The Charlotte News
Wednesday, November 12, 1952
FOUR EDITORIALS
Site Ed. Note: The front page reports, via Robert B. Tuckman, that South Korean infantrymen had returned to recapture three strategic heights on "Sniper Ridge" and "Triangle Hill" in long, bloody battles this date. This night, they had repulsed two 150-man enemy jabs at allied positions on "Sniper", but had failed to repulse Chinese troops from the "Yoke", a maze of tunnels and caves at the northern end of "Sniper", key to firm control of the important ridge. Associated Press correspondent John Randolph, reporting from the central front, stated that South Korean troops had regained all of the ground they had lost to the enemy artillery-supported assaults the previous night. Those positions included "Pinpoint Hill", the dominant height on "Sniper", retaken by a five-hour infantry assault preceded by an hour-long artillery barrage, "Rocky Point", highest peak on "Little Finger Ridge", "Jane Russell Hill", on the northeast edge of "Triangle", recaptured in a counter-attack which had begun at dawn. Two enemy companies of 350 men each had wrested the twin peaks from the allies on Tuesday night. (Boys will be boys.)
The Defense Department this date reported an additional 1,318 American battle casualties in Korea during the prior week's fighting, the largest weekly increase during the previous year. The total included 266 killed, for a total during the war of 19,712, 962 wounded, for a total of 93,237, and 90 missing, for a total of 12,938. It brought the total casualties for the war to 125,887.
At the U.N. in New York, South Africa called on the organization to declare itself incompetent to deal with the explosive problem of the treatment of non-whites in the country. A majority of the General Assembly had already decided, however, to place the question on the agenda, and so there was little chance of success of the move. The Ambassador from South Africa told the Assembly's Political Committee that racial policies were the country's own business and not the affairs of the U.N., that the policies did not constitute a threat to international peace.
Near Johannesburg, South Africa, arsonists burned down the Anglican Mission in East London the previous night, in the wake of fires on two prior nights which had burned down two Catholic churches, causing damage placed at $150,000. Public meetings had been banned in East London and five other South African cities as a result of racial rebellion against Prime Minister Daniel Malan's white supremacy policies. The violence during the previous three weeks had resulted in 45 deaths.
Two members of the Senate Internal
Security subommittee, Senators Pat McCarran of Nevada and Willis
Smith of North Carolina, suggested that the U.N. should either help
purge itself of "spies and saboteurs" or leave the United
States. Senator McCarran had said that he believed that
Secretary-General Trygve Lie had resigned his post two days earlier
because "of disclosures made and disclosures we will make in the
future". The subcommittee resumed hearings for the first time in
four weeks, hearing from three American U.N. employees who refused to
answer questions concerning their Communist Party membership, and a
fourth witness who stated that she had switched her citizenship from
American to Russian by obtaining a Russian passport. A State
Department official later indicated that he did not believe she had
automatically lost her American citizenship by receiving the Russian
passport. Senator Smith had made his statement regarding the U.N.
leaving the United States out of frustration over the witnesses'
responses, to which Senator McCarran added his assent. The latter
indicated that Mr. Lie's statement of his reason for quitting his
post, that he hoped it would "save the peace", reminded
him of a Thanksgiving pumpkin, that "it looked good, but it was
hollow." (He appears, at least subconsciously, to have been down at the cartoons
In Bangkok, Thai police had arrested more than 200 persons suspected of plotting to overthrow the government and establish a Communist regime. Police stated that the network had infiltrated the Army, Navy, Air Force, police, Government offices and the National Assembly. Raids of two Chinese shops had produced caches of Russian weapons, an illegal radio transmitter, quantities of propaganda and cases of a Russian drug believed to be poison. Police said that the ring was led by a leading Bangkok journalist whose wife was employed in the Russian legation.
In Tokyo, Japan's Foreign Office revealed this date that it had asked ten World War II Allied nations to parole the 12 remaining major war criminals of Japan this month, those remaining of 25 major war criminals convicted at the international war crimes tribunal of the Far East in 1948. Seven had been hanged in 1948 and five had died of sickness, while one had been released at the end of his seven-year sentence.
