Newspapers / The Charlotte Labor Journal … / Nov. 1, 1951, edition 1 / Page 1
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YOL. XXI: NO. H CHARLOTTE, H? C., THURSDAY. NOVEMBER 1. 1951 SnbecripUee Price )Ut Per T< Eisenhower Believes West Can Hold Line Within Year / Hie Journal’s Washington correspondent is in Europe where he will visit eight of the member nations of the North Atlantic Treaty organizations. Later articles will come from France, Germany, Italy, Turkey, Greece, Yugoslavia and Great Britain. SUPREME HEADQUARTERS, ALLIED POWERS EUROPE — (near Paris) — Staff officers at SHAPE told a small group of visiting reporters this week that within a year the Allies may be in a position to stall a Soviet invasion of free Europe long enough for the free world to rush sufficient reinforcements in to,, battle to stabilize a line in western Europe. General Dwight Eisenhower re ceived some 17 reporters person ally at Allied headquarters near Paris and talked off the record for half an hour. Among the re porters' received was this cor espondents. Eisenhower's talk was p -eceded by an hour-long briefing by Gen eral A. M. Gruenther, Chief of Staff to the Supreme Commander Gruenther told the 17 reporters— •elected by the Defense Depart ment to represent a cross section ot the United States—that Allied prospects were neitheh- nor hopeless. Reporters get a picture of the present situation in west ern Europe that runs something like this: The Russians have 176 divi sions in eastern Germany, and nearby, which could be used to launch an invasion of western Europe. About 65 or 75 ot these divisions are cither armored or mechanized. Another 125 second class divisions are available to the Soviet Union within 30 days. In addition, the Soviets can call on approximately 60 satellite di visions—now formidable divisions for the first time in several years, due to modernization. To match this the Allies today have a small and inadequate force. No one attempts to hide this fact. But witKc a year SHAPE expects to (Command the troops necessary to hold an en emy invasion to relatively mod erate progress. During this hold ing period SHAPE hopes to be able to rush Allied reinforcements in sufficient numbers to stabilize * line somewhere in France. (Allied headquarters in Europe present a drab picture for those who expected it to be an elabor ate organization. It is more like a temporary arm^r camp, with wooden buildings one story high, windows without screehs, and few luxuries. Enlisted men in the headquraters are overworked and homesick. Officers are over worked. But everywhere there is praise for Eisenhower as the commanding officer. Reporters who heard General Elsenhower’s speech were not unanimous in their reaction. Some were inclined to believe it was a political speech, others — per haps a majority—thought it was sincere and straight from the shoulder. In effect, Eisenhower’s message was not a military one but an idealistic one. The Su preme Commander is a great be liver in democracy and the Amer ican way of freedom. He be lieves if we sell the world this story of America—rather than a materialistic one—we will win the global propaganda now in prog ress and perhaps, prevent a war. At SHAPE there is little talk about inadequate troops, but rather much talk about future strength, future plans and future capabilities. The stress is laid •upon the bright side of the pic< tore, in the future, rather than the dark side of the picture, In the future, rather than the dark side of the picture, which is the present—as far as num bers are concerned. There is no attempt to hide the fact that air fields in France are one of the pressing problems of the moment—and'Hhat they are in short supply. Nor is there any hiding of the fact that Allied strength in first class infantry and armored divisions is below minimum requirements. The German problem is one of the biggest being faced at SHAPE today — how to utilize German troops and get other western European nations to agree to their utilization. Eisenhower him self believes the use of German troops would give the Allies a great boost. But it seems to be , months away, at best. Thus, the present picture is one of waiting for a year, at least, until we are ready to put up effective resistance to any Russian invasion. It is one of tenseness but not of extreme anxiety — for there'are several I reasons the Russians might not , be inclined to attack the West at this time. First — the fhreat of United States strategic bombers worries the Russians. Second—the Russians have not reached their production goals in steel, oil or coal—as outlined by Stalin himself as necessary for ! the waging of prolonged warfare. Third—the Russians know they do not have anywhere near the free-world supply of raw mate rials, so necessary in the waging of longterm warfare. I Fourth — the Russians would l>ossibly have to use all their sat j ellite armies to subdue Yugo | sJavia in the event of war. Top officials in SHAPE are pleased with Yugoslav disaffec ' tation and make go attempt to hide that fact. They believe the Yugoslavs are