The Charlotte News

Tuesday, September 25, 1951

FOUR EDITORIALS

Site Ed. Note: The front page reports, via Don Huth, that Communist officers angrily departed the meeting this date in Kaesong with U.N. liaison officers, but General Matthew Ridgway had asked them to return the next day in an effort to revive the suspended ceasefire talks. The Communists wanted to resume the talks, suspended August 23 amid Communist charges of violations by the U.N. of the neutrality zone around Kaesong, but wanted the first session to address these multiple charges of the violations. The session had abruptly ended after 50 minutes, following U.N. Col. Kinney having proposed that both sides discuss conditions which would guarantee uninterrupted talks, unsuitable to the Communists. U.N. officers were dispatched to Panmunjom specifically to ask the Communists to return, while ignoring the Communist demands regarding the first session.

In air fighting, 37 American F-86 Sabre jets won the longest jet battle in history, shooting down five Communist MIG-15s and damaging five others in a 35-minute battle over northwest Korea. The fight involved 117 planes, including 80 MIGs. All of the American planes returned safely. It was the largest bag of Russian MIG-15s since April 12, when U.S. pilots had shot down four, probably destroyed two and damaged 14 others.

In ground action, U.N. troops captured a commanding peak, with a view of a Communist supply and assembly base, west of "Heartbreak Ridge" on the eastern front. The U.N. unit had kicked an estimated two North Korean battalions from the peak in nearly three hours of heavy fighting.

Czechoslovakia's ambassador to the U.S. told a press conference that Associated Press correspondent William Oatis was doing "quite well" in a prison in Czechoslovakia, where he was confined on charges of espionage. He stated that there could be successful negotiations for his release, but that it would entail cleaning of the atmosphere of "discriminatory" policies by the U.S. Government against the Czech Government. He declined to indicate what in particular needed to occur.

The U.S., Britain and France intended to publish a joint declaration the next day indicating that Italy was no longer subject to the arms limitation contained in its peace treaty. Russia had been involved in the original treaty and was opposed to any modification of the terms. The original clauses had restricted Italy to an army of 250,000, an air force of 350 planes and 25,000 men, and a navy of no more than 132 ships. The President assured Italian Prime Minister Alcide de Gasperi, visiting with the President, that the U.S. would continue to assist Italy and other allies in increasing their capacity for defense.

British Prime Minister Clement Attlee summoned his top Cabinet ministers to a meeting this date to determine whether the country should use force to resist an Iranian order providing 300 British technicians until October 4 to leave the Abadan oil refinery. The Prime Minister was expected to confer with Opposition Leaders Winston Churchill, of the Conservative Party, and Clement Davies, of the Liberal Party, before reaching a decision.

Iraq still operated in partnership with the British as Iran had before the nationalization of the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company, and it was reported that the Shah was irritated with Britain's refusal to reopen the oil negotiations and had supported Iran's decision therefore to kick out the British technicians. There was also reported grumbling within the Iranian Parliament regarding the move, asserting that it was pushing Iran closer to Communist domination.

In Formosa, the Chinese Nationalist Government promised land grants in mainland China for Nationalist soldiers if they were able to recapture the mainland.

The Senate investigating subcommittee looking into the charges of influence in obtaining an RFC loan for a St. Louis printing firm, heard from a former Federal alcohol tax collector in New York, who testified that he received fees totaling $45,000 from the firm and used his influence to obtain profitable Government printing contracts for the firm. Senator Richard Nixon suggested that it was a "shakedown" for him to solicit business from beer and liquor firms, a claim which the witness vigorously denied. He did admit, however, that it was improper to engage in business with firms who paid their alcohol taxes to him. The printing company's New York representative said that he thought the man was employed by the firm to obtain influence and that it was an improper arrangement.

An internal revenue agent also testified that he and another Government employee received more than $7,000 each as commissions from the printing firm while still on the Federal payroll. He identified the other man as the former regional director of the Labor Department's wages and hours investigating unit. He said that he had received such gifts as a camera and a turkey the previous winter from the printing firm. He had been suspended by the IRB, effective the previous morning, for 30 days pending the outcome of the inquiry.

Was it a Polaroid?

The Government, through an order by Price Stabilizer Mike DiSalle, impressed all available price control personnel into an effort to check 500 slaughterhouses across the country to eradicate illegal practices in the handling of beef. Violations had been uncovered in at least eight cities and one of the first black market meat cases had arisen in Wichita.