President-elect Eisenhower was planning an important round of conferences with Republican leaders in New York the following week before leaving for Korea, according to his associates this date. The conferences might include Senators Taft and Alexander Wiley of Wisconsin. The General would confer with the President at the White House early in the week and wanted to consult with GOP leaders before that meeting. Press secretary James Hagerty stated that the President-elect probably would spend Thanksgiving Day in Korea with front-line American troops.
Joseph Dodge, General Eisenhower's liaison with the Budget Bureau until the inauguration, began his duties this date, helping to draft the next year's budget. Mr. Dodge said that he would neither express opinions nor participate in discussion of budget items being prepared by the Truman Administration. Prospects appeared dim for any major early cuts in Federal spending.
Vice-President-elect Richard Nixon is pictured emerging from a swim in the ocean off Miami Beach, where he and his family were spending a short post-campaign vacation.
He seems to swim quite a bit during the fall.
In Pittsburgh, the vice-presidents of the CIO recommended a postponement of the group's 14th annual convention from Monday, November 17, until December 1, because of the death of CIO president Philip Murray the prior Sunday of a heart attack, a recommendation which was expected to receive quick approval by the executive board meeting in Pittsburgh.
Near Bamberg, S.C., two automobiles collided head-on in an early morning fog, killing three men and injuring five others. Among the victims were five workers from the Savannah River Atomic Energy plant near Augusta, Ga.
In Yanceyville, N.C., a 45-year old black tenant farmer was given a six-month suspended sentence for assaulting a white girl by "leering" at her, the court placing him on probation for five years. The maximum sentence had been two years on the roads. The man was the father of nine children and denied that he had any criminal intent in approaching the 17-year old farm girl in June, 1951. The girl had testified that the man had "eyed" her from a distance of "about 75 feet" and "chased" her across the field on her father's farm, never getting any closer than 65 feet from her. Under the North Carolina statute, no bodily contact was necessary for an assault conviction, and the prosecution contended that by "leering" at her, the man had frightened her, causing her to alter her course, and thereby had committed an assault. The defendant did not testify. At the time of the arrest, he had stated that he came to the farm to borrow an implement from the girl's father, a neigboring farmer. His attorney indicated that he would appeal the conviction, handed down by an all-white, male jury the previous day.
As pointed out when the case was first reported, the State Supreme Court, in February, 1953, would reverse the conviction, finding that merely looking at someone from a distance was insufficient as a matter of law to place the object of the look in sufficient apprehension of immediate injury to constitute an assault, that the fact of the complainant's fear "alone is insufficient to constitute an assault in the absence of a menace of violence of such character, under the circumstances, as was calculated to put a person of ordinary firmness in fear of immediate injury and cause such person to refrain from doing an act he would otherwise have done, or to do something he would not have done except for the offer or threat of violence."
In Biloxi, Miss., a woman from Newton, N.C., was re-elected president-general of the United Daughters of the Confederacy this date.
In Horton, Kans., the Ioway Indian tribe had elected as its chief a teenager who played halfback on his high school football team. A tenor for the tribe had sung modern songs, such as "Stout-Hearted Men" and "My Wild Irish Rose" as part of the ceremony.
In Chicago, a man who said that he could not swim had started on a trip around the world in a 44-foot schooner the previous day. He said that his lack of swimming skills would probably not make much difference after he was hundreds of miles at sea. He expected the voyage to take three years.
In Gilbertville, Ia., the mayor of the town had indicated that it was selling its jail as they had not much use for it, with no prisoners during the previous five years in which he had been mayor and probably longer than that. The jail was located in the firehouse and the new fire trucks needed the extra space.
In Charlotte, recommendations for a broad expansion for the city's one-way street system were presented to the City Council this afternoon by the city traffic engineer, Herman Hoose. The report indicates the proposed changes to the streets, in case you wish to object.
On the editorial page, "Trygve
Lie's Decision" comments on the resignation
It expresses doubt that his resignation would help to save the peace, which might not be saved, it ventures, regardless of whether he remained in office. He had demonstrated his ability to negotiate peace, with few peers in that endeavor.
