The sun. [volume] (Newberry, S.C.) 1937-1972, June 08, 1951, Image 2
THE NEWBERRY SUN. NEWBERRY. S. C.
——i
Iron Curtain Trade
r R SOME time this column has
called attention to the ship
ment of war materials behind the
Iron Curtain by European nations.
Most people don’t realize that a
Steady trickle of strategic materials
have been reaching Communist
countries from the U.S.A. Here are
some American firms which have
been transshipping:
1. Rolfe G. Grote of New York,
who sent chemicals to Switzerland,
later transshipped them to Soviet
Russia.
2. The Pacific Trading Corpora
tion of Boston which transshipped
steel plates to Communist China
3. The Harris Chemical Corpora
tion of New York which obtained a
license te ship chemicals to Bel
gium, then transshipped them to
Communist Czechoslovakia.
Last December 27 this column
also revealed that the Alumi
num Corporation of Canada, an
affiliate of the Mellon-controlled
Aluminum Corporation of Amer
ica, had shipped 3,000,000
pounds of aluminum to Com
munist Czechoslovakia, and
1,060,000 pounds of aluminum to
Communist Poland, at a time
when the American public was
getting dangerously short.
Tax Tempers
m
There were some stormy dissents
inside the house ways and means
committee before it tentatively ap
proved a 3 per cent, across-the-
board boost in individual income
taxes.
“This is an unfair imposition on
.the lower-bracket taxpayers,” in
sisted Democrat Wilbur Mills of
Arkansas. “Most of the new reve
nue in this legislation will come
from the lower brackets anyhow,
so why saddle the poor man with
the same rate of increase as the
upper-bracket taxpayer?”
Rep. Hale Boggs of Louisiana,
who favored a graduated increase
from 2 to 4 per cent on incomes
up to $10,000 a year, also strongly
opposed the across-the-board for
mula. So did another Democrat,
John Dingell of Michigan.
Dingell was furious because the
committee had raised corporation
taxes only to 52 per cent instead of
the 55 per cent, as recommended
by the treasury.
“The coffers of oonyi of Jhese - X*
Mg companies are bulging with
unexpended cash,** exclaimed
Dingell. “That's where the . fat
Is. It Isn’t In the little man’s
pocket. I’m against all these
excise taxes too, which are paid
by the consumers—and that ap
plies to excises on automobiles
made in my own home town.
“America lives on wheels,” said
the congressman from Detroit. “But
If you cripple the automobile in
dustry by increasing excises to
the point where the average fellow
can’t afford to buy a new car you
are threatening the future of our
whole economy.”
Rep. Dan Reed of New York, the
committee’s No. 1 Republican, said
he was willing to “go along” by
not raising individual income taxes
at all. While Democrats pinched
themselves to be sure they weren’t
dreaming, Reed hastened to ex-
Main:
“If we cut non-essential govern
ment spending to the bone, maybe
we wouldn’t need a tax bill.”
In the showdown, however, Reed
and other committee Republicans
voted solidly for the income-tax
boost which hits little incomes as
much as it does big.
Kortao Air Disaster
The American public has shown
its ability to take the bad news
with the good and therefore
has a right to know about our
worst air disaster of the Korean
war. So far the facts have not been
released at the Pentagon.
Last month, /however, 40 B-29
srfortresses, escorted by jet
iters, bombed the international
;e connecting Sinuiju, North
Korea, with Antung, Manchuria.
B-29’s were hugging so close to
the Manchurian border that one
side was exposed and approximate-
100 Russian MIG-15 jet fighters
flit them from the exposed Man
churian side, breaking up the for-
ition.
Two B-29’s were shot down,
a third was listed as missing
but was seen crashing into the
sea. Seven of the big super
fortresses had to crash-land in
South Korea, while one was
badly damaged but made it
ftp the home base.
lington Pipeline
American scientists are unable
to understand why the Russians
h exploded only one A-bomb,
most elaborate devices have
tted no indication that the
has set off a second
explosion. Some of our ex
feel that the Reds have found
of detonating their bombs
eludes our instruments,
claim the Russians are so
the U.S. that they would
)w their lack of progress
another.
