Evening star. [volume], May 02, 1950, Page A-13, Image 13

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

Image provided by: Library of Congress, Washington, DC

                
Baruch Again Urging
Over-All Program in
Preparation tor War
Twice Before in History
He Tried to Give Advice
To American People
By David Lawrence
Twice in history just before a
world war, Bernard M. Baruch
tried to give some advice to the
American people on what they
should do to prepare for war. He
has been giving some advice again
in public speeches recently, so this
correspondent wondered whether
the elder statesman sees war in
the offing.
“Is there going to be another
world war?” he was asked.
“I don't know.”
“Why don’t you know?”
“Because nobody knows — cer
tainly not the American people.”
“Why don’t they know?”
“Because they are not being
given the information on which
they can base a judgment and I
doubt whether anyone in our Gov
ernment knows.”
Wants Stand-By Program.
Mr. Baruch is convinced that
the best way to avert a war is to
prepare for it as if it were going to
happen instantly. He wants a
stand-by program on the statute
books that can be put into opera
tion at once. As he sees it, there
is in effect now no over-all plan
ning—no board of “peace strategy”
which is but another phrase for
cold-war strategy.
The chief point that Mr. Baruch
makes is that the National Se
curity Council today consists of
men in Government who are too
busy to give time and thought to
the concept imbedded in the title.
It comprises officials who are busy
doing their regular jobs. He
thinks membership on the council
should not be a part-time affair,
but a full-time job and that the
members should do nothing but
study the problems of national
security.
It isn’t all a military problem,
but, to a large extent, economic.
Thus, as Mr. Baruch views it, a
board of strategy should have
ready an industrial mobilization
plan that is law before the shoot
ing starts. He believes that al$ng
with this must go an enlargement
of our general intelligence agen
cies which gather information
from all parts of the world.
Is Russia buying wool and in
what quantities? How much rub
ber is she putting into her stock
pile? What did she mean recently
by her upward revaluation of the
gold ruble? Did the United States!
sit by idly while Russia increased!
the purchasing power of her gold
in certain places? Were there no
counter-measures possible in the
gold markets? What about the
forces that are causing inflation
to rise in America and thus in
crease the cost of our prepared
ness program? Is Indo-China be
ing handled properly by the Allies?
Why does Britain recognize Com
munist China while Australians
talk of sending troops to fight
communism in Southeast Asia?
Information Lacking.
These are only a few' of the ques
tions to which answers are im
portant to the Allied side where
apparently no unified program of
strategy yet exists.
Mr. Baruch concedes that some
of these things might be in proc
ess of being taken care of but he
will not feel that any real progress
Is being made toward prevention
of war unless America is ready
with an over-all program. He
urged the same thing in 1939 to
no avail.
Leaders in Government—con- :
gressional and military—frequent- |
ly consult Mr. Baruch but at the
moment he is not being consulted
by the White House due to some
political differences. These seem
unimportant in relation to the
value of the experience which Mr.
Baruch has had with international
economic issues. Asked what he
could advise at this time other
than the over-all board of strat
egy and the industrial mobiliza
tion plan—that is, what policies
might be followed in the cold war
—he said: “I just don't know. The!
facts we need in order to evalu-'
ate the whole situation simply do
not appear to be available.”
If Mr Baruch doesn’t know
what’s coming, it is a rather un
usual position for him. His back
ground and acuteness of judgment
are very much needed in the coun
cils of the Government today—
if only to evaluate the facts that
are known only to Government.
(Reproduction Rights Reserved)
r-1- '■ ■ — —i
Disgruntled Client
Resorts to Violence;
Machine Retaliates
By the Associated Press
MINNEAPOLIS, May 2,—
Here's a vending machine that
gets mad and fights back.
Carl Hixon, Northwest Air
lines employe, inserted a nickel
in an automatic coffee ven
dor at the Minneapolis Air
port. He pushed a button
labeled "Cream and Sugar.”
Nothing happened. Mr. Hixon
hammered on the machine
with his fist.
The machine clanked. Red
lights flashed. A charge of
hot coffee squirted on Mr.
Hixon's suit.
Then a sign over the nickel
slot flashed: "Sold out.”
This Changing World
Collapse of Formosa From Within
Possible Even Before Red Invasion
By Constantine Brown
Formosa, the last stronghold of
the Chinese Nationalists, may col
lapse from within even before the
Communists attempt to conquer
it by force.
