The Wilmington morning star., 1943-10-07
BY WEsTBROOK PEGLER

NEW YORK.-A surprising phase of the
bond drive has been the glib nonchalance
with which many individuals were able to
bid in little keepsakes such as Joe Louis
gloves, for $3.50, 900, including. we were told,
that right one with which he blasted hole
in Max Schmeling's proud Aryan Stats and
LAID the arrogant superman moaning at the
feet of one whom he had contemptuously
called the nicker, or a common runaround
nanny goat for $4,000 The gloves were
bought, or won, by the st. Louis Browns,
which is soulless corporation and not an
Individual even as you and l, but still they
are not a bank and great was the surprise
OF those present to hear that the Browns had
that much money. For that matter many of
us were astounded day after day to learn that
there were SO many large hunks of wealth
available for apparently casual and spontane-
Gus investment in the U. S. A. 1t came in
great, coarse vulgar amounts and man
who had scraped the bottom of the bari
and come up with 81 900, after listening to
such bids at few of the rallies was heard
to ask an usher in an embarrassed whisper
if he could direct him to the notion counter,
and girl with a mind to toss her savings
OF Sl00 on the drum felt as though she had
wandered into Tiffany's by mistake for the
e-and-ten.
AS to whether the Treasury is or has a
right to be disappointed in the haul of little
money or the box-car figures actually did
brighten and discourage the smallies l will
offer no speculation, believing that this has
been thoroughly attended to by others who
has the idea first. My interest, indeed my
amazement, revolves, in fact it reels, about
the bare fact that there was still so much
heavy money In private OR corporate hands,
for it has been my lot to meet many, and in
timately know some, rather rich men in the
last % years and doubt that any of them
could brush together as much as $4,000 cash
these days without some very deliberate fl
nanciering and deep communion with their
bankers. l go back in memory to some nights
at Bradley's in Palm Beach when the market
was Wild and the people more so and recall
a few individuals who could, and sometimes
did, put or take $780, 900 in the course of an
evenings punting, but most Of them are dead
or busted now and l believe you would be
ill-advised to offer $25 cash for the right to
friSk all the current survivors of Tex Rich
ards celebrated 900 milionaires. One of them
with whom I traded memory gems of the old
days few evenings ago said that he had
had to hook everything he held to pay his
income tax last month and would have to go
on the rim or cuff for his next lnstallment
He was in undisputed possession of a robust
deficit and if pushed into corner and COM
PEELED to buy a bond for ST. 900 just to main
tain his front, he would have to go borrow
the money.
Yet, bond sales in amounts of $4,000 and
more were very common and while many
such bids were prearranged between the bid
ders and the auctioneerS, indicating that the
buyers had to have time to dig it out from
under loose brick somewhere, the marvel
still remains that they could and old come
up with the dough. Because, after all, $4,000
is serious money even to an old strong bust
ness firm these days and don't thlnk know
any rich man who, as an 1ndlVldual, could lay
his hands on that much without sacrificing
some important investment. Yet, these big
bids seem not to have affected the market
at all, leaving us to suspect that some of
our fellow citizens have been holding out on
us, even holering hungry with nam under
each arm Guys you never heard OF would
bid 500, 900 without blinking and fellow had
to sit on his hands for fear that II he made
a false move the man at the mlcrophone
would yell land John Dllllngers straw hat
with the original bullet hole is sold to George
Spelvin for one million dollars, net!''
There seems to be some idea that the
Treasury missed a large aggregate amount
of little money in the hands OF the wage
earners and if that is so, doubtless many of
them will be willing to do some business in
a second-run or revival OF the drive with the
dirty rich kept out by strong cordons of alert
police. But. considering taxes now, both in
come and other. and the cost of things and
the probability of higher taxes soon, it may
lust be that they figure old Sam will get
il in the end and not as a loan, either, but
permanently, and for free'
There is no such thing as being neutral in
this war. A country is either with the United
Nations or not. Spain should declare
bersef and that goes for Argentina on our
side of the ocean. Mayor Fiorello H. La