Battalion Editorials
Page 2
TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 28,1950
There Is More to Gain Than to Lose . . .
T HERE IS more to gain than there is to
lose this 1950 Thanksgiving Day in Aus
tin. Winning will mean that A&M does what
it hasn’t been able to do since 1939. And it
will mean also that we will hold on to at
least a tie for the second place berth in
Southwest Conference Standings.
Winning Thursday virtually will insure
every Aggie a happy Thanksgiving holiday.
If we lose, there’ll be some long faces and
pinched hearts, but like any other loss, we’ll
recover our composure quickly and begin
looking to that game with Georgia.
If we win, let’s manage somehow to get
Too Easy For Traffic Violators
D isheartening but being proved time
and again—people will ignore a bad gen
eral condition until some specific incident
startles them into awakening. A hit-and-run
case in Dallas which was bungled by the Dis
trict Attorney’s office has brought out many
cries for reform of their traffic accident
laws. And the same general faults of the
Dallas traffic laws are to be found through
out our state.
Here is a brief account of the case that
awakened the Dallas traffic cases reformers:
Joe Weaver, twenty-one years old, ran
down two young brothers; then ran away
from the scene of the accident without giving
and aid to the boys. Later, Weaver admit
ted he had been drinking before the accident.
He 1 was indicted for murder without malice
and failure to stop and render aid. Before
the trial, the District Attorney’s office made
a deal with the defense lawyers. In return
for a plea of guilty, the D.A.’s office changed
the charges. Weaver got away with a nine
ty day jail term and a two year suspended
sentence.
When the newspapers realized what had
happened, they began yelling. Figurative
. stones were thrown but before the first one
had hardly hit, the writers and reformers
discovered a bitter fact. The D.A.’s bunch
weren’t the big sinners—it was the people
of Dallas.
Although a strong prosecution of this
case probably would have resulted in a stiff-
er punishment for Weaver, traffic accident
cases are extremely difficult to prosecute.
Why? The people that make up Dallas’ jur
ies do not want tough punishment for traffic
law violators. They free one-half of all traf
fic violators brought to court. People' have
not yet realized the seriousness and danger
of drunken driving.
In a speech last week, District Attorney-
elect Henry Wade previewed his plans for
remedying the problem. “We must convince
our juries that liquor and gasoline not only
will not mix,” he said, “but they are murder
when placed together on the highways and
streets.” The most immediately useful part
of his plans calls for attempting to incor
porate the “Detroit Plan” into Texas state
statutes. This plan makes jail sentences
mandatory for drunken driving.
Not until the people of Texas realize the
danger of traffic law offenders and begin to
want stiff prosecution and punishment, will
our law enforcement officers be able to per
form their duties efficiently.
A Salute, An Observance
How Can It Be Thanksgiving?
By J. M. ROBERTS, JR.
IN MANY a home across the great reaches
l of America, Thanksgiving 1950 must seem
merely a day of more penetrating ache.
The warmth of thousands of firesides is
chilled by drafts from North Korea. The
chairs of sons, brothers and husbands are
empty. Some wi 1 l be filled again in a more
joyous time, but others, never. Some are
still filled, but around the heads of their oc
cupants play the fears of families who don’t
know where they will be next Thanksgiving.
Is there any balm, then, for those
who have watched the young-life of
June flow out across the battlefields of
July, August, September, October and
November; for those who know not
what word tomorrow may bring?
How can it be Thanksgiving?
Can it be Thanksgiving because there is,
as yet, only a small war? Can it be because
a fewer men have died in the persistent hope
of saving a host of others? Can it be be
cause of that other hope that aggressors
have been deterred by this display of devo
tion to the cause of peace ?
Can it be because the men of America
The Battalion
Lawrence Sullivan Ross, Founder of Aggie Traditions
"Soldier, Statesman, Knightly Gentleman”
(he Battalion, official newspaper of the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas, is published
five times a week during the regular school year. During the summer terms, The Battalion is published
four times a week, and during examination and vacation periods, twice a week.. Days of publication are
Monday through Friday for the regular school year, Tuesday through Friday during the summer terms,
and luesday and Thursday during vacation and examination periods. Subscription rates $6.00 per year
or $.50 per month. Advertising rates furnished on request.
