The Waterbury Democrat., 1944-11-03

% members in each of the 48 states would bring the membership to 960, and it should have been 8 cinch to get the other 40 in the Dis trict of Columbia. Oklahoma was the first state to crash through with its quota of 25 oil and cattle men, but after that initial success he go- ing was slow and Dewey's blast at the club in his Chicago speech prob ably won't help the rushing and pledging of neophytes for this blue chip fraternity.
 Orville F. McPherson, former Kansas City publisher who was called to Washington headquarters of the Democratic National Com mittee to help put over the One Thousand Clubs membership drive, hasn't let the 5000 per man con- tribution goal stop him from accept ing lesser amounts in helping the Democratic cofferS. McPherSon went into Washington grocery store the other day to do some marketing for his wife, but he had little trouble finding supplies to match the num- Der of points he had brought along. Finally he got it worked out and the grocer asked him what else he could do for his new customer.
 "Who you for in this election?" asked McPherson.
 Roosevelt" said the grocer.
 Put it in writing" said McPher- son, Put it on the line"
 The grocer called to his wife and told her to make out check for $50, then asked McPherson how he spelled his name.
 "Oh, don't make it payable to me" said McPherson hastily. Make it out to the Democratic National Committee
 McPherson turned in the money, but it should be made clear that it takes bigger dough than that to crash the One Thousand Club. A PROSPERITY ARGUMENT IS USED
 Some of the enthusiastic Wash ington packers of the One Thousand Club argue that business men, in- stead of giving their money to the Republicans, should be crazy for Roosevelt instead of crazy against him because they have prospered so greatly under the last four years of Democratic rule, making up all their losses of the depression.
 These big profits don't show" eX- plains one of the One Thousand Club promoters, but to anyone who can read balance sheet, the profits are there. They are hidden in re- serves and depreciation and the write-off provisions of the tax law which will give lot of munitions manufacturers new plants and fa- cilitieS for postwar business, all charged off at the end of five years which, for most of them, will come in 1945 and 1946."
 Business men have really made millions" this One Thousand Club solicitor went on to say, but busi- ness men are sore just because they haven't been permitted to make hundreds of millions.
 "The people we're interested in getting into the Thousand Club, however, aren't the multi-million- aires, but the middle sized business men, the fellows who do business in the $100, 900 to $1, 900, 900 a year class. They're the backbone of American business and they're the men who should be for Roosevelt 100 per cent"
 . SOME FIRMS WORK BOTH
 SIDES OF THE STREET
 Putting the touch on businesses that have profited or stand to profit under any given party is of course an old political trick, indulged in by state and local organizations of both parties. Many business firms have long been in the habit of working both sides of the street, one vice president contributing to the Repub- licans while another kicked in to the Democrats. Such activities are now somewhat limited by the Hatch and Corrupt Practices Acts, but still, with $5000 legal ceiling on aggre- gate political gifts any individual may make in calendar year, 5000 touches aren't too tough. + War contractors might be con- sidered fair game this year. In the first nine months of 1944 alone, Army and Navy have let 270,000 con- tracts for $26,0o0, 100000 worth of supplies.