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About The Plattsmouth journal. (Plattsmouth, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 8, 1952)
EDITORIALS Furse's Fresh Flashes VJ3 Ticklers By George HERE WE GO AGAIN "If at First You Don't Succeed, Try, Try Again." The above old time phrase seems to be the general theme song of the Plattsmouth Board of Education, a body that has faced a most discouraging future of the Platts mouth school system for the past several years. Their decision to place before the vot ers of School District 1 another bond issue on September 30 in a last final effort to provide adequate class rooms and facili ties to the local educational system, was a difficult one to make. Twice defeated within a period of one year it has placed the local group of men doing their best to provide educational opportunities in Plattsmouth equal to neighboring com munities, in a most helpless position. Increased enrollments were anticipated for the 1952-53 term, but the increase ex pected was nothing as to what is now on the class rolls in the local school system. With only 65 seniors graduated last year from a building already crowded to capa city, the freshman enrollment as of Wed nesday totaled 105 40 more students to put somewhere, not counting increases in the three higher grades. Lower grades have brought about what seems to be more of an unsurmount able problem. Elementary grades in Win tersteen, Columbian, and Central are bursting at the seams and stillthe enroll ment for the present term has not reached its pak. Many classes are being split into three and four groups in a desperate ef fort to handle what may prove to be the largest percentage of increase in the local school's history. With additional homes planned for Plattsmouth, with construction of the new big Allied Chemical plant due to get un derway any day and with every facility the local schools have to offer stretched to the breaking point, it is little wonder to this writer, who has sat in on many board meetings, that this local group of men is ready to throw up its hands in despair. We doubt we would have had the intestinal fortitude to fight these problems for so long or have the courage to face so bleak a future. However, we believe the school board has come up with the right solution with the present proposal. Plans call for a com plete rehabilitation of the Plattsmouth school system which, when completed, would give the district educational fac ilities second to none in Nebraska and at a cost little more than the estimate on the first proposal. Exhaustive surveys were made by engineers, architects and school heads in preparing present plans and pro mised the wholehearted cooperation and support of numerous opponents to the first proposals we believe Plattsmouth will come through on September 30 and build these facilities so desperately needed. TIME TO CHANGE THE THEME Propaganda put out by the highway commission and good roads committees in Nebraska during the past couple of years, has cost Nebraska business men untold thousands of dollars in tourist business. Having completed a visit the first of the week that carriea this writer into some nine western states, including two of the nation's greatest national parks, has con vinced us that it is time for the good roads advocates to change their theme. Stories reaching popular tourist gui dance agencies, auto clubs, and other pathfinders for the country's annual joy riders regarding the condition of Nebras ka's thoroughfares have caused thousands of tourists to by-pass Nebraska during this heaviest of all seasons. The cost to motels, hotels, restaurants, service stations, gar ages, and down to local business people, THOUGHT FOR TODAY Men of principle ore aheays bold, but those icho arc bold arc not always men of principle. Confucius We have noticed many of our political candidates don't put enough fire into their speeches others don't put enough of their speeches into the fire. When we asked Flipper Fanny, our dainty little contour twister, if she would marry a sap just for his money, she asked if we were gathering statistics or propos ing. Now the state legislature is trying to deny the poor man his garbage disposal unit the hog pen. A local man says this push-button world is no place for his wife. Nothing in this world would make her touch a button if you don't believe it, take a look at his shirt. A statesman is the candidate you vote for; a politician