Evening star. [volume], April 09, 1943, Page A-8, Image 8

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FRIDAY.. April 9, 1943
Holding the Line
The stabilization program has been
productive of so many statements,
messages, interpretations and orders
that even the strongest language, as
applied to this probem, has seemed
to lack force. But unless words have
lost all meaning, the President’s
latest order is a declaration of intent
to hold the present line against in
flation no matter what the pressure
groups may do or say.
In this most recent statement, the
President has put himself squarely
on record. If the line against in
flation is to be held, he said, we can
not tolerate further ~ increases in
prices affecting the cost of living or
further increases in general wage or
•alary rates except where clearly
necessary to correct substandard
living conditions. "The only way to
hold the line," he added, "is to stop
trying to find justifications for not
holding it here or not holding it
there.”
This Is language which ought to
eupply a much needed "shot In the
arm” for the War Labor Board. That
agency, under the qualifications of
the original executive order permit
ting wage increases to correct in
equities and inequalities and to aid
In the effective prosecution of the
war, has granted a bewildering
variety of wage increases outside the
little steel formula. These loopholes
apparently have been closed, how
ever, and it is now up to the board
to take and hold the position de
scribed by the President in yester
day's order.
Unless this is done that section of
the order curbing price advances will
have little meaning. The funda
mental weakness of the stabilization
effort has grown out of the Presi
dent's determination to keep control
of wages in his own hands, while
looking to Congress for the basic
stabilization of prices. This was a
mistake, and Mr. Roosevelt seemed to
recognize it as such when he said:
"Some groups have been urging in
creased prices for farmers on the
ground that wage earners have un
duly profited. Other groups have
been urging Increased wages on the
ground that farmers have unduly
profited. A continuation of this con
flict will not only cause inflation, but
will breed disunity at a time when
unity Is essential.”
No one who has watched the
maneuverings of the pressure groups,
each seeking to capitalize on the
supposed advantages gained by the
other, can question the essential
accuracy of the President’s observa
tion. Our policy of granting a con
cession at one point, only to find ,lt
necessary to grant a compensating
concession at some other place, has
been the undoing of our effort to
control the cost of living. If the
President's latest statement and ex
ecutive order mean that we have
finally seen the last of this self
defeating policy, the prospects of
holding the anti-inflation line have
been greatly enhanced.
Wooden automobile tires are now
being tested In Rhodesia. Those
who are trying them out say that
qu-qu-qulte a bub-bub-bit of fuf
fuf-further tut-tut-testing is sus
sus-still nun-nun-needed bub-bub
before th-th-they rur-rur-run sus
sus-smoothly.
That Camel
President Roosevelt, in his state
ment on inflation yesterday, again
had recourse to a traditional axiom
with which millions of people are
familiar. "No one straw may break a
camel’s back,” he said, ‘ but there is
always a last straw.” His use of so
homely a device related him to the
prophets and sages of antiquity. The
proverb he adapted to his own im
mediate purpose is ages old. It came
Into English by way of Latin from
some unknown country of the ancient
East. Perhaps, not without reason, it
may be supposed contemporaneous
with the development of the genus
Oamelus as bearers of burdens. The
original proprietor of a domesticated
ruminant quadruped, dromcdarius or
baetrl&nus, must have been quick to
learn that his patient animal was not
unlimited in its capacity to “take it”
either lying down or standing up.
Such wisdom is contagious. In
lands in which horses or donkeys are
employed instead of camels in the
transportation business, the variants
reflect the difference. Thus a Brit
isher cautions: “Avoid taking unnec
eessary chances by placing too pon
derous an accumulation of luggage
upon the spinal column of your
worthy charger,” and a peasant
Spaniard of the high plateau warns:
•El asno sufre la carga mas no la
sobrecarga.” Among the pioneers of
the American West, the same pithy
doctrine woq}d take the form:
“Watch out or you’re like to kill that
thar critter!”
In any event, the President was
talking the people’s language. They
have folk-wit enough to understand
him without consulting lexicons or
dictionaries in the circumstances.
