Evening star. [volume], May 13, 1944, Page A-6, Image 6

About Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972

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W gening *faf
tVtth Sunday Mornins Edition.
_THEODORE W. NOYES. Editor.
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A—6 _SATURDAYTlviay 13, 1944
Men on Leave
Should the soldiers, sailors and
marines who are such welcome
week-end visitors to Washington
get it into their heads, as the result
of some recent squabbles, that the
policemen are anything but their
friends, it would be a double mis
fortune—a misfortune for the men
in uniform, who would surely reap
the penalties of military discipline,
and for Washington, which has been
bo free of such unpleasant incidents
in the past.
It is always difficult to sift the evi
dence in such cases, but there is
nothing to indicate that in recent
fracases the police have been doing
anything more than their duty or
that they were to blame for a mili
tary man’s natural zealousness to
come to the rescue of a comrade
who seemed to be in trouble.
There is no better way to judge
the discipline of men in uniform
than by their conduct on leave, a
fact which the military authorities
will have ii^mind in cautioning their
men against any show of hostility
to the overworked police. On the
other hand, the police have shown
their willingness, along with every
body else out of military uniform,
to give the man on leave a break
and help him if his foot slips. Mili
tary authorities in this area are high
In praise of the co-operation of
Washington police, who are as much
on the serviceman’s side as any
body, and who leave all infractions
of discipline to the M. P.'s and the
shore patrol unless they are forced
to step in. The result of rows with
the police will only work to punish
the vast majority of men whose
excellent conduct on leave has made
it such a pleasure to have them
in town.
Not Starry-Eyed
At one of the closing sessions of
the world conference of the Inter
national Labor Organization in
Philadelphia the other day. the two
United States Government dele
gates—Secretary of Labor Frances
Perkins and Senator Elbert D.
Thomas—offered a proposal of par
ticular interest because it expressed
the official view of this Nation re
garding the social objectives of the
next peace.
Stated briefly, the proposal would
make it a matter of international
obligation to maintain a high level
of employment and promote im
proved standards of living through
out the world. To this end, a set
of clear-cut social principles would
be incorporated in the treaties to
be drawn up after the war. the
chief of these principles being: (1)
That all persons wanting to work
be given the chance to do so at fair
wages, under reasonable conditions
and with protection against occupa
tional hazards; (2) that the well
being of the different national pop
ulations be advanced through ade
quate programs of nutrition, hous
ing, medical care and education;
(3) that minimum job standards be
established to prevent labor ex
ploitation; (4) that provision be
made for the creation of sickness,
injury, old-age and unemployment
benefits to insure a steady flow of
income to individuals who would
otherwise suffer, and C5) that there
be general recognition of the right
of freedom of association and col
lective bargaining.
To som'e critics such a proposal
may seem t,o be a New Dealish ef
fort to make the world New Dealish.
but in point of fact it reflects the
general sentiment expressed by most
of the delegates from the 40-odd
nations represented at the ILO con
ference and is made of much the
6ame substance as the ‘ Philadel
phia Charter,” the statement of so
cial objectives unanimously adopted
by the conference. The thing that
distinguishes it. is the fact that it
constitutes an official move by our
Government to have these objectives
lifted in due time to treaty status,
so that the signatories to any inter
national peace pacts would assume
more definite obligations in respect
to social reform than would other
wise be the case.
Of course, for nations merely to
agree, in a treaty that it is their
duty to maintain employment at a
high level and to improve living
standards, does not guarantee that
the duty can or will be well per
formed. But the value of such an
agreement is that it involves, some
compulsion to live up to the obliga
tion by taking steps to achieve the
objectives — more compulsion, at
least, than a broad statement of
principles or ideals lacking the
force or solemnity of a treaty. Al
though it may be faulty in detail,
the American proposal thus has
much to recommend it, especially
because the soundness of the next
peace will depend-largely upon far
seeing and vigorous international
action designed to provide a decent
livelihood for the masses of people
everywhere.
It is certainly true, at any rate,
that demagogues and men on horse
back thrive best in places where
poverty and unemployment exist on
a large scale. It is true, too, that
national economics are so inter
dependent that when depression
strikes one country, other countries
are affected in varying degrees and
that if the depression deepens and
spreads, there develop those inter
national frictions which all too often
in the past, have led to war. In the
circumstances, the American pro
posal for a social-minded peace,
promoted by treaty, or a similar
proposal designed to effectuate the
basic principles of the ILO, is by no
means a starry-eyed idea. On the
contrary, if something like it could
be realized, the stability of tomor
row’s world would be well served.
