CIO and AFL seek Army mail rights for union papers
Servicemen’s editions of weekly and monthly publications now barred until soldiers send back their requests
By Fred W. Perkins, Pittsburgh Press staff writer
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In Washington –
Plans laid to distribute war surpluses to civilians
Clayton ready to begin task of allotting manufactured goods and raw materials under Baruch reconversion setup
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New soldier-vote plan
Washington (UP) –
Senate-House conferees turned their attention today to a new compromise soldier-vote plan which pointed to a possible settlement of the complicated issue that has kept Congress in uproar for almost three months.
The plan, offered by Rep. Worley (D-TX), a House conferee, would abolish the anti-poll tax provisions of the 1942 soldier-vote law but would retain a federal war ballot.
Rep. John E. Rankin (D-MS), leader of the fight for the House-approved states’-rights plan, indicated that Mr. Worley’s proposal would prove the way out. He said modification of the 1942 law to eliminate restrictions against state poll tax and registration requirements would “remove the constitutional issue” from debate.
‘Shrewd Yankee horse trade?’
Destroyers-bases swap now questionable bargain
By Henry J. Taylor, Scripps-Howard staff writer
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Nimitz has personal score to settle with Japs in war
Panay was his first command, sunk in 1937
By Boyd Lewis, United Press staff writer
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Editorial: Primaries are for voters
Local leaders of the Republican and Democratic Party organizations, taking their cues from statewide leaders, are conferring, dickering and bargaining to eliminate all “opposition” in the April 25 primaries.
For the sake of “harmony” they are endeavoring to patch up a slate on which a majority of them can agree – and then run everybody else out of the race.
In this enterprise, they are warmly, and even forcefully, encouraged by the big leaders.
The purpose is to avoid party splits, to set up solidarity for the main contest in November.
Some of the motives behind this program may have merit. The “harmony” slate may be helpful to party discipline. It may prevent the kind of mudslinging contests which have characterized factional disputes in so many recent primaries. And probably it will enable the two parties to hoard their campaign funds for the big battles in the fall.
But this backroom slate-making defeats the purpose of primary elections.
Years ago, Pennsylvania, and a great many other states, abandoned the convention form of choosing party candidates for local, state and Congressional officers. The convention system was abolished because it became rotten and anything but democratic. The desires of the voters were ignored. Instead of candidates freely nominated by the people, the voters in November were confronted by candidates handpicked by whatever bosses could control or buy the party conventions. The election became a contest between two cliques of bosses, rather than two parties.
The open primary has not cured that condition entirely. Bosses still control nominations, often by force of fat purses or political patronage rather than by any qualities of leadership.
But the worst of the evils inherent in the convention system have been eliminated, or at least curtailed.
The primary offers any candidate the opportunity to present himself to the people. And political bosses frequently have been defeated in primaries.
In this campaign, the bosses, operating under the guise of party “harmony,” are attempting to restore the old convention system.
This system may be more subtle than the convention plan, but it smacks of the same dangers.
A few party leaders, many of them self-appointed, summon potential candidates behind closed doors and decide this candidate may run and that candidate may not.
In some cases, the leaders have called in the elected party committeemen from the precincts and allowed them a determining voice. This perhaps gives the slate-making an air of democratic processes, but the principle of the primary is still being violated.
Primaries were created to give the people a chance to pick their own candidates. The people don’t get that chance unless there is a free entry of candidates, unhampered by pressure from bosses, or office-holders or professional politicians.
Editorial: Model for a President
This year of decision, in which the American people will determine the course and character of their government for the next four fateful years, will have need of every possible guidepost.
The election of a President is alone one of the most crucial steps ever to confront any people. Who the nominees will be cannot now be foretold. Fate has a strange way of taking a hand in decisions of such moment, and hardly indeed would be the prophet daring to make a flat prediction now.
Obviously, however, an election determined by discord, disunity and noisy, bitter argument is not what the country wants. The task must be faced with calm, with dignity, with informed judgment. And history provides us with more than one example of the type of man required by the times.
One hundred and twelve years ago, in observance of the centennial anniversary of Washington’s birth, Daniel Webster summed up the characteristics of the first President which fitted him so eminently for his all-important role in the shaping of the Republic. These words were spoken of Washington, and they describe a lofty standard. But read them with the nation’s present-day need in mind and, as the year progresses, measure each candidate against them:
In the first place, all his measures were right in their intent. To commanding talents, and to success, the common elements of such greatness, he added a disregard of self, a spotlessness of motive, a steady submission to every public and private duty, which threw far into the shade the whole crowd of vulgar great.