The Associated Press is entitled exclusively to the use for republication of aU news dispatches cred
ited to it or not othenvise credited in the paper and local news of spontaneous origin published herein.
Rights of republication of all other matter herein are also reserved.
Korean War Sum-Up Indicates
Hazy Future, Dark Possibilities
out of Austin without wrecking their city in
our joy. They have everything to lose, so
they are going to be a little grouchy if we
come out of Memorial Stadium with that
game to our credit.
In Dallas, we managed to maintain a
spirit of competition that resulted in the
best Corps Trip we have had in a long time.
People over the state have not forgotten the
Aggies and their manner in Dallas that
weekend ’till yet. We can strengthen that
reputation in Austin Thursday, if we but
try halfway.
By DON WHITEHEAD
With U.S. Forces in Korea, Nov. 28—WP)—One month ago General
MacArthur was supremely confident the Korean war would be fin
ished by Thanksgiving.
It still is raging and carrying with it the seeds from which could
spring another world conflict.
This is the dismal picture at the close of five months of bloody
conflict on this peninsula—so remote from the United States.
This war, which the United Nations by police action hoped to end
quickly, has become a testing muscle between the world of Commun
ism and the free Western world.
Cue of Strangest Wars In History
It is one of the strangest wars in history. It is a war in which
victory was won and then was snatched away by a nation rushing in to
save the remnants of a defeated army.
United Nations troops whipped the first line of Red forces—the
North Korean army. But then came the Chinese Red armies southward
across the Manchurian border.
They threw up the second line of defense and thereby prolonged
the war.
Frankly, military men here feel now that the diplomats hold the
answer to the question of whether the world is to be plunged into a
massive war of the free world against Communism.
There is a strong feeling in this army against appeasing either
Communist China or Russia over Korea, where U.N. forces have paid
a high price in blood and material to punish an aggressor. The feeling
is that appeasement would make the whole effort an adventure in
futility.
Troops Fight, Diplomats Plan
While diplomats grapple with the problem, the troops will con
tinue fighting toward the Manchurian border, the final goal.
This war is in its fifth and final phase—the phase which may
decide whether the Korean war will be limited to this peninsula or
whether it will spread over a large part of the globe.
First Phase
The 'first month was one of defeats and retreats. The Red tanks
and infantry plunged across the 38th parallel June 25 without warning.
The South Korean army, neither equipped nor trained to meet such
an assault, fell apart in confusion.
Then came President Truman’s decision, backed by the United Na
tions, to resist this aggression. U.S. troops were rushed into battle.
They were green. They were not prepared in numbers or in training
to battle the enemy on equal terms.
So that first month was one of heart-breaking retreats, of units
cut to pieces by overwhelming odds. American troops were sacrificed
for time in which to get men and tanks and guns across the Pacific.
It was one of the blackest months in U. S. • military records as a woe
fully weak America girded once more for battle.
The U.S. 24th Infantry Division,suffered the shock of those first
desperate days. Then reinforcements began to trickle into Korea. The
25th Infantry and First Cavalry Divisions. The odds were cut slowly.
Second Phase
expected the war to be over by Thanksgiving.
crossed the Manchurian border and ambushed unsuspecting columns o
South Korean and American troops. pnnmv
The U.N. forces were caught totally unaware by this ? ie A e k u
One battalion of the Eighth Cavalry Regiment was almost wiped out
and two South Korean divisions were badjy mauled. ,
The northward march came to a surprised halt. U.N. tioops hastily
pulled back to set up a defense line running across the waist ot tnc
peninsula. Then they warily began to feel out the Reds befoie making
any new thrusts. „ , . „ , ,, T :n
Now the Allied forces are edging forward again. But no one wm
predict what the outcome will be if Red China puts more divisions
into North Korea. Tr r , ,, f, n t nr p
The start of the fifth month of the Korean war finds the lutuie
' There is the ominous threat that Korea could be a_ battlefield foi
months to come and a tragic entrance into a new and gigantic coni lit .