It was unlikely that the candidates to replace him, either Foreign Minister Lester Pearson of Canada or Philippines Ambassador to the U.S., Carlos Romulo, would be acceptable to Russia, any more than had been Mr. Lie. Should the Soviets veto the Security Council's recommended successor, it was likely that it would be referred to the General Assembly for a vote. It finds that it would be the most desirable course, however, to prevail upon Mr. Lie to change his mind, as he had served with distinction and patience, appreciated by most of the member governments and private citizens alike. His reconsideration would remove one of the obstacles facing the organization, overburdened as it was with problems.
"The Rains Came" expresses gladness that the rains had finally come, extinguishing the remaining forest fires and ending the drought. "Fall grain will sprout all right, the wells won't go dry, and old Bowser will be able to pick up that scent he had trouble locating the last time."
"Harbingers of Ike's Administration" indicates that Republicans and Democrats would heartily applaud General Eisenhower's selection of the first two officials to serve as liaison agents with the Truman Administration prior to the inauguration, Senator Henry Cabot Lodge, Jr., and Joseph Dodge, a Detroit banker and businessman. Mr. Dodge would serve as liaison with the Budget Bureau and Senator Lodge would be the liaison for all other areas.
It finds both men sufficiently experienced and able to occupy those positions and indicates that they fulfilled the promise made by General Eisenhower during the campaign that he would select the best men available to him to run the affairs of government.
It states erroneously that Senator Lodge had been beaten in the Massachusetts Senate race by Joseph P. Kennedy, Jr., of course Senator-elect John Kennedy's deceased brother, killed in 1944 during the war. The error demonstrates how little known Senator-elect Kennedy was at this point in time, only eight years before being elected President.
"Time for Another Kind of Change" indicates that a Democrat who had heard of President-elect Eisenhower's plan to visit Korea had expressed alarm at the possible prospect of his death during the trip, which would cause Vice-President-elect Nixon then to accede to the Presidency. It suggests it as one of the shortcomings of the system, as the country did not select vice-presidential candidates because of their presidential timber. Senator John Sparkman of Alabama had been chosen by the Democrats as the vice-presidential nominee because he was from the South and had a record on domestic and foreign policy sufficiently liberal to satisfy the Northern wing of the party. Senator Estes Kefauver, who had the most delegates for the presidential nomination going into the convention, had been considered for the presidency, as had Averell Harriman and Vice-President Alben Barkley, but not Senator Sparkman.
Senator Nixon had been chosen by the Republicans because he was from the large electoral state of California and had a record of fighting against Communism, was young, and also had a record on domestic and foreign policy sufficiently conservative to satisfy the Old Guard Republicans. But he, also, had never been considered for the presidency, alongside General Eisenhower and Senator Taft.
It finds it appalling that the qualifications for the presidency were not given paramount consideration in selecting vice-presidential nominees. One reason was because of the relative obscurity of the Vice-President, with his only official function being to preside over the Senate. It suggests that President-elect Eisenhower had a unique opportunity to bring the Vice-President into closer association with the White House, keeping the Vice-President informed about secret information on which the President based his decisions. It suggests that the nation should never again be left in a "vacuum like that following the death" of FDR, who had kept much of the Government's important business to himself. It also suggests that both parties, in 1956, should select their vice-presidential nominees with an eye to their qualifications for the presidency, rather than their geographical origin or voting records.
A piece from the New York Times, titled "The Good Loser", indicates that it was no surprise to those who had supported the Republicans in the election, that Governor Stevenson had proved to be a good loser, that it was the first lesson learned in the political primer. His concession statement had proved something more than routine good sportsmanship, ringing true "with a sincerity of the good American, as well as the good loser devoid of rancor." The Governor, it opines, had brought "something new, fresh and appealing to politics." He had demonstrated a gift for selecting the right word and the right thought, candor, "honest diffidence" regarding his own capacities, "the integrity of a campaign which rose conspicuously above the level of some who tried to help him", a "quiet, thoughtful humor" which could turn to eloquent discussion of serious problems facing the nation. Those qualities had made him a candidate to be admired and for whom to cast a vote. Those qualities had also, in part, accounted for the fervent devotion shown among his followers.
