The Charlotte News

Thursday, October 23, 1952

THREE EDITORIALS

Site Ed. Note: The front page reports, via John Randolph, that U.S. Seventh Division troops on "Triangle Hill" this night repulsed an assault by Chinese Communists, beginning shortly after dark, lasting two hours. Flair planes and searchlights lit the enemy troops so that the U.S. and South Korean artillery could strike. In another central front battle, South Korean troops regained the crest of "Iron Horse Mountain" and then battled fiercely against a counter-attack by the Chinese Communists. About 20 miles to the east, the Chinese were bringing up fresh troops to reinforce their battered battalions threatening "Sniper Ridge" and "Triangle Hill". U.S. battlefront officers said that one complete Chinese division of 10,000 troops had been mauled in the central front fighting during the previous 10 days.

In the air war, U.S. Sabre jets engaged twice with enemy MIG-15s over northwest Korea, with one enemy warplane destroyed. Fighter-bombers hit the enemy front lines along the West Coast and B-26 bombers attacked two Communist areas northwest of Pyongyang. Land-based Marine planes hit an enemy troop concentration just south of Sariwon on the west coast. The previous night, ten B-29s attacked through a barrage of enemy ground fire, hitting a zinc and lead plant 25 miles east of a large MIG base in Manchuria.

At the U.N. General Assembly meeting in New York, Secretary of State Acheson was set to lead off the debate on the Korean issues this date before the 60-nation Political Committee of the Assembly. Members of the U.S. delegation said that the Secretary would conclude his speech with a resolution urging the Assembly to approve the armistice terms proposed by the U.N. command and to appeal to the Communists to accept those terms forthwith. The debate was foreseen as the bitterest ever fought in the U.N. thus far, with Russia and its bloc pledged not to give any ground, particularly with regard to the repatriation of prisoners of war, the remaining issue blocking a truce. Secretary Acheson had already said that the U.S. and its allies would fight on until a "just peace" was achieved, and had urged the other U.N. members to contribute more men, money and matériel to the fight.

The President, campaigning for Governor Stevenson in Wheeling, W. Va., where Senator Nixon had met with General Eisenhower two days after delivering his speech in defense of his expense fund on September 23, denounced the Senator as "anti-labor", saying that Republican leaders "hate labor unions and would like to destroy them". He said that General Eisenhower had picked "one of the most anti-labor men in Congress to be his running mate". He said that when Senator Nixon had been in the House in 1947, he had made the concluding argument on the floor in favor of the Taft-Hartley bill, a provision of which at the time would have banned industry-wide bargaining. He repeated his familiar refrain, "Look out, neighbor!" in parody of the General's campaign train slogan, "Look ahead, neighbor!" He also decried the fact that the General said that had he been President, he would have sought an injunction pursuant to Taft-Hartley to stop the steel strike of the previous spring. The President continued his tour through Pennsylvania and Maryland, heading back to Washington. The prepared text of his Wheeling speech did not mention the coal strike resulting from the Wage Stabilization Board's cut of 40 cents from the negotiated $1.90 per day raise for soft coal miners.

General Eisenhower campaigned in the industrial cities of New York, telling a cheering crowd of about 5,000 in Schenectady that his opponents were making charges against him and "peddling bunk" because they wanted to perpetuate themselves in power and divert attention from their own record. He said that the opposition claimed that he was against labor and labor unions in spite of the fact of everyone he knew in his "crusade" having "gone up and down the line preaching for strong labor unions that have the right and the opportunity to bargain for themselves on a collective basis and free of Washington's influence." He said that they would next claim that he and his campaign were against the Ten Commandments. Governor Dewey accompanied the General on the trip from Albany to Buffalo.

The New York Times, in a two-column editorial, reaffirmed its support for General Eisenhower this date, having expressed the hope that he would be nominated in an editorial six months prior to the Republican convention.

Governor Stevenson said in a speech to about 2,500 people in Erie, Pa., that the Republican Old Guard, led by Senator Taft, had an attitude of isolationism which threatened the security of the country and the world. He said that the Republicans offered a bottle labeled "easy way" to solve world problems, while inside was "the same old swamp oil". He said that peace and prosperity went together, and that one could not be had without the other. He was speaking from the roof of the railway station, and quipped that he was often accused of speaking over people's heads, but that it was the first time he was sure of it. The Governor's campaign manager, Wilson Wyatt, said that a speech in Cleveland this night would be one of the most important of the campaign, and the party had purchased nationwide live broadcast time on radio, and it would be rebroadcast an hour later on the CBS and Mutual networks. The speech was set to deal with the issue of Communism, the Hiss case, and generally with smear tactics. He had addressed a wildly cheering crowd of 14,000 in Buffalo the previous night.

