Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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THE NEWBERRY SUN, NEWBERRY, S. C. Is the 'Common Man' Fit to Rule? ♦- Population May Backslide To Low Intelligence Level By BAUKHAGE News Analyst and Commentator. WASHINGTON.—When the Henry Wallace for president movement was launched in California it made a lot of Repub licans happy just to think about it, although they never really believed that a third party was possible. (When I was in col lege a friend bf mine wrote an essay entitled: “Why a Third Party Is Impossible in America.” This was just before Teddy Roosevelt came out with his Bull Moosers in 1912). If Wallace were to become president of the United States it is unlikely that the “common man” whom he champions would have any more to say about running the country than' he does now. However, when Wallace says this is the century of the “common man," he isn’t far wrong. The revolutions which have swept<|>- the world in the past decade cer tainly would not have been possi ble if they had Baukbage not had the sup port of the peo ple. This support was not necessar ily the result of free choice, intel lectual decision or popular vote. In fact, for the most part — cer tainly under Mus solini, Franco. Hitler and Stalin —it was the op posite. Neverthe less. they were not revolutions of the upper classes. Even in the case of Great Brit ain's very mild revolution, which was the result of popular vote and a free choice, the traditional po litical and intellectual leaders were swept out of office. Americans are committed to the idea that the majority should rule and the theory al ways has been that the people would be wise enough to select a person of sufficient intelli gence, experience and integrity to represent them at the job of ruling. Of late, however, a number of persons approaching the problem from quite different angles, have expressed concern about the educa tion and training of the men avail able for the responsibility of car rying on the business of govern ment. I have been assured by old-timers here who have been familiar with the personnel of congress over a number of years that we perhaps have as high type of men, mentally and morally, in congress today as we have ever had. In fact, I am told they are making excellent use of the greatly expanded sources of information on the issues they have to consider and are, therefore, bet ter informed than any congress has ever been. Nevertheless, we hear from edu cators, from economists and statis ticians, all sorts of dire warnings. One that has recently stirred up the press considerably was by Guy Irving Burch, head of the popula tion reference bureau. It seems Burch read a survey made in Eng land by Sir Cyril Burt at the re quest of the royal commission on population. As a result of his survey. Sir Cyril suggests that in 50 years the number of students of scholarship ability in Britain will be approxi mately halved and the number of feeble-minded almost doubled. This conclusion was based on psycho logical tests and size of families in Britain. Nation of DullardM Seen in Future Burch has studied population sta tistics for the United States from the standpoint of psychological tests, educational attainment, eco nomic status and type of occupa tion. He says: “We may reach the general conclusion that the lowest third of our people in each one of these four categories has families about twice as large as those of the highest third.” And he concludes: “As a voting participant in helping to solve the many in tricate problems of oar complex civilization a doll and backward individual is almost as helpless as an idiot. In fact, be may be more dangerous to democrat ic institutions because he is easily commanded by dema gogues and dictators.’’ This gives us quite a different pic ture of the century of the “common man.’’ Dr. Francis Brown, staff associ ate of the American Council on Education and the executive secre tary of the President’s commission, doesn’t quarrel with Burch's figures but he says: “This population-intel ligence report does not give enough importance to the possibility of im proving intelligence by education.’’ In other words, if we broaden the base of our teaching we can regain a lot of the potential waste ma terial that Burch has discovered. What the Burch report over looks is this, says Dr. Brown, “human intelligence never has been developed to its fullest among the great masses of peo ple. No way has been found accurately to measure the ul timate capabilities of the human mind.” There are others, however, who while they may agree with Brown’s postulation, question the methods now being used to develop these innate abilities. A very dim view of the situation is taken by Canon Bernard Iddings Bell, educator, pastor, author and consultant on education to the Epis copal bishop of Chicago. He thinks Henry Wallace is cor rect in his description of the cur rent century but he says: “It does not follow because the common man has suddenly been lifted into control that he is thereby automatically made competent properly to exert control.” He thinks Wallace’s definition ought to be expanded. He says: “Ours is the century of the perpetually adolescent common man, of the common man un skilled in the art of living. Un taught in the wisdom of the race, he is incompetent either to rule or to be ruled." Need Education For Common Man The canon isn’t snobbish. He is not looking down his canonical nose at anybody. As a member of so ciety he takes his share of the blame by saying that society has played the common man a low trick "for which those who control education are chiefly chargeable.’’ Bell quotes the late Dr. William Rainey Harper’s definition of an ed ucated man: A man who by the Canon Bernard Iddings Bell "... unskilled... untaught..." time he is 25 has a clear theory, formed in the light of human ex perience down the ages, of what constitutes a satisfying life, a sig nificant life, and who by the age of 30 has a moral philosophy consonant with racial experience.” Bell thinks that what we do not do and what we ought to do to educate is, first, to give children a knowledge of the race’s wisdom, imparting to them what they ought to know rather than teach them what they would like to study; sec ond, to teach children how to read, write, listen to and speak the English language; third, they must be taught decent manners, the rights of others; fourth, they must learn that honest and craftsmanlike achievement is the only door to so cial approval; fifth, teachers must “inspire reverence for the un seen and impart some objective knowledge of what the various faiths about us are to do and teach.” I wish that some smart statis tician would try to figure out if the kind of education which would give a man a high income likewise makes him fit to run a country as complicated as ours in a world as complicated as ours. HOW BLUE YOUR EYES ARE , . . Anything can happen at a baby show, as witness this scene taken during judging at a Los Angeles competition. One-year-old Leland Dexter, contestant for the bluest eyes, went to sleep in midst of excitement and had to be judged in his carriage. NEWS REVIEW British Economy Menaced; Traffic Fatalities Slashed Like a kaleidoscope in which several apparently unrelated chips of glass shift suddenly from a meaningless jumble of color into an understandable pattern, so at least some of the whirling segments of the world’s intricate economy have be gun dropping into place to form a coherent unit. For masses of Americans, to whom economics could be boiled down into a matter of “you either have it or don’t have it,” the international hysteria of monies, credits, loans, spend ing, inflation at home and crises abroad began to take on some meaning. Within a matter of hours came a sudden spate of developments, starting in England and ending up on virtually every farm in America. Having no ostensible connection on the surface, each fresh turn of events was linked inexorably with preceding occurrences. To philosophers, as well as econo mists, it was a perfect chain of causes and effects. This is how it began: 1 1 X • gomery, chief of the British im perial general staff, suddenly was called home from a tour of the Far East. Montgomery returned to Great Britain to advise the government concerning drastic curtailment of the nation’s military establishment, cost of which (3.6 billion dollars a year) could no longer be borne by the threadbare British economy. 2 In London, Labor government • officials, no longer able to stave off a frank admission, told the world that England’s plight was desperate, that the tight little isle was on the sharp brink of ruin. Prime Minister Clement Attlee, as sailed with charges of “bungling” and “failure to act," nevertheless was given a vote of confidence when he sketched out a plan which would have British miners work an extra hour each day to increase England's coal production, key pillar in its economic structure. The British crisis was bom out of four factors: Shortage of Amer ican dollars (the U. S. loan will have been used up by Christmas); shortage of coal (not enough to per mit industries to operate and re build stockpiles); shortage of man power, and inflation. 3 Morally weakened under the • threat of domestic political and economic crises, the London stock market broke swiftly, as sharp sell ing hit all sections. And, although U. S. state depart ment observers scoffed at the idea that developments in England had produced a reaction over here, it appeared to be something more than coincidence that: 4 Shortly after London stocks • broke, wheat prices on the Chi cago board of trade showed losses of nine to nine and one-fourth cents a bushel, while corn and oats dropped off from three to four cents. Industrial stocks also receded some what on the New York stock ex change. At the same time, it became ap parent that the U. S. government, faced with high prices of grain and food and continued shortages abroad, would issue a call for an other big wheat crop this year in stead of reducing wheat production goals as was planned previously. As the picture began to take shape, the dominating motif ap peared to be economic insecurity. DEATH ROAD: Safety Report Compared with 1946, death is tak ing a back seat on the nation’s high ways this year, the semi-annual re port of the National Safety council has shown. For the first six months of 1947 the cross-country death toll stood at 14,480. That figure is 9 per cent below the 15,890 fatalities recorded for the same period last year. At the same time, travel was 11 per cent heavier this year. According to the safety council’s report, 2,490 lives were lost during June, which represents a 5 per cent increase over the June, 1946, rec ord. In view of the increased traffic, however, it was a marked improve ment. Even the larger cities