New Drive in Italy
The strategic meaning of the new
offensive suddenly launched by the
Allied armies in Italy should be in
terpreted with caution. The tech
nique, as described by American war
correspondents on the battle front,
is strikingly similar to the start of
the epochal stroke at El Alamein.
There is the same predawn cre
scendo of massed artillery, prefac
ing the advance of engineers and
infantry under an umbrella of air
craft in undisputed mastery of the
local skies. Furthermore, this actual
start of the offensive was preceded
by an intensive aerial bombing of
enemy communications far to the
rear of his battle front which has
reportedly disrupted rail links
throughout Central Italy and re
duced enemy reliance to motor
transport on highways also under
aerial bombardment. There was
even the blasting of a big dam near
the Adriatic coast which may have
induced the withdrawal of the
Germans from a nearby salient in
order to straighten their lines in
that sector of a front extending
some 90 miles clear across the
Italian peninsula from sea to sea.
The German high command has
obviously suspected for some time
that something important was in
the wind. This is shown by Marshal
Rommel's recent inspection of the
Italian front, by the flooding of the
Pontine Marshes through which
.runs the coastal high road to Rome,
and by more intensive shelling of
our Anzio beachhead during the past
few days. Incidentally, this de
tached theater of hostilities, some
60 miles north of the main front,
has not as yet been involved in the
Allied offensive, though it would be
logical to assume that it will pres
ently flame into aggressive activity.
Other developments are likewise
possible, including “leapfrog” land
ings well up either coast of Italy.
Presumably, the cardinal point is
how much manpower, equipment
and landing craft the Allied high
command has earmarked for the
Italian campaign with reference to
the totals available for the over-all
assault on Hitler’s European For
tress. That is the unknown quan
tity which time alone will disclose.
Provisionally, the new drive in
Italy may be considered as the
opening gun of the general offen
sive. launched in a theater where
weather and terrain are at their
best for offensive operations. The
Germans are now faced with the
problem of holding their ground,
perhaps under the necessity of com
mitting fresh reserves to Italy, or
of retreating north of Rome or even
to their main defense line along the
Apennines which guards the Po
Valley. Thus far, they seem to be
resisting with maximum energy,
and there has been no indication of
extensive troop withdrawals north
ward. The strength of their pres
ent trans-peninsular line is such
that a grim struggle is likely be
fore any decision is reached in the
current combat zone.
Case Dismissed
Because it sheds a significant light
on the true character of the Gov
ernment’s seizure of the Montgomery
Ward mail-order house, the final
disposition of the larceny case
against Paul D. Sowell, a subordinate
Ward official, is worthy of notice.
Mr. Sowell was arrested for re
moving one of a number of posters
which had been put up in the
establishment after the Government
had taken possession. He claimed
that he had removed the poster so
that he could study it in his office.
The Government officers presumably
concluded that he was guilty of an
act of defiance which ought to be
punished one way or another, so
Sowell was arrested on a charge of
theft, fingerprinted and handcuffed.
In the light of the facts as they now
appear, this was an outrageous abuse
of power.
The complaint against Sowell
came up for hearing yesterday be
fore a United States commissioner.
Since the Government’s representa
tives had treated him like a danger
ous criminal a few days before, it
was logical to expect a vigorous
prosecution. But nothing of the sort
was forthcoming. Instead, the offi
cial who had signed the complaint
asked the commissioner to dismiss
the charge, asserting that the “ends
of justice do not require further
prosecution in this case.”
As the commissioner pointed out,
however, in rebuking the Govern
ment’s representative, there was no
evidence on which the complaint
could have been sustained. The
arrest was based on a trumped-up
charge and Sowell was put through
a Gestapo-like process of public
humiliation. Then, when the time
arrived for the Government to
justify its action in open court, it
calmly moved to dismiss the com
| plaint, conceding in effect that it
could not be sustained.
Perhaps this incident, in itself, in
a small thing. But it is typical of
what can happen to individuals
when Government officers decide to
take the law into their own hands,
and for that reason is deserving of
more than ordinary attention.
Deserved Acknowledgment
The testimonial luncheon to Mrs.
Walter S. UfTord, planned for Mon
, day, is one of those spontaneous
| gestures of appreciation, by her
I friends, which are not uncommon in
! Washington. They usually come
I about as the result of general rocog
! nition of services performed and the
desire to acknowledge it publicly.
