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Show THE BULLETIN, BINGHAM CANYON, UTAH Small Business to Feel Benefit of Reconversion WPB Release of Aluminum for Civilian Purposes Turns Tide in Favor Of Little Plants. By BAUKIIAGE Newt Analyst and Commentator. WNU Service, Union Trust Building, Washington, D. C. The press gave notice a few weeks ago of the installation of a swarm of bees in the office of a government agency. It was in the Smaller War Plants corporation, and it was placed there by that ball-of-flr-wounded and decorated in the last war, defeated for reelec-tion to congress, and of Ban Antonio, Texas, Maury Maver-ick. He said he got the bees to pro-vide a living example of how to keep busy. I thought the gesture amusing, typical of the dramatically inclined Maury. So I went down to look the scene over, noted certain subsequent events and I decided that the ges-ture, although amusing enough, was by no means an empty one. For within one week, something hap-pened, the significance of which has been all too little appreciated. Re-conversion began and the long stag-- are being taken to provide field engineers with Information nec-essary for plants which have never worked with aluminum to learn how. Not many plants are familiar with this work and that la why we can't expect many pots and pans right away. And, of course, any and every plant which does start civilian produc-tion of any kind must first run a "gauntlet" as the saying goes at headquarters. The "gaunt-let" is a series of tests to es-tablish unequivocally that such a use of a plant's facilities and manpower will In no way Inter-fere with the war production. Let us look at the question of these "Idle and excess inven-tories" of steel surpluses and see what the argument for their availability for civilian manu-facture Is. I am told that there are some Z million tons of such Inventories. That means nam iiae turned in tavor or little business. It is only a trickle so far, but the flow has started, which, it is hoped, will eventually get the wheels of small business, which had been slowed down past the danger point, moving again in the manufacture of civilian goods. Less than a month before, Maury Maverick, armed with a series of charts, had appeared before a con-gressional committee and said: "Concentration of production in the hands of big business has grown by leaps and bounds since 1939." Using the metal trades as an ex-ample, he said: "Since the war started, the propor-tionate share of little business in metal products Industries has rough-ly been cut in half." Still later, Just before the bees (or whatever It was) stung the govern-ment to action, Mr. Maverick be-came more pessimistic. He told congress: "The mobilization of small busi-ness ... has reached the critical stage . the civilian economy is short of civillari goods and getting short-- win mere is mai mucn iron ana steel being held over and above the possessors' needs for GO days ahead. The holders, generally speak-- . , ing, are the large manufactur-ers. Willing to Relea$e Surpluae And they are willing to let the surpluses go. First, because they know they can get all the prime steel they need from the mills. Sec-ond, because most of these Inven-tories are made up of odd lots. Big industries use large lots. They can-not very well start an operation on one small lot and then when it runs out adjust their machinery to an-other lot of different specifications. The smaller plants are perfectly adapted to do just this. They nor-mally buy in small lots. They are more elastic, The difficulty in utilizing this ma-terial is not only in the acquisition of the steel but in the restrictions against making what you want out ef it. This requires a relaxation of rules, too, for the manufacture of many articles is still forbidden, and that is another thing that the Small- - er . . . dangerous Inflationary pres-s. u.r.es . . . cutbacks In war contracts are causing unemployment." It was a gloomy picture Mr. May-eric- k painted. His office had worked hard, the congressional committees on amall business had worked hard, but the War Production board turned a deaf ear to all demands on the basis that any resumption of civil-Ia-n production might Interfere with the war effort Maverick's Work Rewarded . Then at last the leaven began to work the whole argument of the de-fenders of little business, based on the assertion that certain industries could be resumed without interfer-ing with the, war effort touched the er Plants corporation is working on. Process Will Take Time It la not a short and easy process but the big thing is that It has start-ed, for small business has reached the stage where Its very existence as an Institution Is threatened. This is due, first, to a nationwide tendency on the part of the big plants to cancel their subcontracts which covered