is the guy running against him. A local rich, hard-of-hearing old gent bought him a new hearing aid recently without the family knowing it. He's chang ed his will three times already. Too many of us want life, liberty and happiness, with little pursuit. A wedding is that period in a man's life when he gets billed for the times that he cooed. reaches a tidy sum even in this day of the cheapened dollar. Without contradicting the well known factor that Nebraska is in dire need of a i better and more adequate highway system, our trip over the length of the state on two major highways proved without doubt that our driving pleasure in Nebraska was no more handicapped than on other high ways in all the states visited in fact we creeped over some very miserable ex amples. It's time to cut out the tommy-rot that Nebraska's road system has deteriorated to the point where visitors shun our state to travel less improved roads in neighbor ing states. It's time to cut out this childish, political mugwamp that deprives our cit izens of their rightful share of the tourists millions. It's possible to plan and build an ade quate road system in Nebraska and get all the money needed without selling the state of Nebraska short to the other forty-seven. The Plattsmouth Journal Official County and City Paper KSTAISUSHKP IN 18S1 Twice Winner Ak-Sar-Ben Plaques for "OUTSTANDING COMMUNITY SERVICE" 1949 1951 Presented Nebraska Press Association "GENERAL EXCELLENCE AWARD" in 1951 ( i:ankct Second in Oties Over 1000 I'opulation) I'ulililicU S"mi-Wc-kl , Mondays and Thursdays, at 110 Main trri-t. Plattsmouth. Cass County. Ncbr. RONALD R. FURSE Publisher HARRY J. CANE Editor FRANK H. SMITH News Reporter ALBERT E. BACK Advertising Mgr. SOPHIA M. WOLEVER Society Editor AssocAron NMTIONAl iDITOMIAL Assocunott Kntered at the I'opt Office at Plattsmouth. Nebraska, as second clast mail matter in accordance Willi Hie Act of Convicts, of Alart ii ;;. Ihl'J. SUBSCRIPTION RATE: $3.50 per year in Cass and adjoining counties. $4.00 per year elsewhere, in advance, by mail outside the city of Platts mouth. By carrier in Plattsmouth, 20 cents for two weeks. "He allows himself one luxury an occasional spiked drink." Down Memory Lane 4 A YEARS AGO IU Guests at the home of Mr. anr Mrs. Charles Anthes are Mrs. Leonard Maul of Santa Cruz, Calif., and Mrs. Gust Labs of Kearney . . . Mrs. R. W. Clement has re turned from Colorado Springs where she visited with her daughter and son-in-law, Mr. and Mrs. Henry McMaken . . . James H. Jones of Plattsmouth is attending aerial gunnery school at Harlingen, Texas . . . No school will be maintained at Wabash this year for the first time. Only four grade pupils reside in the district compar ed with as many as 70 in by-gone years . . . Cotner bus line of Plattsmouth has been granted temporary authority by the railway commission to provide service be tween the city and the Martin Bomber plant. YEARS AGO Ly Fire of unknown origin swept through the dance pavilion at Naeve's Park result ing damage estimated at 15 to 20 thousand dollars . . . Miss Mildred Motis of Archer, South Dakota, and Milton M. Toman of Mynard were married at Mynardv. . . Ray Larson, veteran net artist, is winner of the Cass county tournament just closed in Plattsmouth. He defeated Ralph Mason who earlier had ousted George Sayles . . . Reduction in taxes at Plattsmouth on 1932 real estate will amount to exactly 33 cents on each $1,000 of valuation . . . Enroll ment at Plattsmouth high school was up four students over a year ago. Seventy-six freshmen enrolled . . . H. G. Soennichsen has been named general chairman for the corn festival to be held at Plattsmouth. The Washington Merry-Go-Round (Copyright 1949, By the Bell Syndicate, Inc.) DREW PEARSON SAYS: TAFT WILL DICTATE TERMS TO EISEN HOWER; TAFT WAS REBUFFED FORiVlCE PRESIDENCY AT CHI CAGO; TOP LABOR LEADERS RE SENT GEORGE HARRISON'S AP POINTMENT TO STEVENSON LA BOR COMMITTEE. Washington. -f-Senator Taft "Mr, Conservative" toj Republican1 regulars will dictate his own terms to Eisenhower when he sits down with the general in the long-a waited campaign huddle next week. In fact, Taft has already sent word in blunt language that he'll work for the man who beat him at Chicago only if he is given plenty of swinging room to va:;e his own type of "fighting campaign." Here is the inside storv of what has happened between Taft and the Eisenhower forces in trying to get the two men together. Real