; Mrs. UfTord is not as active now as
she once was in community affairs
and what she is doing these
days is merely a continuation
of what she has been doing
since she came to Washington some
thirty-four years ago. But some
body suggests that something ought
to be done for Mrs. UfTord and the
suggestion meets immediate and
generous response. And it is a good
thing that this is the case. For Mrs.
UfTord is a living refutation of the
slanderous statements sometimes
made to the effect that Washington
is- lacking in “civic spirit.” She is
an embodiment of that spirit and
it never tires. Her chosen field is in
helping the underdog, and in the
thick of most of the worth-while
efforts by citizens in this direction
one finds Mrs. UfTord, with her ban
ner unfurled. She is perhaps one of
the most persistent lobbyists in
Washington. Once she gets hold of
a Congressman or District Commis
sioner, he will not escape unim
pressed or with a comfortable con
science until he lends a willing ear.
She spends hours at her telephone,
gathering facts and arguments for
something she wants to do. And she
seldom lets go until it is done. No
body pays her for her time or effort.
The profits she reaps are in terms of
satisfactory knowledge that she has
at least done her part. The lunch
eon planned for Monday is one of
the few occasions she has ever had
to hear other people tell her what
they think of her. It will be pleas
ant for her, and her friends, to hear.
It seems surprising that Goebbels
has failed to take a tip from Moscow
and tell the Germans that all that
noise in Berlin really is a series of
victory salutes.
There may be many temporary
feints at invasion, but the real per
manent wave of invasion will make
Hitler’s hair curl.
This and That
By Charles E. Tracewell.
"CANADIAN JOINT STAFF.
I "Dear Sir:
"The remarks regarding the arrival
of swallows in the Washington area in
: your This and That column in The Eve
ning star have prompted me to report
to you that a pair of rough-winged
swallows graced the scene at the Tidal
Basin on Eastern Sunday afternoon.
"During the past winter I was inter
ested in what you have had to say with
regard to the migratory habits developed
by the European starling in this country.
It might interest you to know that the
starlings, or at least great numbers of
them, spend the winter in Ottawa up in
Canada where there is usually much
snow and where temperatures often
drop to 20 or 30 below zero.
“Unlike you, I am not particularly
fond of this newcomer to our North
American bird world, though I grant
you he has the quality of toughness. I
entirely agree that he must have a
beneficent effect on agriculture although
with this point I am not at the moment
concerned. In my view in our cities he
is without virtue, particularly as he di
rectly competes with the robin insofar as
food supply is concerned. Yet, strangely
enough, I have noticed, by direct obser
vation over a number of years in Ot
tawa, that the advent of the starling
has in no way diminished the number of
robins per mile of city lawn. I have,
therefore, been led to wonder if there
was not a considerable factor of safety
in the extent of the claims that each
pair of robins stake out for themselves
each spring.
"Believe me,
"Yours very truly, M. p„ Maj. Gen.”
* * * *
The starling is one bird in the city
and another in the suburban and coun
try sections.
In town he is dirty, due to his roosting
habits,- but in the outskirts he seldom
comes in such numbers and acts more
the role of a songbird.
A great many people hereabouts fail
to realize that the starling migrates
j every winter to Canada. They see plenty
here In the cold, and never suspect that
countless thousands of them have gone
North.
The bird seen in summer may not be
the .same one seen in winter.
This is a free flyer, whose incoming
along Pennsylvania avenue every eve
ning is something to watch, for it's bold
sure flight.
Many a hard-headed businessman has
paused in the rush which binds him, and
has spent a few minutes looking out at
their torpedo-like flow along the little
I canyon of the thoroughfare.
He may not, always realize that he is
j watching some of the finest flyers in
' the world.
Mankind in recent years has worked
up a new respect for flight. Now that
we have our own flyers, we may recall
; that the birds, after all, were the orig
j inal "airmen."
* * * *
I Starlings, we are convinced, do not
j harm other species.
| Out in the Middle West they invade
! Ereat cattle barns, and make considera
j ble nuisances out of themselves.
; The killing measures taken against
them there do not speak any too well
ior our kindness and mercy. In some
| States great killing fests have taken
place, with the prize going to the person
I who wrings the most starling necks.
; Hereabouts the starling lias come to
be accepted, since it, is protected bv
| the law.
Those who pay particular attention to
j the bird will be rewarded by discovering
I that it is both beautiful and interesting.