most of the work of the smaller plants. This was done for two natural reasons and one un-natural and evil one. The first two were: because of termination of some of their ewn contracts by the government and because of greatly increased efficiency which made it Wist aalKl a inl . JJiti 1 Iron heart of Donald Nelson, head of the WPB (of which Maury is a vice chairman). Nelson arose and announced "the first ef a series of meves" and suddenly the whole tide turned and an entirely different at-titude was evident en the part of the other members of the War Pro-duction board. This "first of a series of moves" takes away some of the restrictions on the use of aluminum and mag-nesium. But do not visualize a fountain of pots and pans, skillets and coffee pots springing into being overnight Something is cooking but it Is on a slow fire. More important is the raising of restrictions which have been keeping "idle and excess Inventories of surpluses of steel" g dormant, Impotent and useless, while small plants have the yearn- - work without having to sublet it to smaller concerns. But the third and evil practice which had grown up was the use of government-p- a id-- f or facilities to du-plicate work of a type which in peacetime only small plants do. With these new facilities and with-out the small plant's know-how- , the larger factories wasted precious labor and took the little man's bread out of his mouth. Another reason why the small business man's position has been growing critical is the delay in col-lecting pay at the termination of the contract He was left without in-come and without the funds to carry on. And restrictions made it im-possible to earn money, meanwhile, by making civilian goods. Reasons for Reconversion On the other hand, as Mr. Mav- - uig miiiiucs na wiuing manpower equally idle and capable of convert-ing these "surpluses" into thousands . of gadgets the consumer badly needs. Perhaps by the time this appears in print the WPB will have Issued an order raising some of the restrictions on this vital product. But all this takes time. Meetings have been taking place for the past weeks and the WPB is gradually coming around to the Smaller War Plants corporation's views and the Insistent hammer on their doors by conscientious congressmen. As te the aluminum situation, as this Is written, the present . order Is yet te be clarified. Steps I - erick's associates and the senators and congressmen who have worked so hard (and, until now. with com-paratively little success) point out, there is a whole list of reasons for reconversion to begin here (in the little plant) and now. They list them in various orders but this seems to be as good as any: (1) To preserve small business as an Institution; (2) To form a pattern by trial and error for reconversion on a grand scale; (3) To prevent in-flation; (4) To provide replacement of vital wornout products; (5) To prevent unemployment which is springing up In many localities. II Don't Worry About Your WAC Oversea; SheTHealfhier And Happier . Than When at Home, Says Medical Officer ill) i Q v $ Major Janeway Tells Of 14 Months With N.African Contingent By GERTRUDE BACIIMAN Beleased by Western Newspaper Union. WASHINGTON, D. C.If your daughter, sister or wife is a WAC and stationed in the Mediterranean area, you are probably worrying a lot more about her than she is about herself. Maj. Margaret Jane-wa- y, Medical corps, U. S. army, gives a report that 6hould put to route all unnec-essary fears. "They are never sick," Major Janeway told a press conference in Washington. "The Fifth army WACi have had an amazing health record from the beginning." Of 1,800 women soldiers who landed in North Africa since Janu-ary, 1943, only 12 have been sent home for medical reasons. Dr. Janeway believes that this record may prove one thing that the more primitive the circumstances, the better a woman thrives. "They take hardships in a spirit of fun," Major Janeway said. When the first contingent went over in January, 1943, it found cir-cumstances definitely primitive. The trip over wasn't exactly a sum- - STROLLING DOWN the roadway to the entrance of the old French convent which Is their barracks In North Africa are these five WACs who are assigned to the headquarters offices of Allied force headquarters. They are, left to right, Mary C. Woods, Everett, Mass.; Ellen Condon, Missoula, Mont.; Mary Livingston, Chattanooga, Tenn.; Lucille James, Sioux City, Iowa; and Elizabeth Page, Escanaba, Mich. A nun is passing In the background. returned to the States. The reason given was "excessive nervousness." The three women were aged 30, 35 and 40 respectively, and had back-grounds of nervous instability. What hati hftpn n rtrtfontial Inakllitv ir oA. vides each woman, after so long a time, a four-da- y rest period. A rest camp has been established 20 miles