L.T. - SUNOCO. WEDNESDAY. MAY 1. 19S5 GOOD EVENING EVERYBODY: Well for once May Day has been a day of peace. That is, nearly everywhere! And that is, news. Nobody killed, except two or three in Spain^ No riots of any consequence, even in Paris. Merely a head cracked here and there by a policemans club. Usually May Day instead of being a day of spring, just a riot of flowers, has been a riot of bloodshed^ a day of woe for police the world over. In America, as elsewhere, the cops were on their toes. Preparations had been made for all emergencies. And, as a result this was the quietest May Day in many years. Curious, isn’t it, that a date which once was a festival of gaiety, blossoms and May Pole dances should have become the annual official occasion for ad radical demonstrations, riots and violent hullabaloo. When did the first of May become a flowery day? It began as the festival of Flora, Goddess of Flowers. European nations. 4T LEAD - 2 particularly the English, kept It up through all these more than a thousand years. Then during the last century the Socialist Inter­ nationale adopted it as a red labor day on which to make demonstra­ tions and frequently throw bricks. So no wonder all policemen view May Day with alarm. In Russia, day took the form of a huge military demonstration. In Moscow a parade of uniforms and guns from morning till night. With fixed bayonets the helmeted legions of the Soviet marched past the Kremlin while Tovarish Stalin and his staff looked on with grim approval. Also, foreign envoys and other spectators got a fresh glimpse of the formidable military strength' of the Red Republics. The biggest display theysve had yet. And, itVs an open secret that it was for the benefit of German observers, so they might report back to Berlin and give Herr Hitler something to think about. RUSSIA FOLLOW LEAD However, there w^s one disturbance in Moscow in connection with the celebration. There was a pre-May Day gala performance at the State theatre. Thousands of Russians had bought tickets for the show. When they got there they found the first five rows had been reserved for foreign diplomats. And when the faithful subjects of the Soviet arrived tickets in hand, hundreds of them found they were like the old American song, "All dressed up and no place to go." They were curtly informed that the seats they had bought were occupied and that they could get their money back. But, when they learned that the foreign diplomats were dead heads, crashed in on Annie Oakleys, and had taken seats the comrades had bought with hard cash, were the comrades sore? They were! A professor at the University of Moscow spoke his mind saying: "I don’t want my money back, I want ray seat " Whereupon a special policeman gave the professor what some American’s term the "bum’s rush", telling him: "tfie, on you, an educated man creating a scandal and disgracing us before the foreign diplomats! GERMANY FOLLOW KUSSIA Reichsfuehrer Hitler celebrated May Day in his own way. He took occasion to address a huge gathering: of the faithful. Gave them an account of his stewardship, pointing out how much better off they are under Wazi rule than before. Also, he protested his peaceful intentions, saying: "Germany only wants peace." However, he did admit that war might come. And he seemed to echo the words of Mussolini to the Italians when he said that Germany v^as face to face with a trying situation that would last for years GERMANY FOLLOW RUSSIA - 2 However, there are reports that in other parts of the Fatherland the festivities planned for the day were somewhat of a flop. In Munich, for instance, where-'the Brown Shirt movement started, where the Brown House still stands as the headquarters of Nazidom, the workers refused to march. The Bavarians are proverbially a carefree, jolly lot, addicted to the gaieties of life. Lifting up the dogs and setting them down in a long parade is not their idea of a day*s fun. They would rather sit on long wooden benches, drinking that good Munich beer EjOLMD FOLLOW GERMANY Over in London the tension created by Germanyts bold declaration of intention to rearm grows no easier. In fact, it*43 tighter than ever. This was made clear today in the House of Commons. Prime Minister Ramsay MacDonald got up from his seat on the Treasury bench and made an official statement to the M.Ps. about John Bui11s foreign policy and the Cabinets plans for national defense. It was not the kind of statement that would throw any oil on troubled waters. There has been a disposition to disparage his criticism of Germany, that is not to take it seriously. Many people palliated it by saying that he was merely expressing the views of Mr. James Ramsay MacDonald. "But,nsaid-the Prime Minister to the Commons, "nothing of the sort." I was speaking officially for His Majesty’s government. And that is just as j>orteri£ous as it sounds. It seems to be manifest that those submarines which Germany has announced she'ts going to build .and v/hich most people believe she has already built, have stirred John Bull to the limit, fhe obvious course now will be for him to enter