| Show ern U. U S. S Warned COQ Coo co coMine Mine Was Unsafe By fly Drew Pearson WASHINGTON WASHINGTON Most Most shocking elusion to he be drawn from rom t the he est in c cT o of oC t the he West Vest Frankfort Illinois coal 2 to r disaster is that the ha victims probably would i ibe be alive today if the federal federal fed fed- 4 eral government had th the 00 power to enforce as aswell aswell well as recommend mine safety standards r Federal inspectors J tr did everything but hire t k ka a sound truck to warn 4 I of conditions that led lcd to r the explosion These A were heavy con concentrations centra- centra Drew lions of methane gas and tr rock lusting of coal dust dust both both th of the thi illegal under the federal mine safety cOd od which however cannot b be he enforced Following the inspections of last j Jjr dry ary and February and md again in Jul ju federal men also also reported that soc miners were were smoking in this Hus highly d da a mine 1 Copies of oC these reports were T John ohn L. L Lewis as as well eIl a as to the Unit Uni n Mine 1 Workers district office in noon also to the Chicago Wilmington j it Franklin Coal Company owners of ti t mine and to state inspectors How Howe Houe ere little or nothing was done to remedy t 1 situation j Federal inspectors even posted th the findings on the mine mine- bulletin bo boa in August and spoke to the miners ab ato smoking on the job lob Their Th ir reports i tl al Warne warned of improper ventilation the i u. u of sparking motors type open-type near ga gal workings loose roofing and obstruct in the ill-fated ill mine mme However nothing was done becan the government had no power to enIo its recommendations The obvious which this column has advocated t f years is a strong federal mine mme sari safi at code that would permit the to shut down unsafe mines mine's until I t. t 11 danger is corrected But when men like Congressman ys Price of Illinois and Senator Matt latt Xe yes of oC West Vest Virginia sponsor such legislate they are arc hooted by cries of socia from the coal industry and invasion In q states state's rights from state legislate the lat latter er often controlled by the c companies Crisis of 1952 1952 Most Most I important pre prep pred- tion Hon the thc American people want for or I coming year is whether 1952 will b br peace or war My prediction is that II will bring no world war neither will bring complete peace Intermittent hostilities will con COD in Indo-China Indo perhaps in Iran posh pom the Syrian Palestine area More important than these s sm isolated wars however is a test of American people which the Kremlin been waiting for ever since 1945 After E V-E day Kremlin planners dieted the United States would suffer serious depression from the end of orders then would proceed to fall a at the seams scams It would not be necess to declare war on the thc U U. S S. S the men of Moscow l The American p pec o would be so disorganized so dint divi by internal bitterness bitterness' so shorn of lea ship that Communism would merely r. r up the pieces This did not happen It did not ha hap haE largely because the United States seeded to exert wise and leadership in the rest of the world the Marshall 1 Plan through the No Xo o. o Atlantic Pact and through military I li e However diplomatic observers ti have the advantage of looking at us fl fla f a distance begin to detect some of things that Moscow wanted in 1 1 rumblings of bitterness internal std str lack of confidence growing isolation isolation- disillusionment The year 1951 witnessed devast debates which split the nation into bi I factions the factions the debate over Mac 1 Arthur t debate over an ambassador to the vatic vain the shock at income tax scandals Even before these wounds have he heel the nation now faces a new and al difficult debate over debate over who will be the then t t. t president of the thc United States During coming year names will be ca called led passions will flare During 19 1952 2 a American leadership in the rest of f C world will be slowed to a snails snail's pace r w will ll be too busy with our own problems s I That is why diplomatic c observers observer s i a worried That hat is why the Kremlin I reported watching the U U. S S. more intent than ever er That is is why the year car 1952 2 be the most crucial since Pearl I Diplomatic Pouch Pouch Pouch-It It was as de definitely n teY order from Moscow that put th the f f tt I American fliers in Hungary Hungar on trIa trial I fc I espionage The Moscow order came ame a as i surprise to the Hungarian foreign Of owe offiN l. l Cf I which which had just lust indicated to the Aro Amen nr embassy that the fliers would be A Averell vere II Harriman still hopes Gen en r Eisenhower can be persuaded to run rune Democrat if if Senator Taft ge gets get Lt t I d' d I Republican nomination H a recently talked to Eisenhower in 10 Paris t Swedish has learned t that intelligence h Russians have imprisoned amat a Swedish w pl mat who's been missing for six sis J St tJ His name is Raoul an and d i of been absent since 1945 when he hein hean an iJ r rin in Bulgaria General Genera Eisenhower fat col boiling mad at the Belgian S gO govern tie tt for holding up plans to increase d U Pact defenses in 1952 I Ike C has lead ha Bel d ii t with th the tough-talking tough sessions t i representative the two 1 in past to eJ ce b made it must do 0 plain that Belgium as much as it is doing doing or or else jobs Joh dent warne d Rhee has Foster consent consent i to aD Dulles will he never v ot viii nw truce which p permanently divides and Dulles l u at J North Korea Rhee told lold troops will never rest until the lJ t l has been driven out of al all N f r |