fact is that Taft still has a sour taste m his mouth ! as a result of Chicago, where he not only was beaten for the nomination but also was spurn ed ior the vice presidency. As a result, he has been in no hurry to come to Ike's aid: in fact, even turned down a reauest to meet Ike a week ahead of sched Uie in Cleveland. What happened at Chicago never leaked out at the time, but the Ohio senator sent word that he was available for the vice presidential nomination. This Drought no enthusiasm from the Eisenhower camp. They were afraid the headstrong Taft. as the tail of the OOP ticket, might try to wag the dog. So the answer was sent back to Taft as politely as possible that it was no soap. However, the Ohio senator then got on the telephone to the man at Ike's elbow. Taft's old friend. Sen. Frank Carlson of Kansas, and asked him to consider another Taft man for vice president Sen. Everett Dirksen of Illinois. Accordingly, and as an act of good faith. Carlson tossed Dirk- sen's name into the ring at a backstage meeting of Eisenhow er strategists just after Ike was nominated at Chicago. But Tom Dewey, still smarting from Dirk- sen's withering attack on the convention floor, said no. Twice therefore Taft was rebuffed. And he left the convention dis appointed and disgruntled. "Stalin's Candidate Adams After Arthur Summerfield was installed as Republican Nation al Chairman, he became largely preoccupied with restoring dip lomatic relations with the Taft forces. Summerfield is an old Taft supporter, is close to Tom Coleman, leader of the senator McCarthy forces in Wisconsin, and has taken the lead in patch ing up Ike's fences with the isolationist wing of the GOP. When the lines between Taft and the Eisenhower camp first started buzzing, the Ohioan let it be known he would campaign for the ticket on his own terms. Summerfield thereupon per suaded Ike's inner circle to meet Taft's conditions namely. give him a free hand. Accord ingly he was invited to sit down with Eisenhower and map cam paign strategy. Replying from Murray Bay. Canada. Taft wired that he would meet the general any time after September 8 in Washington. .4 it But just as everything ap peared to be patched uo between Taft and Eisenhower, the chief of Ike's strategy board. New Hampshire's governor Sherman Adams, dropped word to the press that the two convention rivals were going to get together. This threw the Taft forces into an uproar. In the first place. Taft did not want a pre mature announcement. And of all people to make the announ cement, Adams was the won: For Taft has nursed a grudge against Adams for whispering in Chicago that Taft was the man "Stalin wanted for Presi dent." The Taft backfire was follow ed by an outburst of criticism against Eisenhower for his slow and easy campaign start. The criticism got so hot that Ike's closest adviser and political diplomat. Senator Carlson, per sonally telephoned Taft in Canada, asking him to meet Ike a week ahead of schedule. The general would come to Taft's home ground. Cleveland. Carl son promised. Taft replied that his invalid wife needed the rest and he could not cut his vacation short. Eisenhower would have to wait until they got back to Washing ton. Taft promised, however, to campaign vigorously for the Re publican ticket. - Labor Leaders' Peeve Democratic .candidate Adlai Stevenson may not know it but the nation's two top labor boss es are peeved over George Har rison's aooointment as chair man of the labor committee for Stevenson. Both AF of L chief Bill Green and CIO head Phil Murrnv have been irked at Harrison cv i er since he participated in the Blackstone Hotel breakfast at which labor leaders told Vice President Barkley he was too old to run for president. Harrison, whose Brotherhood of Railway Clerks comes under the AF of L. was present when a handful of labor leaders told Barkley to his face that labor would not support him on ac count of his age. This brought tears to the eyes of the 74-year-old veep and caused him sadly to withdraw from the race. Inside story is that Harrison neglected to clear tins pronoun cement with either of the two top labor leaders. Both Green and Murray considered it a be-low-the-belt blow at Barklev. who has always been a friend of labor. The age issue also didn't sit well with Green who. at 79, is five years older than Bark ley. Green has been grumbling against Harrison ever since the Barkley breakfast, while Murray has been abrupt with Jack Kroll, the