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About The Omaha guide. (Omaha, Neb.) 1927-19?? | View Entire Issue (April 6, 1935)
VAV.,.,.V.,.V.,.,A,.V.,.,.,.,.,.V.,.,.V.,.V.,.VWAVWA’.V^A,Ar.V.VWVA,/AVJ,^A,.,.V.,.V//A . . . EDITORIALS . . . The Omaha Guide Published every Saturday at 2418-20 Giaftt St., Omaha, 'Neb. Phone WEbster 1750 Entered as Second Class Matter March 15, 1927 at the Post Office at Omaha, Neb., under the Act of Congress of March 3, 1879. Terms of Subscription $2.00 per year. Race prejudice must go. The Fatherhood of God and the Brotherhood of Man must pre vail. These are the only principles which will stand the acid test of good citizenship in time of peace, war and death. 1 —-C I Omaha, Nebraska, Saturday, APRIL 6, 1935 managements want to wave the whi,e Pag and sur render .heir economic position, that is their busi THE CROOKED LAWYER No profession should hold to higher levels of honor, integri y and plain honesty than should the law. The right to practice in the courts of justice carries with u a vast and inescapable obligation to the public. Most lawyers live up to the essential standards—a few do not. And .hese few, as Court ney Ryley Cooper points out in an interview with Attorney-General Cummings, appearing in a recent issue of the Saturday Evening Post, are much the enemies of the public as the gangs.er they defend. Mr Cooper cites almost incredible instances of lawyers who are retained by known criminals and are given lvrge sums of money to use in any way they like—so long as acquittal is obtained for the underworld client. Such lawyers worry little about evidence or justice—they know that bribery is a more effective weapon. They train their clients like ac.ors, so that when they appear on the witness stand they can make “saged” answers to any question. They obtain perjured alibis—and buy off prosecution wi.nesses. In Mr. Cooper’s words, “It is all fakery, crookedness, chicanery.’’ Bar associations, the judiciary and honest indi viduals are working tirelessly to rid society of ihis type of lawyer. But, as the interview points out, all such worthy efforts are doomed to failure with out aggressive public support. Many people are inclined to be amused by the unethical lawyer— they even go so far as to admire the “cleverness’’ with which he manages to circumvent the ends of justice. So long as this atti.ude obains, the shyster will prosper—and te ethics of the legal profession will suffer accordingly. The law is the very life—blood of society. Its honest administration is our main defense against medieval social darkness. The crooked lawyer menaces us all—and his good office—at high price on behalf of the most despara.e criminals are car ried on at the exense of the entire public. FIRST FIREPROOF BIRD S NEST. A new's item from a Southern eny stated that “the first fireproof bird’s nest ever seen in this country, so far as is known, was discovered the other day on the roof of a hotel. The nest was con structed entirely of small pieces of wire and there was not a twig or a piece of string to it.” One would almost think that the birds that built this nest had heard of the recommendations of the National Board of Fire Underwriters, which ad voeaies fire resistive construction as a primary means of reducing the great toll in life and prop erty taken by fire each year. \N e will always have fires—but improved construction standards can do much to mitigate the damage done. Dwelling houses of frame construction offer an invitation to fire, as the hollow walls permit flames to spread throughout the entire structure. Even such buildings can be made fire-resistive to au ex tent by means of comparatively simple precautions. Many fires s.art in cellars and soon communicate to the entire house. This can be prevented by a ceil ing in the cellar of cement plaster on metal lath, extending across from foundation to foundation. The door at the head of the stairs should be of suf ficiently heavy construction to resist flames for some time. Additional precautions are fire stops in walls at each floor level and fire resisting roofing. Large buildings, such as factories, warehouses, office buildings and those housing mercantile es tablishments, should be contracted of as nearly as possible with fireproof materials. It is highly im portant that all vertical openings such as elevator and dumbwaiter shafts and stairways be entirely en closed. Any doors into them should be of the self closing type. A means of automatically ventilat ing such shafts at the roof should be provided. The first fireproof bird’s nest was news—it will be bigger news when a town or city can report that all of its buildings are of fire resistive construction. MUSSOLINI’S MATCH Diplomatically, Emperor Haile Selassie of Ethio pia has proved to be the match of Mussolini, Italy’s dictator, thus demonstrating that all of the konw ledge of statecraft is not confined to the white race. Very carefully, the Italian government prepared to show that