What did he mean by that, about talking over our heads? Is he messing around with our Dick, like that King Harry does?

A Federal grand jury in Washington this date indicted Henry Grunewald on 22 charges of contempt of Congress. He had been called by the House committee investigating tax frauds the previous January, but declined to answer questions.

Price Stabilizer Tighe Woods would arrive this night in North Wilkesboro, N.C., to hear from housewives regarding the effectiveness of price controls, his eleventh and last stop in meetings across the country, scheduled to report to the President on the meetings on Saturday. He said in New York the previous day that he had found the housewives far from apathetic regarding food prices and many quite annoyed. About 1,000 were expected to attend the North Wilkesboro meeting. He might be on the lookout for his punch being spiked by busthead.

The Agriculture Department said this date that tobacco consumption per person among those 15 years of age and older within the U.S. and its overseas forces, probably would be the highest on record in 1952, with cigarettes accounting for four-fifths of the total. The average rate of consumption during the year was about 10 cigarettes per day per person, more than twice that of the late 1930's. (That is about half a pack per day for every person in the country at least 15 years old.) The Department said that U.S. cigarette output in 1953 was expected to exceed the record 430 billion estimated for 1952.

John L. Lewis was reported this date to be demanding a $1.90 per day wage increase for anthracite coal miners, the same amount which had been negotiated for the soft coal miners, and was going to give an opportunity for the WSB to reverse its decision on both sets of miners. The WSB made public its formal dissent by its four labor members, with the eight public and industry members having formed the majority, voting for the 40-cent decrease in the negotiated $1.90 per day increase. It was considered unlikely that the WSB would change its decision.

In Philadelphia, a man was being held as a fugitive from Delaware, where state police said that he was wanted on a charge of kidnapping his two nieces and two nephews. The father of the children, from Charlotte, had told the state police in Delaware that the man had taken his children at gunpoint about five miles outside Wilmington, Del., after forcing their car to the side of the road. Kidnapping was a capital offense in Delaware. Uncle might go to the chair.

A small but potentially dangerous hurricane, the sixth of the season, moved northward in the Caribbean this date, on a course which could carry it over Cuba and Florida, packing winds up to 85 mph over a small area near its center, with gales extending outward 50 miles.

In Winston-Salem, N.C., Irving Stewart Bull, 65, secretary and trust officer of the Wachovia Bank & Trust Company, and civic leader in the city, died this date, after having complained of feeling ill late in the day. He had been born in Mamaroneck, N.Y., and attended NYU. He had joined Wachovia in 1923 and was an active official in the Civil Music Association.

On the editorial page, "The Task of the President" finds it heartening that both Governor Stevenson and General Eisenhower had addressed themselves in a statesmanlike manner on the prior Tuesday night anent an area of foreign policy wanting for more attention, when they spoke to the New York Herald Tribune Forum. The General had urged "a new economic alliance of free nations" to counter the Russians, and the Governor called for the country to take the lead in developing "a coalition of free nations" for the same purpose. Both indicated the undesirability of foreign aid, calling for expansion of free trade, and both recognized the growing Soviet attempt to split the Western allies, and the need for U.S. leadership in coalescing the free world.

It finds that there was a lack of effective leadership and organization economically within NATO, with the Benelux countries having an economic plan, while 34 nations had adopted the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, under rules which were often violated. In addition there was the Council of Europe, six of whose members had formed the European Coal and Steel Community and were now trying to form the European Defense Community. There were also a French-Italian-Luxembourg combination and a Franco-Italian Customs Union, among others which it lists. NATO presently consisted of 14 nations and was primarily a defense organization, with attempts to coordinate economic relations ongoing.

The statements of the two candidates indicated that regardless of who would win the election, there would be an attempt to bring order and leadership to Western Europe. There was need for urgency, as the Communists were increasing their attempts to split the Allies, and U.S. taxpayers were growing tired of paying for foreign aid. There were also men of vision in office presently in Western Europe who could help effectuate such a plan, such as Prime Minister Churchill, Robert Schuman in France and Konrad Adenauer in West Germany.

It was necessary to realize that Western Europe, because of its need for a variety of imports, would never be as independent as the U.S. Previously, the region had received imports from countries presently cut off by the Iron Curtain and recently Communist nations had offered Western Europe essential goods at bargain basement prices, in an attempt to gain their cooperation economically and discourage orientation toward the West. Economic ties to the Communists would be the first step toward political ties. Traditionally, Western Europe preferred to associate with the West and preferred trade to aid, wished to have a greater relationship with the U.S. and Canada.