into a new series of agreements with France and Italy, And all the British services, the army, the navy and the air force, are seething with proposals to extend the British defense to all Britannia’s dominions, to make the ENGLAlfD FOLLOW GERMANY - 2 empire military-mind ed all round trie world* So the net effect of those submarines has been to raise the hackles on John Bull’s spine more ferociously than ever. And tomorrow we'll hear some more loud repercussions in the form of a British declaration. In this connection an interesting rumor comes from Berlin. It’s another one of those scoops with which the London Daily Herald has been stirring up public excitement. The report is astounding if you can believe it. Hitler and his man Friday, General Goering, are quarreling! So says the London Daily Herald. What is more, they are quarreling about the breaking of the Versailles Treaty, and about Hitler’s plans to rearm the Fatherland. Hot that Goering disapproves of the violation of the Treaty. On the contrary, he was for it quite as strongly as his leader, but what he and the Defense Minister, General von Blomberg, are shaking their heads about is Hitler’s frankness in telling the world what he wgs doing. He should have gone ahead and done it, kept his mouth shut, and let the foreign governments find out for themselves KNGLAI^ FOLLOW GKFMAlv Y - 3 That rrakea the tale mere plausible. The dope is that the ilazi Cabinet is divided into two factions now. On the one side are Hitler, and Foreign Minister the Baron Constantin von Beurath, On the other side are the Defense Minister and General Goering, who is not only/ Prime 'Minister of Prussia but head of the Air ree JAP Aft "he newspapers of *he world haven’t been doing right by our Madame Butterfly. At least that's wha+ the Japanese say. Declares the Mlk-ado's government:- "We are fed up with the volume of distorted information that is being given to the world about Japan, her actions and her aims." In other words, there is ;?oing to be a censorship bureau in Tokyo and all indications are that it will be a Simon Lagree affair. The new idea goes into effect about May ninth, Hot only every bit of news that goes out from Japan will be subject to supervision, but also every bit of information that enters the cherry blossom empire. What is more, the Nipponese government is going to take a leaf from the boots of Hitler, Stalin, Mussolini and other European rulers. They are going to establish an official inter­ national news broadcast. Once a day from the most powerful station in the country short waves will send out in several languages information about what has been happening in Nippon and her dependencies. And, they are going to adopt another new wrinkle. They.1!! exchange what they term "approved” news with other nations. And, like several European governments, will send JAPAN - 2 abroad Japanese newspapermen to represent the Rengo News Agency, which is subsibized by the government and 'which actually is an official mouthpiece. The Cabin e*' intends to see that any dispatches that go out from Japan will be restricted to official ■an.nouric ernent s, Well, that’s going to make it tough going for American and European correspondents in. Tokyo* With nothing but governmemt hand-outs to depend on, there will be practically no scope for energy, initiative or individual intelligence. However, it may mot be as serious as it sounds. When the Bolsheviks first established a dictatorship in Moscow, they laid down a censorship just as stringent. Gradually, however, it became more sensible, ’when an intelligent man was placed at the head of the censorship bureau, 'And American correspondents learned how to comply with communistic proletarian Soviet ideas and still convey a pretty accurate and truthful picture of the news* You can gag newspapermen for a while, but never for long. The spokesman of the Japanese .Foreign Office, who gave out the announcement today, expressed himself in no mind terms. He JAPAN - 3 declared the situation, so far as news going out from Tokyo was concerned, had become intolerable. Sii=#gFgs^ He charged that there was a gigantic campaign, first, to discredit Japan among other nations and, second, to mislead the Japanese people through distorted news reports STRIKE The period around May Day always seems to be a 'time of double work for the chief trouble ehcoter -» 1ieutenant to Madam Perkins, Id ward MeGrady, the stormy petrel Assistant Secretary of Labor, is once again in the heart of the automobile country; doing his stuff. That he will succeed is the devout hope of not only the folks in the industry but other people at large. As we have had occasion to observe before, the automobile industry has been an invaluable stabilizing factor through all these hard years. Then again they are saying that if this strike isn't settled soon, the price of your next car will be up. Already salesman are urging their prospects to buy now because the strike situation in Toledo may boost prices. So plenty of good wishes follow MeGrady out there along the automobile assembly lines as he tries to cure the