year.
Thousands of refugees and troops
have been evacuated from battle
torn sectors in Korea by the gal
lant men who again met the chal
lenge of an emergency and did
their job well and nobly in the
face of enemy Are.
"The American merchant ma
rine is a salient part of our heri
tage and our history. It has had
a vital effect on our country's
economy: the United States had
to have a strong merchant marine
to emerge as the most powerful
and democratic Nation in the
world.
“It is a privilege on National
Maritime Day to salute the men
of the vast merchant fleet for
their splendid achievements of the
past. Their record in times of
stress as well as in peacetime
will remain forever indelibly im
printed in the minds of free,
peace-loving and brave men.”
PRICES 9.8 PER CENT
ABOVE YEAR AGO
Washington. — Retail prices of |
goods and services bought by
moderate-income urban families (
rose again between March and
April.
The Cosumers’ Price Index
released by the U. S. Labor j
Department’s Bureau of Labor j
Statistics showed that all major
groups in the index rose frac
tionally except food and fuel,
electricity and refrigeration.
The largest increase (.00 per
cent) was in the house-furnish
ing group. The retail food pries
index declined 0.2 per cent and
the fuel, electricity and re
frigeration group index was 0.1
per pent lower than in March.
The index for April 15, 1901,
was 104.8 <1930-39 equal 100),]
0.1 per cent above March 10,
1901. This was 8.5 percent high
er than the index for June, 1960
(pre-Korea) and 9.8 per cent
above a year ago.
The dcliae of 0.2 per cent in
food prices between March 16
and April 16 brought the index
to *20.7 per cent of the 19*0*
39 average; 11.1 per cent above
last Jons; and 1*4.4 per cent
above a year ago. This was the
first month average food prises
have declined since February,
1910. Lower food prices were re-;
ported hi S8 of the M cities sur-j
Southern Bell Telephone Com
pany and the Communications
Workers of America-CIO on June
21 1961, in Atlanta reached agree -
ment on a new contract covering
more than 46,000 telephone em
ployees in 9 states, Including
those at Atlanta. The contract
runs for one year.
G. D. Garner, Vice President in
charge of personnel for the com
pany, said the contract provides
pay increases of approximately 19
per cent in every pay rate, the
increase ranging from 63.00 to
$7.50 a week, depending on length
of service and job classification.
“The agreement will be submit
ted to the Wage Stabilisation
Board for approval,” Mr. Garner
said. “Terms of the agreement
are believed to be within the
Board's stabilization formula, but
because of some doubt as to the
meaning of some of its provisions,
the Board’s approval is being re
quested.”
Approximately 80 per cent of
the wage increase will become ef
fective upon approval of the Wage
Stabilization Board.
The agreement will add 012,
600,000 annually to the cost of
providing telephone service in the
South, Mr. Garner said. He said
that with costs already having
gone up faster than telephone
rates, increases in telephone rates
have become imperative.
“Considering the new
ment, telephone rate increases
authorized since 1939 are falling
by about 632,600,000 an
mmfiy et covering the cost of
Noage increases granted over the
same period, to say nothing of
other increased costs,” Mr. Gar
ner asserted.
“The new agreement protects
the interests of telephone custo
mers and telephone employees. It
places telephone wages in satis
factory relationship with wage
levels prevailing in the South for
jobs comparable to telephone jobe.
A wage survey which we recently
completed showed that there has
been a general upward movement
in pay scales in industry since
the last -Southern Bell wage in
crease. The wage increases for
| Southern Bell employees were,
therefore, justified by the facte
and are in the interest of toe
pulbk so that highly effective
forces of skilled telephone people
can be maintained to reader the
service the public expects and de
“We are pleased that the Union
and the Company have arrived at
an agreement harmoniously at the
bargaining table.” ,
-
DONT DELAY DPA 1
DISALLE WARNS
WASHINGTON—Price Admini
strator Michael V. DiSalle warned
that Congress should paaa a De
fense Production Act by June SO
to replace the present law expir
ing then.
He told the United Labor Pol
icy Committee that a 90-day ex
tension of the present law could
result in no law at all with dis
astrous consequences to the con
try. >
He urged United Labor to in
sist on passage of a strengthened
law by the June 30 deadline.
r
4te HR. MINIMUM SET p "J
FOR PUERTO RICO 1
CHINAWARE WORKERS
WASHINGTON. D. C.—Elect
ive June 25, a minimum wage
rate of 40 cents aa hoar will ap
ply to employees within the pre
visions of the Fair Labor Stead,
ards Act in the semi-vitreses and
vitreous-china food utensils divi
sion of the day and day prod
ucts industry in Puerto Rice.