The Senate Banking Committee approved a bill to reimpose livestock slaughter quotas and coupled it with a specific injunction against price rollbacks. The quota system had been in effect for four months prior to August 1 and the approval would restore that system.

A Brooklyn grand jury charged that a "hierarchy of corrupt officials" in New York City's Police Department had organized to protect gamblers in exchange for bribes. The grand jury called for wholesale housecleaning in the top echelons of the Department, and stated that corruption had been ongoing for a decade, which had included every veteran inspector or deputy inspector who commanded a plainclothes division. It recommended either dismissal of these officers or that they be demoted to make it impossible for them "to debase or suborn their fellow officers". It was the same grand jury which had indicted the 18 police officers for receiving bribes from gambler Harry Gross to protect his gambling enterprise. That case had ended when Mr. Gross refused to testify at trial.

In Los Angeles, a woman had sued for $27,500 a man, a retired Canadian Army major, who had proposed marriage to her, alleging battery and damage to her restaurant business after he kissed her prior to her divorce from her estranged husband, a kiss which she had forbidden after accepting the proposal. According to the lawsuit, he had then slapped her face six times, kicked her and chased her out of his horticultural school for GIs, where their meeting had taken place. He had also posted notices at the school that the woman's restaurant across the street was out of bounds to the students, which she claimed had adversely impacted her business.

The News would begin publishing the next day Gallup polls of American opinion, the first one to be the "political box score" as of the present time. The report explains that the Gallup poll, which began publishing results in 1935, had been correct in seven of the intervening eight biennial national elections, failing only in the 1948 election to predict President Truman as the winner over Governor Dewey. It had then revised its techniques and had come within a percentage point of correctly predicting the overall outcome of the 1950 Congressional elections.

On page 2-A begins the serialized romantic novel by Vida Hurst, Half a Love—which apparently concerned a man without enough bread to make the romance work. But, as they say, half a love was better than no love at all.

Based on the sequence set forth on September 15 for the twelve-part serialization of Dr. Evelyn Millis Duvall's Facts Of Life and Love, anent the problems of teenagers with romance, this day's installment would involve the eighth topical entry, "Saying No".

On the editorial page, "Rejection of Kaesong Site" finds that if the Communists were to accept General Ridgway's statement the previous day that Kaesong was unsuitable as a site in which to continue the ceasefire talks, there was a good chance they might resume. But even if that were the case, it would not necessarily mean that they would change their strategy, but would likely indicate only that they had decided to continue their disputatious stance, possibly in the hope of easing the current allied military pressure. In light of the abrupt walkout by the Communist liaison officers during the morning, it was unlikely the talks would be resumed right away.

It finds that agreement regarding a new site would be difficult to achieve and thinks that a shipboard rendezvous would be the most logical alternative. The Communists had rejected General Ridgway's original suggestion during the summer to meet on a Danish hospital ship.

It concludes that Communist acceptance of the premise that Kaesong was unsuitable would not necessarily indicate resumption of the talks, and if they refused to meet elsewhere, it might mean that their desire suddenly to resume the talks had resulted from someone "reading the wrong script".

"Good Health Is the Main Objective" tells of one of the local doctors who attended the health consolidation study session the previous week having expressed aptly the principal point to be considered in any consolidation of City and County health services, that the standards of public health would not be lowered. The piece agrees and hopes that the Mecklenburg County Board of Commissioners would approve the necessary money for quality health care, which would remove any barrier to consolidation, just as it had in Guilford County, around Greensboro.

"Good News Dept." tells of Independence Boulevard having proved useful in removing traffic from other congested streets and moving it rapidly across the city, but not being able thus far to fulfill its basic purpose of joining the Albemarle-Monroe highways on the east with the Gastonia highway to the west.

We do not wish to spoil the ending for you and so you can read the piece and find out how it all shakes out in the end, where Stonewall Street would open up—probably in the shakedown or in the shakeup, hush-hush and on the q.t. in Charlotte.

"Wanted: Your Blood" tells of only 8,871 pints of blood having been collected thus far by the Red Cross in Mecklenburg County, and of that amount, 6,891 pints having been used in hospitals in the county. About two-thirds of the population, including children and pregnant women, could not donate blood, but the remaining third who could, about 65,000 persons, would be able to contribute a pint five times per year, meaning that if all eligible donors participated, 260,000 pints, rather than the paltry 8,871 pints, could be collected.