Last Corps Trip
(Or Judgment Day In Aggieland)
By P. H. DUVAL
It was judgment day in Aggieland
And tenseness Ulled the air;
All knew there was a trip at hand,
But not a soul knew where.
Assembled on the drill field
Was the world renowned twelfth man.
The entire fighting Aggie Team
And the famous Aggie Band.
And out in front with Royal Guard
The reviewing party stood;
St. Peter and his angel staff
Were choosing bad from good.
First he surveyed the Aggie team
And in terms of an angel swore;
“By Jove I do believe I’ve seen
This gallant group before.”
“I’ve seen them play since way back when
And they’ve always had the grit;
I’ve seen ’em lose and I’ve seen ’em win
But I’ve never seen ’em quit.
TODAY LAST DAY |
FIRST RUN
—Feature Starts—
1:52 - 3:54 - 5:56i- 7:58 - 10:00
THE BATTLIN'
BOZOS OF
COMPANY “B”!
IV
DAVID BRIAN • JOHN ADAH
News — Cartoon
STARTS WEDNESDAY
FIRST RUN
NEWS — CARTOON
have once again taken the field beside the
spirits of their forefathers, to assert with all
their might that freedom shall not perish
from the earth?
Can it be because men too few in
numbers, too lightly equipped, taken by
surprise, conducted themselves superb
ly, awakening the pride and strength of
a nation so that in future days they will
not be too few, too lightly equipped, nor
taken by surprise?
Can it be because America, leaping for
ward to defend a weak and strangely alien
people from aggression, has become the ral
lying point for the independent spirit of two
thirds of the world, and given the United
Nations a future?
Thanksgiving is a part of the America
for which so many have died, and which so
many more are training to defend. Not one
of them but would say to their families, “Do
things up just like you usually do—for me.”
For if thanksgiving, 1950, may not be cel
ebrated, it may be observed. For those who
formed the world’s first United Nations ar
my for freedom, both the quick and the
dead, it can be a salute.
Through August and early September, Lt. Gen. Walton H. Walker
shuttled regiments in his Eighth Army, playing them about like a
man putting out a dozen fires with a garden hose. But he stabilized
a line north of Taegu and southward along the Naktong river.
It was in this phase that the enemy may have made his fatal mis-
take.
Instead of massing power down the Taegu-Pusan road, the Reds
chose to split their forces and open a front in the South.
As Walker received reinforcements—the Marines, the Second In
fantry Division and the British Brigade—he threw them into the line.
And the U.N. force hung on with strong aid from rebuilt'South Korean
divisions.
Somehow Walker managed to hold that line even though it seemed
impossible at times. The Reds were hammering all around the perim- :
eter. } . ’
While this line was being held, General MacArthur was perfecting
a master stroke, the landing of a strong force behind the enemy lines.
Third Phase
This decisive phase began with the landing of the Marines at
Inchon on Sept. 15 and the launching of the Eighth Army offensive
in the South. In seven days the Marines and the U.S. Seventh Infantry
Division swept into Seoul, cutting the main Red army supply route to
the south. * ■ . , „ , , , ,
Then the Eighth Army broke through in the South and shattered
the lied lines. Almost overnight, the course of the war changed. U.N.
forces were the hunters, not the hunted.
Fourth Phase
The Allied army swept through'Seoul and surged on north across
the 38th parallel. The South Korean First Division and the First Cav-
airy Division smashed through Pyongyang, the capital of lied North
Korea. It seemed that the war was over except for a sweep to the
Manchurian border.
North Korean divisions were in complete rout. Thousands of en
emy troops were streaming out of the hills to surrender or to oon civil
ian clothes and join the refugee hordes along the roads. Diehard Red
units still resisted, but as an army the North Korean forces had dis
integrated.
1 Fifth Phase
This victory turned into bitter disappointment for those who
Letters To The Editor
Send the Band
To Frexy Cup Game
Editor, The Battalion:
I read in the paper this morn
ing that Representative OJin
Teague is trying to raise money
to send the Band to Washington
December !) with the team. Send
ing the Band along would not only
be good for the team, but would
also be fine publicity for A&M
and the Southwest Conference gen
erally.