He had come out of nowhere as a campaigner, little known to the electorate prior to his draft at the Chicago convention in July.
The Times had not supported him for the presidency, but expresses its tribute to him "as a man who emerges from the campaign and from his defeat with the respect of his fellow Americans." It indicates that he was certain to be of great influence in his party and among the American people in the coming years.
Drew Pearson again urges members of the press not to reveal General Eisenhower's itinerary or route on his upcoming trip to Korea, to forestall any attempts at assassination. He suggests that the trip behind the battle lines in Korea could become one of the most dangerous ever undertaken by a President-elect. When FDR had taken similar trips to Casablanca, Tehran and Yalta in late 1943 and early 1945, the times of departure and arrival, and even the fact of his planning such trips, had remained military secrets, not published in the press. He notes that the danger was not from any deliberate Communist attack by officials in the Kremlin, which would undoubtedly lead to world war, but rather potentially resultant from the "suicidal mania of Oriental warriors".
He reports that it was tougher shifting administrations than it had been in 1932-33, when FDR had succeeded President Hoover. At that time there had been no atomic energy, no Korean War, no military draft, no threat of Russia, no foreign aid program, and no radar ring defending the country. The Pentagon did not even exist and the State Department was a fraction of its 1952 size, then sharing the same building with the War Department, which had since become the Defense Department. Major Eisenhower at that time had an unobtrusive desk in that latter building, in the extreme outer office of General MacArthur, then chief of staff of the Army, with Maj. Eisenhower acting as his ghost writer. The budget had been 4.6 billion dollars for the entire Government against a revenue of 1.9 billion. Labor unions had only 3.2 million members, whereas in 1952, they had 16 million members. There was no television, not much radio, no large commercial airlines, not much airmail, and no TVA. There was a depression, and in dealing with it President-elect Roosevelt faced the same personal tensions with President Hoover that General Eisenhower did with President Truman in 1952. When FDR came to Washington for conferences, they yielded nothing. The interregnum then lasted four months rather than the 2 ½ months since 1936.
Senator Mike Monroney of Oklahoma had abandoned his committee's investigation of Senator McCarthy in favor of sailing to Europe without telling fellow members of the committee he was leaving.
Governor Stevenson had told friends that his original plan had been to run for the presidency in 1956 as he believed that it would be a tough year for Democrats in 1952, explaining his reluctance initially to accept the nomination.
Those close to General Eisenhower claimed that one of the most significant things about the campaign was that in the last three weeks, Republican moderates and liberals wound up closest to him while the isolationists were on the outside looking in. They attributed the great pickup of support of the General during that last stretch to that affinity and his public denunciation of Senator McCarthy's tactics.
The column provides a list of those men who had wound up closest to General Eisenhower at the end of the campaign, starting with Governor Sherman Adams of New Hampshire, and including Senator Fred Seaton of Nebraska, Boston banker Robert Cutler, Senator Frank Carlson of Kansas, the General's brother, Milton, General Wilton Persons, Governor Dewey, and RNC Chairman Arthur Summerfield, in that order. He notes that an early supporter of the General, Paul Hoffman, had been strangely silent during the campaign, but flew from California and reaffirmed his support in the late going, as did Governor Earl Warren, who joined the Eisenhower camp in the last week, making a special broadcast to California voters. Earlier, the Governor had only undertaken perfunctory efforts in support of the General. Senator Charles Tobey of New Hampshire followed a similar course.
Congressional Quarterly reports on the chairmanships of Senate committees in the upcoming 83rd Congress, stating that Republican Senators with as little as two to eight years of experience would occupy some of the 16 committee chairs, four of whom would reoccupy a chairmanship they had in the 80th Congress in 1947-48. The chairmanships would center geographically in the Eastern, Central and Western states, in that order, whereas, under the Democrats, Southerners and Westerners held the majority of the chairs. It points out that in the past, 12 to 15 years of experience was typically the norm before a Senator occupied a chair on major committees, with much shorter times typically required for the minor committees.
