College Station’s Official
Newspaper; Circulated Daily
To 90% of Local Residents
The Battalion
PUBLISHED DAILY IN THE INTEREST OF A GREATER A&M COLLEGE
Published By
Students of Texas A&M
For 74 Years
Number 85: Volume 52
COLLEGE STATION (Aggieland), TEXAS, MONDAY, FEBRUARY 4, 1952
Price Five Cents
Same Song, Different Verse
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This has all happened before, but it is still confusing: says Fresh
man R. M. Webb, Plainview, as he gets his registration card from
Walter Elred, registrar’s office employee. He was just one of the
5,000 who went through the same ritual of signing up for classes,
paying fees, getting athletic cards, buying magazines, and the
thousand and one other things connected with registration. On the
right Fish Webb signs a "must” in his curricula—English. He is
registered in the class by R. G. Pickett of the English department.
Unofficial Figures Released;
5,432 Students Enrolled
An estimated 5,432 have registered so far for the second
term, H. L. Heaton, registrar said yesterday afternoon. The
office of the registrar was working all day Sunday to process
the cards of the students who had gone through the line by
the end of registration Saturday.
Of this number 119 are new students to the college and
5,313 are old returning students.
An official count will not be available, Heaton said, until
all of the cards have been processed and machine counted.
He estimated there would be another 200 to 300 students
register late.
Government Finds
Big Grain Shortage
From the English table he went to the Ah- Science registration
section, left. Capt. J. N. Hoffman, center, signs Fish Webb’s regis
tration card. Before he can leave, picture on the right, Fish Webb
must have the approval of the Basic Division. He is getting this
from John P. Oliver, acting for the dean of the Basic Division.
Aggie Cagers Lose
To TU Steers 40-51
Finally it is all over. All of the classes are signed and all of the
cards filled out, so hungry, thirsty and tired, Fish Webb hands
his assignment card over to Mrs. H. Brownlee of 1 the Registrar’s
office.
Giant Duster Rips
Across Entire State
Great clouds of reddish dust roll
ed across Texas Sunday in what a
soil expert said could be the fore
runner in some areas of the dis
astrous dusters of the early 1930’s.
“About two million acres south
and west of Lubbock are in suffi
ciently critical condition that such
dust storms may continue,” Louis
Merrill said at Fort Worth. He is
regional director' of the U. S. Soil
Conservation Service.
North and northwest winds of 30
to 40 miles an hour, with gusts up
Deadline Feb. 5
For 5 Year Men
Men who have not signed the
new draft agreement and have
completed their Military Science
training requirements, but not
their academic qualifications
must sign the agreements before
Feb. 5, announced SFC Thomas
Heller of the Selective Service
office of the Military depart
ment.
Sgt. Heller’s office is in the
second floor of Ross Hall.
to 50, drove the dust from the El
Paso-Panhandle area to Houston
and the Rio Grande Valley.
At mid-afternoon visibility was
cut -to three or four miles with
some east Texas towns, reporting
it as low as three quarters of a
mile.
Planes Grounded
Private light planes were
grounded. Airlines flew on instru
ments.
El Paso, which had its duster
Saturday night, reported clear
skies. The storm hit Houston late
Sunday, reducing visibility to 1%
miles at 5:30 p. m. an hour later
it rose to eight miles.
Meredith said approximately
3,500,000 acres of crop and range
land were without sufficient cover.
These include the two million acres
^•hich are in critical condition.
“In the other million and a half
scattered acres there is sufficient
moisture that emergency tillage
operations are being used to pro
duce cloddy or roughened sur
faces,” he said.
Pulverized Dirt
“This can be done until the
roughened surface is worn down by
(See DROUTH, Page 2)
The Texas Longhorns pushed to
a tie for,the Southwest Conference
basketball lead in Austin Saturday
night as a Jim Dowies-led quintet
defeated A&M 51-40 in Gregory
Gym.
The Aggies went behind in the
first period and never regained the
lead, although they closed the gap
to 22-20 at halftime.
By virtue of TCU’s loss to Ar
kansas in Little Rock Saturday
night, the Longhorns moved into
a tie with the Horned Frogs for
first place, while the Aggies and
SMU are tied for second with two
conference losses.
Davis High Scorer
Center Walt Davis of the Aggies
was high scorer of the evening as
he racked up half the Cadets points
—20. Dowies was second to the
6 foot 9 inch pivot man with 19
markers. Scaling made 13 points
for Texas, while Miksch accounted
for 7 for the Ags.