According to
latest reports
from Thaipei,
the National
ists’ economic
condition is so
grave that un
less they receive
help soon from
the United
States funds for
running the
government will
be exhausted by
the end of Au
gUg£ Conatintine Brawn.
Appropriations to help National
ist China are under consideration
by a Senate committee at present.
It is doubltful, however, whether
the amount the Senators might
be willing to appropriate will be
sufficient to carry the economic
and military needs of the de
fenders.
Moreover, a number of legisla
tors, otherwise favorably disposed
toward helping the Nationalists,
may inquire quite rightly whether
the American taxpayer should dig
deeper into his pockets when high
ranking Nationalists, who have
escaped from China and now are
in the United States, could help
the cause themselves.
Soong Could Give Millions.
It is reported in reliable quar
ters that T. V. Soong and H. H.
Kung, wealthy former Chinese fi
nance ministers, both related by
marriage to Chiang Kai-shek and
presumably strong supporters of
the Kuomintang, have more than
half a billion dollars on deposit
in this country. This money is
reported to be in various banks on
the East and West coasts, either
in the form of cash or gilt-edged
securities.
Some Senators, who are aware
of the importance of preventing
Formosa from falling into Com
munist hands, logically might ask
why patriotic and high-minded
Chinese citizens, such as the scions
of the old Soong and Kung fam
ilies, do not attempt to rescue
Formosa by parting with at least a
part of their wealth.
A loan to the Chiang govern
ment lay these men In the amount
of, say, $300 million would help
their own cause greatly and would
not exactly impoverish them.
Moreover, they would be setting
an example of unselfish patriotism
which would have a good effect on
the people and Congress of the
United States.
Such a loan would have ex
cellent propaganda value for the
Nationalists both in Formosa and
i in the Communist - dominated
mainland of China. The Chinese
know that these two families
have accumulated , immense
wealth, and that it was, in fact,
the Chinese people themselves
who filled the coffers of China’s
two richest families.
The money reported held for
the Soongs and Kungs in Ameri
can banks represents only what
they have been able to get out of
[China during the past 20 years.
Much farm land, real estate of
other kinds and industrial es
tablishments now have been con
fiscated by the Communist re
gime.
Of course, American legislators
look at Formosa from the stand
point of its strategic value in the
defense of the Pacific. So long
as the island remains in the hands!
of an administration friendly to
the United States and its associ
ates in the West our strategic
position in the Pacific is tenable.
But if Formosa falls, as Hainan
did, into the hands of Russia’s
Chinese puppets, the security of
Japan and the Philippines will
be greatly impaired.
According to estimates from
the headquarters of Gen. Mac
Arthur the conquest of the Na
tionalist fortress by a potentially
enemy power would call for an
immediate, large increase in
American defenses in Japan. This
could cost the American taxpayer
more than the $150 million which
Chiang now is asking in order
to hold onto the island. More
over, the reaction in the Philip
pines, where the internal situa
tion is rapidly deteriorating be
cause of Communist activities,
would be much worse than it has
ever been.
These facts are of real concern
to the members of the House and
Senate who are called to pass
on appropriations for the Chiang
government in opposition to the
views of the State Department.
But at the same time there is no
question that the reluctance of
Soong and Kung to part with
any of their vast wealth creates
a bad impression on members of
Congress and on the American
public, which is digging deep into
its pockets to help many foreign
countries._
On the Record
U. S. Youth Group in Mexico Shows
One Way for Point 4 to Operate
By Dorothy Thompson
The other day a young friend
dropped In on me. whom I had not
seen for a long time. Bob O’Brien
had been associated before the
war with the
William James
Camp, in which
I was inter
ested, organized
chiefly by Dart
mouth students
in a rural Ver
mont conimun
ity. These stu
dents thought
that all youth
ought to give
some months of
their lives to
doing some
hard, dirty D»rothT Thomp.on.
work of the world, in harmony
with William James’ idea of a
"moral equivalent for war.” They
chose a backwoods community
populated mostly by poor farmers
who couldn’t afford hired help,
and they worked with and for
them, and on community pro
jects.
They were extraordinary young [
men. And although several of
them were war heroes, none of
them, as far as I know, has ever
abandoned the idea that there
ought tp be a better way of mo
bilizing young men around sacri
ficial idealism than for war.
Job Done In Mexico.
Bob, who is in the Air Force
Reserve and had been called in
for refresher training, told me he
was up from Mexico. And what
had he been doing in Mexico?
