davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
Evening star., 1961-04-18
Testing Time in Cuba

Although it is obvious that Cuban
patriots have struck at several points
against Fidel CaStro'S pro-CommuniSt
tyranny, the exact military situation is
about as obscure as anything could be.
And it may remain unclear for some
time to come.
There is nothing obscure, however,
about the nature of the threat which
has been made by Nikita Khrushchev.
In message to President Kennedy,
as reported by TasS, Mr.. Khrushchev
has said: "AS to the Soviet Union, there
should be no misunderstanding of our
position: We shall render the Cuban
people and their government all neceS-
Sary assistance in beating back the
armed attack on Cuba" He added that
his message to the President was
prompted "by the sole concern for pre-
venting such steps which could lead the
world to a military catastrophe"
So the Nikita Khrushchev who has
established Communist beachhead in
Cuba and who has furnished arms and
military advisers to Castro now threat
ems to intervene against the attempt to
overthrow the Havana dictatorship and
to establish in its place a government
dedicated to freedom for the Cuban
people. If he means what he seems to
be saying, and we should assume that
he does mean it, the United States, in
our judgment, must stand ready to meet
intervention of any sort with counter
intervention
Up to this time, our official position
has been that we will not use United
States armed forces to assist the anti
Castro fighters. With other reasons, this
position is dictated by political conSid-
erationS in the Western Hemisphere
by the opposition which could be ex-
pected to arise against any use of
American troops in Cuba. That this
opposition would in part, be Communist
inspired does not make it any less a
factor which must be taken into account.
The fact remains, however, that the
die has been cast in Cuba The anti
Castro forces are fighting for their
country, and the stake which the United
States has in their success can hardly
be exaggerated. Short of armed inter
vention, we should render such assist
ance as we can. And if the Russians
intervene in any way, that, it seems to
us, will be the time when force must
be met with force. If we are to survive
in this world, we must be prepared to
stand firm at some point against the
expansion and encroachmentS of inter-
national communism. Cuba certainly is
one such point, and this should be made
unmistakably clear to Mr.. Khrushchev.
Evening star., 1961-04-18
Rx for Survival?

Without expressing preference, or
even admitting to either habit, it is easy
to foreSee measure of agreement with
the reported theory of one DR.. B. G. B.
Lucas, identified as prominent British
aneSthetiSt and lecturer The theory is
that man must have alcohol or tran
quilizers to survive in today's Jet age.
Certainly the hubbub of modern living
the traffic, the taxes, the tensions of one
sort and another from Main Street to
outer space-is not conducive to quiet
peace of mind or unfailingly calm dis
position.
Perhaps 'wee drop" at the end of
a day, or pill now and then, serves
purpose. But so, of course, does the
cctfee-break, or the pause that refreShes,
or sometimes long walk in the country.
So each to his taste, and we suspect that
DR.. Lucas already under fire from the
United Kingdom Alliance for the Sup
preston of the Liquor Trade, may have
had calculating eye on future lecture
fees as much as on the therapeutic
needs Of man.
Evening star., 1961-04-18
No Time toQuit

The decision OF the Virginia Water
Pollution Control Board to become a
formal member of the Washington
Regional Sanitary Board is something
Of milestone In the realm of metro
politan cooperation. In the past, the
State agency has been somewhat less
than eager to join in such cooperative
endeaVorS, even though none of its
autonomous authority was at stake. 1t
is precisely because the Water Control
Board does have the authority to enforce
pollution laws in Virginia, of course,
that 1t will be such welcome and
valuable addition to the regional panel
1t is especially ironic, therefore, that
this encouraging step has been realized
at a time when the Regional Sanitary
Board Is threatened with extinction.
According to one source, Fairfax County
officials, who have been Sniping at the
board for some time, will attempt to
abolish it this week at a meeting Of its
parent body, the Washington Metro
politan Regional Conference
Perhaps, as some Fairfax officials
are expected to argue, the planning and
co-ordinating functions of the board
might be reconstructed in some other
form But why quit when you are
ahead? Essentially the board is COM
posed of the technical experts from
each Jurisdiction, whose meetings to-
gether provide regional perspective
which is invaluable in the performance
Of their jobs. In addition, the board
serves to provide cohesive technical
advice to the political leaders of the
area through the Regional Conference.
While 1t is still a young organization,
the Regional Board holds great deal
of promise. 1t would be shame If it
were to be dissolved for no better
. reasons than we have heard thus far.
Evening star., 1961-04-18
Scandal in the Red Eden