Entering the game with only one
conference defeat, both teams had
met earlier this year in the Cotton
Bowl tournament. A&M won the
pre-season contest by one point.
Dowies was top man for Texas
all the way as he hit the basket
from practically any vintage point.
Aggie Rally
Early in the fourth quarter the
Aggies got hot and narrowed the
score margin to 7 points, but the
rally fell short as Don Binford,
the boy who sparked the comeback,
left the game with five fouls.
The last minutes of the contest
proved to be very humiliating to
the Aggies as Texas tucked the
ball under their own freeze play
with four minutes left. The Cadets
went all over the court after the
ball trying vainly to gain posses
sion from the Longhorns who were
leading at this point 43-36.
Approximately 7,000 spectators
(See AGGIES BOW, Page 2)
Washington, Feb. 4 —OP)— A
House subcommittee reported to
day that in Texas alone it has
found shortages of $3,820,000 in
the government’s grain storage
program.
An appropriations subcommittee
headed by Rep. Whitten (D-Miss)
had its staff investigate the pro
gram last fall. Then in January it
summoned Secretary of Agriculture
Brannan and other officials to
closed .hearings to go over the re
port.
A report to the house, together
with the transcript of the hearing,
was made public today.
y Investigation
The Senate Agriculture Commit
tee has also undertaken an investi
gation, and Whitten said he would
turn over to it all the information
his group gathered. Brannan has
told senators private firms were to
blame for the shortages, and that
no government employees bene
fited.
The House subcommittee crit
icized the Commodity Credit Cor
poration, the Agriculture depart
ment’s agency which handles grain
storage, for what it called failure
to inspect storage facilities before
and during the time they are used
to store government grain. The
grain is bought as part of the
farm price support program.
During the hearings Brannan
dismissed as “pipe-dreaming” re
ports that CCC losses would ran
up to 100 million dollars or more.
Asked by Rep. Andersen (R-
Minn) whether he anticipated that
more than five millions is involved
in all of these shortages, Brannan
replied.
5-7 Million
many states no law violations are
involved.
The subcommittee noted that the
CCC since its inception “has hand
led loans and purchase transac
tions totaling over 14% billion
dollars with less than one billion
in losses.”
It said nothing had been found
“which reflects upon the price-sup
port program in any way.” The re
port continued:
“However, the members of the
subcommittee do believe that the
information developed indicates
that the organization and the op
erating policies of the corporation
leave much to be desired.
Prisoner Swap
Decision Near
In Peace Talks
Munsan, Korea, Feb. 4—(H 5 )—The United Nations and
Communists today moved near agreement on plans for ex
changing war prisoners as truce negotiators scheduled a full
dress session Wednesday to start work on the final section
of a Korean Armistice.
* “I think we can get together and write the rest of the
agreement” on prisoner exchange, said Rear Adm. R. E.
Libby. “For the first time, I think we are in a position to
settle the nuts and bolts of the situation.”
Staff officers drafting truce supervision plans made no
measurable headway. They still must iron out differences
over troop rotation, neutral inspection and definitions of
coastal waters. U. N. spokesmen have described the differ
ences as minor. The staff officers are not debating the key
~ ^ truce supervision issue — whether
the Reds have the right to build
British Malaya
Policy Designed
To Beat Reds
“We say five to seven million,
Mr. Andersen. Again I say that if
we lose much more than a half mil
lion dollars out of the grain cases
I will be very much surprised.”
Brannan and his aides said that
while the shortages are violations
of contracts between the govera-
ment and the grain elevators, in
Florist to Have
Short Course Here
Commercial Florist Short Coursfs
opened here Sunday in the MSG.
The short course will be held
through 5 p.m. today.
Sponsored by the Floriculture
and Landscape Architecture de
partment, with A. F. DeWerth as
chairman, the annual short course
will be held in the Ballroom of the
MSG.
Singapore, Feb. 4—(H 5 )—
Britain took a bold gamble to
day in a “new broom” policy
for beating Red terrorism in
Malaya. She appointed a new
British administrator with no pre
vious Malayan experience in hopes
he will “bring a fresh line to bear
on the many complexities” in this
strategic tin and rubber producing
country.