It therefore urges giving blood at the Blood Center, and provides the phone number and address, along with the hours. It concludes that it did not hurt to give blood but made one feel good.

William G. Wing, writing in the New York Herald Tribune, tells of Virginia having reduced its 1950 state income taxes by one-fifth, after passing a new law which returned part of any surplus revenue to the taxpayers each year. He proceeds to explain the law, named after its sponsor, State Senator Harry F. Byrd, Jr., son of the U.S. Senator. He explains the positive results.

Drew Pearson tells of U.S. officials now being convinced that Russia would not launch a world war during 1951, but would continue to press war by its satellites. China had been more eager than Russia for a truce, and Russia's proposal for a truce was deemed by the U.S. officials to be for propaganda purposes. The next predicted step for Communist aggression was likely to be Burma, Thailand and Indo-China, as these countries were important to Russia to enable a continuing source of rice for China, so much so that Russia would likely gamble starting a war over these countries. In Iran, the Russians would probably enter the northern province of Azerbaijan and take it by force, if the British were to enter southern Iran to protect the Abadan oil refinery, taking the risk that the West would not go to war over Iran. The U.S. analysts did not anticipate a Russian military move in Germany, but did foresee a continual military build-up there. Russia's biggest drive would be to pressure local governments to stop building U.S. air bases in Europe and North Africa.

In Tennessee, there was a feud between senior Senator Kenneth McKellar and Senator Estes Kefauver, to the extent that Senator McKellar had sent a letter to members of the Senate Judiciary Committee seeking to undermine Senator Kefauver's plan for appointing a roving judge in the Middle and Eastern Districts of Tennessee because there was an ill judge in the Middle District. The members of the Judiciary Committee, membership on which Senator Kefauver owed to Senator McKellar, appeared to favor Senator Kefauver's position on the point. Senator McKellar was opposed to appointing a roving judge and urged members of the Committee to defeat the amendment.

The President had ordered the drastic housecleaning in executive departments and agencies to get rid of personnel who were not producing or were only duplicating services.

Stewart Alsop, with the French Army in Germany, discusses the French infantry soldiers' rebellion against the officers, commenting on one episode which he witnessed wherein a captain who was being berated by a general, without pausing, yelled angrily right back at the general. This behavior was left over from the days of the Resistance when the Maquis were all on the same level.

The tension came from the defeat in 1940 at the hands of the Nazis, blamed on the French generals, and the fact that many of the elder officers had done nothing during the war and then, afterward, resumed their full rank. There had also been a pervading disrespect for authority which developed during the Resistance era.

But as the memory of the recent past faded, and the French army began to change from an army on paper to one able to fight, the distrust of higher authority and indifference to military procedure had begun to dissipate. There was, translated from the past, an extraordinary sense of camaraderie within the lower ranks and there was an energy and initiative lacking in more formal armies, such as the U.S. Army.

Mr. Alsop says that he was protected by his Resistance friends during the war, but had seen enough to be able to answer an American supply officer who wondered whether the French had any guts. He had seen the special courage of the underground, seeming to some Americans to approach insanity, but which was courage, nonetheless, of a high order. So he says that he would answer the officer in the affirmative and suggest that French courage was one of the great assets of the free world.

Robert C. Ruark tells of columnist Fred Othman writing from Rome recently that a "tout", a paid publicist, had approached him to interview Lucky Luciano, which he declined, saying he was not interested in cleaning up a dope paddler. Then the same publicist tried to get him to interview Ingrid Bergman, to which Mr. Othman responded that he had already written about her and doubted whether anyone cared what the "great love slave" thought about anything anymore.

Mr. Ruark finds that society had been making a lot lately of sordidness among the "cheap and the publicity hungry". Names made news, such as a fistfight between Franchot Tone and another man regarding a woman, in which Mr. Tone's nose had been rearranged and the woman fired from the motion picture on which she had been working.

He finds uninteresting the intimate details of the latest disenchantment between Bob Topping and Lana Turner. He had heard it all before, when Hollywood marriage ended and then quickly began, and then ended again. The public encouraged the boredom with its hunger for gossip, and he admits that he sometimes liked to hear a bit of spicy dirt himself. But when he heard it over and over about the same people, it lost its appeal. He finds it difficult to imagine that the breakup for the fourth or fifth time of a joke marriage was so startling as to be of great interest to anyone, and so could scarcely count it news.

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