Ever since the Bolshevik Revolu-
ton in 1917, Soviet propagandiStS have
been making the most of stories-Some
true, some half true and some COM
pletely falSe-about official and un-
official dishonesty and corruption in the
United States and the free world as
whole. Red literature on the subject,
If it may be called literature, is almost
boundleSS in volume and unreStrained
in mendacity, and if it were all laid end
to end-the Pravda editorials, the
magazine articles, the books, the radio
scripts, ct Cetera-it undoubtedly would
circumnavigate the globe at the equator
and be an altogether depressing thing
to behold, let alone read.
Needless to say, the main purpose
Of this propaganda has been and still is
to depict the West (alwayS with special
emphasis on America) as a vast, sprawl
ing den of bourgeois" iniquity and
"capitaliStic" decay. And by way of
contrast, of course, MoscowS poison
pen artists keep on portraying the USSR
and the other lands in the Socialist
camp" behind the Iron Curtain as
honest and incorruptible people whose
wonderful goodness is attributable
primarily to the fact that they have
been educated in the school Of MarxiSm-
LeniniSm. They have been educated,
that is, in the "glories" of communism,
which creates way of life, according
70 party-line dogma, in which all
Soviet men and all Soviet women never
stray from the straight and narrow, and
are scarcely step removed from the
highest order Of the angels, whose ex-
iStence, incidentally, along with Gods,
is vehemently denied by every true
believer in the Kremlin.
Well, having all this in mind, it is
interesting to note that the Kremlin
has just kicked out of Office (perhaps as
a prelude to "liquidating" them per-
manently) all the top Communist
leaders Of the Soviet Tadzhik Republic
in Central Asia. AS officially an
nounced, they have brought about their
own downfall by playing fast and loose
with the regions cotton crop, by working
with swindlerS, by practicing nepotiSm
and by illegally enriching themselves.
Over the years, there have been many
such scandals in various parts of the
USSR-conceivably even more of them
than in the West, whose morality is
always being lambasted by the propa-
ganda machine in Moscow. Apparently,
when it comes to the failings and
frailties of human nature, the Marxist-
feminist paradise contains at least as
many bad apples as our capitalistic world.
Evening star., 1961-04-18
For q Clean Potomac

The Citizens Council for a
Clean Potomac would like to
express its support of HR
1905, the Federal Water Pol
luton Control Bill, which h
will, among other things, in
crease the amount of Federal
aid for each local sewage
treatment facility from $780,
900 to 100000.
We believe that this par
ticular item should be Of
considerable. interest to the
residents Of the Metropoli-
tan Area. Last year the Dis
trict of Columbia government
launched Project c., a long
range program of improve
mentS to the D. c. sewage
system, which, in order to
comply with the. directives of
the U. S. Public Health Serv-
ice, must be completed by
1866. 1t is essential that
financing become available to
the District which will en-
able it to meet the 1866
deadline. 1t is estimated
that under HR 1905 the Dis
trict would be eligible for an
additional 2 to 3 million dol
lars to apply to Project c."
The main features of PROF
ect C" include a new Poto-
mac interceptor sewer, an
interceptor for the Anacos-
tia Valley, a relief inter-
ceptor for Rock Creek, and a
start on the separation Of
the old combined sewer sys-
tenn in the District.
David V. Aud, the D. C.
Director Of Sanitary Engi-
neering, said at the ground
breaking ceremonies last
June, Project C will salts
fy the ultimate development
of the District of Columbia.
At the same time it will pro-
vide capacity for people ex-
pected to occupy some hun
dreds of square miles out
side the District for many
years to come"
We repeat our hope that
the Congress will pass this
bill which will do so much
towards restoring our Ma
tion's waterways and will pro-
vide permanent protection
for one of our rapidly de-
teriorating natural resources.
Ann c. Bailey.
Executive Secretary.
Citizens Council for a Clea
Potomac.
Evening star., 1961-04-18
Threat to Pimmit Run

