The Camden chronicle. (Camden, S.C.) 1888-1981, June 19, 1942, Page PAGE SIX, Image 6
Refugees Earn
Living in France
Work Groups Organized at
Camps Where They Are
Accommodated.
MANZAT, P U Y DE DOME.
FRANCE.?Of the more than 100.000
Spanish refugees who at'O still being
harbored in France, nearly
40,000 have enlisted in the foreign
working formations which in all the
departments of the unoccupied /.one
are helping on the farms and in
the mines and industries, which ure
all short of labor on account of the
numbers of Frenchmen still in prison
camps.
The Spaniards compose the great
majority of the foreigners enlisfed
in these work formations. And
their courage and cheerfulness in
adversity us well as the proof they
hove shown of the desire to become
independent as laborers has won
them the respect of,the French who
have employed them, according to
all reports to the group of foreign
workers which has its center here,.
Man/at is the center of the (5(i2nd
group of foreign laborers serving
in the department of the l'uy de
Dome.
Initiative Quickly Shown.
The number of foreigners at the
disposal of this center at present is
470. They arc nearly all Spaniards
or Belgians.
Received at Man/at six months
ago with scarcely any preparation,
the workers, using whatever materials
and means they could improvise,
set about making themselves
comfortable. An old ruined abbey
and rooms In several different actJolning
buildings in which to establish
offices were turned over to
them. The officers in churge, mostly
former French army men, demobilized
and working as civilian
officials, directed the community
organization.
The Manzat center now operates
its own farm, which it has rented
and renovated, some three kilometers
from town. When a foreign
worker is sent to Manzat he is examined
for health and capacities.
Any Spanish refugee either in shelter
camps or living independently
may volunteer for service in the
work formations. The only prohibitions
are against those who have
criminal records or are physically
unfit.
Pay for Employment.
The center keeps the men in
camp for a time to determine their
capacities, and in the case of farmers
offers them some training on
the centeris farm. It then sends
them out on contract to work on individual
farms. The French farmers
pay the regular rate for French
labor to the camp administration.
The Spanish workman at first receives
only his former military pay,
but when he has been adapted to
his trade he gets the full pay, equal
? to that of a French workman, except
that the center deducts a percentage
to cover his social Insurance.
Families of- the workers are
housed with families in Manzat
while the bread winner is at the
center. In most cases when he is
on assignment they accompany him
to the farm. The contracts are of
various durations, ranging from 15
days to six months and a year.
The men go out singly or in groups,
and when they finish the job return
to Manzat for a new assignment.
Privates at Paine Field
Wrote Song for Camp
EVERETT, WASH.?They're singing
a new, homemade song at nearby
Pame Field these days. It's
called "Flying Soldiers," and indicates,
nmong other things, that considerable
musical talent exists at
the field, one of the newest army
bases.
Pvt. Jack Latimer, 23, thought up
the music. A selectee, he holds u
Master of Arts degree in music from
the University of Iowa and plnns to
become a music teacher when his
army service ends.
He liked the music, and persuad- '
ed Pvt. Sidney DanofT of New York j
to write the lyrics. The result has
become the field's official song.
Overcoats Can Be Lost
In Still Another Way
PHILADELPHIA.?James P. Mc- :
Laughlin has just cause to lament
"Anything can happen to me."
Some overcoats are stolen in res- ,
taurants and others are devoured by
moths.
But McLaughlin merely stepped
off a curbstone with his coat over .
his arm and a moment later saw it
flying down the street on the door
handle of an automobile. A three- ,
mile chase in another niotui ?at'n
machjjie proved futile, as the
streamlined snatcher became lost in
traffic.
Sexton and Undertaker
Share in Texan's Will J
AUSTIN. TEXAS?An cast Texas
farmer's will, leaving his only prop- ;
erty?51? acres of land ? to the vil- :
lage sexton and the undertaker was
discovered in the flies of the state ;
comptroller's inheritance tax divi- ,
? sion.
The date of the East Texan's
? death was not revealed, but he '
asked that his body be buried vvith*
out ceremony and the grave merked
7 -,A Man No One Knew."
Lights of New York
by L. L. STEVENSON
Assistance; When u young woman
wont into one of those little shops
on the upper Fast Side and usked
the price of u gay handkerchief she
saw in the window, the proprietor,
an old man with flowing white hair,
excitedly ordered her out. Puzzled
she started to leave, but turned
back ready for an argument. The
old man's belligerence vanished and
he was very apologetic. He needed
money desperately. But people
merely come in, asked "How
much?" and walked away without
buying. The need for money? In
Czecho-Slovakiu were two orphaned
grandchildren he wanted to bring
to this country. The young woman
bought not one but a dozen handkerchiefs
at 50 cents each. She also
sends friends who make purchases.
