The Waterbury Democrat. [volume] (Waterbury, Conn.) 1917-1946, 1943-10-01
BY JAMES THRAsHER
NEA staR rnrrnsnnnaant

Pass the opium, Pappy and let's
have look ct the general situation.
What general situatlon2 Why the
general situation as regards gem
erals, but naturally.
Let's see now, how do we stand?
General George O. Marshall is going
to be removed as chief Of stan and
rendered completely powerless BY
being given command Of all Amer
lean and British forces.
With General Marshall thus
shackled and showed into an obscure
corner, Lieutenant General Brehon
B. Somervell will be made chief OF
staff and put to work recognising
the War Department along global
and political lines. First order Of
business will be a worldwide WPA,
which will guarantee fourth term
for President Roosevelt. mo need
to fear those doubtful middle west
ern states If he can carry 1raq, the
Balkans and the Solid South.)
General Somervell will fire the
Ave major generals who are chiefs
Of the quartermaster, engineer and
transportation corps, the Ordnance
Department, and the Chemical
Warfare Service. He will then re-
place them with civilian braintrust-
ers, recruited from Justice Felix
Frankfurter's old law classes OF
Harvard.
Well, there you have 1t. Bit con-
fusing, isn't itp But that Is the gen.
eral situation as set forth by Repre-
sentative Paul w. Shafer (R., Mich)
in a speech printed in the Congress
sional Record and later amplifled by
statements to a reporter and duly
published.
RUMORS RIFE
It all started with the recent hue
and cry about General Marshall be-
ing clicked upstairs" by Mr..
Churchill and/or the White House
palace guard" and/o somebody
else.
The hue and cry is a little amaz-
ing in the first place, since the
rumor of General Mashall's overseas
transfer has been heard around
Washington for six months, and was
never considered as anything but q
richly deserved promotion.
The contention that the British
are cunning for the chief Of stan
because he wants 70 invade Europe
from across the channel is equally
surprising. Not only did Mr..
Churchill spike that in his recent
speech to Commons, but he asked
General Marshall to accompany him
and Anthony Eden to Africa (where
they conferred with General Eisen-
hover and to England, after the
last Washington conference. Seems
a queer way to deal with q general
whose strategy you distrust and dis
agree with.
As for General Somervell, the vii
famous role assigned him by Rep
resentative Shafer is only the latest
Of at least three that he has been
given recently. When he was WPA
director in New York he was accused
Of Communistic leanings. AS chief
Of the Army Service Forces This
present post) he has ben charged
with being the head Of reaction
airy Fascist Army clique. Now he's
cast as the menace in the fourth
term plot. In short, q versatile man.
Some Of the five major generals
whom General Somervell Is sup.
posed to fire, II Representative Sha-
fer doesn't avert his appointment as
chief of staff, are General Somer-
Wells own choices. All have worked
with and under him in ASST and,
judging from the course Of the war,
have done pretty good Job. Major
General @. p. Gross, chief Of trans
portation, was q West Point class
mate Of General Somervells and re.
mains one Of his choicest friends.
HARVARD MEN
Representative Shafer told the
press that among those being con-
sidered as requirements for these
Ave men are DR.. Ell GinZberg and
James P. Mitchell He said he 'rn-
derstood" that both these civilians
are graduates Of Harvard Law
School In the days when Justice
Frankfurter taught there.
The fact Is that DR.. Ginsberg
never went to Harvard, and Mitchell
has no college degree of any sort.
The latter Is director Of industrial
personnel (civilian) in the ASST,
while DR.. Ginsberg is q statistical
clerk in the ASST control division.
Representative Shafer bases all
his charges on blueprint Of o plan
which presumably would streamline
the War Department, but in reality
convert that great depart
ment into New Deal political or
ganiZation."
It's no secret that a streamIning
plan is in the offing, and has been
worked on for some time. It has
been talked about, too, but Repre-
sentative Shafer Is the first person
to discover anything remotely re-
semblnig New Deal political Or
ganization."