up the coast from Algiers. It was opened first for those earliest WACs tifKi mniA ViArri r tr rl st lnrilr O Iftlb Just at home under secure routine now became complete maladjust-ment. Major Janeway said they Just "couldn't take it." No diet deficiencies were discov-ered. Army food was more than ade-quate, and in addition, the WACs were the friendly concern of army and navy men. They received oranges, eggs that cost $2 a dozen, and a general supply of "nice spoil-ing." The navy men who vied with the tradition of their marine broth-ers for having this situation well in hand even obtained pillows for the WAC bunks. "Every time a girl got a letter from home," Major Janeway said. "Mama wanted to know if she was getting her vitamins. She was, but she didn't know it. Fortunately, their folks started sending them vitamin pills and that settled the problem for us. They ate their pills on4 oU M OTITIC lCglllllliig IU lVl?n a ...b.w fatigued after their grind with no passes from January to June. No similar arrangement has been made in Italy as yet, but Major Janeway believes that one soon will be. Only Six Marriages. In 14 months, there have only been six marriages of WACs in the Mediterranean area. It is possible that a three-mont- h waiting period known as the "cooling-off- " period after announcing marriage inten-tions to the commanding officer is the reason. This is an army regula-tion and applies to both men and women. In regard to the unhappy stories that have been circulating about the morals of the WACs, Dr. Janeway cited medical statistics which showed definitely these rumors to be figments of somebody's imagination. Too Much Sun Tan. The power of the North African sun was an unknown quantity to the WACs. Anxious to get a smooth tan, they discovered, . to their dismay, that it could very easily be over-don- e. After a few painful burns. PVT. MARION DeGRAY of Mil-waukee, Wis., brings an armload of homemade bread Into the messhall. Excellent food is credited to a large extent for the splendid health rec4 ord of the WACs overseas. mer cruise especially since most of' the women hadn't ever been to sea before. They landed at Oran on January 13, and took a train for Algiers. They discovered their quar-ters to be an old French convent with no heat and no water. They used their helmets for carrying water from an old well in the court-yard and for wash basins. It was bitterly cold. Major Janeway said: "It was May before we thawed out, and it was May before we could get an occasional good night's sleep." The women slept 12 in a room on straw mattresses placed on double-deck- er bunks, wore all their woolen clothes and wrapped themselves in three blankets when they went to The women were homesick at times, but "not too badly," Major Janeway said. Six weeks after the first group arrived in Algiers, how-ever, there was no mail from home, which resulted in many a tearful night. But the regular arrival of mail after that, and the strict regimen took care of homesickness pretty thoroughly. There have been no battle casual-tie- s among the WACs. One woman was injured, and one killed in a jeep accident. There was plenty oi bombing, but the bombs fell "just across the street" from the Algiers barracks. The bombs would hit the same spot night after night. During the day the damage would be re-paired, and that night it would be undone. Yet none of the WACs was hit. A piece of shrapnel hit the bed in which a WAC was sleeping, but she was unharmed. There was some dispute between her and thP - r ? v v v l i. r.rifi'miin.mii 'i.ii'.i . pant of the next bunk as to whom the piece of shrapnel belonged. Major Janeway said that the jobs which the WACs perform, and about which "they are very keen" are those of stenographers, tele-phone operators, drivers, cooks and all kinds of communications jobs Asked if the WACs overseas feei that girls at home are lackadaisical oea. ihose on the night shift were envied because they slept during the daytime when there were no air raids. On Duty 12 Hours Daily. Such were the conditions of their employment. The wages of WAC privates are the same as those of G. I. Joes $50 a month plus 10 per cent ef the base pay for overseas duty. The hours were 12 a day, seven days a week. Since curfew was at 7 p. m and the Algerian shops were closed at that time, there was no point In time off. During this whole period, despite hardships or what most of us would consider hardships there were no serious illnesses and very little jitters. Major Janeway said. A three-be- d dispensary had been set up in what was described as "a large closet" in the convent This was used only as an isolation ward LETTERS FROM home are the best morale boosters. Sgt. Betty Jane O'Leary of Pittsburgh, Pa., sounds the welcome "mail call." which kept the victims away from work, sunburn was classified "not