Occasionally she returns?she and
(he old man have become fast
friends?to buy and to check up.
And she reports that indications are
that the grandfather soon will have
money enough to bring two children
to America.
* #
City Life: One of the strangest
folk customs of New Yorkers is
their secrecy concerning their destinations
when in elevators. Though
not a New Yorker, I've become a
victim of it myself so I know how
it works. You try to withhold the
information until the last possible
moment and if some other passenger
calls out your floor for you, it's
a minor triumph to be celebrated
with a secretive smile. The only
explanation I can advance for this
peculiar trait is that it imparts an
element of mystery and intrigue to
the extremely prosaic business of
rising from street level to an upper
story of on ofTlce building. It is like
the captain of a ship sailing under
sealed orders. Or possibly it's a
carry-over from some medieval
superstition.
Error: Speaking of elevators, the
other luncheon time, Ira Wblfert,
drama critic of the North American
Newspaper Alliance, was descending
with a number of fellow workers
In the New York Times annex. As
usual, Wolfert was puflflng on a pipe
of considerable caliber and even
more strength. One of the members
of the group, who had unwillingly
inhaled some fumes, asked
him why he didn't take up cigars or
cigarettes. The Wolfert reply was,
"AM women admire men who
smoke pipes." With that, a dignified,
somewhat elderly woman, who
had been acting n bit uneasily, gave
him a glare that convinced beholders
that a drama critic had advanced
an opihion not entirely
founded on fact.
>
Occupation Echo: A group of
men, -each wearing Free French
buttons, sat at a table at the St.
Regis' La Maisonette during one of
Eve Ortega's recent supper hour
aong sessions. They applauded politely
all Miss Ortega's numbers,
but when she concluded singing a
French song called "Ne Viens Trop
Tard." ("Do Not Come Too Late"),
they arose and cheered. Miss Ortega
sang the tune well, but the enthusiasm
seemed excessive until she
gave the explanation.
"It is an old Parisian love song,"
said the singer. "But when they
sing it in the cafes of Paris today,
it has a political meaning. 'Don't
come too late, England and America,'
is the message. And that is
why those men cheered."
Pastime: At the Two Hundred
and Forty-first street subway station,
Ed Hart reports, the guard
that had charge of the chain which
holds back too eager passengers,
spotted an attractive young woman
carrying a hand bag which bore the
initial "C." The guard, in an endeavor
to learn her identity, began
to recite feminine names beginning
with "C"?Cora, Clara, Carrie, Corinnc,
etc. By the time a train
pulled into the station, he had called
off a long list, but the girl hadn't
given the slightest sign of recognition.
"On this job," the guard explained
a little sheepishly as he removed
the chain and passengers
plowed past, "You have to do something
to kill time."
Remarks: Frank Fay asserts that
combining business with pleasure is
all very well, but a much harder
thing to do is to combine business
with profit . . -Bjlly^Mills says
that the "b" in debt is silent, but
presumably was put there to supply
the sting . . . Bob Hawk holds that
Eve was the end of Adam's perfect
day.
F.nd Piece: As I was drinking a
cup of coffee in a nearby restaurant,
a truck driver took the next stool.
Big, powerful, his face black though
he had shaved only a short time
before, he looked the part of a real
he-man except for one discrepancy
?he was smoking a cigarette in a
fragile and dainty holder.
(Bel! Syndicate?WNU Service )
Jailed in France for
Listening to Radio
AIX EN PROVENCE, t'NOC
CUPIEI) FRANCE ?Three rosi
dents of Nice and one front
Grasse. on the French Rivieia.
were sentenced to prison terms
up to three months for listening
to the British radio.
Sentence was pronounced b;
the Aix En Provence appellate
court.
Average U. S. Ship
Is 19.7 Years Old
Merchant Fleet's *Age' Up
Slightly From 1940.
NEW YORK. ? Despite the Increase
in merchant ship construction
during the last year In the
United States, the average age of
vessels in the American merchant
fleet is higher than last year, according
to the latest bulletin issued
by the American bureau of shipping
on the subject.
A breakdown of age figures on
the 1,123 Bhips in United States
oceangoing merchant service on
October 1, 1941, shows that 79.2 per
cent are more than 20 years old.