Onward in Tunisia
General Montgomery’s latest vic
tory in Southern Tunisia notably ad
vances the Allied timetable for Axis
expulsion from North Africa. It is
improbable that Marshal Rommel in
tended to fight more than a delaying
action on the line of hills and gullies
north of Gabes. Strong though that
position was, it could be, and actually
was, outflanked by the British ar
mored column which struck north
westward and made its dramatic
junction with the American forces
that had battled their way through
Guettaria Pass, thereby rendering
still more precarious Rommel’s forti
fied line along the coast.
Nevertheless, there is reason to be
lieve that Rommel had hoped to
hold onto this line longer than he
did. That was the chief significance
of his failure. The entire Tunisian
campaign should be thought of pri
marily in terms of time. The Axis
high command is gambling a quar
ter-million good troops there in order
to postpone as long as possible Allied
attacks on Southern Europe, which
will become feasible as soon as the
Tunisian springboard is wholly In
Allied hands. The Axis forces are dug
In on a naturally strong defense line
extending right through the moun
tainous backbone of Tunisia from
north to south. Thus far, Allied at
tempts to crack this line by pressure
from the west have not succeeded, so
it must be rolled up by the British
Eighth Army advancing along the
coastal plain from the south. Mont
gomery’s victory at the Wadi el
Akarit is the second stage in a proc
ess begun by the cracking of the
Mareth Line. The question now
arising is, how many more holding
actions Rommel may be able to fight
before he is driven into the rugged
northeastern tip of Tunisia known as
the Tunis-Bizerte triangle, where he
and his colleague, General von Arnim
presumably will put up their last
desperate stand.
Study of the topographical map
Indicates only two positions where
such stands can be made. The first
of these Is twenty miles north of
Rommel’s lost Akarit line. This new
defensive front runs for about thirty
miles from the small coastal town
of Cekhira across the coastal plain
dotted with salt marsh until it
reaches a mountain bastion which is
holding up the American advance
eastward from Maknassy. The ad
vantage of this position is that it
cannot be outflanked as at El Akarit.
If Rommel can stand up against
Montgomery’s frontal pounding and
hold the mountain bastion against
the Americans, he may be able to
delay the now united Allies for a
space. Yet, unless he has prepared
his new position, Montgomery’s
smashing impetus might drive
through Irresistibly.
That wmuld leave Rommel In a bad
situation. North of the Cekhira
Maknassy bottleneck the coastal
plain in Axis occupation widens to
an average of 60 miles, with the only
highroad and railway running near
the sea. Rommel will have to conduct
a ticklish retreat for nearly 100 miles
to his next natural position, which
has a 44-mile front from the port of
Sousse to the inland mountain an
chors that hold back American and
French forces pressing eastward
from Fondouk, Pichon and the Ous
seltia Valley, If Rommel cannot
hold that position, he must retreat
into the Tunis-Bizerte triangle and
the final siege operations will have
begun.
Of course, the picture would be
radically changed if the Axis’ moun
tain flank should be pierced at any
vital point. And it should be kept
in mind that the Allies are exerting
heavy pressure all along that flank,
especially in. the extreme north,
where the British First Army has
just started a fierce attack directed
at Tunis. The indications thus are
that the Allies have amassed the
strength for a concerted drive from
several points. The supreme crisis
in the Tunisian campaign may not
be far away.
April 9
The connotations of April 9 in the
history of the modern world are
many and various. It was on April 9,
1682, that La Salle reached the mouth
of the Mississippi River and took
possession of Louisiana in the name
of France. The strife between the
Union and the Confederacy ended
when General Robert E. Lee sur
rendered to General U. S. Grant at
Appomattox Court House, Virginia,
, April 9, 1865. One of the greatest
disasters in the experience of the
human race — the San Francisco
earthquake and fire—occurred on
April 9. 1906.
None of these events, however,
has so much significance to living
men and women as the German
invasion of Norway, April 9, 1940, and
the capitulation of the American and
Filipino defenders of Bataan, April
9, 1942. .Those incidents of the
prevailing global conflict may seem
unrelated in cause and effect, yet they
are connected by bonds of natural
logic which cannot be denied. Presi
dent Roosevelt has said: “If there is
any one who still wonders why this
war is being fought, let him look to
Norway. If there is any one who has
any delusions that this war could
have been averted, let him look to
Norway. And if there U any one who
doubts of the democratic will to win,
again I aay, let him look to Norway.
