The Charlotte News

Wednesday, September 3, 1947

THREE EDITORIALS

Site Ed. Note: The front page reports that in Rio de Janeiro, 19 nations, including the U.S., signed the Inter-American treaty providing for common defense within the defined "security zone", stretching from pole to pole longitudinally and Alaska to Greenland latitudinally. The treaty applied to both extracontinental and intracontinental aggression against a signatory nation. Pursuant to Article 51 of the U.N. Charter, self-defense, including military force, would be employed to the extent necessary to assure the peace in such an event until such time as the U.N. could act.

Foreign Secretary Ernest Bevin of Britain urged the U.S. to redistribute its gold reserve worldwide to avoid chaos in trade payments. During the war, the U.S. had substantially increased its accumulation of the world's gold, holding 60 percent, 21.7 billion dollars worth.

Undersecretary of State Robert Lovett stated that the economic crisis in Europe was developing faster than previously anticipated, requiring emergent action before the end of the year. He did not state, however, that a special session would need be called. The reasons were two-fold: the effects of the British financial meltdown spreading through Europe such that other nations would seek likewise to have loan restrictions relaxed, as recently sought and obtained by the British from the U.S. re the remaining $800,000 of the 1946 loan proceeds of 3.75 billion dollars; and the resources of Europe had been increasingly diverted from productive uses to such things as purchase of food.

In Quito, Ecuador, the Mancheno revolutionary Government, after nine days in office, had collapsed and the President had resigned. Mariano Suarez Veintimilla, former Vice-President and reputed leader of the counter-revolutionary forces, assumed temporary power until the Congress could designate an interim President until the May, 1948 election. The exiled President, Velasco Ibarra, was reported hurrying back from Argentina. Many protestors crowded around the front doors of the palace, shouting their disapproval of both Sr. Mancheno and Sr. Suarez, and declaring allegiance to the Constitution.

The CIO officers had not yet determined whether they would sign the newly required affidavits mandated by NLRB general counsel Robert Denham, in order to continue to seek resolution of labor disagreements before the Board. It was unlikely that AFL officer John L. Lewis would sign, depriving that organization also of the offices of the NLRB. Both union organizations would determine their course of action within the ensuing few days.

Congressman Jesse Wolcott of Michigan, chairman of the House Banking Committee, predicted that if the housing shortage were not cured by the end of March, 1948, rent controls, to the extent they continued, would probably be extended. The Congress had recently allowed extension of controls through the end of March, provided that landlords were permitted to raise rents by 15 percent on leases which extended through 1948, tenants being induced to sign by the fact of the uncertainty that any rent control would apply after the ensuing March.

The vice-chairman of the joint Committee on Housing, Senator Joseph McCarthy, stated that if the Committee members could not solve the issue of housing, then they should resign and go home.

That might be the best idea.

Inflation caused tax revenue in North Carolina to continue at record levels in August.

The Wake County, N.C., coroner stated that there would likely be no charges filed against two mental patients who beat to death another patient on an overcrowded ward at the State Hospital. The superintendent testified that all three patients were out of touch with their surroundings. Two had started fighting, and were joined by a third in a wheelchair, who then began kicking in the head of one of the two instigators. He died a short time later. Neither of the assailants had given any trouble previously at the facility.

Burke Davis of The News tells of inconspicuous notices of intended parole of prisoners being listed at the Courthouse, unnoticed by the public, no one in memory having ever contested any such intent by the State Parole Commissioner. He suggests that the parole notices, however, might hold the key to the problem in the criminal justice system, leading to a revolving door in many cases. The parole system, while enjoying a reputation nationally for its efficient methods and liberal ideology, was often considering parole seemingly too soon in a sentence. He cites examples. One woman was sentenced to one to three years for forgery, and four months later, was being paroled. Another was sentenced to 12-15 years for second degree murder in 1941 and was paroled in six years.

Dick Young of The News reports that a City Councilman was seeking strict police enforcement of the noise abatement ordinance, because of loud noise emanating from motorcycles, scooters, and cars with cut-out exhausts and manifolds, i.e. hotrods and cars in disrepair. He urged every automobile owner to check their exhaust and cautioned that parents of offending motorists could be held responsible for the conduct of their minor children. The noise situation in the city was dire.