In time it may be economically useful,
j if its observed habit, as reported in this
column, of digging up and eating the
larvae of the Japanese beetlfi, becomes
a universal starling habit.
It is interesting to note that Govern
, ment scientists who have studied this
bird closely unite in praising it., calling
attention to its varied whistles in spring,
and to the marvel of its massed flights,
which in uniformity are unequaled by
any other species.
Letters to The Star
How to Pick Up Friends
And Appreciate People.
To the Editor of The SUr:
Owing to uncertain hours, frequent
business trips of several days’ duration
and considerations of health, it has
been impossible for me to participate
in a regular driving pool. As a result,
my five-passenger Lizzie and its pilot
imve become inveterate pickers-up.
The practice was not easy to start,
but, once established, the habit is most
pleasant and interesting. Furthermore,
it eases one's conscience when one
pleads for his modest allotment of gaso
line.
My home is well over £he Maryland
: line, which gives us splendid opportu
nity to ’’ply our trade’’ and furnishes a
! wide variety of “customers-guests.”
Lizzie and I like to tote some of the
surprising number of county youngsters
who go to Woodrow' Wilson High, Im
maculata, Friends and the other schools
near Wisconsin avenue. On our early
; starting days we get businessmen, Gov
! ernment employes and service folks.
| When we are delayed, we carry shop
! pers and others who are not on
I schedule.
By disregarding the inefficiency of
stops and starts, we carry as many as
eight or more passengers, filling our
vacancies as fast as they occur. And
Lizzie never complains.
We get all kinds, from the young col
ored girl who successfully juggled an
open umbrella, a heavy suitcase alfd a
cute pickaninny without getting
drowned or dropping anything, to the
very formal Briton who Insisted on get
ting out and helping a lady “customer”
to embark.
We had two young Chinese who had
no English except certain feflections
upon the ancestry of the Japanese as
we passed that Embassy. We agreed
heartily.
One morning we collected a British
admiral, an American admiral and a
mere lieutenant commander on sepa
rate corners. The admirals were pleas
antly vocal; the lieutenant commander
and the driver were awed into com
plete silence, but Lizzie squeaked and
rattled as usual.
Since we have considerable option as
to routes, the first downtown passenger
determines the way we go. It is sur
prising how many times a full load
stays with us to our own destination.
And in all these months only one un
pleasant incident—a fussy female who
couldn’t see why Lizzie shouldn’t carry
three people out of their beat in order
to please the last “arrival.”
In a certain respect we are still ama
teurish. We hesitate to pull up beside
the pulchritudinous young female who
might, perchance, think that the sixty
ish old gent is flirtatious. We solicit
such “trade” only when we already have
“customers.”
It’s a grand and glorious adventure in
humanics. We learn much from our
passengers and find them appreciative
far beyond our deserts.
When we pick one of them up for the
second time, we are old friends. Prom
the boys in uniform we get a slant at
their problems and valuable tips for an
other young man who soon will be one
of them.
At one stage we contemplated a reg
ister for passengers—partly to prove
we are doing our duty and deserve our
gas and partly to preserve a record of
a pleasant experience. But we chucked
the idea. Somehow or other, it would
have formalized the fun and spoiled
the spontaneity.
Lizzie and I like this pick-up stuff
and when circumstances force us to
travel alone, we miss the company.
Because we are average folks, we be
lieve most other drivers would get the
same kick out of being pickers-up as
we do. And according to the experts,
-every little bit helps.
CHEVY-CHASRR
Wonders About “Conversion.”
To the Editor of The Star:
The writer is in receipt of a copy of
a speech made by Senator Moore during
the debate on the administration's sol
dier vote bill. While I do not agree
with all of his arguments, he defends
States’ rights very ably and I agree, be
ing a lifelong Democrat and feeling
that it is one of the traditional doc
trines of our party. I am delighted that
the Senator, in company with many
mote Republicans, have become con
verted and hope they will continue to
stand for States’ rights and are not
just using it now for political purposes.
So I shall watch with interest the vote
I on the antipoll tax bill, now coming up
in the Senate.
WELLINGTON SMITH.
Objects to Mr. Lloyd’s V iews
To the Editor of The Star:
Recently Harold Lloyd published a
letter in your columns that should not
go unchallenged. He quoted from an
opinion of Associate Justice Nelson of
the Supreme Court, “our States are
distinct sovereignties as independent of
a Federal or National Government as
Chile or Austria.” This opinion was
rendered before our Civil War. Just
as that conflict nullified Chief Justice
Taney's observations in the Dred Scott
case, so the war decided the States
were not as independent as the writer
suggested.
