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_-Cl0S^9 N-J-. Morkets-Soles, Page A-15._ _ _L.. An Assoc^ed-press New^poper-'
94th YEAR. No. 37,389 Phone NA. 5000, D. C., MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 16, 1946—THIRTY-TWO PAGES. *** 5 CENTS
Wallace Reaffirms His Views
On Russia, Intends to Speak
Again Soon on Same Subject
Single-Paragraph
Statement Ignores
Truman Repudiation
Secretary of Commerce Wal
lace issued a statement today
, saying he stands on his New York
speech for a softening of Amer
ican policy toward Russia and
that he intends to speak on the
, subject again.
Mr. Wallace, in a one-paragraph
statement, made no mention of
President Truman or of the Presi
dent’s repudiation of Thursday
night's speech as reflecting this
Nation’s foreign policy.
The statement said:
“I stand upon my New York
speech. It was interesting to find
that both the extreme right and the
extreme left disagreed wdth the
views I expressed. Feeling as I do,
however, that, most Americans are
concerned about and willing to work
for peace, I intend to continue mv
efforts for a just and lasting peace
and I shall, within the near future,
speak on this subject again.'’
Cabinet Split Heralded.
Mr. Wallace's announcement ap
parently heralded a wide-open split
in Mr. Truman's cabinet between
the Commerce Secretary and Secre
tary of State Byrnes, whose aides
here and in Paris have made no
secret of his bitter opposition to
Mr. Wallace's ideas.
The fighting tone of what Mr
Wallace had said was enough to
make it almost certain that the
President would have to review at
once the whole cabinet crisis aris*
ing from the split between Mr
Wallace and Mr. Byrnes and de
termine whether Mr. Wallace could
or could not remain in the cabinet.
Mr. Wallace was represented by
aides as having no thought of re
signing from his job, voluntarily be
cause he does not consider that the
situation calls for such action—
especially since Mr. Truman recog
nized his right to make the New
York speech. However, if the Presi
dent sees fit to ask his resignation,
it was said. Mr. Wallace will go right
on campaigning outside the Govern
ment for the kind of foreign policy
he wants.
Mr. Wallace talked with the Pres
ident by telephone immediately be
fore he issued his statement, aides
said. They reported he would see
the President probably tomorrow,
but by Wednesday at the latest.
Mr. Wallace is scheduled to speak
on "Peace Through Trade” at the
first meeting of the Bast and West
Association's fair at the Commerce
Department auditorium next Mon
day night. There was no indication,
however, he would take this occa
sion to continue along the lines of
his New York address.
At the White House, Press Secre
tary Charles G. Ross said the Presi
dent has not talked with Secretary
of State Byrnes since Mr. Wallace’s
New York speech on Thursday night
raised the furor over foreign policy.
No Influx of Mail.
Mr. Byrnes, leading the American
delegation at the peace conference in
Paris, has consulted the President
by trans-Atlantic telephone fre
quently during past weeks.
The Wallace speech has not
caused any influx of mail to the
White House, Mr. Ross also told a
questioner.
Acting Secretary of State Clayton
was scheduled to confer w'ith the
President this afternoon, but there
were no indications that the talk
concerned the controversy over the
Wallace speech. Mr. Ross explained
, it is a regular thing for the Secre
tary of State or Acting Secretary
to go over the foreign policy matters
with the President each Monday.
Returns From Family Farm.
Mr. Wallace returned to his office
■ today after a week end at the family
farm in Dutchess County. New York
Mr. Truman told a hastily-sum
moned news conference Saturday
that he had not intended to indorse
the substance of the speech in which
Mr. Wallace called for a loosening oi
American ties with Britain, recogn
tion of a Russian sphere of influence
in Eastern Europe and an end tc
~ (See WALLACE, Page~A-~2.)~
Cubs Lead Dodgers,
5-2, in Filth Inning
By the A&socioted Pre»s
BROOKLYN, Sept. 16.—The Chi
cago Cubs routed the Dodgers’ Leftj
Vic Lombardi in a first-inning at
tack that netted five runs befori
Hugh Casey, relief pitcher, finall;
put out the blaze.
The Dodgers scored two runs Ii
their half, however, and the garni
was 5 to 2 in favor of the Cubs ii
the fifth inning.