SCANNING THE WEEK'S NEWS
of Main Street and the World
Small Business Casualty of Defense;
Meat Price Rules Confuse Consumer
THE FOUNDATION THREATENED—According to several nation
al economic surveys made public in the last week or so, small business
is becoming a casualty of defense. This is a serious and frightening fact
for thousands of small towns, because about 3,670,000 small businesses
form the foundation of the American economic pyramid, many of them
located in the home towns of the nation.
In the first two years of World War II, 16 per cent of the small busi
nesses of the country were forced
to close down. There are reports
that many observers believe the
fatality rate in the present de
fense mobilization program may
be even higher than in those years.
A Washington report revealed
that congressional small business
committees are receiving an av
erage of 500 letters a day appeal
ing for information and help from
small businessmen.
Several reasons are given for
the present difficulties. The most
important are shortages pf ma
terials—allocation of steel, alum
inum, etc., from civilian con
sumption to defense projects; the
inability of small business to qual
ify for defense contracts; and the
expansion of big business to avoid
subcontracting, formally a profit-
• able source for small business.
UP A TREE—Mild mannered, popular Gen. Omar Bradley, remem
bered by thousands of World War II veterans in the home towns of Amer
ica as the “GI’s general,” put the combined senate armed services and
foreign relations committees up a tree during his testimony on the re
moval of Gen. Douglas MacArthur from his Pacific commands.
To begin with, General Bradley caused a stir among the Republican
members of the committees by upholding the administration’s actions
with the sr . eping statement that General MacArthur’s Korean plans
“would involve us in the wrong war, at the wrong place, at the wrong
time, and with the wrong enemy.”
But when he flatly refused to tell the senators about his private talks
with the President on the recall of MacArthur, he chased the committees
up a tree.
For a day committee members argued among themselves whether
they should take some kind ef contempt action against the general. They
voted 18 to 8, however, against such action expressing the view that it
might set a ‘dangerous precedent.
To the home town veteran, however, it seemed more likely the sen
ators remembered Gen. Bradley’s popularity with the men that make up
a big part of today’s Main Street population.
NEW DRAFT LAW—Senate and house conferees, attempting to reach
a compromise on the two bills previously passed by the groups, finally
reached a settlement calling for extension of the draft until July 1, 1955,
with men of 18% eligible for induction for 24 months of service.
The old draft bill expires July 1. The new one will require all men to
register on becoming 18. They would be examined and classified before
they were 18% and would be eligible for induction thereafter, providing
the pool of men from 19 to 26 in their individual draft districts had been
exhausted by the local hoards.
The bill will put a five million person ceiling on the combined army,
navy, air forces and marines. It also requires that all draftees, volunteers,
and reserves have at least four months’ basic training before being as
signed outside the United States.
UP TO OLD TRICKS—After rejecting American plans for a peace
treaty with Japan, the Russians reverted to their old tricks in proposing
their versiop of a treaty. The Soviet plan, which was rejected by file
United States, would bar foreign forces from Japan after the occupation
ends and thereby block an arrangement for American troops to help pro
vide Japanese security.
It was the same type of thing the Russians so successfully carried out
in Korea and which led to the present situation in Asia. Ne one can be
lieve the Russians thought the United States would accept their plan, but
one has to give them credit for having the nerve to suggest it.
There is little possibility now of Russia joining in the American peace
treaty which is nearing conclusion.
BEWILDERED HOUSEWIVES—Home town housewives entered their
Main Street stores and meat markets on Monday, May 14, without their
usual dread of visiting a meat counter. The government had just ordered
a cut in meat prices.
After one quick look she became a startled and confused housewife.
For the next 10 days she became more bewildered. Meat prices were not
down according to her figures—but up!
What the home town housewife saw was porterhouse steak up 7 cents
a pound and sirloin up 9 cents. Round steak was down 2 cents—not enough
to mention, and short ribs of beef down 8 cents—as she had expected of
other cuts.
According to the government, however, the up and down price juggling
of beef actually produced an over-all savings to the housewife of one-half
of 1 per cent.
This she couldn’t understand. One-half of 1 per cent didn’t do a thing
for her meat budget.
FAIR TRADE RULING—By a vote of 6-to-3, the supreme court ruled
that merchants who did not sign fair-trade agreements are free to charge
cut-rate prices if they wish.