Suppose we had existed only as a
loosely knit federation of States when
j the present war broke out: Because of
lack of immediate danger, States in the
| Middle West of isolationist ideology
might have failed to support the na
! tional defense.
But the most sinister aspect of Mr.
: Lloyd’s letter lies in the fact that he
! believes in the right of the divinely en
dowed and wise to rule—-by implication
: —without the consent of the masses
who are to be governed. I thought
the French Revolution and our owur
Revolution settled that point. He refers
! to the "American race." What is
this? He suggests that labor and
races with which “we come in contact”
should be thankful "for benefits instead
of throwing monkey wrenches in our
I social system.” He condemned the idea
| that “our dual school system” should be
tampered w?ith.
Aside from the academic discussion
in which Mr. Lloyd indulges, as to
whether we are a republic or a
democracy, the general tone of his letter
is a retreat from wisdom and a rational
ization based on beliefs that are not
truly American. Lincoln’s creed of a
Government of the people, by the people
and for the people—all the people—is
good enough Americanism for me.
E. B HENDglRSON.
! Ration Point Bankruptcy
By Raymond Moley.
A bit of investigation in the Mid
western city in which this is written re
veals some new theories and economic
laws for our savants. For the agoniz
ing efforts of the OPA to prevent infla
tion have brought to light a brand-new
form of insolvency, which mav be called
‘'point bankruptcy.” Out of my reflec
tions on the situation I make bold to
suggest for economists a new law of
inflation.
In this city, during the period in
which the point system of rationing has
been in operation, a number of meat
men. wholesale and retail, have gone
bankrupt in points. In vie# of the low
rate of commercial failures these days,
it is probable that point bankruptcy is
now more common than money bank
ruptcy. We can put down the note that
when better methods of failure are built,
there will always be some who will use
them.
* * * *
.A certain meat dealer in these parts
has been telling his customers that he
is short in excess of 75,000 points. One
of them inquired of the OPA and found
that the dealer had an actual deficit
of only about 25,000 points, but this has
been enough to put him in the hands
of the OPA's enforcement division. He
is pleading with customers to advance
him some points, particularly with
those to whom he has been so gener
ous, but such is the state of gratitude
in the modern breast that some of his
customers have begun cultivating other
dealers. He explains his plight by say
ing that he has too many man cus
tomers. The men “Just wouldn’t be
bothered.” Women, this dealer be
lieves, are more honest in little things.
Ordinarily, this particular meat deal
er might compound his debt with the
OPA and get some new working capital
in points. It is suspected, as a matter
of fact, that he did this some time ago.
If he could turn his business over to
creditors in the ordinary manner, they
might work him out or he might go to
the courts and be discharged of his
obligations. But, under the point sys
tem, there is no such thing as a bank
ruptcy bath. It appears to be perma
nent or for the duration.
Just how pitiable is the fix this Mid
western dealer is in will depend some
what, one suspects, upon the true state
of points-fluance in his city. If the
deficit is as low as a million, the OPA
could close him out. But if too many
dealers are id hock, pointwise, some
thing in the nature of amnesty or Jail
delivery would have to be arranged.
Otherwise, the public would run out
of stores.
*****
An unforeseen source of the civic defi
cit in this city has come from dealers
who use up their points and kite them
with their wholesalers before they close
their shops and are drafted. One such
dealer was drafted owing 30,000 points.
The OPA could no more get a point
judgment against a man in the Army
than the ordinary creditor can for
money.
Thus, to all the talk about money in
flation in this country, we can add that
there are traces of point inflation, not
unlike the inflation which occurred in
priorities before the controlled-mate
rials system was set up in the War Pro
duction Board.
On the basis of the facts show'n in
this article, I suggest a new law of in
flation for the money theorists; when
ever paper is designed to represent com
modities, we can have inflation. We set
up, in this case, point-money to pre
vent money inflation. Now we have in
flation in point-money.
The Political Mill
By Gould Lincoln
The CIO Political Action Committee,
headed by Sidney Hillman, and its
activities, particularly the expenditure
of money, is likely soon to come under
the scrutiny of congressional campaign
investigating committees. Under the
terms of the Smith-Connally Act, labor
unions are barred from making con
tributions to political campaigns—just
as corporations have been in the past.
