The Waterbury Democrat., 1942-07-21

dictatorial power regarding rub Der than Jesse Jones. Congress granted him almost linitless funds and the President gave him limit less power to produce rubber. He could hire the best experts in the world, consult the best scientists, sign contracts with anyone. BUSINESS BEFORE THE WAR
 But for some reason the ex- perts he chose put all the rub Der eggs in one basket-the manu- facturer of rubber from petro- leum, and by lengthy process. At one hearing Senator Wheeler asked Jesse Jones:
 Have you investigated to see
 whether or not it (the alcohol prOcess) is good"
 To which Jones' rubber brain truster, Stanley Crossland, replied:
 "It has been investigated, but it has not gone beyond the de- veIopment stage by which we can tell whether or not it Is Operable on commercial scale"
 But the Senate Agriculture subcommittee, probing the mat ter, reported:
 "The only known and com merciaIIy tested processes for the production of synthetic rubber, developed principally in con- tinental Europe by Germans, Poles and Russians, were from alcohol produced from grain and potatoes"
 The senate committee went fur ther, saying: There is no ex- planation by any responsible of- ficial of why this country, in set- ting up program for the pro- duction of synthetic rubber gave consideration only to untried lab- oratory experiments from pe- troleum which will require twice the time and many times the crit ical material needed to produce the same synthetic rubber from alcohol"
 Finally the committee used one of the most devastating state ments ever to appear in a Con- gressional report when 1t laid the blame directly on oilmen who wanted to prevent the competi- tion of Midwest grain alcohol af- ter the war:
 Such meticulous care to avoid the possibility of postwar com
 petition" the Senate rebuked, may bespeak high degree of business shrewdness, but it like wise portrays a serious failure to appreciate the necessity of keeping America on wheels and winning the war;"
 So, if you don't have to give up your tires after all, you can thank that sometimes-berated, sometimes -Sungling, but get-there in-the-end, truly democratic in stitution-Con
 DO-AS-DONE-BY DEPT.
 Philadelphia probably estab lished 8 record in selling war bonds and stamps through retail stores, when nine giant depart ment stores recently turned their entire staffs over to this job for one day.
 Following up this successful drive, 50,0O0 smaller retail stores are being lined up to give change to every customer in war stamps. The plan is not to ask the cus- toner if he wants war stamps, but to give them to him anyway. Any Philadelphia block where all the streS sign up is given a "V".
 Lit Brothers George Johnson gave 40 cent corsages to 5000 em- ployes on one day and $1,1OO in prizes to those selling the most bonds in a month.
 NOTE: If your neighbor, your community, or anyone else Is an unsung hero of the war, tell us about it. We would like to pass the good word along.
 SOCRATIC JOURNALIST
 The President had to use a lot of persuasion on Gardner Mike Cowles, Jr., to draft him as right bower to Elmer Davis on domestic news distribution. Cowles, dy- namo of the Des MoineS Register G Tribune, Look Magazine, and the Iowa Broadcasting Co.,, al first refused the job. Harry Hop- kins called him long distance asked him to reconsider. Cowles flew to Washington the next day saw President Roosevelt, and fin- ally accepted.
 His background is Republican although none of his friends in Des Moines has ever heard him say for whom he voted in 1936. Hii father, who got into neespapel business through banking in the 100O's, was appointed to the REC by Hoover and served Well. Hil