The potters herald. [volume] (East Liverpool, Ohio) 1899-1982, 1942-12-10
COMMENT ON WORLD
EVENTS

"eflclency ana the loudly IOuleu Nahl
housing program, is having plenty Of
trouble in housing its people. The
trouble of course is Cue to the war, a
fact the NaZis are chary of mention
ing. Interesting facts on the situation
are given by the International Fedora
ton of Trade Unions.
The IFTU, from its Office in Lon
don, says that the housing program
has given the NaZis a headache for Il
long time" Shortage of dwellings is
acute in all parts of the Reich, espe-
cally in the west and has become
steadily worse because of destruction
in British air raids.
Despite fixed rents, rents have gone
up in Berlin, for instance, by so to 60
per cent All elderly people have been
compulsorily transferred to homes for
the aged 1t is hoped additional space
will be created by dividing up 10000
big houses. Small families which have
more than the average housing space
at their disposal have to take CORE
spending number of lOdgerS. At the
beginning of 1912, there was a short
age of 100000 dwellings in Hanover
alone.
X X X
The growing waves of evacuation
from the bombed areas have contrib
uted to confusing and intensifying the
problem. Robert Ley, head of the Nazi
Labor Front" has now been appointed
housing commissioner in an endeaVOl
to deal with the emergency.
Leys housing program - once sc
much publiciZed-now consists of rigid
rationing of available dwelling space
| Nobody in Germany can have more
| than a specified number of cubic yards
of living space. Mortgage and house
taxes have been abolished. The owners
are forced to capitalize dwellings by
a single payment amounting to IL
times the annual amount of the tax
Profit from house and land ownership
must not exceed the yield of state
| loans.
1t is evident from the information
obtained by the IFTU that the housing
problem in Maitland is indeed head
ache for the Hitlerites and one that
must be- hard on German morale. Quite
likely it is an important factor II
German war WEAKNESS wearineS:
that from all the evidence at hand il
increasing with every month that the
| war continues.
X X X
This column has told recently OF
resistance to Nazi control in little
Luxembourg, where the workers de
clared a general strike in protes
against Nazi tactics. Now the Nazi
are cracking down" on the LuXem
burgers in characteristic style. Say
the IFTU, relating recent happenings
"As Il last effort for peaceful con
quest of the country, the Nazis ar
ranged pebiscite which was to give
the people of Luxembourg a chance t.
declare for incorporation in Germany
Thanks to the illegal movements pre-
imnary work of organization, thl
maneuyer proved a complete iasco
More than 81 per cent of the popula
ton declared against incorporation.
"Only after this setback did tn
Nazis give up all hope and let tn
mask drop. They declared LuXembur
TO be conquered territory. On tn
strength of the illegal annexation, dur
inc September the yearly classes liabl
for service were pressed into the Gel
man army. Meanwhile the deportation
of the civilian population has begun
Late in September the first tranSpor
of 30 families went to the east. 1t is Il
accident that it was drawn from tn
four districts of the country in whic
the general strike was most strict
observed"