He will find In Norway, at one* con
quered and unconquerable, the an
swer to his questioning.”
The words so phrased might have
been uttered with regard to the
Philippines and their inhabitants.
Japan’s attack upon them conformed
to the Nazi method of sudden, ruth
less, unprovoked assault. By no
stretch of the imagination could it be
argued that the Filipinos had of
fended their Japanese neighbors.
Only by the expedient of the Jungle
could such a deed be explained. And
the same observation may be regis
tered with respect to King Haakon
and the free nation whose constitu
tional sovereign he was and still is.
Germany owed to Norway a vast debt
of gratitude for kindnesses generous
ly rendered in seasons when the
Reich was in distress. The obligation
was not forgotten; it simply was
flouted by a dictator mad with greed.
But such crimes have their inevi
table correction in a universe from
which God never is banished. What
happened to the Norwegians and to
other innocent and unoffending small
nations of Europe has aroused a tidal
wave of retribution which, soon or
late, will sweep away the German
tyrant and his barbaric associates.
Meanwhile, Pearl Harbor and Bataan
slowly, perhaps, but surely, are being
avenged. Since April 9 last year the
United Nations have taken the initia
tive from their foes.
Certainly, the struggle is not ended.
It must be continued until its authors
have been defeated conclusively.
Thinking of Norway and the Philip
pines today, millions of men and
women of all races and creeds and
classes Join In a single movement
toward the victory which is impera
tive if humanity is to survive.
Strange Maneuverings
A very strange state of affairs is
presented by the announcement that
Dr. John R. Steelman, director of the
United States Conciliation Service
and the President’s personal repre
sentative at the bituminous wage
negotiations, has declined to approve
the request of the coal operators for
reference of their case to the War
Labor Board.
In announcing his position, Dr.
Steelman said: “At the risk of per
sonal criticism I would be reluctant
to make this recommendation (for
reference to the WLB) at this time,
which might lead to unfortunate cir
cumstances.” It is understood that
Dr. Steelman, in this somewhat cryp
tic statement, had reference to the
possibility of strike action by John L.
Lewis and his United Mine Workers if
direct negotiations should be aban
doned before the end of this month.
Without expressing any personal
criticism of Dr. Steelman, it may be
said that the position which he has
taken raises certain highly disturbing
questions.
It is obvious that there has been
considerable behind-the-scenes ac
tivity at these wage negotiations.
Much that has been happening has
not been spread upon the record. But
there are certain points which have
been made entirely clear.
IJirst, the coal operators have said
that it is futile to continue negotia
tions, because the miners have made
wage demands which they cannot
and will not meet.
Second, Mr. Lewis has said with
characteristic bluntness that his de
mand is for a wage Increase of $2
a day—that on this point he will
accept neither more nor less.
Third, he has unequivocally com
mitted himself to the proposition
that the miners’ case will never be
submitted to the War Labor Board
with his consent.
Finally, it is evident that this will
be the test case of labor’s demands
for wage increases in excess of the
little steel formula which has been
promulgated by WLB and which the
President and his Director of Eco
nomic Stabilization, Mr. Byrnes, have
said must be maintained. In these
circumstances, what is to be gained
by continuing the so-called collective
bargaining negotiations which have
so obviously broken down?
Does Mr. Steelman think that
by continuing fruitless discussions
throughout the rest of the month
Mr. Lewis would be less insistent on
his wage demands or more willing to
submit to the jurisdiction of the
Labor Board? If there is any hope of
that, why is the mine leader so stren
uously opposed to such a step now?
The one other possibility (an ex
tremely remote one) is that an agree
ment might be reached between the
operators and the miners, but it is
idle to suppose that Mr. Lewis would
accept any plan which did not give
him at least a substantial part of the
wage increase he demands. Any such
agreement would breach the little
steel formula, however, and would
have to be passed upon by the board.