Ethiopia was in the wrong. With just as much care thevAfrican emperor showed the world that Italy was the aggressor. If Italy now goes through with her plans to grab a substantial slice of Abyssinian territory, it will be without a shadow of justification in the eyes of the world,-chiefly because of the elever diplomatic maneuverings of the tempor and his ad visors. Moribund as is the League of Nations, it is nev ertheless an excellent sounding board for world long ago and to join the League. By appealing to opinion. Abyssinia was wise enough to see this the League in her present difficulty,, the African kingdom has placed Italy on the defensive, when she hoped to remain on the offensive. This diplomatic defeat, coupled with the increas ingly precarious condition in Europe, may very likely deter l aly from taking more drastic action against Ethiopia. _ HITTING A VICIOUS SYSTEM i The vicious sharecropper system of the South was given another blow Last week, when the com mittee on Minori y Groups in the Economic Re covery issued its exhaustive report on the agricul tural plight of the South. It repea.s what has been said here many times, that tenant farming is a menace tha. is ruining the South nd reducing blacks and- wbi.es to a con dition worse than slavery. With 71 per cent of the cotton farms and 58 per cen. of all farms in the South farmed by tenan.s, with AAA cotton cur tailment driving thousands off the soil onto an in adequate dole, with meager diet dooming millions to rickets and pellagra, with the foreign cot.on market s-.eadily declining, the South is doomed unless it osu.s once and for all the vicious planta tion system. The obvious solution of the problem is to break up the plantation system and turn the tenants into small landowners by giving each family a small piece of ground and making financial provisions that will prevent this land from falling into the hands of real estate sharks. It will do no good to merely give land to these hapless thousands and make no provisions for staking them until they can become self supporting. The small farms should be equipped with house, mule and tools and kept tax free for at least the first two or three years. The government might better spend two or three billion dollars in this way than to spend an equal sum on an inadequate dole that not only demoralizes these workers, but must be con.inued year in and year out. The Southern sharecropping system has -been a dismal failure. It should be ended. Cotton is no longer a profitable crop, now that a score of coun tries are producing it in large quantities. If it can not be sold, why raise it at all beyond our national needs? It will be far better for the South, aided by the Federal government, to strictly limit cotton pro due.ion and foster the growing of other products for which a market can be secured. At least one quarter of the present farm area of the South could well be devoted to raising crops: vegetables, fruits, meat and milk, to nourish a people devitalized by decades of an enforced diet of fatback, corn pone and molasses. Much of the ignorance and backwardness of the South is due to i.s vicious economic system. Break that up and blacks and whites will prosper, become healthier in mind and body, and real civilization will have a chance to flourish. THE HARLEM RIOT. New York’s Harlem has given us another demon s;ration of what results from a peculiar economic aspect which all large cities, especially those sec-, tions in which we chiefly reside, are victims of. The public press charge the riot to the striking of a small Filipino boy by a white merchant. The merchant said that the boy had stolen, a pocketnilo. I Somebody ran to the street and said that the boy ‘ had been killed in the store. After this wild and untrue information, then all j was confusion*, several killed and hundreds injur ed. As a matter of fact, that wasn’t the cause of the riot. The cause of the riot was and is the con dition of economic indifference with which Harlem is treated by those who control the economic life of Harlem. The responsibility for this treatment rests in particular upon Harlem’s black leadership and what is true in Harlem is true in Chicago. It is universal ly true in other large cities of the country. We haven’t the courage and manhood to properly con tend for the things we are justly entitled to. We haven’t the foresight as a race to discern the things we are not getting. We accept the shadow for the substance and make ourselves contented. What Harlem is suf fering from is no less a menace than in the thickly populated Southside of Ch ago in which thousands of us dwell. The prin ^eets for an area of forty blocks where we i a filled with stores which we support but are e d operated by white men, who do not even >y members of our race, and a very limited few of them find it necessary to advertise their wares in our news papers. Yet, we as a group of people, support their es tablishments and educate their children in addition to