line of duty." That meant that any WAC who was not sensible enough to get her sun gradually, would have her pay docked for any time she was oil work. They soon learned how to do it gradually. By November, three more WAC companies had reported for duty in Algiers. .In December, one company fresh from the States went direct-ly to Italy. The healthiest women in the whole Mediterranean area. Major Janeway found, were the Fifth army WACs living in tents very close be-hind the fighting lines in Italy. They were part of a commnnifntirmo for those with colds and as a room for an occasional rest of 24 hours for the very weary. Major Janeway said that after such treat-ment most of them were ready to go back to their jobs. Despite all the dire warnings, not one WAC con-tracted any of the diseases they had been told very carefully to uard against. When more WACs arrived i.i A-lgiers in May, the entire WAC colony took over an apartment house which provided more comforts, and much more warmth. The number of beds in the dispensary was in-creased to 11. Of the 68 women who came with this contingent, only three had to be platoon based at Naples and half up toward the front living in tents, working the command post mes-sage center. They were with the Fifth army in North Africa and fol-lowed when American troops took Naples Major Janeway said that the WACs at the front and those in North Africa, for that matter, are so healthy because they do not have time to spend in "frivolous activi-ties." There is no special training tor keeping the WACs in trim. In win-ter they don't have much oppor-tunity for exercise, but in summer they swim. In North Africa, a pro-gram has been set up which pro-- A VI AC in North Africa hangs un some personal laundry the back yard of the convent which serve as a barracks, giving a homeliw touch to the grim business of war. about not joining up. Major Jane-wa-replied: "They certainly do" She continued: "It takes a level-heade- d el and verj balanced woman to stand ut against that pressure and maintai her own good sense. It takes a level headed woman to keep rested and to maintain her sm u.. jiffy. lop spj, ToremoVeV.L satin or velvet V, p"1 withawoolonh your good L!8te ttem into & ones into sqC F" cleaning V percolator, put with water JH,,Ci folate as hut, cut the if across, ?,a hat or old woolS to palish the floors ments, try of having a Put all saved ripX bon and lace, and Sj FBltemi and In the gangster film about Roger Touhy and his gang the producer! lost a few good tricks which appar-- ! ently the gov't agents didn't tell them about after Touhy and his mob were recaptured. . . . Frix-- 5 ample: When the FBI went into the rooms of two of the gang they didn't notice a match stuck at the top of the door. ... To let the gang know if anyone entered during ' their absence. One mobster had started opening the door when he realized the planted match was gone. ... So he started firing his revolver. . . . The agent came out shooting too, and two of Touhy' 1 pals were hit by the marksman and went to heaven. Then there's the episode in the butcher shop. ... A uniformed chauffeur turns out to be one ol the Touhy gangsters. He went to purchase meat in the neighborhood for Touhy (and the others) whc didn't risk coming out of the house. . . . The butcher shop, however, was staffed by . . . After a signal from one butcher a bike-ride- r tailed the chauffeur to the scene where Touhy was hiding. . . . But the confederate was not dis-guised as a chauffeur in the actual kidnap. . . . The movie people ap-parently didn't want to offend the The disguise worn by the gangstei in the meat shop was that of a priest. The average newspaper read-er, recalling Touhy'i mob, will think the snatched man Is the rich Jake the Barber, victim of that gang. . . . But in the film the producers purposely switched things to give the story more pep. . . . Jake the Barber's real tortures cannot be screened or even written about so vile were they. ... So for the screen the authors and director bor-rowed several Interesting Items from the kidnappings of a wealthy youth' named Rosenthal (in New York) and the Urschel snatch in the West. ... All the kidnappers are now rusting and rotting in prison on sentences for life. The most frightful moment in Di-rector J. Edgar Hoover's entire life happened that terrible 5 in the morning when the night was still black. . . . Hoover and some of the agents attacked the Touhy mob from the rear of the building other FBI men covered the front. . . . Mr. Hoover, revolver in paw, climbed over the back fence and tread softly to the back door, where he let out the most piercing shriek ever heard anywhere in the whole world. ... It seems that a poor, little, inoffen-sive- , sleeping black cat was stepped on by the most famed of all and it let out one screetch, which the startled