It advocates an Atlantic economic union, with the creation of a gigantic free market, which would enable Europe to earn dollars in the U.S. and at the same time, expand U.S. markets. Some political machinery would be necessary to effectuate such an economic cooperation. While some complained that it might require a sacrifice of sovereignty, under current conditions, the individual's sovereignty was being sacrificed to boards and commissions. It hopes that the next President would tackle the issue earnestly and boldly.

"Sound Subversive Control" finds the recommendation of the two-member panel of the Subversive Activities Control Board, that the American Communist Party be required to list its officers, members and account for its finances, to be sound and laudable. It indicates that it was clear that the Communist Party was not a "political party" in the normal sense of the term, but rather sought the overthrow of the government by force. It was completely subservient to Moscow, and had been since its founding in the early 1920's. It had nominally divorced itself from Moscow in 1940, at a time when revolutionary movements subject to foreign control had to be registered, pursuant to the Voorhis Act. The party, however, continued to receive financial aid from Moscow and recognized its subservience to the Soviet party. Under the Internal Security Act of 1950, it was required by the Attorney General to register.

It indicates that if the full Control Board adopted the panel's recommendations, the matter would likely proceed to the Supreme Court. It finds that since the recommendation had followed months of survey and receipt of extensive testimony, security and common sense required its adoption.

"Thoughts for Today's Voters" provides some quotes from FDR on Federal spending, states' rights, the need for a change, and deficits and balanced budgets, seeming to echo the positions of General Eisenhower in 1952, the statements having been made during the election campaign of 1932.

It fails to point out that there was one glaring exception to any such comparison, that being that in 1932, the country was in the depths of the worst depression in its history.

Drew Pearson tells of a committee speaking for General Eisenhower having called on Gerald L. K. Smith, organizer of the Christian Nationalist Party, which had nominated General MacArthur for the presidency, and urged him to take his party out of the presidential race. The party had garnered a considerable following in Southern California, some in Texas, and was on the ballot in Washington, Missouri and elsewhere. In states where the presidential race might be close, the third party could tip the balance either way. As an inducement to withdrawal, Mr. Smith was told that General Eisenhower would call personally on General MacArthur. Former President Herbert Hoover had been trying to get the two Generals to meet, but so far had been unable to persuade General Eisenhower to meet with General MacArthur at the Waldorf, where General MacArthur lived. Nor was General MacArthur willing to go to see General Eisenhower. He notes that many MacArthur admirers planned to write in the General's name on the ballot in California.

DNC chairman Stephen Mitchell recently had participated in an off the record meeting at the Hotel Statler in Washington and provided his assessment of the Stevenson campaign, admitting that the Governor's trips had received only lukewarm response from crowds until he had reached St. Louis, at which point the DNC had spent $12,000 to organize a rally, just as the Eisenhower people had been doing for some time. He also admitted that his and campaign manager Wilson Wyatt's statements that a bandwagon rush to the Governor would take place resulted in part from wishful thinking, stating that the election was neither won nor lost at this juncture. He stated that Senator Lyndon Johnson had phoned him to complain that businessmen were threatening to get even with him when he ran for re-election to the Senate in 1954 if he were to help Governor Stevenson in the current election. Governor Frank Lausche of Ohio, considered a conservative Democrat, had begun mentioning Governor Stevenson's name of late, and so must have begun to realize that he was catching on. Mr. Mitchell was critical of Senators George Smathers and Spessard Holland of Florida, complaining that they were carefully ducking the Governor's candidacy, and added that the Governor faced a difficult time in the larger cities of Texas. He said that the hardest time he had resulted from local Democratic organizations having disintegrated during the previous 20 years and having to be built up again, with two exceptions being in Massachusetts and Rhode Island.

Regarding Senator Nixon, Mr. Mitchell said that by election day, he believed that he would be "the lowest man on any political totem pole you ever saw". He also mentioned General Eisenhower being 62, and that only a few other older men had ever been elected President, reminding that William Henry Harrison had died a month after his inauguration in 1841.

Mr. Pearson relates that while the student newspaper at Columbia University had come out officially against General Eisenhower, president of the University, the faculty had mixed opinions, some ardently for the General and others ardently opposed. The dean of the school of journalism, Carl Ackerman, who administered the Pulitzer Prize awards, had contributed to the Stevenson campaign and indicated that education had a vital stake in the outcome of the election, that election of General Eisenhower would set an example for every student that cramming was a laudable substitute for serious study, that the General had made many contradictory statements as a result of such cramming, as one day he was being briefed by Senator Henry Cabot Lodge, Jr., and Governor Dewey, and the next by Senators Taft, McCarthy and Jenner. He wondered who would brief him once he reached the White House. The dean's wife had suggested that the Governor employ a songwriter to adapt a campaign song to the tune of "Who Is Kissing Her Now?" with substitute lyrics, "Who is briefing him now? Who is teaching him how?"