In Mexico, the government
contending with appalling condi
tions of poverty, illiteracy, and
general backwardness—had insti
tuted the “Ensayo Filato Mexi
cano” (Mexican Pilot Project),
inspired by our TV A. But since
Mexico is too poor to attempt the
rehabilitation of a community by
great power and industrial pro
jects, the Mexican project is con
cerned with basic village educa
tion. The director, Mario Aquilera,
seems to be a remarkable man.
His Idea was to make over one
village after another while the
people were living in them, and to
accomplish the rebuilding with
villagers’ co-operative work and
with the materials and tools at
hand.
He asked the American Friends
Service Committee if they could
send him some volunteers, and a
director. The friends mobilized
16 young men, all but three
Americans, and 10 young women,
all but one American, under the
directorship of a Dr. Neumann
and his wife, both with wide ex
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Bob told me that never during
the war had he endured such
conditions as they faced on ar
rival. The girls were housed in
a nearby city, but the men were
placed in a camp where practi
cally nothing existed, not even
shelter, for the roofs were un
finished. The project was in
Western Mexico, in the State of
Nayarit; the climate is tropical
and they arrived in the torren
tial rainy season. They slept in
water until they got roofs re
paired.
In Mexico, under the land re
form, every male at the age of
16 receives 10 acres of land, which
properly worked will support a
family. But land so distributed
had not been organized into
proper communities. Huddles of
houses of saplings and thatch
stood in fields; none was sure
where his property began or end
ed; no sanitary facilities existed;
no streets or roads; and pigs,
chickens, cattle, and people were
all mixed up together.
First Pilot Village.
The first pilot village of Amapa
contained 1,800 souls. The proj
ect was to lay out streets and sew
ers, fence fields, make a common
water system, build an adequate
school, and see that every family
had a privy. Most did not. To
bring order into the existing chaos
it was necessary to move most of
the houses, and this was done
without great machines. It was
terribly hard on the families. But
one thing that buoyed them up
was the grueling physical work
which the young strangers put
into the task. They saw an orderly
village arise, with a fine brick
schoolhouse, streets instead of
mud tracks, animals within fences
and under shelter, and the dream
of solid brick houses—brick clay
is plentiful—dawned in their
minds.
me American gins neipea the
women to plaster the interiors of
the houses. They helped them
build cupboards and cabinets,
which none had ever had, and
the women marveled. Bob told
me it was the women who, seeing
what housekeeping might become,
upheld the morale of the men.
When all was finished, Mexican
peasants came from miles around
to marvel, and to demand that
their villages also be made over
An official came down from the
department of education, and
there was a great festival. Every
body participated in it$ prepara
tion, as everyone had participated
in making the village.
And the young Americans all
had a feeling of immense elation
at actually having helped recreate
a whole community. They knew
everybody. They had all learned
to speak Spanish. They had all
had a painful, joyful, unforgetful
pioneering experience. And the
whole business had cost only a few
thousand dollars.
Bob thinks that’s the way part
of Point 4 “aid to backward coun
tries" ought to operate. He’s con
vinced that tens of thousands of
young Americans would give some
months of their lives, free, for re
construction work at home and
abroad, as part of their own edu
cation. And no one could possibly
think that was imperialism.
Everyone in Amapa feels he
knows America—and from some
outstanding examples of young
Americans.
UtoUued br Mm Bril Bradley*, la*.)
LOUIE
—By Harry Hanan
H_______6 • :
I
But Capitol Is Restive
Monroney Campaign in Oklahoma
Fails to Upset Senator Thomas
By Doris Fleeson
Every clear day now, a plane
sets down in some Oklahoma
cornfield and an attractive, clean
cut young Congressman, Repre
sentative A. S.
(Mike) Mon
roney steps
forth to spread
the Pair Deal
?ospel. Repre
sentative Mon
roney is trying
to win the
Dem o c r a t i c
nom i n a t i o n
from the vet
eran incum
3 e n t, Senator
Elmer Thomas.
Senator
Thomas SO far Oori»nee«on.
refuses to admit concern. He is
not in the best of health, and he
is tussling with the very difficult
military appropriation which he
has in charge. So he stays right
here, leaning heavily on a vast
correspondence and confident
that his long service will see him
through.
Representative Monroney is a
favorite here and one of the orna
ments of the House. But Sena
tors have learned to respect Sen
ator Thomas’ staying powers and
discount conjectures that he will
“do a Downey” like his California
colleague who bowed his head to
the whirlwind opposition of Rep
resentative Helen Gahagan Doug
las and withdrew entirely. The
Oklahoma primary is still two
months away, so there is still time
for Senator Thomas to get going.