CIO-PAC participant. Neith er of the two big labor leaders was pleased to see Harrison named as Stevenson's labor co ordinator. German Competition German industry has staged such a comeback that it is now pushing U.S. goods out of Latin America. Ever since 1950. German toys, chemicals, tools, and electric goods have been competing with U. S. products. But now the ri valry has mox?d into the field of heavy industry. Recently both U. S. Steel and Bethlehem Steel bid on a new bridge over the Guavas river in Ecuador a major construction job. However though they don't know it yet the two big Amer ican firms are going to be left out in the cold, with the con tract going to the Ferrostaal Co. of Hamburg, reorganized less than four years ao following 85 per cent destruction of its plants and offices by wartime bom bardment. Bethlehem Steel offered to build the bridge linking Guav aauil with the terminus of the railroad from 9.300-foot-high Quito, for about $5,200,000. But the German firm underbid that figure by almost 30 per cent. U. S. Steel's bid was the highest of all. POLIO New cases of infantile paraly sis reported during the first seven days of August toC?iled 2. 290, the highest weekly total so far this year. On August 2, the Public Health Service listed the year's total at 10.697 cases, which compared with 10,719 in the record year 1949 and 6,838 I up to this time last year. Aug- ust is usually the month of highest incidence for poliomyelitis. SCHOOL AID The U. S. Office of Education has reserved $8,500,000 more for building schools in crowded de fense areas in 13 states. The allotment brought to more than $100,000,000 the funds reserved for such construction since July 15. Congress provided $195, 000,000 for school construction in "Federally-affected" defense areas. Journal Want Ads Pay! ESTABLISHING REASONABLE VALUES ON HOMES NEXfTD OC NEAR AlGPORTS FOR GI LOANS PERMIT? VA FIELD OFFICES TO MAKE THESE APPRAISALS ONTMEIR OWM WITHOUT SENDING THEM TO WASHINGTON Legislative SIDELIGHTS.. by BERNIE CAMP Information Director Nebraska Farm Bureau Federation (Legislative Sidelines Is made available to your local newspaper as a service of the Nebraska Farm Bureau Federation. Opin ions expressed are not neces sarily r..ns nf this newspaper). Road User Funds Per Mile Recently an Associated Press release from Lincoln asserted that only one state has less J nignway-user ieveuue ava.uauie j for each mile of state nignway than Nebraska. The story went cn to cite the fact that Nebras ka has $1,252 per mile available ior construction and mainte nance of state highways from highway user sources (gaso line taxes and license tees). Only North Dakota, the release said, is lower with $956; and South Dakota has $1,271; Wyo ming, $1,272; Iowa, $2,428; and the state of Masachusetts is at the top of the list with $13,319. The figures cited were based upon information supplied by the U. S. Bureau of Public Roads. The obvious impression cre ated was that Nebraska is in a poor position for road building. The reader also drew the in ference that highway users are not contributing their fair share to road costs in Nebraska. The news story did not ex plain that these revenues were only the state share from gaso line taxes and license fees. No mention w-as made of other taxes highway users in Nebraska contribute to road building and the general purposes of govern ment. The figures cited in the news release dealt with less than 25 per cent of the total taxes and i fees paid by highway users and motor vehicle owners in this I state. No mention was made of the fact that Nebraska automobile and truck owners pay more than $60 million a year in various forms of taxation and fees to local, state and federal govern ments. Of the $60 million dollars paid by Nebraska motor vehicle own ers, approximately 40 per cent, or more than $21 million dollars goes for other than road uses. With half a million, or slight ly more, motor vehicles on the roads of Nebraska, each vehicle pays approximately $120 a year in local, state and federal taxes and fees. Of the $120, approxi mately $78 finally is used on roads and highways in Nebras ka. Looked at still another way, motor vehicle owners in the state pay in taxes and fees each year enough to provide approxi mately $600 a mile for every mile of the 100,000 miles of lo cal, county and state roads, but the amount of this money ac tually going on the roads is nearer $390 a year. Nebraska's road financing