If she really wanted to be presciently clever, she could have simply stopped at "who is Kissing her?"

Joseph & Stewart Alsop tell of leading personnel in the Department of Defense being concerned about General Eisenhower's promise to cut back heavily on Government spending, as it inevitably meant a large cut in the defense budget. A study group of distinguished scientists and technicians, recruited by the Defense Department, had issued a report recently, dubbed "Project Lincoln", in which they indicated the country's vulnerability to atomic attack and recommended means of improving air defense, indicating that the Soviet strategic air force could launch a "crippling" atomic attack within two to three years. The report was submitted to the National Security Council.

The report indicated, however, that with guided missile technology, effective air defense could be achieved, provided there was adequate spending, with that projected annual cost being at least four to five billion dollars over and above present defense expenditures. There would also be additional expense involved in ensuring the ability of retaliation in the event of an attack, another sine qua non for adequate defense, deterring a first strike by the Soviets.

General Eisenhower's promise to reduce expenditures was effectively a compromise with Senator Taft, who had urged a cut of 20 billion dollars forthwith to provide immediate tax relief, with the General stating that these cuts would be phased in over a period of four years, too long for Senator Taft and his followers. The General was aware of the problem in making such cuts to defense expenditures, as he had been briefed on the subject by Secretary of Defense Robert Lovett and his assistants.

Marquis Childs, with Charles Taft in Ohio, follows the gubernatorial campaign of Senator Taft's brother, contesting the incumbent Democrat, Frank Lausche. He finds the younger brother similar in some ways to his elder, insofar as his boundless energy in campaigning, but also dissimilar in his approach to politics and policy. He angered the Old Guard Republicans, who campaigned against him in the primary on the basis that he had served in 22 different jobs under the Roosevelt-Truman Administration, neglecting to inform that 20 of those posts had been wartime assignments which had won him the Medal of Merit. Nevertheless, they sought to characterize him in a way that suggested that he was "at least a light pink".

Experts were predicting that many Republicans would vote for the incumbent Governor, who was a blend of Republican and conservative Democrat. Mr. Taft would obtain some Democratic votes, but not in sufficient numbers to counterbalance the defection of Republicans. Thus, he would have to run on the coattails of the national ticket and those of Senator John Bricker, who was seeking re-election.

A letter from a doctor in Covington, Ky., compliments the newspaper for its endorsement of General Eisenhower, says that his choice had been Senator Taft and Senator Harry F. Byrd, because neither was a "yes-man" or lacked backbone. He believes there had been a "Rip Van Winkle government" for the previous 20 years and that because of its incompetency in handling the foreign situation, the country had to favor the "Russian hog that has gobbled up the Russian Bear, thanks to the asininity and treason displayed by Franklin Divine Rex—quite the opposite of what I formerly thought meant 'Franklin Does Right—F.D.R.'"

Are you on drugs?

A letter writer from Fort Worth, Texas, tells of Josephus Daniels, (actually Jonathan), in The Man of Independence, having stated at page 117 that Harry Truman had voted Republican at one point, as had his mother. He asserts that no one had questioned his right to be called a Democrat and so he, in planning to vote for General Eisenhower, should not have his same right denied. He says that he remained a Democrat.

The referenced page recounts of Mr. Truman voting for one of his fellow veterans of the French trenches during World War I, who happened to be running as a Republican for local office.

A letter writer from Lancaster, S.C., says that after having read the newspaper for more than 25 years, he had decided to drop it, but now could not do without it after it had endorsed General Eisenhower.

A letter writer finds that no words could express his disgust at the President's "mudslinging and sarcasm", was beginning to feel sorry for him because he wondered whether he was "all there". He believes the President reminded of adolescent days, "when egoism gets out of control". He declines to provide his name on the basis that his company did not allow him to write about politics.

The President might think you're not all there.

A letter writer from Rock Hill, S.C., compliments the newspaper for endorsing General Eisenhower.

A letter writer from Penney Farms, Fla., congratulates the newspaper for endorsing General Eisenhower.

A letter writer, the student who had won the $25 savings bond from the newspaper for having the best letter, among the submissions by students, on why one should register and vote, thanks the newspaper for the prize and the accompanying letter awarding it.

A letter writer from Heath Springs, S.C., provides an excerpt from the "Trade Winds" column in the newspaper, suggesting that it showed how every "real American" should vote. It said that the "Commie followers" in the U.S. had orders to campaign for Governor Stevenson.

It probably also said, "Nixon's the Eins".

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