Under the laws of 45 states, distributors of trade-mark or brand goods
may enter into agreements with retail dealers to sell their products at filed
minimum prices. Under the new court ruling, however, the home town
merchant who did not sign such a contract or agreement can sell the prod
uct at whatever price he desires.
The only states not having fair-trade laws are Vermont, Texas, and
Missouri.
The.ruling will have little effect on most classes of merchandise as
long as business is good, most Main Street businessmen believe. This
would not hold true, however, if business went into a slump.
. ...
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Homeward Bound on Rotation Express
American GI’s, veterans of the Korean fighting board a truck bound
for a rotation center where they will be processed for return to the United
States. Tired GVs slugged the truck appropriately, ’’Rotation Express.”
LAND BOOM OF 1950
Farm Mortgage Debt Up 8 Per Cent
The agriculture department re
ported recently the land boom of
1950 boosted the farm real-estate
debt 8 per cent, totaling $5,800,000,-
000 at the end of the year. Likewise,
the rising demand and increased
prices for farm commodities led
farmers to add to their non-real-
estate debt. They borrowed heavily
to buy additional equipment aftd
machinery.
The department said the real-es-
tate-mortgage debt, however, was
only 54 per cent of the record
reached in 1923. Twelve states have
a higher mortgage debt than in the
peak year of 1923. These are New
Hampshire, Rhode Island, New Jer
sey, Delaware, Virginia, West Vir
ginia, North Carolina, Florida, Ten
nessee, Alabama, Louisiana and
New Mexico.
SELLOUT . . . Mickey Cohen ex
amines revolver from his collec
tion of old guns that went on sale
to raise money for his income tax
suit. The Beverly Hills gambler’s
collection was valued at around
$7,000 before he decided to sell
them.
REUNITED FAMILY ... Gen. Matthew B. Ridgway was .reunited with
his family recently when his wife and small son, Matty, arrived in
Tokyo. It was a big day all around for the general, new supreme com
mander of allied forces in the far east. President Truman nominated
him for his fourth star, making him a full general, subject to senate
approval. The general and his family were reunited at the airport in
Tokyo on the big day.
ASKS TWO MILLION . . . Mrs.
Eunice Walterman, Kansas City,
has filed two million dollar suit
against Myron Taylor, former U.S.
representative to Vatican, charg
ing conspiracy to prevent her
claim she is his daughter.
INTIMATE CHAT . . . Israeli Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion (right)
has a friendly talk with Professor Albert Einstein (left) at the profes
sor’s home In Princeton, New Jersey. The prime minister from Israel
made the visit to the aged mathematician on fhe first leg of his planned
gpationwide tour to spur the support of the Ajgierican public for the half-
a-billion-dollar independence bond issue drive f
BOLIVIAN REBEL . . . Victor Pas
Estensoro, whose revolutionary
group polled nearly half the votes
in recent Bolivian election, says
he is not pro Red. A military junta
took over country and he fled to
Bnenos Aires for safety from at
tempts on his life.
REFUSES BRONZE STAR . . .
Mrs. Avera Talley, Los Angeles,
refuses posthumous Bronze Star
for her son Sidney, killed in Korea,
until the government will give
more information on how he was
killed. Star is for gallantry in ac
tion.
SOBER|NG EXPERIENCE • . .
Actor John Agar, Shirley Temple’s
ex-hnsband, was married in Las
Vegas to Loretta Barnett, after be
ing refused license because he was
“intoxicated.** He drank black cof
fee and walked around block.
independence bond
for Israeli relief.
The Futile Assignment
It is all very well to have stood
with the greats.
To have gathered yonr garlands
of fame.
It Is all very well to have ont-
bncked the fates,
1 To have reached for a head-
liner’s name.
Grantland Rice
NO SALE ... A raspberry from the law was all two young men got
when they tried to bnrglarize a candy store in New York recently.
Here, we see one of the snbjeclb, Ralph Dominquez, 21, being forcibly
assisted from the window by a policeman after he and Harry Panga-
bean, 19, were caught in the act by the cops. The two boys were ac
cused also of stealing a car which was removed before the owner knew
It was gone.