The object of his regard was the whole country. No part of it was enough to fill his enlarged patriotism. His love of glory, so far as that may be supposed to have influenced him at all, spurned everything short of general approbation. It would have been nothing to him that his partisans or his favorites outnumbered, or outvoted, or outmanaged, or outclamored, those of other leaders.
His principle it was to act right, and to trust the people for support; his principle it was not to follow the lead of sinister and selfish ends, nor to rely on the little arts of party delusion to obtain public sanction for such a course. Born for his country and for the world, he did not give up to party what was meant for mankind.
There is a model of political virtue which no crisis could dominate or conquer.
Edson: Political hokum starts campaign in usual manner
By Peter Edson
Washington –
Everyone has his own ideas about what the fifth, sixth or umpteenth freedoms should be after the first four, but even this early in a presidential campaign, you begin to long for a day when there might be freedom from political bunk.
Maybe that’s asking for too much.
Freedom from fear and from want seem easy of attainment when stacked up alongside the ideal of achieving freedom from hokum and hooey out of the mouths of people running for office.
All you have to do to get a line on the 1944 brand of political palaver in platitude is to read, consecutively, the speeches of those citizens who, inspired solely by the highest of motives, have put personal ambition to one side in order to save their country.
No one party has a corner on this malarkey. If you have the idea that the Republicans are dishing out more demagoguery than the Democrats, that’s simply because there appear to be more Republicans running for high office.
Thus far, Henry Wallace has been doing most of the open field running for his side, as against a half-dozen opponents – Dewey, Willkie, Bricker, Dirksen, and the party spokesmen, Landon, Bud Kelland, Joe Martin and Chairman Harrison Spangler.
‘Deathless’ driblets
Examples? Paste these on the leaves of your scrapbook of recipes on how to make applesauce:
Henry Wallace in Seattle:
American Fascists [are] those who believe that Wall Street comes first and the country second and who are willing to go to any length… to keep Wall Street sitting on top of the country.
Ohio Governor John W. Bricker in Washington:
The Republican Party is the liberal party in America. The New Deal is reactionary.
Wendell Willkie in Portland:
I am sick – sick at heart – at our transferring our problems to one who by legerdemain has created the impression that he is able to handle our problems better than we can ourselves.
Kansas Ex-Governor Alf M. Landon in Nashville:
…the national socialistic state… is the object of the New Dealer.
New York Governor Thomas E. Dewey in New York:
The first attempt to establish an American autocracy took place [on March 4, 1933] as the result of the election of what used to be known as the Democratic Party.
But–
Enough? This is just one day’s catch, hooked, of all times, on the anniversary of the birth of Abraham Lincoln, who made a reputation on his honesty, who was something of an orator himself, and who calls to mind that crack about not being able to fool all the people all the time.
In American political campaigns, the politicians have come to believe that the people expect hyperbole, twisted reasoning, glittering generality, name calling, appeal to the emotions. Maybe those qualities in a political speech do liven up a campaign and make it interesting.
It is still comforting to think, however, that the American people are smarter than their politicians and see through illogical utterance like an X-ray finding the rat tail in a baloney.
Screen’s prize clam is Mr. George Sanders
But as he explains it these movie ‘mags’ print blah stuff
By Ernest Foster
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The people must know –
OWI performs vital job for U.S. public, publisher declares
America needs it to get out the news, to prevent confusion, and to coordinate the home front
By Palmer Hoyt
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Roving Reporter
By Ernie Pyle
In Italy – (by wireless)
Buck Eversole is a platoon sergeant in an infantry company. That means he has charge of about 40 frontline fighting men.
He has been at the front for more than a year. War is old to him and he has become almost the master of it. He is a senior partner now in the institution of death.
His platoon has turned over many times as battle whittles down the old ones and the replacement system brings up the new ones. Only a handful now are veterans.
In his slow, barely audible Western voice, so full of honesty and sincerity, Buck told me one night:
It gets so it kinda gets you, seein’ these new kids come up.
Some of them have just got fuzz on their faces, and don’t know what it’s all about, and they’re scared to death. No matter what, some of them are bound to get killed.
We talked about some of the other old-time noncoms who could take battle themselves, but had gradually grown morose under the responsibility of leading green boys to their slaughter. Buck spoke of one sergeant especially, a brave and hardened man, who went to his captain and asked him to be reduced to a private in the lines.
Buck finally said:
I know it ain’t my fault that they get killed. And I do the best I can for them, but I’ve got so I feel like a murder. I hate to look at them when the new ones come in.
Buck and Nazi play house
Buck himself has been fortunate. Once he was shot through the arm. His own skill and wisdom have saved him many times, but luck has saved him countless other times.
