The Durant news. (Durant, Miss.) 1882-1985, 1942-08-20

of materials had caused failure of a sup
plier to deliver needed parts. and copper
situation is exceedingly tight.
BITS O. BUSINESS - Department store
sales on a nationwide basis have settled into
a fairly steady pact, at five per cent ahead
of last year. That's in dollar volume; in
volume of goods sold, this year is substan-
TALLY behind the Al level. The Public
state gas tax collections for May dropped 9
per cent for the nation as a whole, and ID
per cent in the II eastern "rationed" states.
In June the decline was much sharper. %
per cent in four rationed states and Is per
cent in a 13-states region embracing 9 non
rationed states -. A Philadelphia is re-
ported to have taken out a patent on the
name "Victory" as applied to bicycles, hop
ing to collect a scent royalty on every one
of the 760, 900 allowed to be made this year.
which would mean a neat $37, 500-but the
manufacturing companies just decided to do
without the name rather than ante up that
nickle per copy.
ONE FROM THE BOOK - It's obvious
enough that the ultimate goal of virtually
all sabotage plots is the Gripping of units
in the nations vital war industries. Now it
appears that Uncle Sam, in at least one case,
has taken a leaf from the enemy's book in
fitting a new weapon into the defense Of
war plants. The ancient japanese art Of
jiu jitsu has been AmericaniZed, streamlined
and, in the case of guards at the WHY'S
Overland plant, rename "jeep jitsu" in
tribute to the rock-'em-and-sock-'em army
scout cars being produced in that plant.
Courses are under the direction of Dewey
Mitchell, a former circus acrobat who stud
led the arm twisting art in Japen and who
also i~nstructs Army officers. Skill in jeep
jitsu is especially valuable to plant s~entries
in these times because it enables many older
men to fill jobs that otherwise would re-
quire more youth and muscle.
TRAINEES AND TRAINS - More evil
dence of the demands of war-even war IN
the old world-makes unoo cross-country
travel facilities here in North America is
seen in the report of George A Kelly, vice
president of the Pullman Company, that
troop movements handled by the company
in June hit an all-time high, while civilian
travel, now running 30 per cent ahead Of
last year, reached this years peak in that
same month, with July figures not yet avail
able. The number of soldiers, sailors and
marines transported in "organized move
ments in June totaled sos, 200-and the to-
tai for the first six months was more than
5000, 900, he reported, explaining that these
figures did not include men of the armed
forces travelling alone on furloughs, no in
ductees reporting to camps. The June in
crease in troop movements over the average
for the five preceding months amounted to
II per cent.
THINGS TO WATCH FOR - New type
freight cars with fibre-board sides instead
of steel = being tested by Canadian Pacific.
=. A bicycle "hitch" for auto that lets the
bike along behind like a dory towed by a
launch. "Recipe Digest a new quarterly
published by publishers of Parents Maya
zine, and put out in loose leaf form.
Eberhard Faber protests that no war-caused
name change has been necessary so far as
its "Mongol' pencil is concerned-it was the
Eagle Pencil Company which made the
change in product name we reported. from
"Mikado" to "Mirado" Among strange
things being considered by u. S. Depart
ment of Agriculture are: cactus plants as a
source of granulated sugar, orange pulp as
a source of gunpowder, and milkweed fibre
for use as mattress s%tuffing. . Pocket flash
lights with strictly non-metallic barrels-Of
five-ply fibre. A new coin bank, shaped
like a bomb, and designed to hold S18.75,
the price of a War Bond.
CONVERTIBILITY = A ~footnote on the