mainlining for them a residence outside of our district. If we could think right, if we could dis cern our own economic advantages, these conditions could not exist in our communities. Yet it must be borne in mind that rioting and destruction of prop erty are not the answer or the remedy to be applied. We must do some right thinking, backed up by right acting and this can be accomplished through the inaguration of a racial program definitely carried out and embracing those principles which will im prove our social and economic advantages in the various communities in which we live. —From The Chicago Defender. SENATOR TYDINGS UNINFORMED. Senator Tydings, of Maryland does not appear .o quite understand the reasons for such high pro portions of colored people being on the relief roll. We don’t know just what atmosphere the senator lives in. His ignorance of things which the ordi nary person should know may be due to the fact that he is a senator far removed from what the President calls the forgotten man. For your edification, Senator Tydings, there are many reasons why the proportion of colored people should be higher on the relief roll than that of the whi.es. The first reason, Senator Tydings, will be found in the dishonesty, greediness and selfishness, hatred and prejudice of the white man himself. If this isn’t quite plain to you, Sena.or, it can be explained to you in this wise—and probably we had better s.,ar. in your city, the city of Baltimore first, with our explanation. You have a city of sev eral thousand, well educated and ups.anding color ed people; how many of them are holding positions as a result of your influence? How many of them in the state have you ap poin ed to positions? As a matter of fact, Senator, what has been your contribution as a public official toward rdeucing this high propor.ion of colored peo ple on relief roll in your home state? In the city of Bal imore, Senator, what influence have you exert ed with the public officials of that city toward se curing positions in the police and fire depart men.s for colored men? Our information is, none, and we get it from a very prominent newspaper published in your city. It would appear, senator Tydings, tnat your coinplaint about the large proportion of colored people on the relief roll is somewhat in bad taste. We further learn from this newspaper, Senator, that in the city of Baltimore “ there is not a colored policeman, municipal or states clerk, plumber or carpenter in Baltimore or Maryland. Not a single fireman or garbage cart driver.” If these are true facts—and we believe they are because we have great respect for the editor of the paper which published them—then you, Senator, should be the last man to complain about what the federal government is doing when you and your state are doing little. Now, Senator Tydings, you can get the com plete answer to the rest of your questions, by apply ing what you are doing for them and multiplying it by what is being done for them by other states where the public officials think as you think. That will be all, Senator. —From The Chicago Defender. THE FRUITS OF COOPERATION. A practical example of the essential work done by agricultural cooperatives is afforded in the case of dairy produc.s producers in an eastern state. During depression, consumption in the largest market served by these farmers dropped 40 per cent. At the same time, production kept to a stable level, making it necessary for the producers to find new outlets in order to dispose of the sur plus. A pooling arrangement wms then put into effect. Outlet for the surplus wrns found by turning a part of the to.al producion to manufacturing units. Milk used for manufacture commanded a lower price than that sold to the consumer in the fluid state— and that inequality was satisfactorily adjusted with in the pool by deducting enough from the price re ceived by those who sold fluid milk to compensate the members whose milk went to manufacturing. The plight of the unorganized farmer w'hen de mand falls, is well known. lie is absolutely power less—he can do nothing save continue to produce and take whatever price he is offered for the part of his crop that is wanted. When that farmer joins with other farmers and all work together in allocating produc-ion, stabilizing prices and ex ploring new markets, the picture changes alto gether. Cooperation has saved a legion of farmers from ruin during the past few years. And nowr it is slowly, but steadily, helping to bring agricultural recovery. THE AMERICAN CHARACTER “The extent of insurance protection in America is the best evidence I know that this country is fundamentally sound. ’ ’ said Henry Swift Ives, recently. That is an especially apt observation when ap plied to life insurance, which is the average man’s first line of defense against hazards of the future. Last year the public paid premiums to keep in force life insurance totaling One Hundred Billion. Many of the premiums paid represented real