Honolulu Record, September 2, 1948, vol. 1 no. 5, p. 2
Heat Wave
The eastern half of the nation still suffered from the heat wave with no relief in sight. Deaths attributable to the heat wave came close to the 167 mark. For the seventh straight day, on Sunday in the east and midwest the temperatures rose to 100 degrees.
In the Great Lakes area a drought danger was increasing rapidly. For more than two weeks the area had no appreciable rainfall.
In industrial cities, workers by tens of thousands were sent home to seek relief from the heat. In Detroit 40,000 auto workers took time off, with the layoff affecting Packard, Ford, Dodge, Plymouth, Chrysler and Briggs body plants.
In New York the weather bureau received the most calls in history one day last week. The 185,772 calls compared with the 149,888 calls received within a 24-hour period during the snowstorm last winter.
Unsolved
Mystery still prevailed over the deaths of 44 Oahu Filipino men who died in their sleep during the recent past. All autopsies have failed to show the cause of death.
Tissue specimens of a victim, 22-year-old Juliano Donate Yabes, were flown to New York for chemical analysis and other tests. Thomas Gonzales, New York City pathologist, reported to the Honolulu coroner's office that he had discovered no apparent cause of death. He said chemical analysis of the tissues was negative.
Priming Up
President Truman got his suntan and rest also. After a nine-day vacation aboard the yacht Williamsburg he looked forward "with a great deal of zest'' to the coming election campaign. He will begin his major speaking tour in mid-September. To make any showing, he would have to do a lot of double-talking. He most probably will say he had fought against and opposed the Taft-Hartley law and the present witch-hunt investigations. But the records show that he had asked Congress for anti-labor legislation and he had initiated the loyalty check.
Challenged.
While the President rested, Henry Wallace challenged him to postpone the draft until he (Truman) has met with Premier Josef Stalin to settle differences between the United States and the Soviet Union. Said Wallace: "Now again I call upon the President of the United States to immediately take steps toward a great conference to settle every outstanding issue between our nation and the Soviet Union. I call upon him to publicly announce that until such a conference is held, he will not undertake to proclaim the draft. I call upon him to announce that no American boy will be called into service until every avenue of peaceful settlement has been attempted."
Meantime, the army announced that lack of training facilities had brought about the cutting of the November draft quota to a little more than 10,000 men. In December it expects to raise its draft call to 15,000. From there it will work to a goal of 30,000 every month.
Needed — A Definition
The critics of the bipartisan foreign policy took a tongue-lashing from Secretary of State George C. Marshall. This time the secretary showed he was sensitive to criticism that stated U. S. aid in Greece is being used to prop up a reactionary regime. Interestingly enough, his belief was that harmful, propaganda had been directed against the Greek government in a rather, subversive manner. But Secretary Marshall himself refused to lend the word "democratic" to the Greek government.
GI Loan
The American Veterans Committee blasted the proposed increase in interest rates on GI loans: Said the AVC communication: This action would constitute "reneging on government promises made to GIs and a boon to bankers at the expense of men and women veterans of World War II."
On the basis of a proposed increase in interest rates from four per cent to four and a half per cent, the average GI's monthly carrying charge on his home would be raised about four per cent. The AVC says this would create personal hardships as well as contribute to general inflationary spirals.