good fighters, well led and loyal to Tito. They see in Yugoslavia, Greece and Turkey the strength for a_ possible South-. ! ern front offensive. But over and above ^ all other | considerations General Eisenhow er stresses the morale factor. He repeatedly told newsmen invited to his conference a few days ago that morale of troops and peo 1 pies in Europe is the key to ev erything, success or failure of his missions. Reporters agreed the General was .sincere. , The biff question not asked was. whether Ike intended to enter politics in 1952. Several report ers touched on the political side in question but Eisenhower grace fully explained that he could not speak out on his views no'»— , though he was emphatic in re minding reporters he had defi nite views. He said that as Su preme Commanedr of the Allied Powers in Europe it would be highly improper for him to start talking politics. , Eisenhower did not say when he would return home, when asked by this reporter. He mere ly said he was terribly busy at present—and that the next three weeks were a full schedule for i him. Whether the three-weeks remark means anything is ques tionable. When told that his name was Ring mentioned more fre quently it presidential press con ferences in Washington than any other, he smiled but made no com ment. (Editor’s note: Since the fore going paragraph was written Gen eral Eisenhower has been called to Washington for consultation by President Truman and will arrive (Continued On Page 4) PUBLIC NOT ENTITLED TO “ANY HALO” The Senate subcommittee, which looked into the ethics and moral standards prevail ing in the ranks of those who run the gov ernment of this country, puts much of the blame for recent laxness upon the execu tive branch but warns that Congress itself' is not above censure and that the public at large is not entitled to any halo. Headed by Senator Paul H. Douglas, of Illinois,, the .group pointedly remarks that “influence peddlers can exist only as long as businessmen or others are willing to pat ronize them.” It adds ‘favoritism can be a problem only when individual men and women seek favors of Government.” More over, “gifts, improper pressure and bribes come from outside the Government, from individuals, from organizations, and from groups which are a part of what we call the (‘public’.” The report calls attention to an “errone |ous assumption that what is lawful is right” and says that “this is an untruly which authoritarian governments of all va rieties have demonstrated vividly and re cently.” It warns that “representative gov ernments must be on guard lest they make the same mistake” and fall into the error of assuming that legality is enough. While the committe does not consider that it has completed its task, it suggests reme dies for some bad spots. Without space to give all of these, we call attention to those that might spell dismissal from service of ithrme, in the administration of the laws* ©f the land, who: 1. Engaged in any personal business transaction or private arrangement for per sonal profit which secured from or was based on an official position, authority or | confidential information. I Accepted any valuable gifts, favor or service directly or indirectly from any per son or organization with which the official jor employe transacted business for the Gov ernment. 3. Discussed future employment outside the Government with a person or organiza tion with which there was pending official business. 4. Divulged valuable commercial or eco nomic information of a confidential chara6 ter to unauthorized persons or released such 1 information in advance of its authorized re lease date. 5. Became unduly involved—to give one example—through frequent luncheons, din ners, parties or other expensive social en gagements with persons outside the Gov ernment with whom they did official busi ness. ALLEGED McCARTHYISM IN SWITZER. . LAND In Lausanne, Switzerland, a Federal court has convicted an American on charges of i spying on Communists and U. S. diplomatic personnel in that country on behalf of U. S. agents and Senator Joseph R. McCarthy, of Wisconsin. 1 It should be stated at the cfotset that Sena 1 tor McCarthy denies that Charles E. Da vis, the convicted man, was his agent. Nev ertheless, Judge Albert Rais, presiding over a five-man court, in commenting on the case, said that Davis “put himself at the service” of McCarthy and was in touch “either directly or through an intermediary in Paris.” The judge charged Davis with forging a document in an effort to falsely demonstrate that John Carter Vincent, then U. S. Minister in Berne, had Communist connections. Explaining the matter, the judge said: “Davis sent from Geneva , . . a telegram to Mr. Vincent with the false signature of, Staempli, one of the militant Geneva Com munists, to make it appear that the Minis ter had relations in Switzerland with the Communists ...” He sent to the agent in Paris, “a copy of this telegram, which j constitutes a forgery.” Moreover, the judge declared: “Davis had received from Me- -j Carthv, through the intermediary, money for this activity.” After