The Waterbury Democrat. [volume] (Waterbury, Conn.) 1917-1946, 1943-01-12

body to repair them. no parts to
repair them with, and petrol was
too scarce for their old ineficient
highly absorbent motors. Trans
jolted to dead stops and had to be
hauled Of to terminals to wait, like
everything else, for the end Of the
war for repairs. The underground
and the electric became shoddy,
dirty and worn-out; the number Of
accidents multiplied due to the de-
cay Of cars and tracks and the sud-
den replacing Of thousands Of ex-
perienced meu-wl1o were called to
the front-hy legions Of inexperi-
enced women. The number OF taxiS
has been cut to less than oa1e-hfth
the peace-time quota and each taxi
driver receives less than half q gal
lon Of petrol day.
PLUMBING AND HEATING
SYSTEMS TANNED
In office buildings lifts have
ceased fHnctioning due to super
animation, banisters on Staircases
are breaking of and typewriters
losing their now irreplaceable keys.
In homes plumbing and heating
systems get damned, and it takes
weeks to get someone to. repair
them; door locks break and stay
broken, door-knobs fall of and
have to be reattached with nail
or a match s..iioi1 Repair men -
radio fixers, locksrniths, cobblers,
plumbers - have become a dicta-
torial elite, but an elite which on
grounds. Of overwork deserves its
new advantages. They are grumpy
and can ask any price they wish.
and they prefer payment In tangi-
BILE goods. They are not interested
in money. Everybody has enough
pager notes. and, blackened zinc
coins; even the poorly paid have
more money than they can spend
on their needs. AS a friend Of mine
said, after searching vainly in the
Ka-De-We department stores
across Wittenberg Platz for two
hours for something useful: THAT
big barn is empty. / It Is a feat of
skill to get rid Of fifty pfennigs on
all seven floors" That is only a
slight exaggeration. If It is one at
all. I, myself, involuntarily saved
no less than four fifths of my salary
In the last six months in Germany
because there with, nothing to spend
1t on. Only the windows Of shops
are full Full Of empty cardboard
boxes of Kicks, which Is German
for cakes, and ine-botties filled
with water. The little dairy goods
shop around the corner from my
house has In its window row OF
milk bottles. which are seven
eighths full of white salt to look
like milk. inside there is three gal
Ions Of milk a day. Cigarette shops
have good windows too, with all
kinds Of variegated boxes. Inc
boxes are empty and a sign IN the
window says they are only for deco
rations-Nus AttrapeIl. On the shut
front door there Is a different sign
almost every day OF the week:
closed for repairs, or for taking In
ventory, or for redecoration. or for
lunch. or just plain sold-out. on
Tauentzienstrasse, one shop-keeper
solved the appearances problem ny
putting no empty boxes at all In
the window, but big profile photo
graph OF Hitler with gilt swastika
above It and below It, In gold let.
tiers, I'VE Thank Our Faehrer"
The local Nazi party chief thought
II was q crack at the leader and
made him change his decoration
and put some Attrapen IN the vim
dow. The man didn't really mean
1t 10 be Q gag. he was Just trying
to be patriotic.
(CopyVight, 1el2, BY Howard X,
Smith. Distributed By United Fea-
ture Syndicate, Incl
TOMORROW Unwashed and
washed cut; German temReFs and
laws come apart nc che seams.