The proposal for a freeway
carrying cars and trucks down
the valley of Pimmit Run in
Fairfax County points up
once more the speed at
which potential park land is
being swallowed up by paw
ing. This suggestion is a poor
solution to the transporta-
tion problem for many rea-
sons:
/. The mere act Of putting
the freeway on the map for
future construction will have
a disastrous effect on the
value of residential land in
it's vicinity. Therefore, it
should only be accepted by
the Planning Commission
when the need for it is
proved, when all alternative
routes have been thoroughly
studied, and when actual
construction of the freeway
is a certainty.
2. The need for such a
freeway has not been DEM
onstarted. A survey of Wash
ington's transportation prob
lens is about to be made, and
the indications are that
some form of rail transpor-
tation will be recommended
which would make the Pim-
NIT freeway unnecessary.
The horrible example Of Los
Angeles, enmeshed in a tangle
of 8 and IL lane highways.
several tiers deep. shows that
private automobiles alone
cannot solve the problems OF
daily transportation in and
out Of a large city.
3. Funds for construction
of the freeway will not be
available for many years.
4. The sole function Of the
freeway would be to carry
traffic to the Arizona Ave-
nue. Bridge. District authori-
ties do not expect this bridge
to be built for 20 or 25 years.
5. Finally, construction Of
a freeway in the Pimmit Run
Valley would destroy the
finest existing and potential
park land in the county-a
valuable asset to northern
Virginia which would be
permanently lost. The only
argument in favor Of this
route seems to be that it
would destroy fewer houses
than some of the alternate
routes. Destruction Of the
county's best park land would
be far more disastrous than
interference with houses.
Let us hope that the plan
ners will come up with a bet
ter solution than this.
David Norton YerkeS.
Evening star., 1961-04-18
Protests BUDGET Item

The D. C. Commissioners
certainly cannot be expect
ing Congress to take their
urgent" budget pleas seri-
ouSly when they ask for
public funds for such items
as an expensive birth pre-
vention center in D. C. as
requested by the Planned
Parenthood Group. This
small but articulate group
has never been able to enlist
sufficient voluntary financial
support from the public to
carry out their programs as
they would like to, so they
are now trying the usual
next step-force the public
through an imposed tax pro-
gram to pay for 1t anyhow
with the D. C. Commission
efS carrying the ball Tor
them.
1t is this "load-it-on- the
taxpayer" attitude on the
part of too many public Of
ficials acting in the interests
of private pressure groups,
that is slowly but surely turn
ing legislative representatives
and irate taxpayers alike
against all requests for public
appropriations.
If this loading" practice
keeps up, the public will soon
be so soured that even legit-
innate public programs will
suffer from the sweeping tax
payers revolt that will in
evitably follow.
Long Suffering Taxpayer.
Evening star., 1961-04-18

than at present-when we are all con-
fronted with an enormously complex
novelty of conditions" flowing from un-
precedented and ever accelerating
Change-for Federal "bureaucratS" en-
dowed with brains and good character.
The six who have just been honored fall
within that category. They personify
what President Kennedy had in mind
when he declared in his state-of-the-
Union message: Let the public service
be proud and lively career" for every
man and woman in it.
Evening star., 1961-04-18
Distinguished Six

Although little publicized, an event
OF more than passing significance has
just been staged here to honor six
Federal career officials for "distin-
guished service to the Government Of the
United States and the American people"
The six are Robert M. Ball, deputy
director of the Bureau of Old Age and
Survivors Insurance; former Ambas-
Sador Charles E. BohIen, special
assistant to the Secretary of State;
Sterling B. Hendricks, chief scientist
for the Agriculture Departments
Mineral Nutrition Laboratory for Pione-
ering Research; Richard McArdle, head
Of the Forest Service; Leonard Nieder-
lehner, deputy general counsel of the
Defense Department; and Conrad L.
Wirth, director of the National Park
Service.
Each Of these men has. received
a Rockefeller Public Service Award,
which includes an "honorarium" of
$500. The awards, established in 1851
with funds contributed by John D.
Rockefeller Sd, are administered by
Princeton University and bestowed
annually. They are intended not only
to honor outstanding civilians in the
Federal administration, but also to focus
public attention on the great variety of
opportunities and satisfactionS inherent
in working for the Government, and
thus to attract Americas ablest and
most gifted youths into making career
Of such service. AS Mr.. Rockefeller has
said at the presentation luncheon,
Courage, SenSitivity, vision &. are the
qualities that make for greatness in men
who serve the people," and that is why
there should be special effort in these
critical times to recruit candidates of
excellence for the all-important task of
serving in the Nations governing
agencies.
Speaking at the same gathering,
Secretary Of State Rusk has enlarged
on Mr.. Rockefeller's theme by declaring
that there never has been more need
Evening star., 1961-04-18