sacrifice— men and women went to extreme lengths to main tain their policies in force, knowing that they might be their only protection against even greater ad versity in days to come. America is the most heavily insured nation in the world—and that in itself is a testimonial of the ancient American quality of independence. The man who buys an insurance policy, and pays for it with his hard earned money, isn’t the type of man who willingly becomes a ward of the govern ment. He wants to provide for his future and that of his family through his own work, thrife and foresight. As long as that attitude exists, we will have little to worry about so far as the American character is concerned. IS GOVERNMENT OWNERSHIP THE SOLUTION? Two diverse factors have centered attention on the question of government ownership of the rail read industry. One is the frank opinion of Federal Coordinator of Transportation that the government should even tually take over the lines. The other lies in the possibili y that the govern ment may require a large amount of railroad mile age, if loans made to weak systems by government are not repaid. This question, like all others, will even.ually be solved by the public, and every citizen should do a good bit of thinking about it. Kn.irely aside from any problem of priniple, practical considera-j tions give rise to extreme doub s as to the stand- i ards of service that would result from government' operation. During ,he war, government, in the name of emergency, took over the lines. Service suffered at once. Great delay took place in the moving of freight, and thousands of ions of perishable goods were thug destroyed. The attitude of the govern ment officials in charge was usually arrogant—the public was offered bad service on a “Take it or leave it we don’t care which” basis. It is true that the war produced unprecedented conditions— but that is not enough of an alibi to excuse ihe chaos into which our basic media of transport was plung ed under federal management. Nor does it excuse the tremendous deficits which were created—at the expense of all taxpayers. American railroad service, under private owner ship, is the best in the world. Ra.es are low, and service is unexcelled. The lines have made con sistent technical progress in advancing safety, speeding up trains, elimina ing car shortages, and so on, in. spite of many profitless years. If govern ment ownership is tried as the “solution” to our railroad problem, »he entire public will feel the ad verse effects—and the taxpayers will find out how expensive political operation of a great industry can be. FATAL ERRORS Traffic aeciden.s were more numerous and more severe in 1934 than any previous year. Eight of the worst driving mistakes responsible for last year’s tragic record are listed by the Na iional Bureau of Casualty and Surety Underwriter as follows: 1. —Driving too fast for conditions, a cause named specifically in 22 per cent of all accidents result ing in fatalities charged to drivers alone, and a distinct and sometimes controlling factor in ac cidents attributed to many other causes. 2. —Driving on the wrong side of the road. 3. —Violating right-of-way rules. 4. —Cutting in. 5. —Passing on curve or hill. 6. —Failing to signal or signalling improperly. 7. —Driving off roadway. 8. —Reckless driving. Pedestrians made fatal errors too. Four of the worst were: 1. —Crossing between intersections, a mistake that accounted for more than 25 per cent of all pedes train fatalities. 2. —Crossing against the signal light at intersec tions. 3. —Playing in the street, an error made chiefly by children, resulting in 16 per cent of all pedes trians deaths. 4. —Coming from behind parked cars. Motorists and pedestrians—Avoid these fatal er rox« in 1935—and you wil be doing your part to re duce the traffic toll. POLITICAL ATTACKS—AND THE INVESTOR “A decline of nearly 40 per cent in the market value of common stocks of sound public utility op erating companies has occured since the October, 1932, levels, “said John E. Zimmerman, President of the United Gas Improvement Company, recently. “This per centage of decrease, if applied to the five billion of utillity common stock, represents a loss to investors of nearly two billion dollars. “The announcement of the Tennessee Valley Project, the heavy increase in u ility taxitation, the publicizing of the TVA yard slick—each resulted in material decrease in the market value of common stocks of operating companies. This is all the more significant in that these decreases were made even in the face of a steady improvement in the sales of electricity.” A survey of utility financial reports indicates that a large number of important systems are today selling more power—yet are earning less money, and are suffering a further decline in the worth of their securities. On the one hand, we are bleeding the companies white through taxes and special charges, and on the other we are subjecting them to bitter unfair and uneconomic