L.T. SUNOCO - MOM DAY. JUIJE 4, 1954 GOOD EVENING, EVERYBODY:- They say troubles never come singly, and sometimes even good news arrives in bunches. Along with relief from the drought, the strike situation looks decidedly better. General Johnson has pacified both sides in the textile industry. So tnat walkout, which would have involved three hundred thousand workers, is off. And the toledo troubles have been adjured. The troops marched out of the city, and tomorrow two hundred thousand workers will be back on the job. But there is still the steel business. Unless that dispute is smoothed over, four hundred thousand men will be affected. It is not a question of either money or hours. It all hinges on recognizing the hh I qhx unions. DROUGHT The end of the drought dldnH come any too soon. That Is, if it is the end and not merely an Interruption. For Mother Nature beat the government to it in bringing relief to the long-suffering farmers. In fact she went from one extreme to another. In some parts of the country it jumped from torrid heat to bitter cold. Not only rain, but snow. And in New Hampshire — they had hail that even made the old timers stnoke their whiskers — yes sir, hail stones as large as golf balls. In one town, Keane, New Hampshire, one of the the famous towns of that state, thousands of panes of glass were broken by these oversized celestial bullets. In western Canada they had xfcfcxi what they call a million dollar rainfall. For that1© what the downpour meant in Manitoba. The Rain Rods also came to the rescue of forest fire fighters in many sections of North America. And, at the same time, down in Little America, where Admiral Byrd is lingering in the shadow of the South Pole, the DROUGHT - 2 thermometer went up to twenty-five degrees above zero. That would be fur coat weather up here, but in Little America it is considered a heat wave, at any rate at this time of year. And hurrah for the western farmers, for their pluck. The moment the rain had moistened the ground sufficiently to be workable, they started in planting fresh crops to replace those that were ruined. However, all this doesn*t mean that the governm'nt has dropped its relief measures* The idea now is to spend at least half a billion dollars to succor those who suffered from the destructive dry heat. In other parts of t he world the poor farmers haven*t been so fortunate. The British are turning out to be the heaviest sufferers of all. In no fewer than a hundred and sixty different districts there is a shortage of water. All the rivers in England, Wales and Scotland are low. The water in the Thames has dropped so much that myriads of fish are land­ locked in back-waters, Germany has also been hard hit by the long drought not only crops ots devasted but river nxx navigation brought to DROUGHT - S a halt. On the rivers Elbe and Oder, numbers of barges are stuck in the mud; and even on the deep flowing Rhine, barges and ships can only be loaded to sixty per cent of their capacity. So we are not the only sufferers over here. Probably before long the scientists will be able to tell us what is going on in the heavens that causes this freakish and destructive weather. How about sun spots? Or maybe it1s the absence of sun spots. It has been the lifelong atexaitt ambition of Sir H: uert Wilkins, the polar explorer, to foretell droughts a year or so in advance, and otherwise to solve our weather pro­ blems by placing meteorological experts all over the polar regions. His family1s fortune was sweet away by just such a drought in Australia when he was a child. And that was the origin of Ms resol e. Here1 s hoping he lives to bring his dream true QtHAKA The new President of the University of Notre Dame is * one of the most colorful figures in American College Life. Father John F. 0*Eara WK& succeeds FatherCharles L. Or Donnell, who died today. This will be of particular interest to all football fans. For Father O’Hara was the athletic director at NotreDame. It was he who selected the coaches and had complete supervision of all games. Stemxji Ion may xm recall that the Carnegie Foundation issued a report accusing several colleges, including Notre Dame, of commercializing football. Other bx ± xkxx ±±±* x universities denied the accusation. But Father O’Hara did the exact opposite. Said he:- "Certainly we commercialize football. It is one of the mainstays of the Uhiversity. ®f the millions of dollars we take in from the football games we only use tv/enty per cent for all forms of athletics and sports. The rest of those millions is used to put up college buildings and laboratories." Such Is the direct, forceful football enthusiast who is now President of Notre Dame. GOLF Everywhere I go I hear golfers talking about the National open Championship at Philadelphia next Thursday. Harry Somerville of the Willard and his pals at the Congressional Golf Club in Washington. And in the sporting pages of the newspapers — and everywhere — the pros and amateurs are dis­ cussing the pros and cons. They all agree that the Merlon Cricket Club Course will p* ovide a superb golfing test. Craig Wood,who did so well in the British Open, declares that the Merlon layout is a handicap to the long putter. Walter Hagen replies acidly:- "Sure it,s bad for a long putter but he should keep his long ones on the fairway.w All of which is a bit technical for us horseshoe and ffiumbly peg players. But the hole-in-one tall talkers and the sand trap enthusiasts will understand GOLF Everywhere I go I hear golfers talking about the National open Championship at Philadelohla next Thursday. Harry Somerville of the Willard and his pals at the Congressional Golf Club In Washington. And in the sporting