It seems rather questionable to
me, however, whether the money
would be raised in time. I do not
know how much would be required
to send the band, but I would cer
tainly be willing'to contribute f3ur
bits or a dollar, and several others
I have talked to said they would
also.
If most of the school would put
in what they could, it should be
enough. Why not say something
about it and see how the troops
(See LETTERS, Rage (!)
No need for us to tarry here
Deciding upon their fates;
’Tis as plain.as the halo on my head
That they’ve opened Heaven’s gates.
And when the Twelfth man heard this
They let out a mighty yell;
That echoed clear to Heaven
And shook the gates of hell.
“And what group is this upon the side?”
St. Peter asked,4 his aide,
“That swelled as if to burst with pride
When we our judgment made.”
“Why sir, that’s the cadet corps,
That’s known both far and v/ide,
For backing up their fighting team
Whether they won or lost or tied.
Well then, said St. Peter
It’s very plain to me
That within the realms of Heaven
They should spend eternity.
“And have the Texas Aggie Band
At once commence to play
For their fates too, we must decide
Upon this crucial day.”
And the drum major so hearing
Slowly raised his hand
And said, “Boys lets play ‘The Spirit’
For the last time in Aggieland.”
And the band poured fourth the Anthem
In notes both bright and clear
And ten thousand Aggie voices
Sung the song they hold so dear
And when the band had finished
St. Peter wiped his eyes
And said “It’s not so hard to see
They’re meant for Paradise.
And the colonel of the cadet corps said
As he stiffly took his stand
“It’s just another Corps Trip boys
We’ll march in behind the band.”
TODAY thru WEDNESDAY
Warner bros:
P'
Me was
a man
with a
chip
on his I
shoulder
and a
Border
lady
on his
NOW SHOWING
LI’L ABNER
Journey’s H’end!!
Entered as second-class matter at Post
Office at College Station, Texas, under
the Act of Congress of March 3, 1870.
Member of
1'he Associated Press
Represented nationally by National Ad
vertising Service Inc., at New York City,
Chicago, Los Angeles, and San Francisco.
DAVE COSLETT, CLAYTON L. SELPH 1 Co-Editors
John Whitmore, L. O. Tiedt Managing Editors
frank N Mamtzas Sports Editor
Jerry Zuber , Campus Editor
Joel Austin City Editor
By Al (Japp
AFTER 7R'CHILLUN'^uiOOS
HAS FINISHED PLAVlN'C^
WIF IT ALL DAY HOPE £pv,,^ ^
Today’s Issue
L O. Tiedt Managing Editor
Jerry Zuber Campus News Editor
Frank N. Manitzas Sports News Editor
Joel Austin City News Editor
TODAY & WEDNESDAY
“Kind Hearts &
Coronets”
with
ALEC GUINNESS
T. M. Fontaine, Carter Phillips Editorialists
Bob Hughsen, Andy Anderson. George Charlton. Tom
Rountree. Allen Pengelley. Leon McClellan. Wayne
Davis, Bob Venable. Bill Streich, Norman Blahuta.
,Tohn Hildebrand. Bryan Spencer. Bay Williams,
Herb O'Connell, Jim Anderson, On James, J. P.
Stern. Eaymon Swim, Robert Bali. Bert Hardaway,
Eduard Holder, Richard Ewing News and Feature -Writers
‘JRoger Cosljtt - Quarterback Club
Ross Marie Zuber : Society Editor
Jack f ontame, Jerry Fontaine Special Assignments
Sid Abernathy Campus News Editor
Sam Molinary ...Chief Photographet
Herman C. Gollob .Amusements. Editoi
Ralph Gorman, Ray Holbrook, Harold Gann, Joe
Blanchette, Pat LeBlanc. Dale Dowell, Jimmy Curtis,
Chuck Neighbors. Fred Walker Sports .Write&
Bob Hancock. John Holllngshead.
.Tommy Fontaine, James Lancaster .Photo Engravers
Emmett Trent Jerry Clement. Bob Hendrv ........ . Cartoonists
Adtrey Frederick Advertising M3iutS«
•Russell Hagens, Frank Thurmond. .Advertising Representatives
Be Here on Dec, 15:
Wendell Corey
“NO SAD SONGS FOR ME”