GUIDE TO GOOD READING

SINCE THE start of the Kor-
ean war, the inflationary process
has been greatly accelerated. The
United States government now
speaks of spending 61 billion
dollars a year on defence. In
Canada, according to the Finan-
cial Post: “Around the corner
in 1951 . 52 is a $3 billion bud-
get at least. The $3 billion mini_
mum assumes that defense spen-
ding can be kept to $1 billion
in the coming fiscal year. Some
forecasts suggest that the spend-

ing rate of the services will be

at or close to the $1.5 billion
mark towards the end of the
Next year.”

Commenting on the Post’s fi-
gures, a new pamphlet, Wages"
and the Cost of Living, publish-
ed in Vancouver this week by

_Bmil Bjarnason and Bert Mar-

cuse of the Trade Union Re-
search Bureau, points out that
“if the figure of $1.5, billion is
correct, defense will take $2,450
from every Canadian family over
the next five years.”

The authors might well have
put quotation marks around ‘the
word “defense”. For with Cana-
da tagging along behind United
States imperialism in its drive
for world conquest, money ear-
marked for “defense” is being
poured into the waging of ag.
gressive war. Shipping of Cana-
dian troops to Korea cannot by
any stretch of imagination be
considered “defense” of our

country.

Tf the reader will keep this
interpretation of the term “de_
fense” fixed firmly in his mind,
he will find the Bjarnason-Mar-
¢uSg pamphlet one of the most
informative and well-documented
publications to appear for some
time. Not since the same authors’
more elaborate booklet, The Case
of the Dwindling Dollar, was pub-
lished several years ago, has a
more timely and interesting patn_
phlet on wages and prices been
printed,

* * *

EXAMPLES are given to show
the exorbitant profits of mono-
polies and other corporations,
which clearly demonstrate that

_ wage increases are not the cause

of price increases, but lag be-
hind price increases.

pamphlet emphasizes:

“Take the price of lumber,”
Says the pamphlet. “The goy-
ernment lumber wholesale price
index went up from 160.5 in
1945 to 309.1 in July, 1950. Do
you think woodworkers’ wages
Were responsible? Here’s how
one lumber company made out:

“In 1945 H. R. MacMillan Ex-
port Company had a total in-
vestment (including accumulat-
ed profits) of $10,440,688. Its
total profits from 1946 to 1949
amount to $44,500,000. An ave-
rage return of more than 100
percent per year,

“How would you like a return
of $100 per year on each $100
of your investment?”

Bjarnason and Marcuse show

_ that the “cold war” budgets of

the United States and Canada
force prices up and cut down
the amount of goods and ser-
vices _the worker can buy.

“Another casualty of the ‘cold
war” is’.the foreign trade by
which we used to trade our agri_
cultural surpluses and manufac-
turers for other goods. Today,
our government withholds recog-
nition from China and is restric.
ted by agreements such as the
Marshall Plan from trading on
any large scale with countries
comprising’ one third of the world |
population,”

Rising living costs force work-
ers to seek wage increases, the
1 “In May
bricklayers in Vancouver obtain-
ed a wage increase of 8 cents
per hour. To date the increase
in the cost of living index has
wiped out 7.3 cents of this in_
crease,

“The experience of most un-
ions has been similar. That is
why workers are now demand-_
ing that agreements be reopen-
ed for further wage increases.
Workers cannot afford further
cuts in their standard of living.

The pamphlet, which sells for
10 cents, is available nere at the
People’s Cooperative Bookstore,
337 West Pender. Job lots of
from 100 to 500 can be brought
at a reduced price of 7 cents per
copy at Trade Union Research
Bureau, 339 West Pender; in lots
of 500 or more the pamphlet sells
for 5 cents per copy.—Bert Whyte

CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING |

A charge of 50 cents for each
insertion of five lines or less with
10 cents for each additional line
is made for notices appearing in
this column. No notices will be
accepted later than Monday noon
of the week of publication.