pages of the newspapers — and everywhere — the pros and amateurs are dis­ cussing the pros and cons. They all agree that the Merlon Cricket Club Course will provide a superb golfing test. Craig Wood,who did so well in the British Open, declares that the Merlon layout is a handicap to the long putter. Walter Hagen replies acidly;- "Sure it,s bad for a long putter but he should keep his long ones on the fairway.w All of which is a bit technical for us horseshoe and mumbiy peg players. But the hole-in-one tall talkers and the sand trap enthusiasts will understand OLYMPICS Md there1 s a lot of excitement about the next Olympic Games, ^he games to be held in Germany in 1936. All the world is anxious to find out what the American Olympics committee is going to do. And, itfs all because of i,heanti-Semitic propaganda of the Nazi government. The American committee sk quite properly makes the point that if the Jewish members of our team are not going to be treated with the utmost courtesy in Berlin, then the American feam will be conspicuous by its absence. The Nazis have issued positive assurances that no race prejudice will prevail at the Olympics. But apparently the American committee wants more proof that this assurance is on the level. The committee held a meeting yesterday. But when it was over they still declined to announce any decision, the President of the International Committee, Count Baillet- Latout, is becoming nervous. In fact he has intimated that this delay on our part is not uui te .e OLYMPICS - 2 But our committee is playing safe. Its President, Avery Brundage of Chicago, Is going to visit Germany and make a personal inspection. This he will do in August. If Germany and the International Committee donlt want to wait xx that long, theycan count us out. We can sympathize with the committee. These Olympic games, though they are supposed to promote international good­ will, frequently do quite the opoosite, and with the racial tension what it is in Germany, there Is plenty of reason to be cautious CUBE The news from Cuba is still ominous. The Havana police have arrested two men whom they accuse of having been mixed up in the bombings that have been taking place all over the island. The police say that these prisoners confessed that they belong to an organization known as nThe Twenty Gunmen.n This organization is said to be a protection racket that has been levying contributions on *x merchants somewhat along American lines. There has been^inother outbreak of terror in Havana. This time the most fashionable district of the city was alarmed by volley iipon volley of machine gun and rifle shots. So far as we can learn, the issue in Cuba today seems to be: "Will the politicians or the army rule the Island?” Tn short, they say it is a showdown between Colonel Batista, the head of the Army, and the civilian heads of the Cover nment. This row has been brewing for some time. President Mendietta has offered to resign if necessary,to prevent any more bloodshed. The outlook down there doesnH appear any -bo hopeful; but. CUBA - 2 a wave of prosperity might change the entire political map. But, waves of prosperity are not likely to occur during a reign of terror ARMS The fortification of the Dardanelles continues to be a stmbling block to the disarmament conference at Geneva. The Turks insist that they should be allowed to fortify. And armarently they are getting considerable support from other nations, though not from Great Britain* The Turks claim that they are acting in self defense; the Bulgarians, they say, have already violated the treaty by building fortificatins in the demilitarized zone on the Bulgarian border. So itfs no wonder that the delegates at Geneva are now working in secret session. Evidently they think that open meetings are likely to produce public rows and arguments. SIBERIA An incident occurred on the Amur River in the Far East that might have serious repercussions. The re1s a peculiar angle to it. The Amur River is between the new state of Manchukuo and Russian Siberia. Up this river sailed a Japanese excursion boat. The Russians say that It came too close to their shore. e And they also claim that some of the Japanese on board were taking photographs of the fortifications built by the Soviet Gosrnment. Y^ell, a group of Russian guards fired on the boat, one sailor was killed, two others wounded. The guards say that they fired in the air. Nevertheless, casualties occurred. Now, it is Moscow and not Tokyo that is complaining over the incident. They vrant to know what the Jananese meant by trespassing on their waters, taking pictures of their fortifications. Both Tokyo and the canital of Manchukuo remain silent on the subject. It is out of incidents xxitJa such as these that serious and sometimes fateful International tensions arise GOLD I don’t care much for statistics as a rule. But some figures that have come from Moscow tell a story that may have tremendous International importance one of these days. The story is that the mines of the U.S.S,R. — Russia — last year produced gold to the value of almost a xmid hundred million dollars. If the figures are accurate that hx would make the Soviet the second largest jpaiiihanaii: gold-producing country in the world. It would out Russia ahead of not only the United States but also of Canada. The Transvaal, that is. South Africa, still leads the rest of the world, having produced, last year, precious metal to the value of almost two hundred and thirty-nine hii million dollars. The rate at which gold production by the Soviet is increasing will, of course, contribute tremendously to Russian prosperity. And also it will nut the Soviet in a far strong er