The Political Action Committee, how
ever, holds that it is entirely within its
rights to take part in political cam
paigns. It has gone ahead raising a
large fund to be used in the present
campaign, and some estimates are that
it will throw $2,000,000 into the struggle
to elect a Congress to its liking and to
re-elect President Roosevelt.
The Senate already has appointed its
Campaign Expenditures Investigating
Committee. Senator Green of Rhode
Island is chairman—a strong Roosevelt
Democrat. The other members are
Senators Stewart of Tennessee and
Tunnell of Delaware, Democrats, and
Ball of Minnesota and Ferguson of
Michigan, Republicans. The expectation
is that the committee will be requested
to look into the CIO expenditures. In
deed, there have been rumors that re
quests for such an investigation will
come from Alabama and Florida, which
recently held senatorial primaries.
* * * *
The House committee has not yet been
named. A demand will be made, how
ever, that a strong committee be ap
pointed from that body and at an early
date. According to reports reaching
Washington, the Political Action Com
mittee was extremely active in the de
feat of Representative Starnes in the
5th Alabama district—a member of the
Dies Committee—and that it played an
important part in forcing two more
anti-New Deal Representatives, Manasco
in the 7th district and Newssome in the
9th, into runoff primary elections for
renomination.
In the past, House campaign investi
gating committees have been rather
perfunctory in their operations. But
this year many members of the House
are aroused, particularly over the activ
ities of the CIO committee. They are
planning, they say, to get to the bottom
of the matter and to see whether a law
enacted by Congress, amending the
Corrupt Practices Act, is to be flouted.
The Political Action Committee is not
letting the grass grow under its feet.
It has organized its branches through
out the country, with a main headquar
ters in New York. It publishes a news
paper—Political Action News—and
sends out regularly a new-s clip-sheet.
It has'divided the country into 14 areas,
with regional directors in charge of its
campaign in each of these areas. It is
centering particularly on the job of get
ting all CIO members and other work
ers registered. Because of the large mi
grations of labor into war industry
centers, this is considered essential.
* * * *
Already in its publications the com
mittee is taking credit for elections in
primaries to date. For example, it
claims that it was largely responsible
for the election in Massachusetts of 53
pro-Roosevelt delegates out of a total
of 56 to the Democratic National Con
vention. Only, it said, in the Brockton
district, where the CIO has no member
ship, were the Ely anti-fourth term
delegates victorious.
In the recent Ohio primary, the Po
litical Action Committee backed Frank
J. Lausche, Mayor of Cleveland, for the
Democratic gubernatorial nomination.
He won. Official indorsement of Mr.
Lausche was voted by Labor’s Joint
Committee for Political Action, com
posed of CIO. AFL and railroad broth
erhood unions. It will support William
G. Pickerel, the Democratic nominee
for Senator, who will run against Sen
ator Taft, Republican—whom the CIO
has denounced.
* * * *
The Political Action Committee in
New York is centering particularly its
attack on Gov. Dewey, the prospective
Republican nominee for President. It
is. in effect, the residuary legatee of
labor’s Nonpartisan League, which was
organized to help re-elect President
Roosevelt in 1936. The formation of
the American Labor party in New York
State was another outgrowth of the
movement. A bitter struggle for con
trol between the right and left wings
of the New York Labor party recently
resulted in a victory for the left wingers
—a bit disrupting. But both wings are
supporting the re-election of President
Roosevelt.
The representatives of the Political
Action Committee insist they have a
perfect right to take part in the coming
campaign. They will spend their money
as they see fit, not contributing it to the
organized Democratic Campaign Com
mittees, or other political party com
mittees. Its activities have already
been called to the attention of Attorney
General Biddle on the ground that it
is violating the Corrupt Practices Act.
Mr. Biddle has taken the position no
law has been violated, and also that
the law does not apply to primaries.
Members of Congress, however, view
the matter differently.
All-Out Offensive in Italy
By Maj. George Fielding Eliot
The significance of the Allied of
fensive in Italy must be judged in the
light of Gen. Alexander's order of
the day.
“From east and west, north and south,
blows are about to fall which will re
sult in the final destruction of the
Nazis. To us in Italy has been given
the honor to strike the first blow. We
are going to destroy the German armies
in Italy.”
A commander in chief does not use
such words lightly in addressing his
troops. He does not say “we are going
to destroy the German armies in Italy”
when he means' only to make a lim
ited attack to gain ground or improve
his position. We are seeing, therefore,
the beginning of an all-out offensive in
Italy, in which the troops in the Anzio
beachhead will unquestionably join at
the appropriate moment. Obviously,
Gen. Alexander believes that he can do
what he says he is going to do.