WHAT'S DOING?

DANCE—Modern and Old-time
Music, at Clinton Hall, 2605 E. Pen-
der St., every Saturday night, 9 to
12, Music by VIKINGS Orchestra.
Hall for rent — Phone HA. 3277. |

MEET YOUR CANDIDATES, So-

cial and Dance. Refreshments.
Sat.,. Dec. 2, 9 p.m. 2034 Bays.
water Admission 50 cents. Every-
body welcome. |

ANNUAL XMAS BAZAAR, Sat-
eurday, Dec. 9 at 4830 Hudson
St. at 2 p.m. Novelties, Home
Cooking, Baby Wear, Preserves
and Tea. Auspices: Spanish
Refugee Appeal Committee,
Friends of Free Spain.

BUSINESS PERSONALS

¥% TRANSFER & MOVING, Cour-
teous, fast, efficient. Call Nick at
Yale Hotel, PA. 0632, MA. 1527,
CH. 8210. ;

SIMONSON’S WATCH Repairs —

We repair Ronson’s, Jewellery,
all types of watches and clocks.

Til East Hastings, Vancouver. -

.

CRYSTAL STEAM BATHS—Open
‘every day. New Modern Beauty
Salon—1763 E. Hastings. HAs-
tings 0094,

SALLY BOWES INCOME TAX
PROBLEMS — Rm, 20, 9 East
Hastings, MA. 9965. A. Rollo, Mer.

0.K. RADIO SERVICE. Latest fac-
tory precision equipment used.
MARINE SERVICE, 1420 Pen-
der St. West, TA, 1012.

: WORK BOOTS high or low cut,
see Johnson’s Boots. 63 West Cor-
dova Street.

HALLS FOR RENT
RUSSIAN PEOPLE’S HOME —

Available for’ meetings, weddings, |

and banquets at reasonable rates.
600 Campbell Ave., HA. 6900.

> ss NOTICES

NEW OFFICES OF THE PACI-
FIC TRIBUNE ARE: ROOM 6,
426 MAIN STREET, , :

PT Dixieland Trio — Available for
dances and socials, “Assure a suc-
cessful evening.” Quality tops,
rates reasonable, Call MA. 5288
for booking.

“TELL THEM YOU SAW IT
° IN THE TRIBUNE”

_ A timely pamphlet on

ANTI-WAR BOOK CHOICE

Book Union celebrates
its titfh anniversary —

FIVE YEARS AGO, in -Toron-
to, a new kind of book club,
the Book Union, was launched.
It was described as an experi-
ment in reading, and as such
it broke new ground not only in
Canada, but in North America.

This month, as the Book Union
celebrates its fifth anniversary,
the experiment can be pronoun-
ced a success, The first an?
nouncement in December, 1945
brought it several hundred sub-
scribers. and the number has
been growing steadily ever since,

The Book Union idea was to
promote more reading of better
books; to make such books avail_
able to readers at a reduced price
(20 percent or more); and to
provide a convenient way to get
at least six books a year, one
every two months. Every mem-
ber receives the Book Union Re-
view, listing and reviewing alter-
native suggestions to readers.

By the end of this year, Book
Union members who have been
in from\the beginning will have
received 30 books over the five
years and they will have saved
an average of about 50-cents on
each on them, Those 30 books re-
present some of the best literature
available — Marxist classics, Ca-
nadian writing, novels, biography,
history, science, phi losophy,
children’s books and others. Ey-
ery one is the kind of book one
keeps for the library, not the
here-today-gone.tomorrow trash
foisted on their members — with

‘

extravagant promotion — by
most other book clubs.

_ The current selection of. the
Book Union is a novel by Dalton
Trumbo, one of the Hollywood
Ten, who is serving a year in
jail for “contempt” of the un-
American committee. Johnny
Got His Gun, although written
Several years ago, is a book for
these times, for it is a powerful
indictment of war. It is a shock-
ing story, but described by re-

*

Viewers as being terribly realis-

tic.