On the basis of seniority, the same committee chairs as in the 80th Congress would be occupied by Senators Styles Bridges, Appropriations; Eugene Millikin, Finance; Hugh Butler, Interior and Insular Affairs; and Robert Taft, Labor and Public Welfare.
The Agriculture Committee would likely be chaired by Senator George Aiken of Vermont, replacing Democratic Senator Allen Ellender of Louisiana. The Armed Services Committee would likely be chaired by Senator Leverett Saltonstall of Massachusetts, replacing Senator Richard Russell of Georgia. Banking and Currency would be chaired by Senator Homer Capehart of Indiana, replacing Senator Burnet Maybank of South Carolina. The District of Colombia Committee would be chaired by Senator Francis Case of South Dakota, replacing Senator Matthew Neely of West Virginia. The Foreign Relations Committee would be chaired by Senator Alexander Wiley of Wisconsin, replacing retiring Senator Tom Connally of Texas. The Interstate and Foreign Commerce Committee would be chaired by Senator Charles Tobey of New Hampshire, replacing Senator Edwin Johnson of Colorado. The Judiciary Committee would be chaired by Senator William Langer of North Dakota, replacing Senator Pat McCarran of Nevada. The Government Operations Committee would be chaired by Senator Joseph McCarthy of Wisconsin, replacing Senator John McClellan of Arkansas. The Post Office and Civil Service Committee would be chaired by Senator Frank Carlson of Kansas, replacing Senator Olin Johnston of South Carolina. The Public Works Committee would be chaired by Senator Edward Martin of Pennsylvania, replacing Senator Dennis Chavez of New Mexico. The Rules and Administration Committee would be chaired by Senator William Jenner of Indiana, replacing Senator Carl Hayden of Arizona. The Small Business Committee would be chaired by Senator Edward Thye of Minnesota, replacing Senator John Sparkman of Alabama.
A letter writer suggests that one of
the most important factors in the election loss by the Democrats had
been overlooked, exceeded in importance only by the fact, as Alastair
Cooke had told a British audience, that the Administration had
created an atmosphere of prosperity sufficient to allow the ordinary
man to risk voting Republican. That overlooked fact was the decline
of minorities as a significant factor in American politics. He posits
that the foundation of recent Democratic victories had been the South
and the minorities of the North, but that the appeals by both parties
to the Italians, Poles, Irish, etc., as blocs, had fallen this time
on deaf ears. He suggests that it resulted from the fact that when
such minorities had come home from the war, they had a profound
conviction, won on the field of battle, that their Americanism was no
less than any other person's. He posits that the appeals by
Presidents Roosevelt and Truman no longer assured Democratic votes
from those minority interests. He further suggests, however, that
when the excesses of the Eisenhower Administration, which had "won
by copying the cheapest tricks of Roosevelt and Truman", were to
become apparent, there would be felt the need to return to
"old-fashioned liberalism", as championed by such men as
Senators John Sparkman, Richard Russell, former Georgia Governor
Ellis Arnall and Governor Kerr Scott of North Carolina. Such men, he
contends, would "save our liberties from the onslaught of the
Luce publications and others of that mentality who are so
vociferously preparing
A letter writer from Pinehurst indicates that General Eisenhower's victory had been personal rather than of party, more so than any other successful presidential candidate in his lifetime. His coattails had been able to capture majorities for both houses of Congress, but only by one seat in the Senate and, at most, six in the House. Even FDR had never had such a personal triumph. He suggests that in carrying out his program, the General would therefore need the support from Congressional Democrats, who were much more inclined to forget partisan politics and support a Republican President than were Republicans to support a Democratic President. The Democrats had always been more internationally minded than the Republicans, and he offers some statistics to back up that statement. He suggests that if the Republicans continued to vote against foreign policy as they had in the past, then the General would need to form a coalition between the few supporting Republican Senators and the Democrats. Should those Republican Senators, however, change their positions to favor a Republican President, they would "confess thereby that their previous votes were partisan in an attempt to defeat the foreign policy of the Democratic Administration."
Framed Edition
Links-Date — Links-Subj.