Show B e I Ie 4 tJ Russian Help Welcomed Y r Despite Communist Bogy x w 4 Problem of Defeating Hitler Is Paramount a. a Dykstra Returns to Wisconsin University e i Train 1520 Defense Workers By BAUKHAGE National Farm and Home Hour flour Commentator e Service 1343 H n Street N. N W. W Washington D. D C. C It WASHINGTON It was one o of f those Washington mornings when the clouded sky above lets in th the damp heavy heat and an aching I glare on wall and pavement even though it shuts out the sun itself The German armies were smash smash- smashIng smashing Ing through Poland and into the Ukraine With the roar roar- roaring roaring roaring ing eastward for a change British bombers were blackening black ning skies and shaking the earth earth of northern France and industrial Germany A British military and economic mission we knew was sitting down with the Soviet leaders in Moscow offering them utmost aid in their fight against Germany German The papers were crying over a drop in American airplane production pr production duc tion still reporting strikes in defense d defense ense industries and very casually at his press conference the President had announced that the United States St tes would aid the Soviets as much as possible Later I sat in the office of a per per- perturbed perturbed government official How I asked can cnn you recon recon- reconcile cile cite to the American people the anti anti- anticommunist communist feeling in this country and aid to Russia Russin He paused paus d and looked out over streets black with staggered shift of government workers on their way Yay home home in in another hour there would be another echelon of hurrying men and women in another hour an an- another other recruits other recruits in the army of de de- Americans Dislike Communism Finally he spoke Of course he answered that thatis is the problem we have to face We know that most Americans feel as unsympathetic towards Communism as they do toward And the subversive activities of the Communists Communists in this country have aroused strong hatred against Moscow Our attitude on that tl t score has been plainly stated Then my friend quoted the statement state state- statement statement ment made by Undersecretary of State Sumner Welles shortly after Hitler's HiUer s speech declaring war against Russia Mr Welles had bad stated doctrines of Communistic dictatorship are as intolerable and andas andas andas as alien to our own beliefs as are arc the principles of the Nazi dictator dictator- dictatorship dictatorship ship but the immediate issue that presents itself to the people of the United States is whether the plan for universal conquest which Hitler is now desperately try try- trying trying ing to carry out is to be success success- successfully successfully fully halted or defeated Then the man across the desk from fromme fromme fromme me said In other words when your wagon gets stuck in the mud you yo you dont don't look too closely at the man who helps pull you out What the government would like I suggested would be to have the Nazi gingham dog and the red calico cat eat each other up Perhaps he laughed that would be the best solution But it isn't as simple as that The pup seems to have so much stronger jaws in this case that we believe it might be wise to furnish the cat with an extra claw or two The trouble I suggested Is selling that idea to the American people He agreed but he added that there were certain things which ought tobe to tobe tobe be understood in regard to subversive subversive sive Communist activities in this country Subversive Activities Overestimated Lets take for granted he said that we would have nothing to do if U we could help it it with the fellow who is helping us pull our wagon out of ot the mud But we do want to get the wagon out so there isn't much choice Now as things are today a Com Com- Communist Communist is not likely to do as ns much harm as we may fear the official went on There are three reasons for this statement In the first place the government has subversive ac ac- activities under much better control than is generally known In the second place pressure Is Isnow Isnow isnow now being brought to bear effective effective- effectively ly on the labor unions to promptly remove all members of any subversive subversive sive organizations from their mem Thirdly in all probability now that Russia needs our help the Party line will probably order any obstruction of the American de de- defence defense fence program to cease Communist Communist leaders here have already in in- indicated indicated that this is their new pro gram gramAnd gramAnd And then it can be definitely stated that the the Communist situation in this country has never been as bad as certain seeking publicity gen gen- gentlemen gentlemen gentlemen have painted it the gov gov- government government officials seated across the desk concluded Dykstra Returns To Wisconsin University C. C A. A Dykstra president of the University of Wisconsin has gone back to his campus and his clois cloistered cloistered halls balls beside that shining lake lakein in the Middle West He did a historic job here in Washington as director of the Selective Service system system tem and first head of the Na Na- National National ti nal Defense Mediation board two great jobs that required all as Ste Ste- Stevenson Stevenson venson put it it that a man has of fortitude and delicacy Mr Dykstra as readers of this column know did not hot get his knowl knowl- knowledge knowledge edge of men and government solely from books He was a successful I city manager of Cincinnati he held positions of civic responsibility in Cleveland Chicago and Los An An- Angeles geles But he was chosen to head the draft because of his deep and sympathetic understanding of Amer American ican lean youth When he left Washing Washing- Washington ton I asked Mr Dykstra for foran an an ex ex- exclusive exclusive exclusive two-paragraph two valedictory just lust for the Western Newspaper Union readers This is what he said about his experience as head of selective service My experience with selective service convinced me that the young men of America are neither soft nor indifferent They can be counted upon to give a good account a count of them them- selves Moreover public accept accepts ance ante of selective service ice has proved to be much more favorable than was anticipated Dykstra Is an optimist but not one who cant can't see the hole as well as the doughnut My experience on the Mediation board he told me makes me optimistic that labor and manage manage- management management ment are developing a better under under- understanding under under- understanding understanding standing and a more operative co-operative approach to a developing industrial jurisprudence On the whole there has las been a minimum of trancy rancy on both sides The appoint appoint- appointment appointment appointment ment of Davis is absolutely right Train rain Workers For Defense Industry One record of achievement in the defense program has come out over ver a hundred per cent better than promised and you hear very little about bout it Much of at the credit goes to a little dynamic man from out where the tall corn grows He is John Studebaker of Iowa commissioner of education and he hes heis heis is s the drive behind the federal pro pro- program program gram ram of training for defense indus- indus tries rles Commissioner Studebaker prom- prom promised promised sed congress last October that the vocational training groups of the na na- naion nation ion tion would produce workers trained rained for service at lathe or bench by y June 30 1941 He now reports that hat have actually been trained rained Moreover although the third one more than the regular pro pro- program program gram was undertaken the cost of ot the he Washington end was only about 1 per cent and less money was used for the entire project than con con- congress congress congress gress had originally appropriated appropriated- an achievement in these days The average cost of training per perman perman perman man hour was 21 cents and 97 per percent percent percent cent of the total amount of money spent in the training was spent in inthe inthe inthe the local community That was part of the Studebaker idea keeping idea keeping the training decentralized using decentralized using the local lo lo- local local cal schools shops equipment and teaching force leaving force leaving the running of the program to labor industry and the local school officials This not only proved efficient but It served to bring labor and Industry Industry- together on a thousand advisory committees which were formed all allover allover allover over the country Labor and Indus indus- Industry industry try each furnished members of these committees committe s. s The rest were made up of consultants Five hun hun- hundred hundred dred systems provided the machin machin- machinery ery to carry out this task and they worked 24 hours a day to o do it I |