Peanuts Lowrey opened the firs
for the Cubs with a single to left ani
Bob Sturgeon followed with a run
scoring triple. Dick Whitman got ;
glove on the ball but couldn’t hold il
Ed Waitkus drove Sturgeon hom
with a double down the right fiel
foul line. After Ed Stanky boote
Phil Cavarretta’s roller, Marv. Rick
ert doubled to left, scoring Waitku
and sending Vic Lombardi to th
showers.
Hugh Casey came in and Clyd
McCullough immediately hit a 2-ru
single to center and the .Cubs ha
five runs in and a man on first wit:
nobody out. Casey retired the lies
three men in order, leaving McCul
lough on third, where he had move
on a stolen base and an infield ou
The Cubs' Hank Wyse also faile
to get anybody out before he gav
way to Lefty Bob Chipman and tw
Brooklyn runs scored.
Stanky doubled to right an
scored on Cookie Lavagettos singl
to right. After Wyse walked Augi
Galan and Dixie Walker to fill th
bases, Charley Grimm called ii
Chipman. Lavagetto scored on i
double play. Chipman then go
Pinch Hitter Joe Medwick to retir
the side.
ft* >
; Wallace Row
| Aided Byrnes,
Observers Feel
'Firm Line' Policy
Seems Approved at
Home and Abroad
By Newbold Noyes, Jr.
Star Staff Correspondent
PARIS, Sept. 16.—Contrary to
I the predictions of many pessi
mistic observers, it seemed today
that American influence at the
Peace Conference has in n'way
been weakened by the interlude
which began Thursday with Sec-;
retary of Commerce Wallace’s
speech and ended Saturday as
President Truman renounced his1
previous “misunderstood” en
dorsement of what Mr. Wallace
had to say about United States
foreign policy.
The odd truth is that these bum
bles back home have probably
strengthened the hand of Secre
tary of State Byrnes—and of the
United States—at the Luxembourg
Palace and throughout the world. ,
Mr. Byrnes’ advisers here think
so. For the general uproar which
greeted the presidential slip of the
lip has, it is felt, shown clearly
that the State Department's recent
firm line is more solidly backed at
home and more widely approved
abroad than many, apparently in
cluding Mr. Truman, had suspected
There is no question but that,
diplomatically speaking, the incident,
featured Uncle Sam in the low com
edy role of a man solemnly hitting
himself in the face with a custard
pie. But the significant thing about
it was that nobody laughed—a point
which was not missed by United!
I States delegates here. One of them
explained: "The audience was too i
busy biting its fingernails.”
A spokesman for Mr. Byrnes said
.yesterday there is no truth to pub-1
lished reports that the Secretary of
State talked to President Truman
by telephone last week about the!
Wallace speech. He emphasized'
that from the start of the incident
■See MOVES. Page A-5.'t j
Communism Rejected
By Reich Voters in
Three Allied Zones
Red-Dominated Party
Wins Only in Soviet
Sphere of Government
By the Associated Press
BERLIN, Sept. 16.—German
voters in the American, British
and French zones of occupation
have rejected Communism as
their guiding political philos
ophy, at least for the time being.
This became apparent today when
'election returns from all four zones
of the Reich became available. In
the French and British zones’ vot
ing yesterday the Communists were
snowed under in much the same
fashion as in the American zone
elections held previously.
Incomplete returns from munici
pal and rural elections yesterday!
show the conservative Christian So
cialists won in the French zone,
moderate Leftist Social Democrats!
Heading after once trailing Inde-i
pendents in the British zone and the!
Communist - dominated Socialist!
Unity party victorious in the Rus
sian-occupied provinces of Bran-,
denburg and Mecklenburg.
Silent Red Faction.
Political observers said the Inde
pendents in the British zone in
cluded disgruntled Conservatives, a
Danish minority seeking the re- ]
union of Schleswig-Holstein with:
Denmark, and a silent Communist |
j faction.
At the halfway mark, counting in
(the British zone was Social Demo-1
! crats, 2.285,307: Christian Demo-!
'crats. 2,011,319: Independents, 1,885.-!
313: Lower Saxony Farmers’ party,;
,470.403: Communists, 339,146.
In the predominantly Catholic!