It's the Commies, with their noisy Red rods.

Martha Azer of The News reports of about 75 business leaders of Charlotte gathering at the Carolina Theater this date to hear further plans for the Christmas Festival on November 12. Efforts would be made to make Charlotte the "Christmas City" with a parade at 7:00 p.m., following a "booster breakfast" that morning, and a beauty queen coronation ball after the parade.

We shall look forward to it. But eliminate all the red this year so that Charlotte will not be seen also as the Red City.

On the editorial page, "Red Hunt Threatens Civil Rights" suggests that it was time to take stock of the damage being done to the nation by the Red Hunt being conducted by HUAC. The American Legion, having just adopted a resolution endorsing a constitutional amendment denying rights to those accused of promoting the overthrow of the Government, was lending approbation to such hysteria. The loyalty test and HUAC activities were doing likewise.

Abrogating the right of trial by jury meant a cessation of defense of democracy.

The recent action of HUAC in branding the Civil Rights Congress as a Communist "front" was calling attention afresh to the matter, that HUAC was not shedding new light on any genuine Communist peril, but rather was investigating at worst "fellow travelers".

Most of the citizens singled out in a report from HUAC of August 30 were prominent members of faculties of colleges and universities and other professionals across the nation, who had honorable reputations as liberals.

In contrast to such intimidation of liberals, HUAC had shown great reluctance to investigate Fascist organizations and their fellow travelers.

The loyalty tests, broad in nature and administered by the FBI, had given ground to weed out Government employees merely for political disagreement and vendetta, as demonstrated by the firing of ten employees of the State Department recently without hearing or statement specifying reasons underlying the alleged disloyalty.

J. Edgar Hoover had stated, "Don't confuse liberals and progressives with Communists," and went on to urge against violation of the civil rights of anyone, as such would play directly into the hands of the Communists.

"Both 'Guns and Butter' Needed" responds to the National Council for the Prevention of War in its reply to the American Legion endorsement of both universal military training and the Marshall Plan, that both programs amounted to providing guns and butter to foreign nations in the hope of staving off Soviet expansion, that both programs would bankrupt the economy.

The editorial finds the Council's view to be shared by many non-isolationists, but offering no counter-proposal by which Europe could be saved from economic disaster and the potential thus to fall within the Communist sphere. The 20 billion dollars or so which the Marshall Plan would cost to save Europe during the ensuing four years was cheap compared to the 315 billion dollars spent on the late war.

At the American Legion convention, Governor Dewey had endorsed UMT but said nothing of the Marshall Plan, while former Governor Harold Stassen of Minnesota had endorsed the Marshall Plan without reference to UMT. That both were Republican presidential candidates presented the notion that it was time for the Republicans to address solidly both key components of the nation's foreign policy commitment.

"Doris Duke's New Husband" tells of the heir to the Duke fortune getting married for the second time the previous Monday in Paris, to an "honorary diplomat" for the Dominican Republic, whose services to his country were not further elaborated. He was the former son-in-law of President Rafael Trujillo. But he was refused official recognition by the French as charges d'affaires of the Dominican Legation because he had been in the position during the German occupation under Vichy.

It comments that Sr. Trujillo was absolute ruler of his country of two million people, forty percent of whom were white, forty percent Mestizo, and the remainder black, residing within an area of 19,000 square miles. The other third of the island of Santo Domingo was comprised of Haiti.

It concludes that, despite Sr. Trujillo undoubtedly being desirous of some of the Duke money, the Dominican budget was balanced and Ms. Duke retained control of her fortune under a marital contract.

Time to dig another two feet of coal, mate.

A piece from the Asheville Citizen, titled "Voting in the South", tells of Alabama's educational qualification for voting, that before being qualified to cast a ballot, a citizen had to demonstrate an understanding of the Constitution, coming under attack by black leaders, while Mississippi's "declaration of party principles", which all voters had to sign in the most recent election, had produced 6,000 new black voters on the rolls. Those latter principles included opposition to anti-lynching and anti-poll tax laws and to the Fair Employment Practices Commission.

The Arkansas Gazette—under the Associate Editorship of Harry Ashmore since late July when he left The News—had observed that the size of the black vote in Mississippi should serve as warning of the futility of such chicane attempts to limit voting.

