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Show Fireside Chat Proposed SECRETARY of State Acheson has been urging President Tru-i Tru-i man to deliver a fireside chat warning warn-ing the nation against falling for the Russian peace offensive. Acheson fears that victory in Korea Ko-rea will lull Americans into forgetting for-getting that western Europe is still Russia's No. 1 objective and that to let down now would prove disastrous dis-astrous later. Therefore, he has suggested sug-gested the President give a blunt talk to the people, perhaps on Columbus Co-lumbus Day, and in this way ex-: ex-: plode Moscow's peace talk. Acheson wants the President to point out that Russia still has 75 divisions in eastern Germany 15 of them armored and is now stockpiling stock-piling huge quantities of food and raw materials something you do only when you are preparing for war. Senate Poet Laureate Scott Lucas, the hard-boiled senate sen-ate leader, is one thing; but Scott Lucas, the rhymester, is another. Most people don't know that when the senator from Illinois gets fed up with long, drawn-out senate debates he scribbles lyrics. Here is one he turned out when the senate was tied up in a table-thumping debate on oil: "Who is this old man oil That raises hell in committee toil? Open the door and let him in, Hear him speak straight from the chin. "Remember boys he's a wily old cuss. He looks like 'Hit' and acts like 'Muss'; He's a traveler of world renown, Gushing and running from town to town." Korean Costs Increase Most people don't realize that the cost of the Korean war to the taxpayers tax-payers has been increased by about five billion dollars, because of two actors: 1. Unpatriotic war manufacturers manu-facturers and raw-material dealers have hiked prices; 2. President Truman, Tru-man, though given ample power by congress, has failed to invoke price controls. As a result, it now costs the armed services more for their " needs, without exception, than they paid before the Korean outbreak. Probably the most shameful is the sudden increase in the price of medical and surgical goods, urgently urgent-ly needed to save lives in Korea. The army must now pay $220 for an instrument and medicine cabinet cabi-net that cost only $195 before the Korean war. The price of glycerin, a medical compound in demand in military hospitals, has shot up 114 per cent. Even rubber surgical gloves for operating on wounded soldiers have increased in price from 17 to 22 cents per pair. The high-octane aviation fuel that keeps our planes flying over Korea costs 30 per cent more than before the war. At the same time, fuel oil has shot up 54 per cent. The air force is also paying as high as 175 per cent more for resistors, actuators actua-tors and other electronic spares for aircraft, and the navy is paying 10 to 12 per cent more for ship parts than these same items cost before K-day. Business As Usual In addition to paying 62 per cent more for zinc, the army and navy had to get tough before they could even buy enough zinc for batteries urgently needed in Korea. Assistant Secretary of the Army Alexander and Assistant Secretary of the Navy Koehler personally had to put pressure pres-sure on the zinc companies in order to get military orders filled. Believe it or not, these companies Anaconda, Sullivan Mining, American Amer-ican Smelting and Refining, and American Zinc company of Illinois Illi-nois wanted to take care of their civilian clients first rather than risk losing business. Now the same companies com-panies are protesting against supplying sup-plying zinc for the nation's strategic stockpile. The basic commodities used In the manufacture of military items were the first to skyrocket sky-rocket after Korea. Crude rubber rub-ber shot up 162 per cent, with some British companies charging charg-ing as high as 300 per cent above the pre-Korean price. The price of wool, so essential for the freezing Korean winter, increased in-creased 61 per cent. Cotton for summer uniforms shot up 50 per cent. Steel scrap, which sold for S24 a ton before the Korean war, now costs S.18 per ton. Here are a few other comparisons between the prices the armed for- ces paid before and after the Korean Ko-rean war began: radio receivers up from S550 to $010 a set; radiak training sets, $34.90 to $289; shipping ship-ping boxes, 82 cents to $1.24 each; five-gallon gasoline drums, $1.79 to SI. 98 each; khaki trousers, 74 cents to 84 cents a pair; adhesive tape, 20 cents to 30 cents a roll; tires, "16.14 to $20.40 each; fire hose, 520. G4 to $23.10 per 50 feet; ground Interrogator, $1,842 to $2,303 each. These are typical of the prices the armed services are paying. |