French area, the Communists trailed:
far behind the Christian Socialists,!
corresponding to the Christian Dem
ocratic Union in the British and
American zones. Independents, be
cause of the local nature of the elec
: tions, also piled up a considerable
■ vote.
Unofficial returns compiled by the
i French Military Government showed
■ the Christian Socialists ahead in all
[sections, the Saarland, Baden
Baden, the Palatinate and the
t j Rhineland.
* irencn Area Returns.
• The combined returns: Christian
i Socialists, 1,090,810; Socialists, 493,
086: Independents, 410,820; Com
- munists, 152,356. Liberal Demo
crats drew 45,005 votes in Baden
3 Baden and a leftist group called the
- party of the Palatinate got 12,293
s votes in the Palatinate.
e Tabulations by the provincial ad
ministration in Russian-controlled
e! Brandenburg from 1.557 precincts
t out of 2,300 gave the Socialist unity
3 i party 728,081 votes, the Christian
v Democratic Union 220,103 and the
t Liberal Democratic party 215,265.
-1 The Soviet-backed Socialist Unity
3 party thus repeated the* victories re
'• corded previously in Thuringia and
3 Saxony.
e In Mecklenburg Province, which
3 is mainly rural, complete returns
issued by the provincial administra
i tion gave the Soviet-supported party
: 601,100 votes, or 68 per cent of the
? ballots cast. The Conservative Chris
i -tian Democratic Union received 153.
l 130 votes and the Liberal Democratic
i party 96,474.
t The provincial announcement said
: i 84,481 votes cast in Mecklenburg
•were invalid.
f /
f
Genuinely Free
Trieste Is Called
For by Connally
Italy and Yugoslavia
Told to Subordinate
Pride to Peace
By Newbold Noyes, Jr.
Star Staff Correspondent
PARIS. Sept. 16—The United
States today told Yugoslavia and
Italy they must accept reason
able settlement of the Trieste
problem—that peace of the world
is more important than “inflated
national pride.”
The voice was that of Senator
Connally, Democrat, of Texas, con
gressional adviser to the United
States delegation at the Peace
Conference. He spoke before the
Italian Political and Territorial
Commission.
“The challenge to peace is here,"
the Senator said. “It is right here
on our doorstep, lying right here
on this conference table. We must
not create another Danzig.”
Must Be Free.
In a dramatic defense of the
American thesis that administra
tion of the Free Territory be created
in the Adriatic trouble zone must
be genuinely international, Senator
Connally declared: “The Free
Territory «f Trieste must in fact be
free—free from Yugoslavia and free
from Italy. It must be free from
intrigue and conspiracy. Its inde
pendence must be secure.”
The Senator noted that Russia
wanted to see the territory em
braced in a customs union with
Yugoslavia, a Soviet satellite state.
"It is the view of the American
delegation that the regulation of
customs is a matter for long-term
development,” Senator Connally
said. “It is our view that this mat
ter should be worked out at a later
date by the Free Territory and the
United Nations.”
The Senator made no reference to
the controversy arising from last
week s speech by Secretary of Com
merce Wallace on American foreign
policy. Instead, he devoted nearly
all his speech to comment on the
Trieste proposals made Saturday by
Soviet Foreign Minister V. M. Molo
tov and echoed this morning by the
Yugoslav Deputy Premier, Edvard
Kardelj.
In an hour-long speech. Mr.
Kardelj declared Western powers
were attempting to “draw a heavy
iron iron curtain around the Medi
terranean Sea.”
Continues Slav Campaign.
Continuing the Slav bloc cam
paign for a dominant Yugoslav posi
tion in the projected Free Territory
of Trieste. Mr. Kardelj said the
United States and Britain were op
posing Slav demands simply to pro
tect their rights and privileges in
the Mediterranean.
“They are inspired neither by
concern for the population of
Trieste, nor for the peoples of the
interior, nor for the people of Italy,”
said the stocky Yugoslav spokesman.
Meanwhile, the Bulgarian Politi
cal and Territorial Commission
voted eight to five along West versus
Slav lines to take up Greece’s de
mands for a slice of Bulgarian ter
ritory and a strategic frontier.
The vote came after K. V. Kiselev
of White Russia reported the con
ference’s secretary-general had
ruled a commission could discuss
any subject at any time. Slav dele
gates walked out of this commis
sion Friday when America and
Britain sought to consider the Greek
requests as a formal amendment.