TAKE THAT, YOU DEVIATIONIST . .. The ducking gent here is Darius
La Corre, leader of a newly-formed Communist movement in Paris.
The new group is Independent of Moscow and is written down by reg
ular Beds as Tltoisft, or deviatlonist. Le Corre’s duck resulted from
a pass by the unidentified regular Communist aft right who intruded
a press conference where Le Corre was explaining the aims ef the
nariv and swans at Le Corre.
But when you are slipping-
everyone does—
And the dirge has supplanted / ‘
the sonnet;
Remember bow quickly a name
gathers fuss—
Don’t try to get anything on it.
• • •
New York—The next essay should
he turned in the general direction
of one Edmund Lopat, a left-handed
pitcher with the Yankees. Ed lApat
won his first six
games, hut actually
his record is better
than that. In an
era where any
pitcher who per
mits less than 3
earned runs each
season is a hero,
Lopat permitted an
earned-run average
of .60 in his first
five games, an all-
time record as far as we can ex
cavate into the past.
Lopat is another rare character
in a new .form. He is one of the
few living citizens who was born
in New York City. This happy
event, for the Yankees, took place
in June. 1918, just 33 years ago.
In spite of his brilliant start,
life this year was net all milk
and honey for left-hander Lo
pat. Eddie started as a first
baseman with Greensburg in
the Pennsylvania State League,
then moved to Jeanerette, deep
in the trash, in 1937. That was
some' 14 years ago. He worked
with Jeanerette, Kilgore,
Shreveport, Longview, Mar
shall, Satina, Oklahoma City,
and Little Rock before be final
ly reached the White Sex in
1944. He won 11 and dropped 10
for the White Sex that year, a
‘ rare achievement any season
while pitching for the White
Sex.
Starting the 1951 campaign Lopat
has won 100 and lost 78 games for
a winning average of .562. It ia a
muchfbetter .average now with hty
1951 start
Lefty Lopat is now thinking ot
writing a book called “Life Begins
at 33.” In this three years udth
the Yankees, up to 1951, Lopat hat
won 50 games up through 1950 and
lost only 29. He waited 13 pro sea
sons before getting the best start
be has ever known. Last season
Lopat wan 18 and lost 8 for his
best record to date. Unless some
one starts throwing hand grenades,
1951 should he by all odds his best
year.
• • • ( ,
Two Records to Match
* In checking Eddie Lopat’s amaz
ing 1951 record, plus the record of
other stars, we pause at the marks
set by one Grover Cleveland Alex
ander, plus another set of marks
estaWished by Walter Johnson.
In 1915 Alexander’s earned-run
mark was 1.22. It was 1.55 in 1916
and 1.83 in 1917. After the war Alex
gave the game 1.72 in 1919 and 1.91
in 1920. Here were five years where
Alexander allowed less than two
earned runs a game, working over
400 innings each year.
He had been yanked away
from his game for a year, Join
ing the army In 1917, or he
might easily have set a league-
leadership mark for six con
secutive years.
In 1912 the American League had
no earned run average or Johnson
might have set a new mark. That
was one of his greatest seasons.
But in 1913 he had an average of
1.14 per game, \.71 in 1914, 1.55 in
1915, 1.89 in 1916, 1.28 in 1919 and
1.55 in 1919.
Here were eleven years of great
pitching by two of the games best
—Alexander and Johnson, Old
Pete and Big Barney. No one can
expect Lopat to match marks of
this type in the modem era when
pitchers who allows less than three
earned runs are regarded as hav
ing a touch of magic.
Early Wynn of Cleveland led all
A.L. pitchers last season with the
chubby mark of 3.20, a long hop
from Johnson’s 1.14. The big slump
in pitching skill or the arrival of
thq rubber hall took place in 1921.
Since then only Hal Newhouser,
Carl HubbeU, Howie Pollet and
Mort Cooper have operated under
the two-earned run count.
• • •
Whore the People Go
NEW YORK, May—It may, oi it
may not, interest you to know
where your fellow human beings go
in searching for a favorite sport.
Also just how the trend ia today—
whether up or whether down. We
might as well start with baseball,
file most harassed of sports by tele
vision’s savage invasion.
In 1949 major league baseball
drew 20,215,365 people. The minors
were healthy with television just
warming up.
