in

bilitation plan
iis commendable
Bs on the part
Bich offset the
plan should
tention: ;
San, upon dis-
@ his choice of
Pion or a course
i government’s
ituities are left
(in a compara-
| position.
tnan by neces-
2 some gainful
the living al-
dijoes net induce
@nily to take ad-
fe educational

icried man goes
life he is most
his hard-earned
g@:ome, furniture,
as, for which he
jiited price.

8; the amount of
evholly consume
ind the benefi-
rsars of service
srty owners and
arks who are
‘eiving from one
#1 dollars above
> for a three or
f >llar home. The
small business—
*-d for sale.

is imperative
Fan government,
Vartime Prices
xd, take action
he serviceman’s
Samediately low-
} ceilings on

-s would inevit-
proposals of la-
ling for big de-
steel
ete., the

housing,
Iding,

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IAT DO YOU THINK?

Ms seunvvnvansnengursavansyeuneesgannaggssugeese20213 000002222830 0032081

-eivie authorities ~

s have concen-—

KQELURESEVAURTRESLDTRRUSTUSALSERATYSSERALIRIECASERROLLEEE wana nue

trated on picayune policies, as
a result of which our city has
stagnated to such a degree the
city engineer has no monkey
wrench to repair trucks. AS
their main alibi is lack of funds
a building plan embracing full
protection to the city’s financial
stability should be in order. If
for example a plan were adopt-
ed for ten thousand homesites
and residences averaging six
thousand dollars each, this
would entail an ouilay of sixty
millions. Of this total Ottawa
is willing to provide fifty-four
millions leaving but six for the
city to finance. In view of the
demand for homes, unquestion-
ably three of the six millions
could be raised by requiring
each of the prospective occu-
pants to purchase a $800 equity
certificate payable in instal-
ments of $50 monthly during
the period of construction. The
full payment of the certificate
would constitute part payment

- of the purchase price of the

home. But in such cases where
the house is only on a rental
basis the equity certificate
would receive interest amount-
ing to 2 percent of net rental
receipts collected by the rental
authority. In the event of any
subsequent sale, the certificates
would be payable immediately
as to principal at date of sale.

As for the remaining three
millions, surely the provincial
government cannot perpetually
regard the housing of B.C. eiti-
zens solely a problem for Do-
minion and municipal authori-
ties! Housing being part of
postwar rehabilitation to which
the provincial government
pledged ful support, pressure
should be utilized to persuade
them to freely donate three
millions to equal the amount of
equity sales.

Thus the above accounts for
the capital so we must now
consider the problem of funds
for municipal: services and ad-
ministration.

Tt is obvious that in construct-
ing ten thousand such homes
the conditions of mass produc-
tion would bring building cost
down to prewar levels assuring
a saving of at least $300 on
each home.

This would reim-

RURQUESRDUREEEQUSORECULUUET STRUT ROC RERELER TELE

budse the council for all serv-

“= ives. Finally if the Dominion-

authorities inspect
selection of sites, drafts of
specifications, terms of con-
tracts and supervises quality of
construction, it would guaran-
tee a better value to occupants
than could be obtained through
private contracts and would
justify their confidence in hav-
ing bought equity certificates.
JOHN MacKENZIE.

Provincial

Good Oid Days

Dear Sir:

Now that the war is in its
final phase, on every side we
hear people talking about ‘get-
ting back to the good old days.”
Just what is meant by this
vague term is difficult to say,
because the “good old days”
has a much different signifi-

cance to the worker, who never.

really enjoyed any good old
days, than to the big time in-
dustrialist, to whom the good
old days meant a full labor
market, low wages, lots of
profit, ete. :

The war has taught us many
hard lessons. Not the least
among these is the advantage
of decent wage levels, protect-
ed by government controls. We
should look for a new day, not
the good old days. The new day
should be one of increasing
wages to the workers, and the
maintenance of price controls
which have protected the work-
er’s dollar value and prevented
soaring costs of necessities and
the curbing of profiteers.

The problem of a peacetime
economy.of plenty will find a
solution in the maintenance of
high wage standards to assure
an expanding consumer market
and price controls to protect
the workers against inroads
against the value of his earn-
ings.

Collingwood Maffey.

In order to conform with
our paper ration we will be
publishing a 12 page paper
for the months of July and
August.

ze

s and furnish-

re establishment
supervision on
es and property.

31K STEWART.
libi

ad long ago that
indifferent.- In

PROGRESSIVE
4, MOTE G

>

REACTIONARY
je, MOTE Rv J

; 5 — PACIFIC ADVOCATE

emnd

on BDORREURDURSTOLEDUCEUUEOUUSESTESSCCSUGUERUSEERES!

Short Jabs by Ol” Bill

2

SepnnennesnesesUeGeuaesnuOurerusoanuenesaesuvosrsnsssepesesnsaauauecceseserasearoesnsseasssvuneaneseesseraeness

Granite Hearts

| Races odd corners in the press often hide most interesting items of
news; news that gives us an insight into the hopes and desires, the
purposes and evasions, the quirks and whimseys, of the great and the
near great.

For instance, a few days ago all the Vancouver newspapers carried
a heart-rending wail from Gerry McGeer, our new Senator, about. how
much he could do if he only had 50 million dollars to spend.

