|

Eyes on
the future

[N A WORLD pregnant with
change, taut with the ten-
“sions these changes ‘create and
yet bright with the promise of
®reat advances for all peoples,
a big task faces the delegates
~who will meet at Toronto this

Easter weekend in the sixth na-

tional convention of the Labor-
Progressive party.

That task is to indicate the
path of our two nations, English
and French-speaking, to social-

“ism. It is to inspire the people
with the vision of what new .

heights of material prosperity,

Scientific advance and cultural

achievement can be reached
when the great resources of our
country are are developed by the
people and for the people. It is
to show the people that our des
tiny is far greater than that held
Out by a succession of Liberal
and Conservative governments,,
governed by the profit-seeking
of the monopolies and impelled
by their fears of the people's
Movements to betray our na-
tional interests to the U.S.

Their task, above all, is to
hold fast to the tested principles
of socialism and to keep faith
with the pioneers, those thous-
ands of working men and wo-
Men, native born and immigrant,

-Who have shaped the socialist
Movement in this country over
half a century, sacrificed and
Struggled to bring the goal of
Socialism ever, closer.

We wish them well.

Pacific Tribune

Published weekly at
Room 6 — 426 Main Street
Vancouver 4, B.C. +
Phone: MArine 5288
Editor — TOM McEWEN
Associate Editor — HAL GRIFFIN
- Business Manager — RITA WHYTE
Subscription Rates:
One Year: $4.00
Six months: $2.25
_ Canadian and Commonwealth
Countries (except Australia): $4.00
One year. Australia, United States
4nd all other countries: $5.00 one
: year.

The rent
gouge

\
ONE consequence of the St.
Laurent government's tight
money policy and the resultant
curtailment of new housing is
the rent gouge now proceeding
in Vancouver and other cities.

Thousands of new immigrants
are pouring into the cities. Most
of them are renting rooms and
apartments. The result is that
many landlords who only a few
months ago were allowing apart-
ments to remain. vacant rather
than reduce rents, are now seiz-
ing the opportunity to raise rents
all round.

Those hardest hit by this rent
increase are old age pensioners
living in’rooms. In many cases
the $6 pension increase given by
the federal government last
month has already been wiped
out.

The remedy “is obvious and
within the capacity of govern:
ments at-all levels to apply. Low-
rental housing programs must be
started without further delay.

At the same time, the federal -

government must take immedi-
ate steps to facilitate new hous-

ing construction.

EDITORIAL |

Confront St. Laurent

WITHIN the next two weeks
this country’s ranking old
age pensioner, Prime Minister
Louis St. Laurent, national ‘lead-
er of the Liberal party, will be
electioneering in this province.

This should provide senior
citizens’ leaders with the oppor-
tunity they have been seeking to
confront him with the utter in-

adequacy of his government's
$6 a month increase in federal
old age pensions.

St. Laurent, no doubt, will

avail himself of the plea that

the country’s economy cannot,

bear the cost of any greater in-
crease so long as the national
interest demands a high rate of
defense expenditures.

He must be told that the na-
tional interest of the country is
in the welfare of its people and
that people will not bear the
shame of their old people being
condemned to a poverty level

existence.

Tom
McEwen

W THE surface it looked like

a fine neighborly gesture. Our
neighbor’s house was on fire. A
few precious belongings were
salvaged from the blaze and we
undertook to put them in safe-
keeping until our neighbor got
re-established.

With his house rebuilt after the
disaster our neighbor asked for
his belongings back. That’s when
neighborly relations became
strained. We told him he could
not have them because we did
not like the things he had done
since the fire.

Most people will agree that
such behavior is anything but
neighborly, but that is precisely
how Canada stands in relation to
several million dollars’ worth of
Polish art treasures, brought to
this country for safekeeping at
the. beginning of the last war.
For years now the Polish gov-
ernment has been asking for re-

turn of these precious art treas-
urs, and always official Canada
has refused.

With a most amazing reper-
toire of vague and specious ex-
cuses, all entirely devoid of any
moral basis, the St. Laurent gov-
ernment~ refuses to take any
steps to restore these art treas-
ures to their rightful owners —
the Polish people and govern-
ment, :

It is rumored that these price-
less treasures are “hidden”
somewhere in Quebec. In any
event, Premier Maurice Duples-
sis is publicly on record as say-
ing they will never be returned
“so long as Poland has a com-
munist government.” To Que-
bee’s padlock-minded premier
this is reason enough to hang
onto stolen goods.

Forth aaa

It is just possible however,
that as a result of recent nego-
tiations between the government
of Poland and high dignitaries
of the Catholic Church, Duples-
sis- will be compelled to disgorge
the loot, not by official Ottawa
but by Catholic Church officials
in Quebec heeding the advice of
their colleagues in other lands,
that stolen goods are -incompat-
ible with Christian ethics.

The. St. Laurent government
could have ordered the- return

of these Polish art treasures to
their rightful owners years ago,
but did not do so. Probably in
a choice between losing Liberal
votes in Quebec had it ordered
Duplessis to disgorge and remain-
ing as an accessory to the pos-
session of stolen property, Otta-
wa took the path of political ex-
pediency and did nothing. In
this the St. Laurent government
committed a moral crime —
against the people of this coun-
try.

Some years ago the Polish gov-
ernment issued a fine illustrated
brochure describing in detail the
great historic value of these art
treasures in the cultural devel-
opment of the Polish people. -It
was because of their tremen-
dous value to the Polish people
that these treasures were taken
out of Poland to keep them out
of the hands of Nazi “art collec-
tors.” :

It is somewhat ironic to know
that we in Canada, because of

_the actions of the St. Laurent

and Duplessis governments, have
shown ourselves to be little bet-
ter than the Goering’s “Herren-

’ folk” when it comes to purloin-

ing . other people’s property.
Vancouver has a crime wave but
Ottawa seems cursed with a
crime complex.

Pt

APRIL 19, 1957 — PACIFIC TRIBUNE—PAGE 5