position when it comes to waging war. It seems ironical that the Communists, the enemies of money and gold, should profit so greatly by gold. ROMNEY Everybody — or nearly everybody — remembers the Hatfield-MeCoy feud in Southern ^est Virginia and Kentuckyhalf a century ago. And now I hear that another West Virginia faud has broken out. Itfs a fend between two towns — Romney and SM kxb Shepherdstov.Ti, as to which is the older. The captains of the respective contenders are Mr. Harry L, Snyder, Editor of the Shepherdstown Register, a mature widower, and Miss Margaret Keller, Editor of the Hamoshire Review,a confessed old maid, in Romney. These two towns are among the oldest in America. They are in that beautiful-, scenic region where George Washington did his first surveying, the Lord Fairfax grant from King George the Third, The question seems to be difficult to settle because both towns wereincorporated by the General Assembly of Virginia on the same day — December £3, 1762 — but those who have Romneyitis contend that Romney was born first, inasmuch as the Chapter incorporating the Town of Romney appears first in the Acts of that Session, and besides, Sheoherdstown was then known as Mecklenburg ROMMEY -_2 Well, that sounds like a legal nroblem. Sitting beside me is one of the leading lawyers of America, Mr. John Cornwall, general counsel for the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad and iisxxi former Governor of West Virginia. Let*s let him act as judge and let his cool, judicial mind settle the feud once and for alls- Governor Cornwall, you are not orejudiced,so which shall it be? Was Romney, the town that changed hands fifty-six times in the Civil War, the first town in West Virginia, or does the honor go to Shepherdstown? —o— GOVERNOR CORWViALLs- Why, Mr. Thbmas, I believe the maiden editorfess ought to marry the widower editor, and let it go at that In Washington the big question is the adjournment of Congress. The lawmakers may not go home on June Fifteenth. The President wants action on several Dressing bills? the Wagner Labor bin, which i s in the limelieht because of the strike situation; the silver bill; our old friend the tariff; stock exchange regulation, and several others. These legislative measures may keep the lawmakers heat sweltering on until July in the Washington/Jwave .K k Question: "V,ill there be a heat wave in Washington , in July. Answer: "There always is." CODE FOLLOW WASHINGTON Sometimes the N.K.A. gets raspberries and sometimes the N.R.A. gets three cheers This time it*s three cheers. The N.R.A. code for the retail trade comes out with an interesting proviso about fight” orations. Those nWe gotta sell this product” declamations. won’t be on the employee’s time any longer. They’ll be on the boss’s time, oart of working hours. The Bine wisdom, I suppose, is that listening to a oep talk is work. It is. Almost as difficult as the job college graduating classes are having just now — listening to those inspiring commencement xx orators. those pep talks to salesmen, ^ou know jchxxK those "Get in and ^es, they’ll still have those pep talks, but they HOOVER Tomorrow vrill be an important day for the Republican party. The G.O.P. National Committee is meeting to pick a successor to Everett Sanders who, because of ill healt^,is resigning as chairman. Political wise men say that the real issue of the meeting is —- Is Herbert Hoover to remain the head of the Republican party? Mr. Kaanaaoc Hoover hasnft said anything about It. But the rumor is that he would like to see Walter Edge — who was Ambassador to France during his administration, become the new chairman. The younger elements of the party are believed to be leaning toward Walter Hallaman, a West Virginian. Another candidate mftrtx mentioned is Senator Jim Watson of Indiana, the Veteran Republican chamnion whom they call the last of the old euard. This selection of a chairman tomorrow is one of those relatively minor events, to which grand political meanings are attached. CONGRESS May be I shouldn*t tell this next one into the microphone. It might be more appropriate if I sent it in a telegram to each of you folks. That might sound expensive, but it v.’ouldn11 be if I were a Congressman. the Congressmen can send letters free binder/franking privilege — also telegrams. Last year the Congressional J.t telegraph bill came to fifty thousand bucks. This year has already piled up to a hundred and thirteen thousand abllars, and, the year isn*t half over. Representative Warren of North Carolina says it is largely because eighty lawmakers have flagrantly abused their right to send free telegrams. Those free telegrams are supposed to be used only for official business, Here,s how official one Congressman^ free telegram reads:- "Democratic leaders say my membership in house is necessary to success of Roosevelt administration." Another goes this way; "Advise me how to void on bonus." CONGRESS 2 A tlilrd wired this message at government expense:- ,fAttended White House dinner last night. See that it is played up in all the papers." Well, I wish I was a Congressman and had a Franking privilege. I,d like to send a few free telegrams, something like this: "Could use three good outfielders, four infielders, a catcher and few pitchers for my baseball team." yr, I could wire this message:- "State of New York says I must get rid of my bear. What can I do with him?" Or, I could telegraph an urgent request:- "Please tell me ax good way to be funnier.” But, not being a Congressman, and having no franking orivilege, ax 1 can only speak into this iron microphone, hoping some one will hear me say — SO LONG UNTIL TOMORROW Z-7- l/lsgtoh ^~£> c. - xr '- i-c MOO* .V