in the na tion were decreasing their traffic fatalities. New York whittled its deaths by 15 per cent and Los An geles by 16 per cent. Jacksonville, Fla., was tops on the record book with a 69 per cent decrease from 1946. Indication was that cities were becoming more traffic conscious. INDONESIA: U.N. Looks It was a matter of regret, the Dutch government said, that the matter of the Dutch - Indonesian fracas was being brought before the United Nations security counciL To a few million other observers, it was not so much a matter of regret as it was a surprise. U. N., it seemed, was even then overdue in its action. Australia and India laid the prob lem before the counciL where it immediately began to vie with the Balkan issue for priority of debate. Although the Australian and In dian delegations told the council that the strife between Dutch and Indonesian forces threatened world peace, a Dutch spokesman in Wash ington said U. N. had no juris diction. Netherlands authorities insist on terming the struggle a Dutch “po lice action,” designed to control re bellious Indonesians who hate to wait until 1949 to attain their inde pendence as a sovereign state. The Indonesians, however, say that the Dutch are waging a colonial war and that it looks like imperialism to them. FARMERS BENEFIT AAA To Resume Soil Program WASHINGTON.—Extensive oper ations of the AAA soil conservation program were ordered resumed by the department of agriculture after congress finally approved a 255 mil lion dollar administrative fund for the setup. Administrative expenses are in addition to the 265 million dollars which will go directly for payments to farmers participating in soil-saving practices. Inaugurated in early days of the Neyr Year, the AAA program offers cash and materials, principally lime and fertilizers, to farmers for carrying out approved soil and water conservation practices. Local details of the program are carried out by more than 100,000 farmer committeemen. The program was halted in May when the house voted to appropri ate only 165 million dollars for the setup this year and to end it alto gether next year. The AAA had worked out a 300 million dollar pro gram and President Truman had recommended that amount in his budget to congress. Although the 255 million finally voted by congress is lower than the sum asked, the soil program is be ing resumed on the same basis as originally planned. The appropria tion for administrative expenses is about 18 per cent less than last year. Bulk of the reduction in per sonnel and other expenses will be absorbed in Washington and state offices, allowing local AAA offices to retain most of their present staff. A farmer may sign up for any number of approved projects, but he is promised only a certain amount of money with the provision that he will get additional payments if any funds remain after all farm ers have been paid their minimum guarantees. The program will be cut drastic* ally next year. At insistence of the senate, however, the house agreed to go along with an appropriation ol 150 million dollars for 1948. SCHOOL LCSS0N Straight Thinking About Drinking LESSON TEXT FOR AUGUST 17- Proverbs 20:1: 23:19-21, 29-33; Ecclesi astes 10:17. MEMORY SELECTION—Be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit.—Ephesians 5:18. EDITOR'S NOTE: Lesson subjects and Scripture texts selected and copy righted by International Council ol Re ligious Education; used by permission. By WILLIAM CULBERTSON, D. D. Of The Moody Bible Institute, Chicago. ’ | 'HE increase in the drinking -*■ habits of our nation is a source of concern, not only to the forces of morality, but to the liquor interests themselves. How strange it is to have the purveyors of a commodity urge moderation in its use! Undoubtedly the Bible’s answer to this whole problem is the only right one. The Word of God has many strong things to say con cerning alcoholic beverages. Wise Is the man who heeds the injunc tions of Scripture. I. Liquor—a Description (Prov. 20:1). XX^HAT a striking text this is! Think of its implications. “Wine is a mocker.” It grasps its victim in a vicelike grip, and then taunts him in his inability to release himself. The drunkard is a victim of his own appetite, helpless to re sist the temptation which ensnares him. The young person who takes his first drink for sociability Is indeed deceived, in that alcoholic liquor never reveals the possible cost which it exacts from the one who takes that first drink. The better part of valor is to leave the stuff alone. The Word of God says further that “strong drink is a brawler” (A.S.V.). All of us have probably seen how the drunkard enters into conflict entirely without reason. Li quor seems to make a man sense less to danger and quick to express anger. n. Liquor—a Warning (Prov. 23: 19-21). T HE admonition of this passage is that we should not be found among drunkards and gluttonous men. Solomon here tells us of one of the results of drunkenness and gluttony —poverty. The drowsiness which is the result of both of these sins does indeed clothe a man with rags. If, therefore, we have no higher motive than that of self-respect, than that of having enough of this world’s goods to make a present able appearance, we should avoid company with those who will lead us into the same excess that char acterizes them. How important it is that we guide our hearts in God’s way. Let us understand, of course, that there are far higher motives for right living than those involved here. However, if we can come to the conclusion to avoid drinking on the basis of a lower motive, how much more important it is to come to the same conclusion on the basis of a higher one. As Christians, that higher motive concerns our testi mony before men, our living a life that will cause others to want to know Christ; in short, our living for the glory of God. IH. Liquor—a History (Prov. 23: 29-35; Eccles. 