Milford chronicle., 1949-11-25
Monopoly Of Brains

FOR SOME YEARS I had oc-
= casion to visit Wilmington.
Del, at intervals. On such visits
I stopped at the dupont hotel. In
a corridor there was a display
window that always attracted my
interest. In il were shown more
than 100 small items Of merchan-
disc. Some were wearing apparel.
others were but gadgets Of one
kind or another, cosmetics, and
other things.
Not one Of the things displayed
IN that window was produced in
Wilmington. They were pro-
ducts Of hundreds Of factories
IN All sections Of the nation,
al Of them comparatively
small IN size. Those factories
were selling their products In
competitive fields. No one Of
them had a monopoly on pro-
ducti0n Of any one item. The
materials from which an were
made were produced by du-
Pont, and we're . result Of dis
coveries m d e In dupont
chemical laboratories.
The 100 or more items shown In
that window were but a small por-
ton Of things the materials for
which are born in dupont labora-
tories. The total Of all is num-
bered In the thousands. Each one
Of them means greater pleasure,
convenience or comfort for the
people Of the world. and the total
Of all means hundreds Of thou
sands Of jobs for American work.
ers.
Included among the various
items in that window was a pair
Of nylon stockings and a pair Of
rayon socks. At that time a friend
Of mine was in the business Of
manufacturing hosiery. He was
one Of many purchasers from du-
Pont Of materials from which ny
Ion stockings and rayon socks are
made. He or no group Of hosiery
manufacturers had a monopoly on
such production, but in his plants
alone those materials meant Jobs
for 1000 people or more. Knowing.
through the operations Of my ho-
siery' manufacturing friend, some
thing Of the DUPONT methods. I
thought that concern was doing a
big part in maintaining the Ameri-
can free competitive system. Il
was preventing. rather than as
sisting in creating, monopolies.
For the second time within the
last third Of century the attorney
general of the United States has
brought suit against the dupont
company, charging it with. being
monopoly and seeking to dissolve
it as a corporation. Other than
from information received from
my hosiery producing friend, I
know nothing Of the operations OF
the dupont Company. It may be
violating the antitrust laws. but
I do not know in what way. AS far
as I can see, the only charge Of
monopoly that might be estab-
hshed would be that Of a monopoly
of the chemical brains Of the ma
ton.
The chemical brains Il has
exercised have certainly pro-
duced vast benefits for the na-
tiOn, including jobs and wages
for hundreds Of thousands Of
American workers. They have
found use for materials Of the
soil, the mines and the forests,
many Of which had been con-
sidered waste before their
utility was discovered by du-
POnt. These brains have pro-
vided the people Of the world
with many things contributing
to their pleasure, convenience
and comfort.
Laboratories operated by practi4
cally all the major industries Of
the nation. have, more than any
other thing, made America great
as an industrial nation. Such lab
oratories have provided the know.
how Of what to produce and how to
produce. From such laboratories
have come jobs, wages, homes for
millions Of Americans. We cannot
afford to sacrifice such a source Of
supply.
A woman's voice on the phone
asked il would say which party
Republican or Democratic, I would
vote for at the next congressional
election. which Republican or
which Democratic?" I asked. Fact
is, there win be approximately as
many Of each as there win be
candidates Of each for the house
and senate. There are no policies
for candidates to follow. Unless
conditions change before next fan,
each candidate win be on his own.
He win be for or against only that
which he thinks win attract the
most votes.
The woman's club announced II
as a brunch" without the quotes.
After some inquiries found il
meant a breakfast. Why they did
not call it breakfast I do not know.
unless it might lead their patrons
to expect bacon. eggs, wheat cakes
nna nnaann s.nA-na - -