Madison County Democrat. (London, Ohio) 19??-1958, 1951-09-14
The World Today
BIG PROBLEMS
BY James NARROW


see what they teach kids now
adays.
He started to read it. Not read
ing. Skipping. His mind wasn't
on it. Why were things going to
pot? The whole world seemed to
be running headfirst into war
and no one could stop it.
Instead of getting better, things
were getting worse. Every day in
the papers he saw pictures of dip
lonats arriving some place, going
some place, getting on a plane,
getting off a plane. The air was
full of diplomats but things were
getting worse.
He didn't know about interna-
tional doings. He was just work
ing guy. He paid taxes. And the
taxes paid the salaries of the dip
lomats SO they could spend full
time on international stuff. They
were working for him.
And IN every country it was
the same. Every country had dip
lomats and every country was full
of little working guys who paid
taxes SO they could have diplo-
mats.
He was always impressed by
the diplomats. His own diplomats
and everybody's He felt inferior
to them. They must have some
thing special or they wouldn't be
diplomats. And nice clothes. The
polite poker faces. The elegant
manners. And when they spoke
he liked to listen. They sounded
so educated. And they used such
big words.
He turned a page and saw a
story about the kings clothes.
That sounded down to earth. He
figured he'd read this one
through.
Two men who came to town
told the king they could make
wonderful clothes, full of magic,
because only intelligent people
could see them while the stupid
people could look and see moth
ing at all.
They scampered around the
royal parlor, making gestures
like tailors when they're spread
ing out finery. The king looked
but for the life of Him he
couldn't see anything. He didn't
dare say so. 1t would be fright
full if he was found to be stupid.
So he said the clothes were
marvellous. He ordered trunkful'
He took off his old clothes and
the tow men helped him dress in
what they said was the finest
suit in the lot. Then he had an
idea.
He'd walk down the street in
his new clothes and in that way
he'd soon find out who was stu
pid in his kindom. But a servant
who had been listening sneaked
out and spread the word about
the clothes and what the two
men said: stupid people couldn't
see them.
The whole town turned out and
when the king appeared every
one said ooh and aah and used
words like wonderful until a.
little child, too young to know
about stupidity or what he was
expected to say, cried: "Oh, mama
look. The king has no clothes
on"
The little guy read the last
line again and suddenly he felt
better, if only for a monment,
and not at all inferior to the
diplomats anymore, for he
thought:
Diplomacy amt something
special. We only pretend it is. It's
just nations trying to make deal
and every time nations get to-
gether each one wants to get
the best for himself.
But nations are only people.
So everybody everywhere is mix
ed up in all this, since we hire
the diplomats to work out the
deals. We're all rose-traders, in
stead of horses we are making
deals in land, guns, armies, allies,
minds, frontiers. Things like that.
And diplomats are just a bunch
of horse traders who went to col
lege."
The little man, who began to
feel sad again, thought: | wish
all the people everywhere could
get together and, while they were
all trading and squabbling and
maybe knocking each other down,
I wish little child would say:
Hey, look. Stop kidding your
selves. Horses ain't any good
without people. And at the rate
you're going there may be some
horses left but there won't be any
people" sls sIO an
Father OF Local ~ ! o'
Woman Succumbs &