The Soviet space feat
which has sent RusSia's
wild Duck" to open the
door of the cosmos convinces
me that the Russians are
ahead Of us not only in
booster thrust, but in the
field Of rocketry "sophistica-
tion' in which our Cape
Canaveral people claim that
we are ahead.
Even their selection Of the
term "cosmonaut" is more
sophisticated than astronaut.
The Greek word "nautes"
means sailor. seaman. It is
more pleasant to the ear and
logic to hear the expression
the sailor Of the universe
than the sailor of the stars.
The acme of this logon
achy, with the people who still
think that our rocket pro-
gram is more sophisticated,
will occur within a few
months when Moscow Radio
will announce: Ladies and
gentlemen, for the first time
in the history of cosmos,
Ivan, the child Of the So
viets, is at the points Of apo
moon, perimoon and cpl
moon"
Nick ThaliklS.
Evening star., 1961-04-18
Education Neglected

"Quackery in Education"
calls attention to the serious
ness of the education problem
in this country. But it omits
a number of pertinent OBJ
servations.
This is probably the only
country in the world where
education is not entered into
seriously; that is, education
paid from the general funds.
The theory that education is
something like a game"
something that must exclude
serious labor and RESPONSE
bility, that it is play and not
work, has not turned out we'll
for the country. When I
taught languages at the Uni
verSity of Kentucky I was
puzzled to see that university
students did not know what
a participle, a gerund, the
Subjunctive mood, etc. are.
The dean explained to me
this was the fault Of the high
schools, but the high school
principal had already ex-
planned it was all the fault
of the grammar school.
Education here is a free"
gift Of the State, though cer-
tainly it is not a gift, as the
taxpayer will agree; but that
is the way it looks to the high
school student. The certainty
that he will graduate regard
less" has had a disastrous
effect on the morale Of edu-
cation; the fact that pres
sureS" can be applied in case,
just has harmed both the
student. the parents, and the
instructor. AS a result educa-
ton has lost its meaning of
a discipline. The word disci-
pline itself cannot be used
safely in public schools; we
have to call it adjustment.
motivation, and a lot of fancy
names having little to do with
the work of education.
There is no doubt at all that
public or even some private
education does not prepare
the young men or women for
the responsible life that one
must live in a society. The
youngsters soon enough find
out that the atmosphere and
attitudes of the factory and
the office. are not those Of the
high school classroom where
he was the center" of atten-
ton in a system of child
centered nonsense. Not a
Catholic myself, I am told
that Catholic schools have
waiting lists of Protestant
children who prefer educa-
ton centered around some
thing universal like the idea
of God.
Some years back while
visiting Puerto Rico I was
astonished to see the gov
ernor Of the island attend the
funeral of a public school
teacher, as an official duty,
as a duty to the social atti-
tude of the Latin peoples to-
ward education; I was aston
ished to see headlines and
pictures of the event in the
principal newspapers. and to
notice the general lament and
respect in which a public
school teacher is held there.
Education and educators are
the architects of the society
in which they live, and it is
incomprehensible that they
should be held in contempt.
Jesus, Plato, Aristotle,
Aquinas were educators.
Joseph I. Puente.
Evening star., 1961-04-18
Licensing Bicycles

1t was most gratifying to
read that the Commissioners
are contemplating licensing
bicycles. Why don't they in
quire of Baltimore police
concerning the tag situation
there? I understand they
charge about so cents and
the tags are required to be
on the back Of the bicycle
at all times.
EIOise A. Harris
Evening star., 1961-04-18
VISTAS IN SCIENCE
Farming Ocean Floor VisuoIized
By THOMAS R. HENRY