One night Buck and an officer took refuge from shelling in a two-room Italian stone house. As they sat there, a shall came through the wall of the far room, crossed the room and buried itself in the middle wall with its nose pointing upward. It didn’t go off.
Another time Buck was leading his platoon on a night attack. They were walking in Indian file. Suddenly a mine went off, and killed the entire squad following Buck. He himself had miraculously walked through the minefield without hitting a one.
One day Buck went stalking a German officer in close combat, and wound up with the German on one side of a farmhouse and Buck on the other. They kept throwing grenades over the house at each other without success.
Finally, Buck stepped around one corner of the house, and came face to face with the German, who’d had the same idea.
Buck was ready and pulled the trigger first. His slug hit the German just above the heart. The German had a wonderful pair of binoculars slung over his shoulders, and the bullet smashed them to bits. Buck had wanted some German binoculars for a long time.
Fraternity of peril
The ties that grow up between men who live savagely and die relentlessly together are ties of great strength. There is a sense of fidelity to each other among little corps of men who have endured so long and whose hope in the end can be but so small.
One afternoon while I was with the company Sgt. Buck Eversole’s turn came to go back to rest camp for five days. The company was due to attack that night.
Buck went to his company commander and said:
Lieutenant, I don’t think I better go. I’ll stay if you need me.
The lieutenant said:
Of course I need you, Buck, I always need you. But it’s your turn and I want you to go. In fact, you’re ordered to go.
The truck taking the few boys away to rest camp left just at dusk. It was drizzling and the valleys were swathed in a dismal mist. Artillery of both sides flashed and rumbled around the horizon. The encroaching darkness was heavy and foreboding.
Buck came to the little group of old-timers in the company with whom I was standing, to say goodbye. You’d have thought he was leaving forever. He shook hands all around, and his smile seemed sick and vulnerable. He was a man stalling off his departure.
He said, “Well, good luck to you all.” And then he said, “I’ll be back in just five days.”
I walked with him toward the truck in the dusk. He kept his eyes on the ground, and I think he would have cried if he knew how, and he said to me very quietly:
This is the first battle I’ve ever missed that this battalion has been in. even when I was in the hospital with my arm they were in bivouac. This will be the first one I’ve ever missed. I sure do hope they have good luck.
And then he said:
I feel like a deserter.
He climbed in, and the truck dissolved into the blackness. I went back and lay down on the ground among my other friends waiting for the night orders to march. I lay there in the darkness thinking – terribly touched by the great simple devotion of this soldier who was a cowboy – and thinking of the millions far away at home who must remain forever unaware of the powerful fraternalism in the ghastly brotherhood of war.
Joan Barry’s new attorney wants ‘baby day in court’
Shouldn’t put infant ‘in baseball game with two strikes on her,’ lawyer says
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Völkischer Beobachter (February 23, 1944)
Die einzige Chance der Anglo-Amerikaner –
Suche nach schwachen Punkten
dnb. Berlin, 22. Februar –
Die US-Soldatenzeitung Stars and Stripes schildert in einem Bericht ihres Sonderkorrespondenten Milton Lehmann die gewaltigen Schwierigkeiten, denen die alliierten Truppen in Italien begegnen. Der Wirrwarr der hohen Berge stellt eines der besten natürlichen Verteidigungssysteme dar und die Deutschen wissen es meisterhaft auszunutzen. Der amerikanische Kriegsberichter sieht die einzige Chance der Anglo-Amerikaner darin, daß sie lernen, schwache Punkte herauszufinden, nachdem sie begriffen hatten, wie gut die Deutschen ihren Empfang vorbereitet haben.
Ein anderer Berichterstatter der Stars and Stripes spricht voll Anerkennung über das Verhalten der deutschen Truppen in Neapel vor der Besetzung durch die Amerikaner. Er wundert sich darüber, daß die ersten Amerikaner, die nach Neapel kamen, dort noch zahlreiche schöne Dinge kaufen konnten, zum Beispiel hübsche Taschenuhren, Sweater, Stoffe und seidene Strümpfe. „Ich kenne einen Offizier, der 50 Paar kaufte zu 1,50 Dollar.“ Auch die Spirituosen seien erst von den Amerikanern ausgekauft worden. Die Deutschen haben durch strenge Preisüberwachung den Markt gesteuert. Von Italienern hat der US-Berichterstatter zu hören bekommen, daß die Deutschen nicht so andenkensüchtig gewesen seien, wie die Amerikaner und auch keine Juwelen und Schmuck zu kaufen pflegten.