political attaacks. A situtaion such as this, effecting an industry worth billions which gives employment to many hundreds of thousands of workers, constitute a grave threat to general industral recovery. OUR STAKE IN MINING In a recent address, Congressman Murdock of Utah brought out some interesting facts concerning “America’s Stake in the Mining Indusry.” The mineral wealth of the United States is more varied and abundant than that of any other region. The mining industry represents an investment of between twelve and fifteen billion dollars. It is a surprising fact, as Mr. Murdock pointed out, “every state in the union is engaged in the mining industry and its direct influence is felt by every citizen.” Mining is one of those few basic industries which are necessary to the progress .stability and prosperity of the nation. ECONOMIC HIGHLIGHTS Happenings That Affee* the Dinne?' Pane Checks and; Tax of Eve) Individual. • »' “The full impact of business discouragement is being visited upon members of Congress,” says ,he United States.’ News. “The title of protest against re strictive legislation is .risihgi^’ The public atd rule toward the ilast Congress was one of sym pathy and patience. Extraordi nary legislation was proposed and passed with a modicum of o^pe- . sit ion from businesses and indi viduals. Unprecendeu.ed actions were accepted by the public with out argument. There was rela tively little criticism of Congres sional moves and almost no criti cism of the President. Today the situation is very dif ferent. Congress is being damn ed, reviled and denounced,. Aud criticism is reaching out towards the White House, which, less than a year ago, was almost sacrosaut. Those who oppose restrictive laws have apparently decided that the time when silence could do any good is past; that they have everything to gain, and nothing to lose by pressing their side of the ease with force and forth rightness. An excellent example of this change is found in the response to the Public Utility Act of 1935, usually referred to as the Ray burn Bill, because it was intro duced by Representative Ray burn of Texas. If this bill pass es, almost every utility holding company in the nation will be forced to go out of business be tween 1937 and 1940—and, in ad dition, during that interim practi ca ly every operating utility com pany will be subjee.ed to the iron clad control of a federal commis sion. So sweeping are the bill’s provisions that an operating com pany could not engage legal counsel, purchase supplies or make an advertising contract without first obtaining the con sent of the federal regulatory authorities. The bill’s prospects for pass ing were extremely poor a short time ago—n was in committee, and relatively few Congressmen showed any enthusiasm for it. Then the President issued his famous statement to Congress on holding companies, threw the full weigth of his influence behind the bill. Congressmen'fell in line, and it seemed inevitable that the bill would pass in practically the same form it had been intro duced. Then the “tide of protest” rose. Utility companies sent let ters to their stockholders, urged them to write to their Congress men. .They ran advertisemen.s opposing the bill, and pointing to what its effect would be. An as sociation composed of utility in vestors, large and small—they number 10,000,000 and have a stake of 12 billion dollars in the utility industry, according to News-Week — brought out its heaviest artillery. Result: Sen ate and House pos1:6ffice forces had to work nights in order to handle the thousands of letters to Congressmen opposing’the bill. Upshot of the flood of corres pondence was a resolution, intro duced by Senator Norris, to in vestigate the source of this “prop aganda.” That, in view of many unbiased newspapers, was rather ridiculous—it is on secret that utilities and their investors are opposing the bill in order to pro 1 tcet their property. Congressman Fish of New York rose in the House, said that the President’s message was in itself propaganda of the most potent kind—asked, by intimation, why others should not have the right to present their side of the issue without question. The consequences of all this is that the bill will not, unless all present signs are wrong, pass in its original form. Utility leaders are the first to admit that certain individual holding companies have abused their powers—but they believe that the way to reme dy the situation is through regu lation, not destruction. Other major pieces of legisla tion are finding opposition from many directions. The social se curity program, for example, is being bitterly debated—and when it comes up for Congressional con sideration there is going to be warfare. That, in the opinion of most commentators, is a good sign—fearless debate and news paper comment are the safe guards of democratic government. —0O0— Nature is repeating herself. Last year she brought the great est drought in history to the great (Continued on Page 8) ,