The things he would do were marvellous! He would lift the face
of Vancouver and place it among the blessed havens of this earth, he
would make it “the wonder city of the world.” He would establish not
only one civic center but many, that would comprise stadiums, gymffas-
jums, playing fields, skating rinks, art galleries and other things so
beautiful, they would take the sting out of working long hours for low
wages.

But it is somebody else’s money Gerry wants to spend. And don’t
we remember how he got five million dollars of other people’s money
to spend once upon a time and’ poured it all into the monstrosity called
the city hall at Cambie and 12th,

Such loud-mouthed bogsting has no constructive value to the citizens
of Vancouver. To find the means of providing a home for one family
threatened with eviction or one refugee service man just back from the +
front would be of greater value, now or at any time, than all the 50
million dollar pipe dreams inspired by a Kiwanis dinner.

In the compass of a few days a couple of other items got into the
loeal press that link themselves with Gerry’s 50 million dollar longing.
Funny, too, they both had some connection with lawyers.

The first was from Victoria where some lawyers’ wah-wah was
taking place. One member of the profession informed the gathering,
probably that was a dinner, too, that 31 distinguished members of the
Bar (not the one with the brass rail), were slated for immortality.

Their names were kept in a register by the Geographical Society of
Canada and as new mountains are discovered in B.C .they are labelled
or christened with the names of the distinguished lawyers.

I tried to think out the reason why the mountains of B.C. should be
cursed with such a fate as to be called after any B.C. lawyer, distin-

. guished, mediocre or just plain dumb. Just try to imagine the sad lot

of a mountain called Judge Manson mountain or Mount C. H. Locke or -
Walter Owen Peak. It would be terrible!

After a time I remembered the.words of an old prospector whom
J knew years ago. For 40 years he toiled out on the hills seeking the
gold that was alleged to be hidden in “them thar hills.”

He had quit when I met him. Discussing his experiences, he con-
fided to me, “There’s nothin’ in them, Bill, nothin’ but granite. Right to
their hearts.’ There, I think, I found the solution why they are being
named after distinguished lawyers, “granite to their hearts.”

The other news item teferred to a visit to our town of the ex-Can-
adian, Viscount Bennett, Earl Bennett or Lord Bennett. I am not sure
of his new handle. I only know of him as Iron-Heel Bennet.

And I thought how tough it would be if the Geographical Society ran
out of mountains. They might then initiate.a program of renaming
some of our famous local landmarks to bring them in line with the rest
of the granite rocks we call scenery.

The first to be re-named would no doubt be the Lions. Such a*mean-
ingless moniker might then become a sort of two-in-one, as Mount Riot
Act McGeer and IronHeel Bennett Summit. ;

“Swindle” -

[N an attempt to find some justification for his party’s persistent re-
fusal to put the interest of the workers before those of his party, the

CCF, Grant MdeNeil ties himself in an awful knot.

Replying to the invitation of the LPP to discuss the possibility of
finding a common ground in elections to prevent Tory victories at the
polls, MacNeil writes in the CCF organ:

“An agreement is a bargain which two or more parties find
mutually satisfactory.” Of course it is. Does anyone deny
that? “An agreement cannot in reality be an agreement if by
any political trickery the decision of one party is imposed on the
other parties to the agreement.” .

No room. for dispute there either! But why change the subject ?
Why introduce political trickery before exploring all the possibilities
contained in the first assertion since the needs of the Canadian people
demand it.

“An agreement never works when one party is asked to com-
mit political suicide to serve the ends of the other party or sur-
render reasoned political convictions.”

This also is true beyond any peradventure of doubt. But when
MacNeil and other CCF spokesmen say that the only way that the LPP
members can have any form of unity with the CCF is to join the CCF
as individuals, what is that but asking the LPP to commit political sut-
cide. But the LPP makes no such demands on the CCF in asking them
to discuss a possible basis for action jointly in the interest of the workers.

“Under such circumstances the word is not agreement, it is swindle.”
We agree again . But in this case the swindle is entirely on the part of
MacNeil and his GCF friends. And the reason is plain—they place their
party interest before the interest of the workers.

To write an article denouncing electoral agreements and labelling
such “political swindle,” MacNeil is blinding himself to the historical
developments of the moment. Every government being set up in the
liberated countries of Europe today, is a government by agreement of
parties with progressive and anti-fascist policies.

The newest of these, that in Norway, is dominated by the Labor
party but every major party is represented, including two Communists.

In Yugoslavia, Poland and Bulgaria, the lead is taken by the Com-
munists who led the fight against the Nazis, but the other left and
radical parties are included. In France and Czechoslovaki, where the
industrial and economic development is such as to justify the slogan
“Socialism Now’? more than in Canada, the same kind of governments
are in power through agreements of left and liberal parties. -

And in Gréece and Belgium the same thing would be true but for
outside interference. And in Belgium, Socialists and Communists issue
joint manifestos against the return of the monarch whom the people
do not want. -

And yet the CCF leaders speak of “political trickery” and “swindle”
because they put the petty interest of their party before the inerest of
their party before the interest of the Canadian people. :

SATURDAY, JULY 14, 1945.

ay