strike sickness. He’s a colorful fellow, this Ed McGrady, Only seven years ago he was thrown out of Tennessee for trying to form a union of rayon silk workers. When Postmaster Jim Parley first recommended him to Madam Perkins, she kicked like a, steer. She told the President wan teh no American Federation of Labor STRIKE - 2 heads cluttering up her department, that she wanted to run it on a new plan. She made such a protest to the President, that McGrady was assigned to the Itf.E.A. as Assistant Administrator in charge of labor relations for the Blue Eagle. At the height of the coal troubles, in the Pittsburgh area, he did such useful work that it came to the attention of the Secretary of Labor. Whereupon Madam Perkins acknowledged her error, called up Jim Parley and said: HI was mistaken about that Mr. McGrady.** And two days later he was sworn into office as Assistant Secretary of Labor LEGION Two of the Brooklyn posts of the American Legion are having a taste of Legion discipline. One of the rules of tlie^Constitution adopted v/hen it v/as organized, forbade all members from taking part in religious, political or industrial disputes while wearing the Legion uniform or Indeed any of the Legion insignia. Recently there has been strike trouble in a Brooklyn movie theatre, with pickets parading in front of the lobby. Among those pickets were members of two Brooklyn posts of the Legion, wearing their overseas caps. A complaint was made to the state officers of the organization and the two posts were suspended. What is more, they will stay suspended until August, when the executive committee will meet. They will then have an opportunity to offer reasons why their charter should not be revoked N.R. A Today another thing happened in Washington to indicate that President Eoosevelt^ one iron-clad control of Congress is not quite as tight as it was. It concerns that still fluttering bird, the Blue Eagle. As everybody knows, Donald Richberg has been making eloquent pleas that the alphabetical fowl's life should be extended for another two years.. And, the President backed him up vigorously in his Sunday radio address. This afternoon the Senate Finance Committee issued a report on the subject. In effect it says; "Yes, and, nc.” It recommends to the Senate the adoption of a joint resolution of both houses continuing the M.R.A. for just one year, until April first, Nineteen thirty-six. No statement on this subject was forthcoming from the White House so we don't know how well pleased the President may be with this action of the Committee. Probably he will recall the old proverb that half a loaf is better than no bread. And half a loaf is just what the Senate Finance Committee is offering him. Of course, the question still has to be debated on the floor of the Senate and there will be plenty of arguing, plenty of wrangling, before that tempestuous Blue Bird finally learns its fate. N.R.A 2 This action of the Committee comes on the eve of the most "f . ■ Jj ! important legal battle in the life of the Blue Eagle so far, the much publicized Schechter case. There have been auite a number of skirmishings in the court but no decisive battle yet. The government I has decided to make the case of four Brooklyn poultry dealers the ultimate test. The Schechter brothers are accused of having defied N.R.A. and violated the Code provisions covering both wages and working hours. So tomorrow Donald Richberg himself will appear before | the Supreme Court the Blue Eagle DUST A new Industry is springing up In the Middle West t, the ] sm making of dust masks* Thousands of people are ill in the storm/ , -,. *f'' r----------- -— --- —T jiH'n11 irn-rr^-T- area*! And they are having a new visitation, another terrific • mil -, " tn ^ affliction in Texas, New Mexico, the kkx± Oklahoma Panhandle, Kansas, and eastern Colorado* Twelve more people are dead. Emergency 1 hospitals are filled with patients suffering from diseases of the lungs, eyes, ears, nose and throat* Visibility is reported *! zero-zero *« * However, folks out there not only are enduring those ordeals, they are taking them with a grin. And itfs encouraging that they can go on laughing at disasters. I,ve just received from Colorado an addition to the crop of Tall Stories that these dust storms have produced. A new chapter for that new edition of the 11 Tall Story Book,11 which has just come out A salesman was driving a new car from Ordway to Sugar City, Colorado, After a few miles he noticed that no matter how much he gave it the gas, the darn thing wouldn’t go more than ten miles an hour* He supposed the dust had gotten into his carburetor and DUST - 2 probably into his engine. However, he had to get through at all costs, so he pushed the accelerator to the floor, drove through that blinding dust cloud, and finally reached Sugar City. As he drove up to a garage the dust cloud lifted a little. And there in front of him he saw a big transcontinental bus. The bus driver hollered out:- nThanks brotherl You were a big help pushing me all the way those last ten miles.” And A my last ten words, so long until tomorrow