That means that he does not be
lieve the Germans can resist success
fully and it also means that he does
not believe they can get away.
One of the factors which leads Gen.
Alexander to these conclusions is
probably the reports of his air officers,
as to the destruction which they have
been able to carry out on the railways
of the peninsula. In a recent article
I pointed out the effect of the con
sistent interruption of railway traffic
since March 24—the steady reduction of
the reserves of ammunition and stores
in the German Army depots. It may
very well be that the situation has now
reached the point at which the Ger
mans do not have enough supplies in
their depots to maintain a protracted
defense, and cannot get more over the
shattered railways, at least not quickly
enough to take care of the needs of
battle.
* * * *
Another factor in Gen, Alexander's
conclusion that he can destroy the Ger
man armies tnav well lie in the position
of the troops in the Anzio beachhead.
There have been some reports that the
beachhead has been heavily reinforced.
It stands as a menace on the flank of
the German lines of communication.
This is a situation which is well
known to students of military history.
A fortress on the flank of a line of
communications must be reduced if it
contains a field army which can sally
! out and attack the line. The Russians
in 1877 were not able to advance on
Constantinople until they had reduced
the fortress of Plevna, which held Os
man Pasha's field army. The Germans
in 1914 were never easy about their
communications as long as the Belgian
field army was in the fortress of Ant
vverp, and many students of war think
the Germans might have suffered a
disaster if the British Expeditionary
Force had been thrown into Antwerp
instead of into France.
The fortress of Tobruk, though it
never held a large garrison, was a
thorn in the side of the German forces
in Egypt, and the influence wrhich it
exerted upon their freedom of action
was a decisive factor in the progress
of the campaign. Marshal Rommel
was never able to offer a serious threat
to Cairo and Alexandria until he had
reduced Tobruk.
* * * *
Now Marshal Kesselring finds himself
faced with a major attack on his whole
front, and with a strong Allied force
entrenched on the flank of his main
line of communications. His reserves
are not unlimited. He can send them
in to reinforce his threatened front:
he must do so, or the Allies will break
through. But he must also contain the
Allied forces in the beachhead. It is
quite possible, aside from his precarious
supply situation, that he does not have
enough troops to do both. Therefore,
he must choose: A painful decision,
of the sort that German officers must
make to an increasing decree in these
hard times.
If Kesselring throws his reserves
southward, he risks an Allied advance
from the beachhead which will cut
his main supply lines once and for all.
That is. he risks the destruction of his
army" right then and there. If he con
tains the beachhead, denying sufficient
support to his front line, then he risks
a break-through which may cut his
army up into two or three fragments for
separate destruction.
* * * *
Furthermore, he must consider the
possibility of another Allied landing,
for we have command of the sea and
complete superiority in the air. We
can land almost at will, provided the
allocation of shipping and landing craft
to the Mediterranean theater is suffi
cient for the purpose.
This is a situation in which many
officers might consider it necessary to
withdraw from Southern and Central
Italy altogether. The only alternative
would appear to be heavy reinforce
ments from Germany.
But this is no time for a German
commander in a secondary theater like
Italy to lie calling on the high command
for more troops. The attack in Italy
is "the first blow” of many that are
about to be rained on Germany from
every direction. Thus both Marshal
Kesselring and the German high com
mand are in a tough /;pot.
(Copyright, V!M4, New York Tribune, Inc 1
Choice of Forrestal
Held One of the Best
Washington Officialdom Is Seen
Needing Bit of Rejuvenation
By David Lawrence
President Roosevelt did much more
than reward James Forrestal when he
appointed him Secretary of the Navy.
He really recognized the importance
of putting younger men at the helm.
For what oiSkdal Washington needs
nowadays is a bif of rejuvenation. Too
many old jnen whose idea* are sound
enough in ttjeir way but who are not
equal to the tremendous problems that
lie ahead are in key positions.
War is a young man's game. And
so are the dilemmas of reconstruction.
Most people are inclined to think that
official Washington with its many desk
jobs presents an easy time with lots
of social leisure. As a matter of fact,
9 out of 10 men who occupy impor
tant jobs in Washington work 10 or
12 hours a day and then carry their
business home in briefcases. The
stories of those who drop by the way
side due to ill health are numerous,
though they do not often get into
the newspapers because many of these
officials are not prominent enough to
warrant attention.