London announced the appoint
ment of Donald Charles MaeGilliv-
ray, now colonial secretary to Ja
maica, as the new deputy high com
missioner for the Malayan federa
tion. His job will be to direct civil
affairs under the newly appointed
high commissioner, Gen. Sir Ger
ald Templer, strong-arm military
man •who was named last month to
lead the war against the Red guer
rillas.
Malay and Chinese political lead
ers, who are seeking eventual in
dependence for the British con
trolled federation, doubtless will
view the appointment of MacGil-
livray with suspicion and disap
pointment. They had been expect
ing someone familiar with Mala
ya’s complex political problems as
deputy high commissioner.
Government supporters voted
down a proposal in the Federal
Legislative Council at Kuala Lum
pur that an Asian be named deputy
high commissioner. Feeling ran
high in the debate on the issue,
and even many of those who voted
to give London a free hand in clos
ing its administration voiced the
hope he would be an expert in Ma
layan affairs.
Aggie Debaters
Drop Forensic
Meet at Baylor
Aggie debaters were edged
out of the winning positions
by Texas University in the
Baylor University annual in
vitational forensic tour n a-
ment which was held in Waco' Fri
day and Saturday.
Three out of the four Aggie
teams making the trip got as far
as the ■ elimination rounds. Two
teams went as far as the first eli
mination round and the third went
on to the second elimination where
it lost to TU.
Thirty schools from seven south
ern and southwestern states have
entered approximately 300 speak
ers in the week-end meet, Harri
son Heirth, Aggie debate coach
said.
During the debate, which was
resolved: That the Federal Gov
ernment Should Adopt a Perman
ent Program of Wage and Price
Control, 16 teams were entered
in the junior senior elimination
rounds.
This was the first time the A&M,
men had debated in competition on
the question, Hierth said.
Dance Class Meets
Ballroom dancing instruction
classes will begin next Monday,
instead of tonight as scheduled, an
nounces Miss Betty Bolander, MSC
program co-ordinator.
and repair North Korean military
airfields.
The full, five-man armistice dele
gations will meet in Panmunjom at
10 a.m. Wednesday (8 p.m. EST
Tuesday) to open negotiations on
agenda item five — recommenda
tions to governments.
First in Two Months
It will be the first plenary ses
sion since Dec. 4. Subcommittees
and staff officers have been in ses
sion daily, however.
Vice Adm. C. Turner Joy pro
posed Jan. 31 negotiations on three
sections of the truce be conducted
simultaneously to speed agreement
on an armistice.
In accepting his suggestion the
Reds agreed to provide a detailed
working draft. They are expected
to propose withdrawal of all for
eign troops from Korea—a pet
Communist project—and a high
level political conference to settle
the whole Korean question.
U. N. headquarters in Tokyo said
no recommendations will be mad*
to governments involved in the Ko
rean war unless the truce negotia<
tors agree on what to recommend.
The disclosure killed off specula
tion that two separate sets of rec
ommendations would be made.
Staff officers working on trace
supervision and the prisoner ex
change subcommittee will meet as
usual at 11 a.m. Tuesday (9 p.m.
EST Monday).
Optimistic
Admiral Libby Monday gave
newsmen the most optimistic re
port of the prisoner exchange sub
committee’s 53 meetings.
“We may be ready to go to the
staff officer level in a day or two,
(See PEACE, Page 4)
Ex Interior Boss,
Harold Ickes, Dies
Polish Officer Massacre
Eye Witness to Report on Reds
Washington, Feb. 4—(A 5 )—A man
who says he saw Russians murder
ing Polish army officers in Katyn
Forest during World War II will
testify before a Congressional com
mittee trying to find out whether
Nazis or Russians committed the
massacre.
Rep. Madden (D-Ind), chairman
of a special House investigating
committee, announced during the
weekend that “this is the only eye
witness—outside the men who did
the murdering—who has ever been
produced.”
So far unidentified, the mysteiy
witness will appear Wednesday,
Madden said.
The committee, however, will be
gin its investigation today (1:30
p.m. EST) into the mass murder
of 4,143 Polish army leaders in
Katyn Forest near Smolensk in
1943. That many corpses were
found in crade mass graves. An
other 11,000 Polish prisoners are
still missing.
All were taken from Poland and
held in three western Russian pris
on camps. The Russians, despite
this, say the Nazis are to blame
for the massacre. The Germans
blame the Russians.