Assails Greece’s Demands.
Soviet Delegate N. V. Novikov
assailed Greece's demands and
called for giving Bulgaria her
frontiers as they existed in Jan
uary. 1941. This, apparently, meant
Russia would abandon her support
for Bulgarian claims on Western
Thrace, but he did not mention
them.
Senator Connaliy In his speech on
Trieste said the Americans are not
at the Peace Conference to further
the interest of Yugoslavia or Italy.
‘•Yugoslavs and Italy—I hope
they are listening now—are both
subordinate to the peace of the
area and to the peace of the world,’’
he said. “The free territory must
not be a satellite of Yugoslavia
(See CONFERENCE, Page A-4.7”
Truman Favors
Caution in U. S.
Job Reduction
Cuts Must Not Hurt
Essential Services,
President Tells AFGE
By Joseph Young
Star Staff Correspondent
ST. PAUL, Minn., Sept. 16.—
President Truman today ex
pressed his opposition to indis
criminate firings of Government
employes during the current re
| duction-in-force program, in a
message sent to the national
convention of the AFL American
Federation of Government Em
ployes.
Mr. Truman's message to the
opening session of the convention
here cheered AFGE officials, who In
terpreted the President's statement
as meaning that he is opposed to the
arbitrary personnel ceilings on indi
vidual Federal agencies imposed by
the Budget Bureau as pan of the
reduction-in-force program.
In his message. Mr. Truman de
clared that reductions in Federal
personnel “are an absolute neces
■ sity,” but he also declared, “yet, at
' the same time, we must make sure
! that we distribute those reductions
| in such a way that none of the
j essential services of government are
j crippled ”
Burns Ts “Gratified."
Mr. Truman made no specific
mention of the. necessity of cutting
Federal employment to 1.600,000
i workers by next July as provided wi
lder the Federal Pay Act of 1946. con
tenting himself with the statement,
“we must see to it that we do not
;have any surplus personnel.”
James B. Burns, president of the
AFGE, declared that “we are very
; gratified by the President’s state
ment because that’s exactly the same
position we have taken for months.
We know that sharp personnel cuts
must be made and we dont’ want ex
cess baggage on the Federal payroll.
But we contend that the arbitrary
personnel ceiling system works hard
ships on many agencies that can’t
j operate efficiently with less person
nel. If we are to have efficient gov
ieminent, we can’t slash our payrolls
indiscriminately.”
The Federal Pay Act of 1946 con
tains a provision which authorizes
the Budget Bureau to set up per
sonnel ceilings in government on a
quarterly basis in order to fire ap
proximately 700,000 employes by
next July.
Duugei nurrau uiscreuon.
However, Congress later passed
the Third Deficiency Act which
gives the Budget Bureau discretion
not to drastically cut personnel in
some ageneies if it decides that to
do so “would be against the public
interest.” To date, however, the
Budget Bureau has stuck to the per
sonnel ceiling requirements of the
Federal Pay Act.
In his message. Mr. Truman said:
“I am aware, of course, that these
are difficult days for the career serv
| ice because of the necessity for re
ducing the number of persons on
the Federal Government's payroll.
These reductions are an absolute
necessity. We must see to it that
we do not have any surplus per
sonnel, and yet, at the same time,
jwe must make sure that we dis
tribute these reductions in such a
way that none of the essential
: services of the Government are
crippled.”
Must Strengthen Service.
Mr. Truman also said in his
message: “Your convention is being
held at a very important time.
! Never before in the peacetime his
tory of this Nation have Govern
ment employes been called on to
| discharge as difficult and as com
plex duties and responsibilities. If
i they discharge them successfully,
'they will make a major contribution
| to the preservation of our institu
tions. Failure to discharge them
effectively would seriously under
mine public confidence in our form
of government. We must therefore
i work together to strengthen our
jcareer public service.”
After stressing that personnel cuts
i must not be made in a way to
cripple the functions of government,
Mr. Truman declared: “I invite
you and the members of you or
ganization to do everything in your
power help us work out solutions
to this and other problems con
fronting the public service.”
Burns’ Annual Report.