But by that time the agency would
be in the difficult position of having
to choose between the destruction of
its own formula or rejection of the
wage increase after it had been ac
cepted by the miners and the opera
tors under the approving sponsorship
of the Government’s conciliator. It
is not hard to picture what Mr. Lewis
would say—and do—were the latter
alternative to be adopted.
Unless an exception is to be made
which by-passes the WLB, it se$ms
apparent that the operators are right
in saying that the “only place where
this dispute can be disposed of is
before the War Labor Board.” And,
if that be the case, the sooner it is
sent there the better.
Rationing has cut down sand
wiches In drugstores. So serious is
the situation that some druggists
are forced to make up for the loss
of business by actually selling drugs
as a sideline.
Germans Not Likely
To Move Into Spain
Major Eliot Also Doubts
Nazi Campaign Against
Strong and Neutral Turkey
By Maj. George Fielding Eliot.
In recent articles we have been ex
amining the political and physical
geography of Europe in its relation to
the coming invasion of that continent.
No such examination can be complete
without considering the position of the
neutral states.
Two of these neutrals, Spain and Tur
key, are of particular interest from the
point of view of military geography be
cause they lie respectively at the south
western and southeastern extremities of
the continent and form, so to speak,
land bridges to and from the German
central position—the one connecting with
Africa and the other with the Middle
East. Africa and the Middle East are
bases of Allied military power, and the
land bridges joining them to the Ger
man-held positions in Europe are there
fore of first-rate military importance.
For some months we have heard a
considerable flow of rumor ascribing to
the Germans the intention of moving
through Spain toward Morocco, with a
view of denying the Strait of Gibraltar
to Allied shipping and menacing the
rear and communications of the Allied
forces in North Africa. The necessity
of guarding against such a possibility Is
still retaining a considerable number of
American troops in French Morocco.
There has lately been a feeling in some
Allied quarters that this danger is pass
ing as the Tunisian campaign draws
toward its close; these quarters feel that
if the Germans intended such a move
they would have made it while they still
retained a greater freedom of action in
Tunisia than they do now. I
It is probable that the Russian situation
also affected German plana in this
respect. The German high command
no longer disposes of unlimited striking
power and it is quite possible that a
Spanish adventure has been in con
templation but that the battle of dis
engagement in southern Russia has not
proceeded rapidly enough to permit the
detachment from the eastern front of
the necessary troops for the purpose.
There are undeniable strategic advan
tages for the Germans in an advance
to the Strait of Gibraltar, but whether
these advantages outweigh the costs Is
another question. In general it would
not seem that 1943 is a year in which the
Germans will wish to undertake great
extensions of front and of lines of com
munication, but will rather desire to les
sen their responsibilities and concen
trate their forces.
The special position of Portugal must
be kept in mind in connection with
Spain. If the Germans go into Spain,
they can hardly leave Portugal open to
an Allied force striking at their flank.
But if they Invade Portugal as well as
Spain, they must pay a very heavy price
Indeed—for the certain consequence
would be an Allied occupation of the
Azores Islands, giving us a mid-Atlantic
air base that would enable us to deal
far more effectively with the German
U-boat campaign than we are able to
do at present.
Germany is placing great reliance on
the U-boat to whittle down the flow
of American armed power toward Eu
rope and Africa, and it may be expected
that in the inner chambers of the high
command, the weight of German naval
opinion will be heavily against any
Spanish-Portuguese invasion. Unless
Germany makes the first move, there
does not appear to be any present like
lihood of an Allied offensive through
Spain into German-occupied Prance.
Last year there was much apprehen
sion of a German attack on Turkey as
part of a general Nazi move toward the
oil fields of the Middle East. This year
such an attempt would be one which only
a desperate Germany could think of
undertaking. Turkey is by far the
strongest, in the military sense, of the
European neutrals, and for Germany at
this juncture deliberately to add Turkish
power to the forces arrayed against her
and to undertake a distant and difficult
campaign over uncertain lines of com
munication would seem an act of mad
ness. It could be justified only as
a last desperate resort if the Germans
have convinced themselves that Turkey
will eventually join the Allies anyway
and that European Turkey would then
become a bridgehead for the invasion of
the Balkans. In such a case, the Ger
man high command might consider that
the risks of attempting to reduce that
bridgehead now are less than the risks
of allowing the Allies to pick their
own time to make use of it.