problem is not basically one of motor vehicle owners failing to pay enough in fees and taxes to support road building pro grams. It is not a problem of needing more fees and taxes levied against motor vehicle owners. The basic problem in Nebras ka road financing is the vast amount of legalized diversion of the funds paid out by highway users or motor vehicle owners to support of schools and other purposes of government. What is needed is a thorough going over-haul of the tax laws of the state to see that taxes on highway use go to maintain ing and building highways. Nebraska motorists pay a higher personal property tax on their automobiles and trucks than any other state in -the union. They pay a state tax on gaso line equal to most other states and more than some states. - License fee payments are not high, but the personal property tax more than makes up for the higher license fees in other states. Millions of dollars each year are paid by Nebraska motor ists in federal excise taxes on new cars, gasoline, oil, tires, re pair parts and the like; and none of this goes on the roads as such. Nebraska is in a position simi lar to a valley that is trying to keep out the flood with a dam. The dam, or taxes and fees, in this case is adequate to hold out the flood. Every little while the dam sprang a leak in the past; and by now these leaks, or diversions, have become size able. Instead of plugging the leaks when they began, each new need for highway construc tion and building was met by building .the dam higher. The dam is built on a foundation of the ability of motor vehicle owners to bear the load of fees and taxes on motor vehicles; and like the dam foundation, the ability to bear the load of taxation is only as strong as the ability of the pocketbooks of the motor vehicle owners to pay it. There is a point where the weight of the dant cannot be 1 sustained' -by; the foundation, i There is a point where the bur den on the motor vehicle owner ; becomes so great if is no longer I desirable to own an automobile or truck. THE PLATTSMOUTH, NEBRASKA, SEMI-WEEKLY JCUFt rACia HUUK Monday, September 3, Test Your Intelligence tfBerjjltaJ -Caliroroil Score 10 points for each correct answer in the first six questiJ 1. What name doesn't belong with the other three: -v - l Chico Harpo Ropo " GrouchoV 2. In what sport is the word "chukker" used: 1 badminton tennis - hockey polo 3. Gilbert and Sullivan are famous for their: tennis game exploring exploits t cough medicine 4. The last of the 48 states given statehood was: . Texas Arizona " Montana r 5. The largest planet is: " ' Jupiter Venus Mars Saturn 6. Who wrote the poem. Charge of the Light Brigade? Kipling Tennyson Lee 7. Listed below at left are four famous cathedrals and opposite I jumbled up, the cities in which they are located. Match t scoring 10 points for each correct answer. - " i (A) St. Paul's f' ' Rome B) St. Peter's Paris C) Notre Damei New York (D) St. Patrick's v. London Total your points. A score of 0-20 is poor; 30-60, average- 7 superior: 80-100, .very superior. (Answers on Page 5) rim. I v ft a WASHINGTON REPORT 1 Howard Buffer! Congressman, 2nd Nebraska District September brings Labor Day and the back-to-school move ment. If I could make a maeic wish, here is what I'd do. I'd place before every worker and school-child in America, four paragraphs from Rose Wilder Lane's classic THE DISCOVERY j OF FREEDOM, to read and ponder. "For sixty known centuries, multitudes of men have lived on this earth. Their desire to live has been as strong as ours. Their energy has always been enough to make this earth at least hab itable for human beings. Their intelligence has been great. "Yet for six thousand years, most men have been hungry. Famines have always killed mul titudes, and still do over most of the earth. One hundred years ago. the Irish were starving to death. Europeans had never ex pected to get from this earth enough food to keep them all alive. "Why did workers walk bare foot, in rags, with lousy hair and unwashed teeth, and work ingmen wear no pants, for six thousand years, and here in less than a century - silk stockings, lipsticks. permanent waves, sweaters, overcoats, shaving cream, safety razors? "Why did they walk, and carry goods and other men on their backs, for six thousand years and suddenly, in one cen tury, only on a sixth of this earth's surface, they make steamships, railroads, motors, airplanes, and now are flying around the