Bpt the whole war period has taken
a toll of officials in high and low
places. The war cabinet, which means
not only the heads of peacetime de
partments but the heads of agencies
dealing with war operations—civilian
and military—are carrying burdens the
like of which nobody in Government
has ever known before. For while the
World War was just as intense, it was
not as lengthy. The strain on public
officials who have now been hard at
work since September, 1939, is some
thing new in American public life.
Pew Periods of Rest.
Periods of rest and relaxation are
occasional. Every now and then some
! official is authorized to take a vaca
| ticn due to the physician's orders, but
| actually most of them work on until
they are compelled to drop out.
The same is true of the legislators
nowadays. Members of Congress find
the war strain more severe than ever.
Not only are they belabored by the
usual problems of legislation but they
are asked to run errands here for their
constituents in connection with the war.
Every member of Congress finds the
going harder than usual. Then on top
of it all, the entire House of Repre
sentatives and one-third of the Senate
must go before the people in a national
campaign this year.
In many > respects, it is unfortunate
that there tbs to be an election at this
time. The Constitution, of course, pro
vides for it and there is not the slight
est intention of avoiding an election,
as so many hostile critics have suspect
ed and charged. It is one thing to say
! that an election will not be held, and it
is another to argue that it ought not to
be held. There is no way that an elec
tion can be deferred because the Consti
tution provides for it. But neither the
Canadian nor the British governments
have found it necessary to hold elec
i tions in the midst of war.
Under the Canadian and British
parliamentary system, an election can
be withheld. Thug, if the parliamentary
system was in vogue in America, an
election could be postponed till peace
is declared, when a new President
would be elected instead of retaining
one tired out from the labors of the
war periods
Respected by Leaders.
The appointment of James Forrestal
to be Secretary of the Navy brought a
wave of,, satisfaction throughout official
j Washingt&n^ This wTas not merely be
cause Mr. Forrestal is a competent
official who deserves the promotion, but
| because he is a young man and the very
| type who ought to be given weighty
j responsibilities these days.
Mr. Forrestal has not only the re
| spect of the people*, inside the Navy
! Department with who#Ng£ has worked
intimately—both naval officers and
civilian officials—but he has t,he re
spect and confidence of memb&ss of
Congress. This is most important be
cause the Secretary of the Navy has
much to do with Congress in getting
appropriations and with keeping Con
] gress informed on various changes in
j naval policy as the appropriations are
i put into use.
Mr. Forrestal will bring to the cabi
| net table sound business judgment. He
! is neither an anti-New Dealer nor a
New Dealer. He is what might be called
j a true liberal. He knows that neither
j people nor governments can remain
static and that certain reforms are long
overdue, but he has always insisted that
because reforms are necessarily painful
at times, they should all the more be
administered by those sympathetic to
the problems of the citizenry. The
Forrestal appointment is one of the best
ever made by President Roosevelt.
(ReproductiotJiB.ights Reserved.)
St. George on Sea Horse
From the Montreal Star.
Yesterday from London came a story
| to capture the imagination of a public
to whom mechanical miracles have be
come a commonplace. It told of four
young men who had been decorated by
the King for their part in the attacks
on Italian ships in Palermo Harbor.
What caught ttre^attention, however,
was the manner in which the attacks
had been carried out—the fact that
the men had ridden into harbor
astride torpedoes, fastened the explosive
nose charge td^the hull of the chosen
vessels and ‘'galloped” off on what was
left of the torpedo.
This is a new type of charger for
knights of battle. But these men on
their steel "sea horses” must have gone
into the harbor of Palermo in the same
spirit as the St. Georges of another day
breasted their dragons.
Tales of great battles won, and im
portant gains achieved, are always wel
come. But for inspiration we still look
to the epic of individual courage to stir
us to pride in the human race.
Cosmos
Here, in the sun, beside the tumbled
wall
7 turn the^ftfh, freeing the soil from
tangled root's
Of grass, sifting the grains, where the
green fingers
Of the seed will channel new paths
Upward to the stm. The earth is warm,
yet cool, to touch—
Bearing the deep, implicit promise,
Timeless and yet of time, moving un
impeded
Through gun and rain, until fulfilled
In the spreading glory, accomplished
In the inceptive quiet, out of the golden
year—
The crystal garden rainbowed with th$
p^mcd answer of eternity.
w CORNELIA B. FURBISH. <0