The position of Sweden is becoming
more difficult because Sweden controls
the best lines of communication between
Germany and Norway. Should Norway
become an active theater of war, the
Germans would almost certainly be con
fronted with the choice of abandoning
their Norwegian garrisons or making
demands on Sweden which the Swedes
would probably resist.
The position of the two remaining
Suropean neutrals—Switzerland and
Eire—is somewhat less critical, though
for different reasons. There appears no
present prospect of German aggression
against Switzerland as long as that
country controls German-Italian com
munications, and Switzerland has no di
rect contact with the Allies. As for
Eire, there is no longer any apparent
prospect of a German attack in force,
except perhaps as a last act of despera
tion in an endeavor to overwhelm Great
Britain. The ports and airfields of Eire
would still be very useful to the Allies
for anti-submarine purposes, but there
have been no recent indications of any
change in the adamant attitude hith
erto maintained at Dublin on this sub
ject.
<Copyright, 1P43, H. T. Trtbuji*. Ine.)
Another Plan Suggested
On 'T»y as You Go” Principle.
TO the Editor of The Star:
We must have some sort of a pay-as
you-go collection of income taxes. No
taxes should be forgiven any one. Per
haps the following plan may be the basis
of a compromise: Immediate enactment
of payroll and salary deductions. All
payments made in 1943 to be credited
in 1943 taxes. Tax liabilities for 1942 to
remain as non-interest-bearing obliga
tions of the taxpayers to the Govern
ment to be collected from each tax
payer's estate after his death, if not
voluntarily liquidated sooner,
Alameda, OaUf. HOMER BRITT.
THIS AND THAT I
By Charles K. Traetwell.
"MOUNT RAINIER, Md.
"Dear Sir:
"Last Sunday my son brought home a
wounded woodcock which he found In a
field nearby.
"The bird had a lot of loose feathers
on his back and one of his legs appeared
to be broken. It could move along the
ground quite rapidly dragging that in
jured leg but didn’t seem to make any
attempt to fly, although its wings seemed
uninjured.
"The children who followed my son
home were greatly fascinated by this
strange large bird with such an amaz
ingly long bill and with such large round
eyes aet high in the head.
"We placed this speckled long-billed
bird in a large basket and covered it
with another upturned basket. We placed
near it some water, a little ground meat
and a few angle worms.
"The bird stayed, very still and refused
to touch any of the food during the two
days we kept it. Toward the evening of
the second day we decided to free it.
"We carried the bird some distance
away to a wooded lowland where we let
it out near a thorny thicket. The bird
scurried into the thicket, still dragging
his injured leg.
"We felt he would be quite safe there
from any dogs or cats. We also hoped he
might recover there sooner by finding its
own food.
* * * *
"Last fall my son called me out to look
at a new strange bird in our garden.
"I thought it looked like a cuckoo, so
we checked up in our bird book, and
identified it as the yellow-billed cuokoo.
"The bird was long, slender, very
smooth and streamlined in appearance.
It had a grayish-brown back and whitish
breast. Its bill was long and slightly
curved and the drab yellow color was
visible on the sides of it.
"It was about midday when we saw
this bird in a grove of sassafras saplings.
The bird was apparently Just resting. It
would spread out its wings and its tail.
When it spread its tail, we could see the
white spots in it.
“It would peer down and around first
this way, then that way. Occasionally
it would hop from one branch to an
other very quickly, but silently. It didn't
seem to notice us at all, although we
were within 15 feet of it and moved about
and carried on conversation in a low
voice.
"It really was a beautiful bird to be
hold and we thought we were very fortu
nate to see it in our own garden. We
admired it for about 10 minutes, and then
had to return to our household tasks.
"I am inclosing an essay on ‘Grass’
which I think is very beautiful and which
I found on a Southern Pacific Railroad
calendar a long time ago.
"Sincerely, V. I. S.”