Sea farms probably will be
a necessity by the end Of this
century to feed earth's teem-
ing millions. 1t will be real
farming, with ploughing,
wedding, fertilizing and har-
rowing, just as on land. The
sea farmer is likely to be a
frog man, much of whose
labor will be on the ocean
bottom.
This is predicted by DR..
E. R. Yarnham, fellow of the
British Royal Geographic
Society. in a publication of
the United Nations Educa-
tional, Cultural and Scien-
tific Organization.
The fish crop can be
cultivated just like land
crops at present, he says.
Potentially each of the 140
million square miles of sea
may be made to yield more
food than each of the Sc
million square miles of land.
PIanktOn Main Source
This potential will be
realized" he says. "only when
the fish crop is cultivated,
just like land crops, and
various species protected
against their enemies.
THE primary source Of
food in the ocean is plankton,
a vast, living, drifting mass
of marine plants and animals.
most of minute size. Scien-
lists estimate that a typical
plankton- producing area may
yield 1000 tons of vegetable
matter per square mile an
nually. This compares to 700
to 800 tons for good wheat
land. The food value of
plankton is high-on the
average SO per cent protein,
20 per cent carbohydrate and
seven per cent fat
But this plankton is not
available directly for human
food. 1t first must be har-
vested by fish. 1t is esti-
mated that only one pound
of fish per acre for every 8S
pounds Of plankton now Is
produced. says DR.. Yarnham.
This amSSlnts to 27S pounds
Evening star., 1961-04-18
Firm Stand on Laos

III oomeSJlc pollJlcS, the
party called Democratic is
so metamorphosed that I
neger expect to be able to
vote for its presidential can
didate, especially if a Nixon
or a Goldwater is the Re-
publican choice.
But these are the critical
days in which domestic mat
ters are secondary. So, 1
venture to say that many
Republicans ought to exam
inc their consciences and re-
nounce forever a facile issue
on which they have capital
lied rather successfully-the
war party" epithet flung at
Democrats because fate has
given us war under three
Democratic Presidents.
What are the facts? Wood
row Wilson tamely ignored
the Lusitania outrage in 1915
only to be precipitated into
the maelstrom in 1917. Ger
many had sunk many Ameri-
can ships C53 if my memory
is accurate) before Congress
declared war. Similarly,
naked aggression dictated our
entry into World War II and
Korea. Party politics had
nothing to do with these
wars.
You may call modern De-
mocracy collectiviSt, statist,
socialistic or demagogic with
out departing from the truth
or justice. But call it war
like" and you inhibit it from
conducting our foreign rela-
tions in that manly way
which Americans have a right
to expect and which, alone,
can save our world from even
tual destruction.
Following Gen. Eisenhow-
er's fine example. every Am
erican should support a firm
stand in Laos. 1t would be
disastrous to lose any more
territory or face. To nego-
tiate under Chinese threats
would humiliate us in the
eyes of all Southeast Asia.
We have no choice but to
roll back the aggressors.
Edward Caffery
Aiken, s, c,
Evening star., 1961-04-18
LETTERS TO THE STAR

Pen names may be used II
letters carry tDriters' correct
names and addresses. All let
terS ore subject to condenSd-
tion. Those not used iIiH be
returned only When accom- =
panied by self = addressed,
stamped enUelopeS.
Evening star., 1961-04-18

per acre compared with 800
pounds of beef on good pas
ture. However, he points out,
in the future the sea will
be "reaped, narrowed and
rolled" in the same way that
land is now. Eventually fish
ermen will pull devices over
the sea floor to weed out
creatures that take food from
the more edible fish. 1t is
calculated, he says, that if
only a quarter of such pests
were eliminated, q given
area could be made TO sup
port 10 times the amount of
fish as at present.
Large Fertile Areas
There are, he says, large
areas OF fertile prairie and
equally large areas of almost
lifeless desert in the oceans.
Extensive surveys will be
necessary to determine the
location and extent of these.
The open sea has limited
fertile areas which are due
to the ploughing up of food
substance from deep water
to the sun-lit surface zone.
Desert areas do not have
this natural fertilizing pro-
cess.
The deserts could be
turned into green pastures, it
is held. the deep waters
could be made artificially
to rise to the surface-lit-
orally a ploughing Of the
sea just as land is ploughed.