Evening star., 1955-02-20

"The Children Of Light" b
Co.; $3.50.
Mike Straus. who still lives
in Washington, Is remembered
as the former newspaperman
who served in the early days of
the New Deal as director of
information for the Interior
Department, later as First
Assistant Secretary Of the In
terror and finally as commis-
sioner Of reclamation.
AS you'll gather from the
title, Mr.. Straus Is no pessi-
mist. At the same time he is
fully aware Of the worlds
economic plight, the made
quate supply Of food and raw
materials Of industry In many
areas, the enormous difficulty
of supplying ever-swelling pop
ulations with what they must
have.
The answer? He reaches It
after dilisent digging into the
economic and sociological pic
ture all over the world:
1t Is Not Too Lote
"As we thunder toward the
2lst century. it may be late.
But 1t is not too late for those
with a real philosophy. not of
desperation, but Of faith and
hope. We still have the natu-
raj resources on which to sur
vive with a rising standard Of
living-if we are willing to use
them wisely.
"At long last we know
enough if we are ready to
recognize, regardless of nation
alism. prejudice or selfishness.
that the destinies of the United
States and all the world are
forever bound together in one
single great resource pot of
land, mine, water and forest
on which we all, as multiply
ing humanity, absolutely de-
pend"
Mr.. Straus was an enthu-
siaStic New Dealer. probably
still is. but he has examined
his incredibly complex theme
with almost judicial detach-
ment and has kept his inclina-
tions from running away with
him. If, in considering the
problems of this country. he is
alarmed at the way the Federal
Government has given away
as we'll as been defrauded out
of-public lands, he points out
that it is a mistake to regard
such lands as a separate SOW
ereignty, distinct and apart
from the rest Of the economy.
This is a common major, and
generally deliberate, fallacy in
political debate" Federally
owned lands, he point out, are
utilized largely by private busi-
ness and individuals. Lumber
companies take trees from ma
tional forests. Mining corpo-
rations extract minerals from
public domain. Ranchers run
cattle or sheep on the public
range. Vacationers use public
lands for camping, fishing and
hunting.
Protecting the Source
The author, one Of our lead
ing conservatio o nists, goes
thoroughly into the question of
reforestation. pointing out
that. despite progress, 1--WE
have not yet attained a ma
tional sustained yield" and
that Failure to perpetuate
self-replenishing forests would
be nothing short of deliberate
resource suicide" He takes
similar cognizance of erosion
and other agricultural prob
lens. He explores the monop-
olistic practices and political
manipulation which have
harnpered the control of such
vital products as steel and
such natural resources as cop
per.
We have enlig htening
glimpses of the failures and
potentialities of Asia, Africa,
South America, India. We see a
great dam under construction
in India, as the author watched
1t, with thousands of women
carrying baskets of cement to
be poured on the forms--an.
cient methods, modern devel-
opment.
Mr.. Straus does not share
the dark forboding of a writer
like William Vogt, who wrote
Road to Survival" and Our
Plundered Planet" Nor does
Mr.. Straus, as I take it, feel
that such a purely negative
approach as birth control, aside
from its moral and religious
significance. would solve any
thing, would be more than an
oversimpliflcation. His goal is
q balanced world economy.
Regardless of whether you
agree with all his conclusions,
and intense nationalists will
not. Mr.. Strauss book deserves
wide reading for his remark
able grasp and lucid summing
up Of the situation and his cou-
rageous, persuasive contribu-
tion toward meeting it.
In his new novel. his third,
Mr.. Sykes writes more anus
ingly than anybody else has,