* * * *
The essay on "Grass” is by John J.
Ingalls, late Senator from Kansas, and
Is as follows:
"Grass Is the forgiveness of nature—
her constant benediction.
"Fields trampled with battle, saturated
with blood, tom with the ruts of cannon,
grow green again with grass, and carnage
is forgotten.
“Streets abandoned by traffic become
grass-grown like rural lanes, and are
obliterated; forests decay, harvests per
ish, flowers vanish, but grass is immortal.
"Beleagured by the sullen hosts of win
ter, it withdraws into the impregnable
fortress of its subterranean vitality and
emerges upon the solicitation of spring.
"Sown by the winds, by wandering
birds, propagated by the subtle horticul
ture of the elements, which are its minis
ters and servants, it softens the rude
outline of the world.
"Its tenacious fibers hold the earth
in its place and prevent its soluble com
ponents from washing into the sea. It
Invades the solitude of deserts, climbs
the inaccessible and forbidding pinacles
of mountains, modifies climates and de
termines the history, character and des
tiny of nations.
"Unobtrusive and patient, it has im
mortal vigor and aggression. Banished
from the thoroughfare or the field, it
bides its time to return, and when vigi
lance is relaxed, or the dynasty has
perished, it silently resumes its throne,
from which it has been expelled, but
which it never abdicates.
“It bears no blazonry of bloom to
charm the senses with fragrance or
splendor, but its homely hue is more
enchanting than the lily or the rose.
"It yields no fruit in earth or air, and
yet should its harvest fail for a single
year, famine would depopulate the
world.”
Woodcocks are, indeed, amazingly
charming bird*. How any one eould
shoot them, we do not aee.
The yellow-billed cuckoo is also known
as the rain crow.
As for grass, as Senator Ingalls said,
we have it with u* always, in some form
or other, and in various states of com
pleteness.
This spring, with Victory gardening
gfting on, many acres of lawn will be
dug up.
It will be helpful to remember that
in the years to come, when people want
to go back to grass and flowers, all such
plots will be the better for the cultiva
tion which they received as vegetable
gardens.
Digging up an old lawn, and making a
new one, is a good and common prescrip
tion for poor grass, but not many home
owners follow it.
The Victory garden will solve the prob
lem. and at the same time pay dividends
in food, fresh air and exercise.
When Victory gardens give way to Vic
tory Itself, the plots used ought to grow
very fine grass, indeed, and the land be
all the better for it.
Letters to the Editor
Vole* for District Citizens
Urged as a Right.
To th« Editor of The Star:
It took Lincoln and his Emancipation
Proclamation to free the slaves of Amer
ica. But no subsequent administration
has attempted to remove the most un
democratic condition existing in these
United States—that political discrimi
nating line of demarcation which segre
gates the District of Columbia from the
rest of the Nation.
Both in peace and in war. Washing
tonians have done their duty, by pay
ment of taxes and by sacrifice of their
sons, but still we remain without a voice
in the Government.
Now, in this present crisis, is the time
for all native or self-declared Washing
tonians to demand that constitutional
privilege granted to all American citi
zens—the right to vote. If we are good
enough to pay taxes and to fight, we
certainly are good enough to vote.
Washington has been the “seat” of
the Nation long enough and now it is
time for this political barrier to be re
moved so that the District of Columbia
may become a recognized voting territory
of the United States.
JOSEPH C. JEROME.
Deplore* Prejudice*
In Racial Relation*.
To th« Editor of The Star:
A sense of futility takes hold of a per
son who tries to deal rationally with
the problem of racial and religious
prejudice. It is not easy to apply the
antidote of reason to the poison of
prejudice. An attempt to convince peo
ple that there i* no basis in reason for
the existing prejudice against persons
because of their race, color, creed or
place of national origin, is like trying to
persuade a man to order vanilla ice cream
when he has eaten chocolate ice cream
all his life. The blunt fact remains,
however, that the price we have paid
and are paying for our racial and re
ligious prejudices Is so high that we can
no longer continue to pay it and survive.