earth in its utmost heights of air? ..." What explains this never-be-fore achievement? The answer can be summed up in a sentence - Our Founding Fathers created a system of government that enabled the people to protect themselves from conscript ser vice and stifling taxation. The great question now is: Do we have the will and the courage to save that System? school, and had qualified te ers been available, fairly schools would have prev: despite the primitive phj conditions under which were conducted. Persons c fied to teach, however, were in the new country. Those s able usually preferred tc their hands at something tie more promising than uncertain employment at wages offered by the p schools. In 1857, Acting Governor Cuming complained tha many of the counties no had been done to carry ou provisions of the territorial nrnvvdinrr inr nnhlif kH i - . - 0 r that the law was a del d When communities fail provide public schools, p institutions frequently de ed. Though some of the stitutions aspire'd to be jeivo fini shiner 5Phnn; fnr most of them were little than the public schools. most important contrib! probably, was to keep the of education alive. Thai idea was little more than ''alive-' is evidenced by a l i in 1859 which shows that c j a total of 4,767 childre ; school age, only 1.310 att any school during the yeai I seven counties with considt i population had no schoc all. The territorial p l o in though, were doing the besl could according to the;r with the resources availa them. That there was grea satisfaction with what wa complished perhaps is thi to the steady improve characterizing Nebraska's cational system. CAMPAIGN EXPENSES Come what may, one th: certain about the nationa litical races this year, campaigns wil lbe the cos and best financed of any staged in this country, expenses are expected to well into the millions of d because (1) the price of j paigning, like everything has soared, and (2 the paigns themselves will be elaborate Technically, Fe laws fix a limit of $3,000,01 the spending of a major p cal party but these laws most others are full of holes. NEB INFLATION The United States, better, any other major power in world, has held back the slaught of inflation, accoi to a cost-of-living surve; non-Communist countries, j by the United Nations. I A seam of coal of unliil scope is located within 200 of the South Pole, accordii; Rear Admiral Richard E. h JAMES C. OLSON, SufitrinUnJint t TATS IITOaiCAl SOCIITT With school bells tolling again, perhaps it's just as well for us to be reminded that Nebraskans haven't always been able to give their young people the educa tional advantages the youth of today enjoy. . Though the first territorial legislature provided for free public schools in Nebraska early in 1855, there was a great deal of difficulty in transforming legislative provisions into effec tive, functioning public schools; and even after Nebraska was admitted to the union as a state. Governor David Butler reported to the legislature (in 1869) that -the complaints are so numerous that the feeling prevails (hat we have no estab lished school system, nor even settled policy of public instruc tion. "' , , , The early territorial schools were not very pretentious. Fre quently the first school in the community would be taught in a cabin home by a mother anx ious to do Tier part in educating her own children. When a sep- K,.ii,iinfr hrrame availaDie, it seldom consisted of more than a rude log structure, about 22x3 fect, roofed with sofl. Equipment was practically npn-pxistcnt., ' Buildings' -and,- equipment, thougi, have never made . a m need reliable Answers fa vour "crisis1 fM. questions" this yearlj K ... set them ini For fnll information contact roor nearest . VETERANS ADMINISTRATION offlc Schools in Louisville, Ky., may incorporate courses in air pol lution control with studies of science, physics and chemistry. Edwin T. McHugh ATTORNEY Office in Corn Growers State Sank Murdock Nebraska 3 Often referred to os " I newspaperman's news 1 paper" the MONITOF 5 covers the world with I network of News Bureau: F and correspondents.. Order a special intra ductory subscriptior S today 3 months foi $3. You'll find the MONITOR "must" hi reading and as necessary ?as your HOME TOWN PAPER r..I I The rBKm... .. . - The Christian Science Monitor 1 One, Norwgy St.. Boston 15. AOii., U ! ' Please send me on introductory Mo 1r subicriptioo 76 iisucs. I enclose (name (address) i" P8-10 (zone). ital