Only 39.9 per cent of the vessels
owned by other countries are past I
the 20-year mark. Eleven per cent
of the American ships are less than
five years old, while 17 per cerit of
thq foreign craft are within this
class.
The average age of merchant
ships flying the United States flag
is 19.7 years, one-tenth of 1 per -cent
more than at the time of a
similar survey completed on October
1, 1940.
These figures do not give a true
picture of the potential quality of
our merchant fleet, however, and
it is expected that as the long-range
emergency shipbuilding programs
of the United States maritime commission
progress this country will
have a first-class fleet of cargo carriers,
with a gradual increase in
the number of new vessels.
On the basis of these age figures
it is difficult to realize, for example,
that the number of ocean-going
steel merchant ships completed in
the first 10 months of this year is
nearly double the total for the same
period in 1940.
On October 1 of this year, 1,011
vessels were under construction or
contract to the bureau's classification.
On November 1, 1940, there
were only 302 ships listed.
-H
Russ Levy Special Tax
On Unwed and Childless
MOSCOW.?The Supreme Soviet
has levied a special tax on unmarried
persons and childless couples,
the Moscow radio said.
Those affected arc men from 20
to 50 years of age and women from
20 to 45.
Exempt from the tax, whose
amount was not given, will be those
serving with armed forces, students
and pensioners.
Metal-Shy France Now
Grabs Ancient Jalopies
VICHY.?Because of the lack of
metal all automobiles of models j
manufactured prior to September 1,
1925, unless used as trucks or
busses, must be sold to the government,
which will salvage all the metal
they contain.
Owners who fail to comply will ba
fined and their cars conflacated.
Absent-Minded Burglar
Pays for Mental Lapse
NEW YORK.?This burglar had an
idea but suffered a mental lapse.
He removed the door lock on a
pharmacy, replaced it with one of
his own, and went in.
A policeman tried the door and
entered as the man was gathering
up $1,000 worth of fountain pens.
He hod forgotten to snap the lock.
Blacksmith for Five
Generations in Family
NEWMARKET, N. H.?It seems
there will always be a blacksmith
named Laing.
Frank E. Laing, 77, retired after
55 years work in his smithy and
auctioned off his tools. But his son .
Harold?the fifth generation in the [
family to be a blacksmith?is carry- ,
ing on the trade.
'Anglicized Jazz' Brings
Hamburg Orchestra Ban
BERLIN.?The Hamburger Tageblatt
said that a well-known cafe
orchestra had been deprived by the
authorities of its right to give public
performances because it played
"Anglicized Jazz music." Hundreds
of phonograph records of similar
music were reported confiscated in
Ham burg cafes.
Ants in His Pants? No!
It Was a Bee! Really
YELLOWSTONE PARK.?A fat,
middle-aged gentleman suddenly removed
his pants in front of the
Mammoth hotel.
"I %vac taking ? picture when suddenly
a bee flew up my pants leg,"
he told Ranger Frank Kin. "Modesty
had to be shoved aside."
German Generals Hit
I
By Ban on Monocles
| BERLIN. ? Hundreds of German
generals and other high officers
are hit by the latest economy
measure?a ban on mono|
cles Most opticians have run out
of them and are informing prospective
clients that production of
monocles now is regarded as unnecessary,
and therefore is forbidden
by the authorities.
How Much? 1
H o w M U CII ? ? ~m
TAXES does the outside printing kales- j
matt or his employers pay in Camden? -111
HOW MUCH |H
DOES he or his firm contribute to the 111
Welfare of our City? Ill
HOW MUCH ?
DOES he or his firm do to keep Camden I
on the map? j
HOW MUCH I
INTEREST does he take in the affairs of lli
the Community.? , IE
HOW MUCH |j
MONEY does he or the printers that do I
the work spend with Camden|
MERCHANTS? |i
HOW MUCH I
PUBLICITY does he give worthwhile I
movements and individual business
! enterprise?
YOUR HOME NEWSPAPER
PRINTING PLANT
PAYS TAXES IN CAMDEN. I
GIVES EMPLOYMENT to heads of It
families whose earnings are spent in I
CAMDEN. ' I
GIVES LIBERAL PUBLICITY to I
every worthy Civic Movement. I
BOOSTS CAMDEN and KERSHAW
COUNTY as a Good Place in which to I
live and trade.
KEEPS you acquainted with the I
Welfare of your Friends and Neigh|
bors.
AND
Gives You Good Workmanship At
Fair Prices . L
Patronize Your Local Newspaper Printing Office
The Camden Chronicle
COMMERCIAL PRINTING
Telephone 29 Camden, S. C> iL I
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