Mr. Burns, in his annual report
to the convention, sharply attacked
the rival CIO United Public Work
ers of America and invited discon
| tented members of that union to
[join his organization,
j While not mentioning UPWA by
name, he made it clear he had the
union in mind by mentioning spe
cifically the Atlantic City conven
tion of UPWA, at which time the
CIO organization adopted a pro
Soviet foreign policy resolution. Mr
1 iSee AFGE, Page A-5.)—
100 on Guam, Led by Priest,
Boo Officer Who Eluded Japs
By th» Associated Press
GUAM, Sept. 16.—A group of 100
Guamanians, led by a Catholic
i priest, demonstrated with boos and
! placards today against Navy Lt.
George Ray Tweed. 4119 North
Henderson street, Arlington. Va.,
tne man who eluded the Japanese
during their 31-month wartime oc
cupation of Guam.
They expressed resentment at Lt.
Tweed's assertion in his recent book
j that a Guam priest, a Father
Duenas, had disclosed a confes
sional secret as to where Lt. Tweed
was hiding. Word eventually
reached the Japanese, and Lt.
Tweed escaped capture by a nar
row margin, he wrote.
Lt. Tweed returned w'ith a new au
tomobile as a gift for a Guamanian
| friend he credited with helping save
j his life during a precarious existence
dodging incessant Japanese pursuers
j during the war.
As the presentation ceremony
1 opened, a crowd of 100 Guamanians
marched into the plaza muttering
angrily and bearing signs of protest
Among the inscriptions were “We
Resent Tweed’s Appearance on This
Island,” “Our Necks for a Chevrolet’
and “Be Square, Be Decent, Be Off.’
Lt. Tweed strode toward the
marchers and snatched a sign read
ing “What about Tweed's desertion
in the face of the enemy?” and
tore it into shreds, stamping it under
foot.
The Guamanian demonstrators,
led by a Catholic priest, booed
loudly when Lt. Tweed approached
the microphone to speak, but,pres
ently marched out of the park in a
body, leaving only a few Guaman
ians to hear him.
Lt. Tweed presented a 1946 Chev
rolet to Antonio Artero, the man
who showed him a hiding place in
the hilly back country of Guam
and brought him food once weekly
for 31 months. Lt. Tweed said he
was sincerely grateful to the many
(See TWEED, Page A70
• >
Water Front Clashes
Threatened as AFL
Ignores CIO Pickets
Ryan Says Longshoremen
Do Not Respect Lines
Maintained by 'Commies'
By th« Associated Press
The 12th day of the Nation
wide maritime strike found New
I York City's water front tense to-1
day. with threats of clashes be
tween thousands of picketing
CIO seamen and AFL longshore
men, the latter under instruc
i tions not to “respect any Commy
picket line.”
CIO National Maritime Union
leaders hauled out their most for
midable weapon—the massed picket
line w'ith marchers so closely linked
it is virtually impossible to squeeze
through—as negotiations to end the
walkout collapsed.
Police strength was bolstered
throughout the sprawling docks
area. CIO leaders said last night
there might be trouble if the AFL
longshoremen attempt to breach
picket lines as they did Saturday!
to help unload the George Wash
i insrton.
14 Liners Due Today.
Fourteen liners with more than
6,000 passengers—half of them Army
or Navy personnel—were due in
New York port during the clay.
Many longshoremen we'-e on the
job along the water front, but they
had not passed picket lines to get
there. Some men, anxious to return
to work after 11 days of idleness,
reported for work early, before the
CIO pickets were dispatched for
duty.
Joseph P. Ryan, president of AFL
i longshoremen, was covering the
I water front in his black limousine,
urging his men to go to work where
steam was up and winches could
be operated.
“We don’t respect anv Commy
picket lines,” he said. ‘ If the AFL
seamen will give us steam well
work.” •
There was no indication that |
AFT seamen, who had the supporc
of CIO seamen in the early days!
of the strike, would return to work i
until members of the rival union,
too, had won a pay rise.
Great Show of Strength.
The AFL seamen won their de
mands in a ruling by Economic
Stabilizer John R. steelman, but
no provisions were made immedi
ately for passing the increase along
to CIO maritime workers.
NMU bosses, consequently, de
clared that more than 20.000 of
their men in New York port alone
would be marshaled for the great
est show' of strength ever seen in
a maritime labor dispute.