And, the piece wonders, who could understand the Constitution in fine. Even the Supreme Court, it notes, disagreed on interpretation of the document.

It hopes that the time might come when the last vestiges of such devices would be eliminated and truly free voting might prevail in the South, as it did in North Carolina. But, it concludes, that time had not yet been reached.

A letter, dated August 6, from President Truman to Pope Pius XII is reprinted on the page, correspondence which had earned him rebuke from the Southern Baptists for supposedly allying with the "totalitarian" Vatican, in violation of the First Amendment doctrine of separation of Church and State.

The letter merely expresses in general terms the desire for continued conciliation in the mutual endeavor for peace, and to "invigorate the faith of men to attain eternal values in our own generation—no matter what obstacles exist or may arise in the path."

Robert S. Allen tells of Dr. Vannevar Bush's ambition to be head of the new Research and Development Board, established as part of the act merging the military, running into rough waters at the White House, as the President had made it clear that Dr. Bush would strictly have to toe the mark, unlike his tenure as head of wartime research. The President accused him of being responsible for the Science Foundation bill which he had vetoed for lumping research under a military-dominated agency over which the Government would have practically no control. The President had informed the military chiefs and Secretary of Defense James Forrestal that he was undecided as yet on the appointment of Dr. Bush.

He notes that the Government was having trouble unloading the German scientists who had been working for the Government onto industry and universities. The Government was finished with most of them, but did not wish to return them to Germany, where their knowledge might fall into the hands of the Russians. But U.S. scientists, objecting to the caliber of most of the scientists, were vigorously objecting to their remaining within the country.

Because of the new legislation just passed to fix the number of high ranking officers in the military, the push was on among the brass, especially in the Army, to jockey for position to prevent loss of rank and pay.

Under the new law, the Army would have four 4-star generals, the Air Force three, the Marine Corps one, and the Navy three 4-star admirals.

When the son of the Chief Justice of Ireland called at the White House, the President told him that there were more Irish in the country than in Ireland, to which the son agreed, saying that the Irish immigrants had come to America for its democracy. The President then corrected the statement, saying that the country was more properly a republic, that the only true democracy existed in New England town meetings.

Stewart Alsop tells of Undersecretary of State Will Clayton having sent several cables to Washington urging Administration officials to call a special session of Congress by December to pass emergency aid of at least 2.5 billion dollars for Europe by the start of the winter. He warned that unless the aid were received by January, Europe would explode. Ambassador to England Lewis Douglas also supported such emergency legislation, along with Ambassador to France Jefferson Caffery, And the highest ranking State Department official in Germany, Robert Murphy.

Italy would spend its last American dollar by January 1; France was drawing 25 million dollars per month from the International Monetary Fund to stave off economic collapse. That meant there would soon be no means by which to purchase wheat or coal for either country, leading inexorably to economic collapse in both.

In England, the emergency austerity measures of Prime Minister Attlee were only postponing collapse, as the dollar drain had been stemmed by at most one-third. Dollars were still flowing out of Britain at the rate of forty to fifty million per week. By March, that would amount to more than a billion dollars, leading to the need for further economic curtailment. The result would be the need to withdraw British occupation troops from Germany and to stop paying half the cost of occupation of the British-American zone. Such moves would allow the Russians to move into the British zone unless America determined to occupy the entire Western zone.

Mr. Alsop believes that the special session therefore had to be called to provide the emergency legislation sought by Mr. Clayton. He also believes that a definite determination of British intention re Germany had to be obtained before the British Cabinet acted in desperation.

Samuel Grafton tells of being haunted by the potentiality of a roadside incident, buzzing though his mind. It was that a liberal, former Government employee during the New Deal, ousted from the Government pursuant to the new loyalty tests, was now down and out, penniless, wandering along the byways of Ohio, when he encountered a blonde Germanic-looking fellow near the Wright-Patterson Air Base, where a hundred former Nazi scientists and engineers were working for the Government on development of better jets and rocketry. The man asks the German for a dime, to which the German replies, "Nauturlich," hands him the dime and proceeds on down the road to his job.

That was the whole vision which kept coming to him.

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