tried to r. FBI agents the other day were in vestigating a theft of gov't-owne- d cigarettes destined for overseas shipment ... The fnrcm 9n tirho had denied any knowledge of the theft, produced a package of cigar-ette- s bearing a give-awa- y label. . gov't . . The agent, who had mooched a cigarette with a definite purpose, forthwith arrested the foreman, who was charged with the crime. One of the problems confront-ing the FBI these days is the apprehension of individuals ob-taining money fraudulently un- der the Servicemen's Depend- ents Allowance Act. Sixty-nin- e convictions have resulted during the first ten months of the 1944 rm.1 itfar' An oddily in th files on this subject has to do with a Louisville, Ky., woman who, when questioned by FBI agents, offered to return fourteen $50 checks she got ille- - gaily, but hadn't spent. She said "he had kept all the checks ex-- ) cept one, which the soldier him- - self cashed, and that she was 1 most Willing .. cvurn mem to the Government. The alertness of was d again the other day Los ses. An agent street whom he recognize?" ssued a few days before. Although " toe su t produced live service cards, the Persistent and took his nnge"rtat, whereupon the fugitive admitted his nect n Stte in con bery " "'uw narcotics rob Among the latest rackets dis- covered by the John a Hoovers is that hi .ome rtune-tellers- V SJ SSI draft-dod"- s. ... We neat fees . "k'e ' ' he of the army." .7 ,ferf Pocus, however V effective Bol m . very ' EE federal hoosegow, - predict her release? CLASSIf DEPARTj HELPWg G.rlett Pro, StffSJW OFFICE EQUiPi WE BUT AN! k7 ing Machines. Safet CaJ SALT LAKE tUttK W West Broadway, ha Used Carsjj AGENTS Part tlma work tnaurioi trucks and hamel In yow s Build a secure Income Now war daya. Write er phone a Saptrrlisr Farnen Inn ialt t.UCcCtaMt,V REMEDY Let mj Natal Cream give jk a knockout blow. Send tl.ooim DU. FLO I'D BAI Twin Falls Books Pamphlet PANNING GOLD for hobbyt Book lor beginners & bluepra ment. Send name for litem PECTOB, Box 878-K- Oatt Our Pride It seems rather extr that pride which is struggling and often k itself to gain some eminence, should so te' to us the only certain ! laudable way of setting above another man r by becoming his benef; Serves IJJailjfJ Right on the shelf, h keep soothing MentWft help you cars for: ! H stuffiness. 2. ChappM Clogged nostrils. .. headache. 5. Nasal nntso to colds. 6. Cracked lipt bites. 8. Minor bum ' nostrils. 10. Sore, achmgs Jars and handy tuba, m Shoulder a Gun )r the Cost of One V ft BUY WAR MEDICATED POWDER FOR g& FAMILY MSElieyeiJjj roru w . of Harmful Body Tour kidneyi' " waste matter from W ' kidneys sometime! W not as N'AT more impurities Kieoo the syu machinery. --a Symptoms msy 0,"7B persistent hdVmlW renins, up n'h under the e- y- ' anxiety and lV Other signs o order are sometime""" too frequent There should bef, J treatment is r, h new Wends for They hare a Are recommended - . uuinor. Hairdressers, Cosmetics, More Free Time, Keen UiTiTATTT "I think these WACs must really lead charmed lives," Major Jane-way chuckled. "Their sick rate has been exceedingly low and it's sig-nificant, I think, that in the last three months of 1943, the com-panies which had the lowest sick rate were the companies which had been there the longest 'There are ample facilities in Al-giers now to keep up a weman soldier's morale, though the morale was high when there were none. They do find good French hair dressers now. The shops are open again, se that they can buy Moroc-can leather goods and jewelry. They can get their laundry done, and there's so longer the strict 7 o'clock curfew. They have 9:30 passes every night and two or three 11 o'clock passes each week. "They can invite their dates to dinner one night a week in their own mess balls and the dates are lucky The WAC mess halls are the best m North Africa. They can stick cloves in a piece ofm bake it to look and like an "The WACs. eventhoL in S manage to keep freshly laundered. If they'vf anc any time .n had Algiers at all. Ly a good new permanent. L get powder and 17 toilet essentials .fg changes. They like Vol Weenex from home thoS." I B R I E F S . . . by Baukhage More than 6,000 bicycles are going to China by air. They are to be used by the Chinese army In areas where roads or lack of them present barriers to larger vehicles. e e e Youths between the ages of 16 and 174 years may enlist, with their parents' consent for training for service in the U. S. merchant ma-rine. In every farming business, there is a hazard year somewhere in the future. It might be drouth, floods, livestock disease or just low prices A farmer's financial success is measured by his ability to ride through these hazard years. The wise farmer will Insure his next haz ard now by investing a substantial portion of his wartime income in war bonds. |