; More than 5,000 were expected to
go on the march today.
Conferences between officials of
the NMU and East and Gulf Coast
ship operators were broken off last
night when the operators said dis
cussions would be “futile” while
the NMU coupled its demands with
those of two West Coast unions.
The operators also refused to con
tinue the negotiations because of
the NMU’s action yesterday in with
drawing security W'atches from ships
in Atlantic and Gulf ports, leaving
< See MARiTIME, Page A-5.)~
10 Killed, 44 Injured
In New India Riots
By th« Associated Press
BOMBAY, Sept. 16.—One person
| was killed and eight injured today in
'renewed communal rioting in Bom-;
bay, bringing the casualty total for
the past two weeks up to 258 dead
and 790 injured.
In scattered disorders in Bombay j
and elsewhere, 10 were killed and
44 injured over the week end.
An outbreak of stabbings and ex- j
plosions in Ahmedabad resulted in j
three killed and eight injured. Au- 1
thorities imposed a 24-hour curfewi
in disturbed areas to stem fur\her ]
violence.
In Bombay seven persons were!
killed and 35 injured in shooting and
stabbing incidents Saturday. By
yesterday the outbreaks had begun
to taper off, howevy. and only one
stabbing was reported.
Meanwhile, M. A. Jinnah, Moslem
League president, met with Viceroy
Lord Wavell more than an hour to
day at New Delhi for fresh discus
sion about bringing League repre
sentatives into the interim govern
ment forced by the Congress Party.
Neither conferee issued a statement.
A
Truman to Attend
Army-Oklahoma
Game Sept. 28
President Truman will fly to West
Point September 28 to review the
Cadet Corps and attend the Army-|
Oklahoma football game, the White!
House announced today.
Charles G. Ross, White House;
press secretary, said this is the only
trip now on the President's sched
ule. This means, he added, that Mr.
Truman is not going to the Caruth
ersville <Mo.> county fair, which
he has attended lor the last eight
years, or to the American Royal
Cattle Show in Kansas City next
month.
The President had been expected
to attend both events.
Mr. Ross said Mr. Truman is
scheduled to leave here by air at 81
a.m. September 28 for West Point,
where he will visit cadet classes and j
lunch at the cadet mess before at-;
tending the football game.
After the game, the President will:
attend a reception in the quarters
of Maj. Gen. Maxwell D. Taylor, su- j
perintendent of the Military Acad
emy, before flying back to Washing
ton. He expects to arrive back here
about 7:15 p.m. the same day.
Truman Urges U. N. !
To Call Conference
On World Resources
Study Would Include
'Possible Peaceful Uses'
Of Atomic Energy
By the Associated Press
LAKE SUCCESS, N. Y, Sept.
16. — President Truman today
called on the United Nations to1
summon a world scientific con
ference on conservation to study
global resources, including “the
possible peaceful uses of atomic
energy w'ithin the next few dec
ades.”
The presidential request, submit
ted to the Economic and Social
Council through Delegate John G.
Winant, asked the Council to con
vene a United Nations Scientific
Conference on Resources Conserva
tion and Utilization in the last six
months of 1947 somewhere in the
United States.
Declaring that conservation “can
become a major basis of peace,” the
President said:
"Warfare has taken a heavy toll
of many natural resources: The re
building of the nations and the in
dustrialization of under-developed
areas will require an additional
large depletion of them. Waste,
destruction and uneconomic use of
resources anywhere damage man
kind’s common estate.
Would Eliminate Fear.
“The real or exaggerated fear of
resource shortages and declining
standards of living has in the past
Involved nations in warfare. Ev
ery member of the United Nations
is deeply interested in preventing a
recurrence of that fear and of those
consequences.”
The United States proposed that
a preparatory committee be set up
(See U. N., Page A-4.i ~ 1
Increase of $205,848
Asked by Keneipp to
Expand Traffic Control
Police, Fire Departments
Also Seek Larger
Budget for Next Year
By John W. Thompson, Jr.
Traffic Director George E.
Keneipp has asked the District
Commissioners for $792,000 to
expand his department during
the fi.mtl year beginning next
July 1.
The amount is $205,848 above the
current appropriation and contem
plates 27 new jobs.
Eariler, Budget Officer Walter L.