The Negro question is not the only one
that confronts us. The discriminations
practiced against the Jew, the Catholic
and the alien, for example, are certainly
not without importance. But there are
13 million American Negroes; in num
bers, aside from the variety and depth
of the discrlmlnationa against the Negro,
this problem is foremost.
The chief obstacle to an intelligent
consideration of the Negro problem la
largely one of definition. Employers who
worry about putting Negroes to work
alongside whites, parents who worry
about their children going to public
achoola with Negro children, and all
of the people who worry about sharing
public transportation facilities and at
tending public places with Negroes, con
fuse the ultimate solution of the Negro
problem with the practical, common
sense disposition of the day-to-day liv
ing problem. When one gets down to
cases with these people, he is met with
something like this: "Do you want them
at your house for dinner? Do you want
your children to marry them? Do you
want to have social Intercourse with
them?” No one seems to have a clear
judgment as to what the future will
bring with regard to assimilation and
like questions. But shall we let the
“where are we going” argument stand
ta the w«y of decent treatment for IS,
Letters to the Editor must
bear the name and address of
the writer, although the use of
a pseudonym for publication is
permissible. The Star reserves
the right to edit all letters with
a view to condensation.
000.000 American citizens today? Can’t
we do something about eliminating In
defensible discriminations against the
Negro without solving a problem that
the Inexorable laws of nature will take
care of anyway? I think we can and
must.
Our predecessors in this world have
deposited a tough problem on our shoul
ders. It would be rank folly not to
recognize and appreciate the serious
economic and social questions which
centuries of discrimination against the
Negro have posed for us. The conscience
account-books of society cannot be bal
anced overnight. We all know that
progress in eliminating racial and re
ligious prejudice has to be made slowly
if the sores and wounds are not to be
further aggravated. The road up may be
as long, as difficult and as testing as
the road down. With the prospect some
day of reaching the end of that road,
can any of us refuse to pull our feet out
of the swamp and start climbing?
Human nature seems to be so consti
tut.ed today that people eagerly look for
panaceas, for ready-made solutions, for
blueprint answers to the problems of
mankind. There are none. It may be
helpful to consider one instance in which
the intelligence handling of a practical
situation illustrates what can be done.
A large Midwestern manufacturer signed
a contract with the union in his plant.
When labor shortages loomed on the
horizon in 1941, the union suggested the
use of Negro labor to the management.
No Negro had ever before worked for
the company. After complaints were
filed with the Fair Employment Prac
tice Committee, the president of the
company frankly stated to Government
representatives that he thought it unwise
to employ Negro labor, that he feared
race riots, etc. Nevertheless, all inter
ested parties got together and worked
out a solution. First, Negro workers were
employed in the plant cafeteria, on the
theory that people are. used to seeing
colored workers in such places. After a
short while, colored workers were in
troduced into the plant proper as jani
tors. watchmen, etc. Finally, Negroes
were placed on the production line. In
each instance the highest type of avail
able Negro help was used. Today be
tween 10 and 15 per cent of the employes
are colored. No trouble has been en
countered and the company is genu
inely pleased about the whole thing.
There is no doubt that the intelligent
co-operation of the company, the union,
Negro leaders and Government represen
tatives, added to the presence in the
labor market of the best-type colored
worker, make this illustrative case a
model one. But it is a working model,
and shows clearly what the possibilities
are in one important phase of the
Negro problem.
There is no specific, no cure-all which
can be prescribed. There is no magic, no
presto-chango, by which bad can be
turned into good, wrong Into right. That
result can be achieved only by a constant
struggle for the attainment of common
sense and humanitarian decency
HERBERT N. 8HEHK1H.
Haskin's Answers
To Questions
By Frederic J. Haskin. v
A reader can get the answer to any
Question of fact by writing The Eve
ning Star Information Bureau, Fred
eric J. Haskin, director, Washington,
D. C. Please inclose stamp for return
postage.
Q. What Is the degree of absenteeism
in Congress?—J. F. D.
A. The average absenteeism in the Sen
ate and House of Representatives Is esti
mated to be 10 per cent. A survey made
In the House of Representatives during
the three weeks preceding February 23,
1943, showed an average of 13 per cent as
a whole.