10:17). TN THE first of these Scripture passages we have what may be called a history of drunkenness. This sin leads to woe, to sorrow, to contentions, to wounds without a cause. But that is not the end. Look care fully at Proverbs 23:32 and stress the first three words, "At the last.” At the last, it does indeed bite like a serpent and sting like an adder. Such poison is injected into one’s body and soul that it seems as though there is no remedy. Thank God, there is a remedy; there is power in the blood of Christ to make the foulest clean. In verses 33 to 35 we read some of the results of drunkenness: Be holding of strange things (v. 33), utterance of perverse things (v. 33), insensibility which is the result of drinking (v. 35), and inability to avoid Succumbing to the same temptation all over again (v. 35). Is it any wonder that the admoni tion is "Look not thou upon the wine when it is red, when it sparkleth in the cup, when it goeth down smoothly.” Although man still has a semblance of right thinking, the temptation is great enough to de ceive him as to the consequences. In view of such results, is it any wonder this same Preacher says in Ecclesiastes 10:17 that the land is blessed when its rulers eat and drink for strength and not for drunkenness. It still is true that righteousness exalteth a nation, but that sin is a reproach to any people. And since the princes of the land as the lead ers will frequently personify the people of the land as the followers, happy is that nation which has godly govemers. Released by Western Newspaper Union. ALL OK A STRING ‘Magic Lasso’ Enables Children To Bealize Cherished Dreams WNU Features. PHILADELPHIA.—The American youngster’s yen to be “a real cowboy” never wanes, and two war veterans, taking a leaf from their own childhood experiences, have made capital of it. Their unique business enterprise, spawned by wartime dreams, has harnessed the childhood ambition of being able to do real cowboy rope spinning tricks, which from time im memorial have intrigued youngsters at the movies, circuses, fairs and rodeos. Their success formula was the development of a “magic lasso,” which anyone can quickly learn to spin, yet which is “safe” in the hands of children. Merely a piece of hand-finished sisal rope, it is fitted with a tiny imbedded swivel to permit free-spinning of the loop. The swivel also serves as a pro tective link should kiddies decide to do some fancy stepr roping on play mates. Children, of course, represent the bulk of potential customers. But even Hollywood studios have found the new gadget ef fective, using it as a standard prop in movie making. Broad way shows, where rope tricks must be more skillfully per formed, find the “magic lasso” an efficient aid. Partners in the unique business are David Knox and Horace Reese, both of Philadelphia. Childhood friends, both served in the armed forces, Knox in the army and Reese in the navy. Whenever per sonal plans for the postwar period were being discussed, the two old friends agreed that their major ob jective was to be in business for themselves. Upon their discharge from the services, the two tooled their re sources to found the business de voted to manufacture of the novel lasso. Starting on a Small scale, without benefit of a veteran’s loan, the two have seen their business grow to an organization employing as many as 14 people with an an nual production approaching the half million mark. Lately, a second rope development has been introduced by the Knox- Reese combination—a unique jump ing rope that is adjustable so one or five can skip to their heart's con tent, without ruining the family clothesline. American Flowers Bloom in Profusion In Far-off Pacific American flowers are blooming in profusion this summer around army and marine corps hospitals in the far-off Pacific area. Convalescent servicemen, finding their way back to health in these hospitals, all the way from the Phil ippines to Japan are the gardeners. The flower seeds, and vegetable seeds too, are supplied by Daugh ters of the American Revolution. Tiny packets of seeds have been distributed through war department cooperation to the various Pacific areas. This year, 6,734 packages of seeds have been sent to the hospi tals. The grand total since the proj ect was originated is more than 50,000 packets of seeds. The seeds are given to the con valescent men and are planted in gardens adjoining the hospital building. The patients have their choice of seeds and thus can grow the varieties of flowers and vege tables which might be found in their own yard back home. Started during the war, the proj ect has been continued by D.A.R. because of the many requests from hospitals overseas. In many hospi tals there is keen rivalry among the men in growing the flowers and vegetables. Medical officers re ported that the war gardens have greatly aided patients in their re covery to health. Ex-G.I. Garries Out Order; Judge Pays HOUSTON, TEX.