Fowler disclosed the police and fire
department requests looking toward
improving the city’s protection in
general and the area east of the
Anacostia River in particular. The
Police Department asked a total ol
$6,230,000, as compared with $5,230,
000 currently appropriated. The
Fire Department sought $4,423,000
against current allocations of $3,
106.000. I
To Bolster Engineering Section.
Mr. Keneipp's plans for the com
ing year include bolstering the en
gineering section of his departmenl
to carry on an 11-point study and
improvement program for city traffic
handling. The points are:
1. Maintenance of “minimum war
rancies" for new traffic light instal
lations, so the new signals would be
installed and old signals retained
only at locations which, according to
continuous studies, meet the mini
mum justifications.
2. Continuous checks of traffic
volume at intersections controlled
by signal lights to adjust the timing
as often as needed to insure maxi
mum efficiency.
Central Light Control Planned.
3. Pians for the development of a
system of centralized control of traf
fic light timing to enable variance of
the timing of any light within a
given area immediately.
4. Overhaul the traffic sign sys
tem to eliminate unnecessary and
conflicting signs and replacement of
those disfigured or illegible.
5. A '‘stop” sign survey to remove
those unnecessary and add new ones
where needed.
6. A systematic program of re
painting traffic lanes and parking
meter zones, and installation of dur
able markers.
7. Study of the need for more one
way streets.
8. Establishment of better cross
town streets.
Study of Accident Frequency.
9. Study of accident frequency at
certain streets and intersections and
institution of corrective measures.
10. Adoption of a city-wide policy
for traffic movement on all streets
30 feet or less In width either by
removing parking on one or both
sides or making them one-way.
11. Determination of pedestrian
protection needs, wide use of barri
cades at dangerous crossings.
The largest part of this program
was approved by the Commissioners
about a year ago in their $555,000
five-year postwar traffic plan.
High light of the police estimates
submitted by Police Chief Harvey G.
Callahan was a request for 111 ad
(See BUDGET, Page A-5.)
WAA Opens $4,000,000 Safe
Of War Surplus for Veterans
By Robert K. Walsh
Star Staff Correspondent
NEW ORLEANS. Sept. 16.—
Several thousand veterans who
turned out for a War Assets Ad
ministration experimental sale of
$4,000,000 in surplus property,
ranging from soap powder to
carpenter's tools, were told by
Representative Manasco, Demo
crat, of Alabama here today that
Congress never intended to give
purchase priorities to UNRRA,
the United Nations and similar
international organizations.
The Alabaman, who with Senator
O’Mahoney, Democrat, of Wyoming,
spearheaded congressional enact
ment last May of amendments rais
ing the priority position of,veterans
in buying surplus goods, joined high
ranking WAA officials from Wash
ington in the test to determine
whether surplus consumer goods can
be bought by veterans as quickly
and conveniently from the Govern
ment as “from a department store.”
The experiment, if successful, is ex
's
ipected to revolutionize the method
of selling most surplus materials to
veterans in all parts of the country.
Mr. Manasco declared that as soon
]as Congress reconvenes he will intro
| duce a bill “to plug the loophole and
make sure that when we tell you
veterans we are giving you priorities
on surplus property the intent can
not be defeated by a Government
agency under the guise of the second
War Powers Act or some other vague
statute.”
The "loophole” to which he re
ferred, he said, was an interpreta
tion by which "attorneys for certain
Federal agencies have decided that
UNRRA and the United Nations
have the right to exercise Federal
priorities because the United States
Government is a large contributor to
those organizations.”
Representative Manasco con
tinued: “If this line of reasoning
is sound, every corporation from
whom the Government purchases
property is entitled to exercise a
Federal priority in the purchase of
(See SURPLUS, Page A^T)
*
D. C. Tax Raise,
Bigger U.S. Fund
Urged at Hearing
Board of Trade and
Federation Cite Need
For $9,000,000 More
(Pictures on Page B-l.)
Two major civic organizations
today recommended to the Com
missioners a combination* of in
creased Federal payment and
expanded taxes to prevent the
District from going some $7,000,
000 “in the red'’ by next July 1
in maintaining present munici
pal services.
Testifying at the first public tax
hearing at the District Building
since 1938, spokesmen for the Board
of Trade and the Federation of
Citizens’ Associations broadly joined
hands in a solution for the difficul
ties, although they differed in a few
details.