the trial, the man Davis said the court’s verdict was “very good” and told i correspondents, “It is true that I have been in direct contact with the Senator (McCar thy) and the history of the telegram to the Minister was that it was directly to discred it the Minister.” , Asked how he got in touch with the intermediary in Paris, the convicted man replied: “His name was sent to me by the Senator in a letter. RFC JONES TAKES A POKE AT F.D.R. Jesse H. Jones, the Texas publisher, was appointed by President Herbert Hoover to head* the Reconstruction Finance Corpora tion which was set up in the early days of, the great depression for the prime purpose! of hailing out the capitalistic enterprises of the United States. Mr. Jones was with the RFC for 13 years. Like most men, who retire from public life, he has written a book, telling how he and his group handled something like Fifty Bil lion Dollars. Like most authors Mr. Jones has to have something important to say and, like some others who were once in and then out, he takes a few .pokes at the late President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Says Brother Jones: Two days before he was asked for his resignation he no ticed, for the first time, “the deterioration of his (Roosevelt’s) mind.” In addition, he alleges that Roosevelt “was eager to get i (the U. S.) into the fighting (World War II) since that w*ould insure a third term. As to the “deterioration,” we have no doubt but that this observation became a certainly two days later when Jones was, asked to resigrn. As to the charge that this | country was led into the war, in order for j F. D. R. to get a third term, we merely note that Mr. Jones kept his secret for the four years thereafter while he continued to head the RFC. If what Mr. Jones now says is true, and ; he believed it to be true, one finds it diffi cult to understand why he did not tell the people of the country the truth at the time. Instead, he remained silent and continued to hold his public office. He hardly occu pies an enviable position today, more than five years after the death of President Roosevelt, when he arises to cast asper sions upon a man now dead. -l. U. S. Newsmen Inspect French Army Camp; Get Warm Welcome BY EDWARD Hv SIMS, Special Correspondent of The Charlotte Labor Journal Writ* • inf From Europe. BRUSSELS, Belgium. — Before cominf to Belgium, the group of I United States editors and writers now touring Europe were taken ;On an inspection trip of a French i army boot training center near I Paris. The French officers who conducted the tour were obvious* ily proud of Camp L’ezer de Fri leuse, and indeed the low wooden buildings were surrounded by a picturesque landscape of gentle bills on all sides. At this camp, French boys get | their first mandatory taste of mil itary life. In France all boys who | are physically able must take U ! months of military training—the one exception being1 those boys who have already had two broth ers killed in action. The French boot camp—while perhaps normal by European standards—has a de pressing effect on the average American. The poor lighting, lack of heat and modern sanitary engineering | combine to creat the impression ,of a medieval camp in American 1 minds, but to the average French | man, these inconveniences are not i inconveniences at all. To many i boys, who ever before left their | fathers’ farms, the facilities ac tually seem modern. Thus the j dreary appearance of the bnild I —by U. S. standards-^-does | not affect FYeneh morale, which is .certainly up to par. American newsmen watched French recruits run an obstacle course for an hour. They climbed high walls, worked their way through wire emplacements and jumped artificial barriets. In this latter operation, some newsmen watched with pity as some of the recruits attempted to jump two foot barriers, both feet together. They had never learned to jump one foot ahead of the other, the 1 rear foot producing the spring. Several also used both hands to get over the low barriers. It brought home the realisation that many French boys do not have the opportunities most Americans ; have in high school or college—a chknce to play baseball, football, etc. Instead of playing games, im (Continued On Fage 4) RED FEATHER QUIZ The Charlotte Labor Journal again this week presents two queries, asked of local labor men, together with their answers. The first person queried was A. L. Gunter, Business Manager of Teamsters Local Union, No. 71, and is as follows: Q. IS THE CAMPAIGN COST HIGH? A. No. Actually, only 4 1-2 per cent of the; money subscribed to the Chest Campaign goes to take care of the expenses of rais ing money for all of the Red Feather Services. Campaigns con ducted by individual organisations often cost 10 per cent of the amount raised and some of them have run to 50 per cent or more. The question asked of J. T# Primm, president of Charlotte Typographical Union No. 338. and his answer: - q: are campaign solic itors PAID? A. No. They are not paid. From the Campaign Chairman down to the house-to-house solic itor, all give their time