Q. At what altitude can a Flying Fort
ress be seen with the naked eye?—
C. K. E.
A. The Army Air Corps says that under
extremely clear weather conditions the
maximum altitude at which a Flying
Fortress can be seen with the naked eye
(normal vision) Is from 15,000 to 18,000
feet. This distance is an unofficial esti
mate.
The Children’s Book—Complied
especially to provide entertainment
for the younger members of the
family, the grownups also will enjoy
the stories and verses chosen from
some of the best-loved classics of
childhood. For rainy day fun there
are riddles, paper folding, scrambled
names and lots of other Interesting
things to do. To secure your copy of
this attractive little publication in
close 10 cents in coin, wrapped in this
clipping, and mall to The Star In
formation Bureau.
Name
Address
Q. Are most bacteria harmful to man?
—E, L. H.
A. Contrary to popular opinion, this Is
not so. Out of about 2.000 known kinds,
only 100 are believed to be harmful.
Q. After Lincoln's death, in how many
places did his body lie in state?—T. F, S.
A. In 14 cities.
Q. How much lumber is used each year
for matches?—S. D. C.
A. From 70 to 80 million board feet.
Q. What is the Mazarin Bible?—M.
R. B.
A. This is a name by which the Guten
berg Bible was known because of the fact
that the first copy was found in the li
brary of Cardinal Mazarin of France.
Q. Are there white robins?—H. G.
A. There are more albinos among
robins than any other species of birds,
but only about a half dozen a year are
reported.
Q. What is meant by letting land lie
fallow?—A. G.
A. Fallow land is land which is plowed
but not seeded, either for the purpose of
allowing moisture to gather in the soil
or to kill weeds and plant diseases.
Q. Who wrote "But war's a game
which were their subjects wise, Kings
would not play at”?—D. D. E.
A. William CowT>er. It is found in
"The Task.”
Q. What does the white star on Armv
trucks stand for?—D. R. D.
A. The War Department says that the
white star on United States Army trucks
is a designation for a Federal vehicle.
It has no particular significance.
Q. What is the legend of the Flvlng
Dutchman?—A. M.
A. The Flying Dutchman Is popularly
believed to haunt the waters around the
Cape of Good Hope. Its appearance is
considered by sailors as an omen of
disaster. The commonest version is to
the effect that the captain of the vessel
Vanderdecken was condemned for his
blasphemy to sail around the cape for
ever, unable to make a port.
•-— *
Q. What are some of the different
branches of the Marine Corps?—R. N. B.
A. The Marine Corps includes in
fantry, field artillery, defense artillery,
machine-gun companies, engineers and a
signal corps, in addition to parachute
troops, glider units and demolition
squads.
Q. What is the meaning of the musical
term, “pizzicato"?—R. C. W.
A. It is the plucking of the strings
of a musical instrument which is usually
bow'ed. The custom was originated by
Monteverde in the 17th century and is
used occasionally to obtain special
effects. Beethoven used the device in his
“Symphony in C Minor.”
Q. Were thpre concentration camps
in South Africa during the Boer War?—
R. F. G.
A. In 1901 Kitchener instituted con
centration camps in South Africa, Into
which he intended to bring all of the
noncombatant inhabitants. It was not
a successful venture. The effect of re
moving the women and children from
the farms increased the resistance of
the men. There was a very high rate
of mortality, particularly among the
children, in the concentration camps,
which aroused bitter criticism.
Great Grandsire's Proposal
In this ornately fine Spencerian
script,
Each letter on the down stroke
deeply shaded,
1 seem to see great grandsire as
sternlipped
He pompously proposed in note
now faded:
"If your heart prompts not favorable
reply,
Let not my letter.” Grandtose, it
read;
Dear little grandmother, so sweet
and shy,
I wish I knew what her acceptance
said!
The next year this daguerreotype
was made;
My grandsire seated, pompous still
and. bolder,
While grandmother most lovingly
has laid
Her little mitted hand upon hU
shoulder;
Quaint bonnet ruched beneath her
chin is tied . , t
How glad we both are that her heart
replied1
INEZ SHELDON TYLER.