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Show NO DUKE CHURCHILL When Winston Churchill turned down a knighthood this week, his son. Randolph Churchill, probably heaved a big sigh of relief. For it meant that his father, in turning down this lesser honor, probably would not accept a dukedom duke-dom or any other high reward. Should the elder Churchill accept a peerage, he would move Into the House of Lords, which would mean that his son, Randolph, upon his father's death, automatically would become a lord, thereby forfeiting the chance of a fighting political career as a commoner. To inherit a title is the last thing young Churchill wants. His future career lies in the House of Commons, Com-mons, like his father. Knowing his son's ambition, the prime minister used to hold a sword of Damocles over Randolph's Ran-dolph's head. When the mercurial mer-curial Randolph got out of hand, his father half-Joklngly would warn: "Tut, tut. Be careful or I'll take a peerage." BATTLE OVER STEEL One of the hottest fights In the whole hot history of the War Production Pro-duction board has been raging backstage back-stage regarding the future allocation alloca-tion of steel to industry. It is a fight affecting almost every business In the country large and small and if the big industry boys get their way, civilian manufacturers manufactur-ers will get less material even than during the third quarter of this year, when we were still fighting a two-front war. The fight is over how sheet steel shall be allocated. Basically, this boils down to whether the big automobile companies will get It all, or whether other manufacturers will be given at least a little. It is exactly the same fight. In reverse, re-verse, which occurred before Pearl Harbor. At that time, the automobile industry was using up most of the sheet steel. War production was held up until their output could be curtailed, and the auto boys pulled all sorts of wires to keep on producing pro-ducing cars. Now, the same wires are being pulled to let steel be completely free, and not allocated to anyone. This is Just another way of saying that the automobile companies will get it all, because they are the biggest peacetime peace-time buyers of steel and the steel companies naturally like to please their best customers. Big Business WPB Today, the War Production board, under chairman "Cap" Krug, is more big business controlled than ever, so the automobile boys may get their way. Their fight Inside WPB Is being be-ing led by Vice Chairman Harold Boeschensteln, whose glass company com-pany sells headlights to auto manufacturers. He and other WPB moguls argue that the present "controlled materials plan" should be "open-ended," In other words, after a steel mil; has completed Its "must" government gov-ernment orders, It can sell what ever steel Is left over to any one It wishes. Hitherto, farm machinery, hardware, the railroads and various va-rious war-supporting Industries got definite steel allocations frem the government. They were always al-ways assured some steel. Under the new proposal, however, they would have to scramble for It In competition with the automobile auto-mobile companies, While the railroads, farm implement imple-ment companies, et al, doubtless can look after themselves, a long list of small manufacturers also would be affected those making hardware, electric irons, washing machines, etc. Hitherto, they have been able to get a certain amount of steel allocated al-located to them by WPB. But under the proposed new plan, they would have to scramble for it And in any battle with the auto companies, it is not difficult to guess where they would come out. Actually there will be very little steel to scramble for. After war needs and war-supporting needs are met, it is estimated only about 1.-000,000 1.-000,000 tons of sheet steel will be left over. If WPB moguls have their way, however, the scramble will begin in the fourth quarter of this year. NOTE It will be up to new War Moblliier John Snyder to make the final decision. MERRY-GO-ROUND C Every, mother's son west of the Mississippi river and some east-are east-are making moves to get the cabinet cabi-net Job of the toughest, most fearless fear-less member of the FDR cabinet-Harold cabinet-Harold Ickes. Jim Patton of Denver, Den-ver, head of the farmers union, is one of them. Another Is genial Gov. Bob Kerr of Oklahoma, who led the switching of delegates to Truman during the Chicago convention. . . However, "Harold the Ick" may fool 'em. |