—Acting on the plea of the youth’s mother that she needed someone to do the work on the family farm, District Judge Frank Williford permitted an army veteran to return home. The youth was accused cf writing a worthless check. “Go home to your mother as fast as you can,” Judge Williford told the youth, “but wire me when you get there.” The judge received the tele gram all right, but it came collect The cost 45 cents. Land of Spectacles CHEYENNE, WYO. — Wyoming specializes in all kinds of unusual events—from cross-country horse races to bow and arrow buffalo hunts. Latest of the odd attractions were a 114-mile endurance horse race and a 15-mile “Pony Express” race. MAGIC FOB CHILDREN . . . David Knox spins the "magic lasso,” a new rope invention which enables children to realize their dreams of becoming “real cowboys.” C.l. Youth Ciyes Germans Novel Farming Lesson Deep in the heart of occupied Germany a thriving sample of In diana agriculture provides a novel lesson in American farming meth ods for people of the war-ravaged country. A Midwest home demon stration agent and a G.I. youth on occupation duty pooled their efforts and ideas to show nearly 100 Ger man youths how to be good farmers while augmenting their meager diet by using vegetables grown by them selves. Pfc. Birch Bayh Jr. of Vigo county, Indiana, is the American soldier and Miss Mildred Schlosser is the home demonstration agent who are responsible for the project. Bayh, 19-year-old Hoosier farmer, qualifies as an able instructor by virtue of his past record. Two years ago, as a contestant ip the annual production - marketing contest of National Junior Vegetable Growers association, Bayh was tilling a seven-acre plot on his grandfather’s farm, where he raised crops worth more than $1,677. The crops were so good, Bayh sent a special batch to his father, Lt. Coi. Birch Bayh of the U. S. army, then stationed in China. In the national contest, Bayh’s efficient operation rated so high he won the Midwest regional NJVGA title and a $200 scholarship from the $6,000 in contest awards pro vided annually by A & P food stores. Using this fund to augment his savings, Bayh entered Purdue university where his studies were interrupted by a call to army duty. Later he was assigned to the Ger man occupation forces. Impressed by the soil near his station in that country, and encour aged by seeds sent as a gift to him by Miss Schlosser, home demon stration agent and NJVGA advisor of his Indiana club, Bayh quickly recruited nearly 100 youngsters in his area and started a garden proj ect. He divided his land into 45 in dividual plots with two children as signed to each. The young growers were given a series of lessons in American methods, tilling, planting and weeding. The results of their efforts are already evident, with a bumper crop of tomatoes and corn well on its way to maturity. Most of these products are new to the youths, but they indicate that they’ll eat them with pleasure. Bank Bulges Again— With Golden Wheat CENTER VIEW, KAS. _ The once-thriving Centerview State bank, which was liquidated 15 years ago, again is bulging with deposits — hut this time the money is in the form of golden wheat. Because of a shortage of granary space, A. R. Francis and his son, Raymond, leased the brick building which once housed the bank and have filled it with wheat. Penn Liked Solid Houses, Deed Shows SUNBURY, PA. — William Penn, Pennsylvania’s solid Quaker found er, apparently was no advocate of temporary emergency housing. A deed for one of the first land grants made by the pioneer Penn family in this community, dated January, 1773, specified among its numerous provisions that a “substantial dwelling with brick or stone chim ney, 25 feet square” must be built within three years of the date the deed was executed. Frederick Nagle of Berks county, who rented the land for from $5 to $10 a year in present money, com plied with the spirit of the deed. He built a log home so substantial that it lasted and was used as a dwell ing place until this year. Miss Katherine Reed, a school teacher who now owns the property, has the original parchment of the grant made by Penn’s heirs. Guide to Jobs: Where And How to Get Them pf'ENEY-meeney-miney-mo is an work. Deciding what field to enter, vhat job to go after, deserves careful considera tion. Make a list of all the things you like to do, those you dislike. What’s your weakness? What do you do best? That’s how to narrow the field down to a few choices. * • * Dozens of fields are analyzed in our booklet No. 201, including salaries, chances for success, etc. Send 25 cents in coin for “Guide to Jobs: How and Where to Get Them” to Weekly News paper Service, 243 West 17th St., New York 11, N. Y. Print name, address with zone, booklet title and No. 201. Lszybonts Nothing seems to stiff him to life. What can his master ex. pect if the deg Isn’t fed right? Gro- Pup Ribbon would give him every vitamin and mineral dogs are known to need. It’s a money-saver, too! Each box supplies as much food by dry weight as five 1-lb. cans of dog food! Gro-Pup also comes in Meal and in Pel-Etts. For variety, feed all three. VocpGoTbt GROWS l&CtvyjSt Chafing Dry Eczema Sunburn Ivy Poison Simple Rash niFlAf C t* 13 * makes folks miYVD sleep all night! ! Thousands now sleep undisturbed because of I the news that their being awakened night after night might be from bladder irritation, not the I kidneys. 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