Former Engineer Commissioner
David McCoach, jr., speaking for the
Board of Trade, told the city heads
1 that board computations place city
| revenue needs at $9,000,000 annually
! in addition to the sums that present
axes and the Federal payment are
producing.
He called on the Commissioners
I to set as their “primary'' objective
passage of the O'Mahoney bill link
ing annual Federal payment td
; national landholdings here, and
; proposed that the difference be
| made up through a broadened per
i sonal income tax. a 5 per cent tax
j on unincorporated businesses and
I increased liquor levies.
l ump sum Formula Asked.
Following him to the witness
table, K. P. Armstrong of the Fed
eration urged that before any new
forms of taxation are imposed on
District citizens “some formula
should be established by law to
require the annual payment by the
National Government to the District
Government of an equitable sum
of money in lieu of taxes for mu
nicipal services received by it."
In addition. Mr. Armstrong said
his organization favored income and
I liquor tax increases, but opposed the
! tax on unincorporated businesses
1 because such businesses now escap
ing taxation would be caught In an
| extended personal income levy.
While the Board of Trade pro
posed an alternate program mclud
j ing a sales tax, a levy on gross
j earnings, or still further increases
1 in liquor taxes if its original pro
j posal was unacceptable in whole or
in part, the Federation turned
! thumbs down on a sales tax and the
j other revenue-raising proposals of
the Commissioners’ special tax com
mittee headed by Corporation Coun
sel Vernon E. West.
30 Groups Wait to Testify.
About 30 citizen groups were
: waiting their turn to testify at
i the first public tax hearing at the
District Building since 1938. The
hearing follows by less than a
w;eek submission to the Commis
sioners by their department heads
of an all-time record $135,888,195
money requests for the coming year.
In brief preliminary remarks to
the organizations' spokesmen Com
missioner John Russell Young
pointed up the impending city
fiscal crisis.
“On the basis of present taxes.’*
he declared, "the estimated rev
enues which would accrue to tha
District in the fiscal year begin
ning next July 1 fall some $7,000,000
short of providing the necessary
amount to continue in that fiscal
year the present public services now
being rendered the people of the
District.”
In addition, he said, "there is a
1 tremendous accumulation" of ur
gently needed public Improvements
| necessarily postponed during the
| war period, but many of which can
j not be deferred much longer.
Gas Tax Boost Not Argued.
! Mr. Young asked the witnesses to
i limit their remarks to the proposed
j new taxes for the general fund
I °nly, indicating that the proposed
| gas tax increase would not be
| argued today.
The broadened income and unin
! corporated business tax proposals
! and increases in the liquor levies
{were taken from the earlier recom
| mendations of the Commissioners’
: Special Tax Committee headed by
| Mr. E. West.
j Other recommendations of the
West Committee included a 2 per
| cent sales tax. a 2 per cent tax on
I utility bills, a 1-cent tax on each
j package of 20 cigarettes and a 10
I per cent tax on ticket prices at
amusement places.
Broadening the income tax was
expected to receive general approval
but liquor interests were understood
to be ready to fight the liquor levy
increases and amusement spokes
men were believed ready to oppose
the ticket tax.
Gen. McCoach said the O'Ma
honey proposal would add $4,000,000
to the District income in 1948 while
the income tax broadening and the
'See D. C. TAXES~Page~A-5.) *
12 Greek 'Bandits' Slain
In Skirmishes at Bridges
By th* Associated Press
ATHENS. Sept. 16 —The Ministry
of Public Order today reported 12
"bandits” killed in skirmishes as
two bridges between Kalabaka and
Ioannina were destroyed and 27
telegraph poles cut down in con
tinuing efforts by leftists to disrupt
communication lines in Northern
Greece.
Seven persons were slain in a
battle on the Island of Kephallenia
and five others were killed north of
Larisa, the ministry said. Twenty
gendarmes and soldiers seized by
a leftist band in a battle Saturday
at Oivadi were stripped of their
clothing and arms and released.
Police said unidentified assailants
shot to death a Communist last
night in the Kaissariani section of
Athens.
In this city’s fashionable Colonaki
section, a hand grenade was thrown
this morning at a police patrol, but
no casualties were reported.
*