Capitol Is Restive.
What does make the Capitol
restive are reports from Repre
sentative Monroney and others
that the people are hungry for
first-hand news of the Washing
ton confusion and turning out as
lever before to hear about it.
A tremendous reception for the
?reat Truman expedition to the
Northwest next week has been
forecast from the grass roots. If
it materializes, the congressipnal
urge to call it quits and go home
will be intensified.
The President will not stint the
people along his path. A formal
speech nearly every day will be
supplemented by every whistle
stop appearance that can be
crowded in. Republicans are
bravely declaring that other
Presidents — Wilson, Roosevelt —
who tried to influence off-year
elections flopped badly, but they
are not going to be happy at their
desks while Mr. Truman pours it
on amid the home folks.
Congress Has Much to Do.
Congress still has much to do;
despite the fact of the election,
they are further behind in their
work than last year. The House
which had virtually all the major
appropriation bills out of the way
in early April, 1949, still has the
one big omnibus bill before it.
The latter incidentally seems to
be one of those wonderful reforms
that neglected to reform human
nature sufficiently to be practical.
The great total failed to awe the
House into economizing; instead
it has stimulated logrolling, on the
apparent theory that a few extra
millions can never be blamed on
anybody.
in the Senate the roadblock
probably will be FEPC. Majority
Leader Lucas—who faces a stiff
fight for re-election—never pre
tended that he would linger long
over most of the Fair Deal, like
aid to education, medical assist
ance, etc. He did categorically
promise FEPC, but somehow there
never seems to,be a spot on the
calendar for it.
Now the question to be decided
as the July deadline looms is how
long and how tough a fight to
make against the Southern fili
buster that is inevitable. The
President will insist on the
struggle; his majority leader will
insist on recognition of his rights
as a candidate up for re-election.
On the Other Hand
Business-Like Government Fine,
Unless It Affects Your Business
By Lowell Mellett
The Congress of the United
States resolved, by thunder, that
it was time the great, sprawling,
wasteful, etc., etc., executive
branch of the
Govern
ment should be
reorganized in
the interests of
efficiency and
economy. It en
acted a law cre
ating a com
mission to do
that little job
and it named
Herbert Hoover,
former Presi
dent, to be
chairman. , „ „ „
Lowell Mellett.
There was ap
plause throughout the land, both
for the purpose of the legislation
and for the man selected to head
the undertaking.
There was applause, but there
was also a little snickering. Long
time observers of the Washington
scene asserted that when the time
came for decision Congress would
kick its own fine purposes into a
cocked hat. It always had been
so, said the scoffers, and not even
the magic name of Herbert Hoover
could change it. Now, they say,
their prophecy is being justified.
Faults Recognizable.
The Commission worked hard
and intelligently. After one or two
false moves, it curbed any urge it
may have had to shape national
policy and confined itself to its
real task of correcting the faults
in the machinery. Most of these
faults were readily recognizable—
duplication of work and expense,
division of authority, separation
of authority from responsibility,
outgrown methods of operation
and the like—but they added up
to a grand total of inefficiency and
wasted money.
When the Commission had com
pleted its work and made its re
port the smallest estimate of po
tential savings contained in the
revised machinery was one billion
dollars, an amount not to be
sneezed at even in these opulent
times.
The report was received with
enthusiasm in almost every quar
ter. It was particularly pleasing
to the President. He undertook
without delay to translate it into
action. In keeping with the act
of Congress, he caused to be pre
pared a series of reorganization
plans for the various departments
and agencies. Save in a few
instances, these plans followed
closely the recommendations of
the Commission, although he had
full freedom to depart from the
recommendations if he so desired.
Twenty-one plans are now in the
hands of Congress and each will
become law automatical!/ unless
rejected by either the House or
the Senate before May 23.
Pressure is Painful.
But now many members of Con
gress have begun to regret their
enthusiasm. The prospect of
lessened patronage in the exec
utive agencies is painful to some
of them, but even more painful is
the pressure of special interests
that find themselves likely to be
affected by improvements in the
Government set-up. Business men
who were first to cheer the notion
of a business-like government,
find they feel differently when
their own relationship with the
Government is changed. They ap
prove the over-all reorganization,
but ask for exceptions for them
selves. Since the law does not
permit this, stiff opposition has
developed to so many of the
plans that not more than a fifth
of them appear to have clear
sailing.