The Book Union wants more
members, the more it has, the
better the books and the cheaper
it can sell them. You can sub-
scribe today with Johnny Got
His Gun. It is a $3350 book
available to subscribers for only
$1.90 plus 10 cents postage.

A note to the Book Union, 95
King Street East, Toronto, will
bring you full details and start
“you off on the road to good read-
ing in 1951, ;

Novelist faces ‘libel’
charge for new book

AN HYSTERICAL press cam-
paign against Frank Hardy, pro-
gressive Australian novelist, has
been climaxed with Hardy’s ap-
pearance in court on a charge of

“criminal libel.”

Hardy’s newest book, Power
Without Glory, indicts capital.
ism and exposes the role of right
wing social democrats. Despite
press clamor for its withdrawal,
it has hit best-seller lists.

(a

INSERT YOUR XMAS GREETINGS
dhe

PACIFIC TRIBUNE —
Special Rates: $2.00 - $3.00 - $5.00
Individual Names — $1.00 each

4

DEADLINE: DECEMBER 11

Phone MArine 5288  - = Suite 6—426 Main St.

F

CAPSULE REVIEWS es
Current fare
escape stuff

GLASS MENAGERIE

Gertrude Lawrence, Jane Wy-
man, Kirk Douglas and Arthur
Kennedy in g vague, symbolic
but frequently moving story of
an unhappy group living in a
dismal tenement apartment in
St. Louis during the hungry
Thirties.

SUMMER STOCK, Judy Gar-
land, Gene Kelly.

A lightweight musical about
the straw-hat circuit. Has a
charm and entertainment value.
|THE FLAME AND THE AR-
ROW, Burt Lancaster.

A 12th century adventure yarn
that thas something of the enioy-
ment of Douglas Fairbanks Sr.’s
early films, Enjoyable as escape
stuff, <<

ALL ABOUT EVE.

Joseph Mankiewicz presents a
ruthlessly clinical study of a
small, not too important section
of humanity — the people of the
theater — specifically Broadway
—— with devastating results. Bette
Davis, George Sanders and others
expertly deliver the sharpest dia_
logue heard in some time,

SUNSET BOULEVARD, Gloria
Swanson, William Holden.

A slickly made but. basically
dishonest approach to the film
industry's callous treatment of
its former stars. Gloria Swan-
son works hard in the role of
a once famous, now mentally
sick movie star who hopes to
make a comback. :

TREASURE ISLAND.

‘Children will probably enjoy
it, even though the famous Ro-
bert Louis Stevenson adventure
story, as Walt Disney tells it,
lacks flavor, excitement and ima.
gination. Not an animated ecar-
toon. ‘

PANIC IN THE STREETS.

Plague in New Orleans is the
villain of this excellently photo-
graphed, documentary-type chase
story. Stars Richard Widmark,
Barbara Bel Geddes and Zero
Mostel. Marred by chauvinistic
treatment of Chinese seamen and
the fact that, despite its setting, -
there are practically no Negroes
in the picture.

DESTINATION MOON.

In the past decade, and par
ticularly since the A-bomb burst
upon the world, there has been
a growing interest in science fic_ -
tion, some good, most of it bad.
This is Hollywood's first attempt,
and a poor one at that, to bring
it to the screen. Like most
science fiction, it projects the fu
ture in the, patterns of the pre-
sent, fettering instead of freeing |
‘he imagination. However, the

“ kids may like it. :

[DUNN'S DRY CLEANING

PHONE N.W. 179,

WE CALL & DELIVER

MILO CAFE
“We Specialize in
: nee Ukrainian Food”
242 E. Hastings St. PA. 3087
via Vancouver

EAST END

811 E, HASTINGS ST.

La

PACIFIC TRIBUNE — DECEMBER 1, 1950 — PAGE 10

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