John Mitchell, committee counsel,
says he has ample evidence to
prove that the Russian committeed
the killings.
First witness to appear before
the special committee wil be Col.
John H. Van Vliet, an American
army officer who was flown from
a German prison camp by the
Nazis to see the stacked bodies of
the dead Poles.
The Nazis wanted the American
to authenticate their graesome dis
covery.
Report Made
Van Vliet, back from duty in Ja
pan, is repeating the story for the
third time officially. He made a
report to the Pentagon after his
release from captivity, and when
this was reportedly lost, he made
a second five years later from
memory.
The committee not only wants to
hear him tell about what he saw
in Katyn Forest, but also about
the two imports he made to the
Pentagon and what happened to
the first one.
Made in May 1945, it was classi
fied “top secret” and never was
released. Curious congressmen
were told later the report and ac
companying photographs had been
“lost.”
Committee officials indicated
they would try to determine wheth
er Washington officials tried to
cover up the incident during the
latter stages of World War II.
Interested Congressmen
The committee was authorized
during the last congressional ses
sion to investigate the massacre.
Congressmen from Polish-Ameri-
can districts are interested.
Madden said the hearing will
have more ramifications than just
trying to investigate the Katyn
affair.
“Stalin and the Reds have been
talking about Americans killing
Communist prisoners in Korea,” he
said. “This hearing will present
evidence of the greatest mass geno
cide in history, and will reveal the
criminal mind behind the Com
munist leaders.”
In addition to Van Vliet and the
mystery witness, the committee has
announced it also has two Poles
Avho escaped from some of the
camps where the murdered officers
previously were confined.
They may appear masked, in or
der to protect their identities so
relatives still behind the iron cur
tain wont be punished, Madden
said.
Madden said the hearings may
be televised after the second or
third day.
Washington, Feb. 4—GP)—Har
old L. Ickes, one of the most color
ful figures of the Roosevelt New
Deal, died to-
night.
Ickes 77 years
old, died at 5:25
o’clock (CST)
tonight in Em
ergency Hospi
tal, where he
had been under
treatment for
complications of
a former arthri
tic condition.
• Ickes Ickes was Sec
retary of Interior in 1932-46 and
head man of the Public Works Ad-
minstration of the turbulent de
pression years.
A sharp-tongue phrasemaker,
Ickes called himself “the old cur
mudgeon” and in his time was just
as rough on others.
Ickes previously had been under
hospital treatment but returned to
his home at nearby Olney, Md., on
Jan. 18, apparently much improved.
He took a turn for the worse ten
days later and went back to the
hospital.
Latter Years Quiet
His last years were spent in
comparative quiet, but there were
few men of his day who could
look back on such a vigorous—and
often stormy career. His running
fued with the late Harry Hopkins,
President Roosevelt’s close friend
and head of the Works Progress
Administration, made “New Deal”
history.
Ickes’ public life was controver-
sal to the end. He resigned from
President Truman’s cabinet in
1946 saying he could no longer
stay in the cabinet and “retain
my self respect.” His anger was
stirred to this point by an argu
ment with Truman over the Pres
ident’s nomination of Edwin W.
Pauley, an oil man, to be undersec
retary of the Navy. Iches regard
ed Pauley’s appointment—which
was never confirmed by the Senate
—as contrary to his concept of
preserving the nation’s oil resour
ces.
Ickes, a native Pennsylvanian
who practiced law in Chicago, came
to Franklin D. Roosevelt’s atten
tion at the outset of Roosevelt’s
presidential career. Both men were
interested in conservation and
Roosevelt named him to be secre
tary of the interior. He held that
post longer than any other man.
Sharp Tongue
Ickes had a quick wit and
a sharp tongue and he used them
liberally. He had a talent for pin
ning barbed labels on people the
world over—including Harold Le-
Clair Ickes.
He called himself “the old cur
mudgeon,” a word Webster defines
as “an avaricious, grasping fel
low; a miser; niggard; churl.”
“I’ve known for a long time,”
he once remarked, “that I’m not
loved with the feiwor to which I’m
entitled. If a man worked hard at
it he couldn’t get a bigger list of
enemies than I.”
He once said Huey P. Long, late
senator from Louisiana, had “hal
itosis of the intellect.”
Ickes once referred to Thomas E.
Dewey, the Republican presidential
candidate in 1944 and 1948 as “the
candidate in sneakers.”