LIFE IS GOOP
Life in Small
Towns Good,
Editors Say
MILWAUKEE, Wis. — According
to rural publishers, life in small
towns and along Main Street is good
these days.
A number of Wisconsin publish
ers reported on home town prob
lems at the recent Wisconsin Press
association meeting in Milwaukee.
Many towns in the steie have prob
lems of local government, of pre
paring for probably sudden in
creases in population and the same
worries about war and taxes that
are common everywhere, but near
ly all small town residents are con
fident that the problems can be
solved.
Max F. Ninman,. editor ef the
Reedsburg Times-Press had a typi
cal answer to the inquiry ef what’s
worrying residents of his tewn.
^Nothing much,” was his an
swer. “We’ll have a housing prob
lem if the government resumes op
erations at the Badger Ordnance
works near Sauk City, and we’re
talking about a new high school.
But perhaps the biggest problem is
making the best possible use of
some civic funds.”
Taxes Not a Worry
T. C. Radde, editor of the Sparta
Herald said his town has a far
greater housing problem.
“Since Camp McCoy reopened,
we’ve absorbed 2,800 people in the
community,” he said, “and we hear
the camp is to be expanded. The
first troops were married men. and
their wives and youngsters came
along. We need a new grade school,
a new police and fire station and
more housing. We’re using a big
trailer bus, with school buses bring
ing the children in daily, but we
still need more homes.
“One worry we don’t have, I
guess, ih taxes. It looks Hke every
one will make enough money to
pay his taxes.”
A new military installation near
Elkhorn is having an effect on that
community, said Claude F. Eames,
editor ef the Elkhorn Independent
“Having army officers and men
on our streets brings extra aware
ness of the war in Korea anffr the
problems ef internal
tions,” Eames said. *T d<
people were worried,
they’re concerned,” of c
They’re busy preparing
resort season, too. We
lakes in a radius of 16
double our 3,000 population
the summer.”
Business Is Good
similar'Report came from
worth S. Coe, of the
Register.
“Business is excellent, the
era are getting good money
there’s plenty of moisture in
soil to promise a good crop ye —
he said. “We've also got a lot of
interest in our new Whitewater
lake. Originally it was planned by
a private corporation that ran into
legal trouble and had te open the
dam it had built. Now the county
park beard, the farmers who owned
the land and the state conservation
commission have combined their
efforts. The water from some
springs and an old mudhole have
been used to create a handsome
lake, with a 15 mile shore line. We
expect a property value increase of
8 to 10 millftn dollars, with fine
summer homes just four miles from
Whitewater. It’ll mean a lot to our
town.”
Two editors reported community
problems of a different nature— •
the need to finance and construct
new sewage disposal plants re
quired by the state health depart
ment V
Francis F. Schweinler, editor of
the Mosinee Times said his com
munity was planning a $250,000
plant
“The mills are working full b
so there’s a job for everyone
wants to work,” he said, “but the
sewage plant is a big project”
£dfe is good in Wisconsin’s small
towns these days.
Dairy Town Welcomes
Mrs. MacArthur Home §
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — Ap
proximately 50,000 persons crowd
ed into the country town of Mur
freesboro recently to see Gen.
Douglas MacArthur, Mrs. Mac
Arthur, and their 13-year-old son,
Arthur.
Murfreesboro, a dairy town, ia
the home town of Mrs. MacArthur.
It was the biggest day in the
history of the town, where 89 years
ago MacArthur’s father and Mrs.
MacArthur’s maternal grandfather
fought against each other in one
of the bitterest battles of the Civil
War.
The new “Battle of Murfreesboro”
will go down in Tennessee history
as a fight for parking space, sand-,
wiches and a place along the pa-
>ade route.
The MacArthur plane landed at
Stewart Air Force Base. From
the air base the MacArthur route
led through the Stones River Na
tional Military Park.
It was here, in 1882, that Mrs.
MacArthur’s grandfather. Confed
erate Lt. Richard E. Beard, and
MacArthur’s father. Union Lt.
Arthur MacArthur. would have shot
each other on sight had they
chanced to meet. Both took pkrt
in the Battle of Stone’s River,
which helped clear the way for
m