freely. To *hcek this, you have only to ask any one of the 3,000 or more volunteer workers in the Cam paign. These people give their time as well as their money to the Chest. This year, the Red Feather Campaign has seen near ly, 4,006 workers soliciting support and spreading the story of the Chest’s service to Mecklenburg County. WIDE GAINS SCORED IN MACHINIST STRIKE Boston—(LPA)—A pension plan fully paid by the employer, an 8 cent an hoar raise retroactive to April 2, increased insurance, ac cident and hospitalisation bene fits. grading by seniority only and a November wage reopening clause. Those were the leading gains won by 1,500 AFL machin ists after a seven-week strike at 'Westinghouse’s Sturtevant plant here. Other contract features: two 5 minute washup periods dally, smoking privileges for all em ployes, three-week vacations for 20 or more years service, pay for holidays after three months’ em ployment instead of six. Included also was a simplified grievance procedure with at least twice monthly meetings with top man agement. TEAMSTERS WIN ELECTION MEMPHIS, Tenn.—The Inter national Brotherhood of Team ster*, Chauffeurs, Warehousemen and Helpers of America, Local No, 667, received a favorable vote among the employes of the Acme ;Fast Freight, Inc., in a recent ; National Labor Relations Board election. IBEW WINS | DALHART, Texas.—Employes of the Dalhart Ice Company voted on October 5, for the Internation al Brotherhood of Electrical Work ers, Local 002. to represent them in collective bargaining. FRIDAY—The 1951 Charlotte Community Chest campaign goal was overscribed when subscriptions reached $387,279 at the final re port meeting of the drive today, which figure ia 109.2 per cent of the goal of $386,500. Wednesday’s report showed that collections and pledges had reached 84 per cent of the goal. The campaign effort this year was one in which the community spirit was highly manifested and Charels M. Lowe, general cam paign chairman, thanked all the Charlotte organizations and individual citizens who gave un stintedly of their services through out the campaign. Union Hats And Caps Presented Delegates During AFL Meeting NEW YORK.—(ILNS) —The 70th annual convention of the American Federation of Labor at San Francisco, was the “best hatted” convention in th; history of that organization. This was the concensus of opin ion among the 700 delegates at the convention, newspapermen who had eome to San Francisco to cover it. fraternal ijelegates who had come from other coun tries to greet the convention, and many guests and visitors. Before the convention was over, all of them were wearing hats and caps presented to them as a gift of the United flatters. Cap and Millinery Workers International Union. Male delegates, visitors and reporters received their hats at the convention. Women dele gates and wives of delegates were fitted for hats now being sent to them at their homes. Feature of Label Campaign tne presentation was arranged by the Union Label Promotion Committee of the Hatters* Union as a feature of the campaign it is now conducting nationally to strengthen the hatters' union to bel, one of th# oldest in the American Federation of Labor. While these gifts were .being presented in San Francisco the committee also launched a nation wide radio campaign. Close to 150 radio stations throughout the country began to run a series of broadcasts in which the best known screen actors and actress es, themselves members of the Screen Actors’ Guild, are partici pating, and in which they make a personal appeal to the public to buy hats and caps containing the label of the Hatters’ Union. With each gift the committee in charge of the presentation deliv ered a letter signed by Alex Rose, president, and Marx Lewis, general secretary-treasurer of the i Hatters* International, as well as by the officers of its Union La bel Promotion Committee, reciting jthe epic battles which that organ ^zaion had fought during the 100 years he hatters have been organ ised, the fight it waged against the open shoppers which culmi i nated in the famous Danbury hat , ters’ case, and the threats it now .faces from nonunion employers, l “Although we have succeeded organising a major portion of the workers employed in the head wear industry,’* the letter read, | “there is a sufficient percentage jof non-union and anti-union shops | to constitute a threat to the stand ards we have fought so long and so hard to attain and now strive to maintain. Buying Help Needed “We need help. Not financial help, but something far more ef fective. We need the good-will | and the patronage of the men and women of organized labor. If you, your friends, and the mem bers of your organisation will in fist on having the union label in jthe hat and cajt you buy, and which you will find under the fweathand, you will help ui ( tect the standards of our bers, you will help us [the unorganised."
The Charlotte Labor Journal and Dixie Farm News (Charlotte, N.C.)
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Nov. 1, 1951, edition 1
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