As an instance of how the thing
is working out, the Senate Com
mittee on Expenditures in the Ex
ecutive Departments, after hear
ings on Plan No. 1, has reported
itself against it. This provides for
reorganization of the Treasury
Department in the manner sug
gested by the Hoover Commission.
The chief objection registered is
that of the American Bankers As
sociation, which is opposed to mak
ing the Controller of the Currency
subordinate to the Secretary of
the Treasury. The ABA, it may be
remembered, also opposed the cre
ation of the Federal Reserve Sys
tem and the Federal Deposit In
surance System. For some reason
it now thinks the Controller him
self should be free of any con
trol. If the Senate follows the
committee’s reasoning, there goes
Plan No. 1. But if other special
interests prove to be equally ef
fective, it won’t be the only plan
left on the junk heap.
GSA Loans D. C. $75,000
For Public Works Planning
General Services Administration
has given the District an addi
tional $75,000 loan to finance the
planning of emergency public
works projects.
Recently the District forwarded
a schedule of 10 projects, including
a 400-bed addition to the Glenn
Dale Sanatorium, as the basis for
a request for planning loans to
taling $246,000. An initial loan of
$90,938 was announced some
weeks ago. Yesterday’s loan brings
the amount allocated for ad
vancement to $165,938.
The loans are interest-free and
are repayable when construction
begins, within a three-year period.
Additional loans of $80,000 went to
Virginia and $320,000 to Mary
land.
McLemore—
Calls on America
To Put Up or Shut Up
By Henry McLemore
I wonder if you are as surprised
as I am. I don't think you could
possibly be. I am rolled over,
twisted, turned, and head-over
heels in dis
turbance. ,
For once, this
country has
nearly called
Russia’s hand.
As a citizen
of the_ United
States,* it gives
joy to my heart
to know that
America, the
strongest coun
try, has decided
to take no more
face slappings
from 8 million- H*n" MrL'’”or'
plus square miles of peasants and
thieves.
I have no more right to ques
tion Mr. Truman or Mr. Acheson
than you have. What I want to
request of these men whom we
respect, and whose rules we fol
low, is just one thing.
Let’s Do It Now.
If this country is going to have
to fight, please let it fight now.
Every- day America waits, Russia
gets stronger. Five years from
now, this country might have a
hard time beating Russia, but if
we go out today and take hold
of them, tell them to shut their
mouth, we’ll only be doing one
thing—saving the lives of high
school boys. If we are going to
fight, let the men who have fought
fight again. Every single minute
we wait, we are committing boys
who never fought.
Mr. President, let me tell you
this. It isn’t quite fair to give
American youth to Russia. The
kids who will have to fight that
country are now just enjoying the
sweetness of this country. Let’s
lay no more memorial wreaths on
the Unknown Soldier. For every
American soldier who ever died,
there is a wife, a mother, a sweet
heart, a brother, a sister, or a
daughter, who knows his name.
It just plain wears me out to
read day after day, the way we
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are trying to presene our way of
living. It must be a rather ridicu
lous way to preserve the way of
living by asking those who are
living to die.
What this country needs, and I
say this as a man who doesn't
have a nickel, is a declaration of
its decency By all standards, this
is the nicest country in the world.
As Americans, we yell it to the
world. Yet. we are not strong
enough to fight for the things we
talk about. There comes a time
when a nation that leads all must
take a straight-out risk.
As Americans, we have almost
everything. No country on earth
has been so blessed.
Just What Hitler Did.
We wont learn anything from
history’. Russia is doing just what
Hitler did. Hitler stole, stole, stole,
stole until his hand was called
Russia is stealing, stealing, steal
ing. and will continue to do so
until its hand is called.
Let us make up our minds in
America about one thing. If our
way of living is dear to us, let's
never be afraid to die for it.
I don’t want my wife or my friends
ever to be subjected to what people
have been subjected to in all tha
Russian-controlled countries.
Let America do one thing—put
up or shut up And I hope for tha
decency of the world that our
country will declare itself for de
cency.
I m not paid to write this way.
Every once in a while. I Just have
to. Excuse me. please.
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May 14
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is worthy ol my Mother. Select your
Norris Candies lor Mother * Day, tonight.
NORRIS VARIETY BOX
Chocolate* and confection*
$2.00 the pound
Norris
Daxh vanilla and milh chocolate*
EXQUISITE
Oiktr Norris Favoriisst
AVnlF ^ Noeria Della Rohhu Mint..$1.2S lk
_Noeri* Choloeat* Penguin*.$1.00 paehaga
"I i h