a 10 LATOOTITUCETA ANETTA TT AT Opinions contained in these columns are strictly those of the wrifers. We welcome correspondence, but ask that letters be held to 300 words. HRA UR ET Franchise K. Creak, secretary of the Housewives League, Prince Ru- pert, writes: Because we have had a func- tioning city council in Prince Rupert this year the attention of the housewives has been directed to city affairs, in which they have a real interest. They wanted to vote in the forthcoming elections, but, on in- vestigating, they found that it would cost them two dollars to get on the voters’ list. The fact that they had been resident here since January, 1948, shows that they are not mere fiy-by-night characters with a purely transient interest in civic affairs but are settled resi dents of the city and, as such, are entitled to a say in its ad- ministration. However it appears penalized for desiring cise their democratic bility as citizens since charged two dollars while those who are too apa- thetic to take any interest in the affairs of the city escape this levy. It goes without saying that persons who do not care whether they vote or not are not the most irresponsible type of citizen and it is the latter group, if any, who should be required to pay the two dollars. The sole argument we have heard to justify the charging of this fee is that the city needs the money, that there should be some charge against householders for the benefits they receive from having a well functioning civic government. If that is so then why discriminate in the layout of this levy why place it on the most public spirited group of householders and allow the more responsible ones to go scol-free? However well intentioned the framers of this provision might be in seeming to assure that friv- olous persons might not vote it is obvious that the only effect of the provision is to disenfranchise large numbers of responsible persons. The practice of charging people for the exercise of the franchise cannot be justified as a democratic procedure. This is an anti-democratic measure with the added drawback that it in actual practice has a greater tendency to disenfranchise the less wealthy citizens of the com- munity while those well off will find it little hardship to find this sum. Prince Rupert's mayor and eouncil should press the Union of British Columbia Municipali- ties to join with them in demand- ing that the British Columbia government repeal this anti- democratic measure as well as making direct representations on this subject themselves in the meanwhile. they are to exer- responsi- they are to vote THE PEOPLE Published every Friday by The People Publishing Co., Rm. 104, Shelly Bldg., 119 West Pender St., Vancouver, B.C. Tele. MAr. 6929. Wdito ee Hal Griffin Managing Editor —_ Al Parkin Business Mgr. — G.- Greenwood Six Months: $1.00 One Year: $2.00 Printed at Broadway Printers, Ltd., 151 East 8th Ave., Vancouver, BG: ~ erning DO ATUATUOIVUUUUUGUUTUUGGRUSTAUNUUOERUSUUG ESTHET ALTA YOU THINK ? CATT TT SAUNT AANA Political Action Trade Unionisi’s Wife, Vancou- ver, writes: I have been eagerly following accounts in your: paper of the activities of the Trade Union Rep- resentation Committee. The move of Vancouver trade unions to- wards political action is certainly timely. I am sorry to see, however, that the committee did not make a greater issue of the fact that the city clerk’s office was putting a wrong interpretation on the working of the city charter. This issue is of the greatest importance. Apparently, hun- dreds of Vancouver citizens have been denied the right to vote through what amounts to a scheme to deprive them of their right to decide who shall repre- sent in their civic government. This is on a level with padding of voters’ lists, or any other meth- od of “fixing” an election. No wonder the “Non-Partisan” Association has been able to keep control of the city council for so long! Clothing K.M., New Westminster, writes: I am a regular reader of The People and would like to tell you how much my family and I enjoy the paper. Congratulations on your new front page style. It gives our paper a personality! There is one problem which I would like to see discussed in your columns, and that is the dif- ficulty of obtaining children’s clothing. It is practically impos- sible to buy children’s under- clothes, winter clothing and even shoes at the present time. At the same time, mothers not- ice that there is no shortage of new fall styles in women’s cloth- ing in the store windows. Could it be because there is more profit to be made on women’s clohtes than on those for children? If profit is the main force gov- production of clothing, then it is high time the Wartime Prices and Trade Board took a little time off from taking cuffs off trousers and putting them on again, and put their brains to work on plans to ensure our chil- dren a supply of winter clothing for the cold months ahead. Jim Crow V.R., Vancouver, writes: In a Vancouver cabaret last Saturday night I happened to see an incident which I found very interesting, and which I think bears comment. A group of soldiers, American and Canadian, were sitting at a table eating, when a young Chin- ese, in Uniform of the Canadian air force, recognized one of the Canadians and came over to say hello. After introductions were made one of the Americans, whose ac- cent proyed he was from the deep south, said to the Chinese air- man, in a very insulting tone; “Go sit down, boy, we'll call you when we want you!” After a moment of shocked sil- ence, one Canadian soldier said, “Maybe you forget where you are, brother, but we don’t do things that way here!” And as of one accord, the Can- adian men in uniform rose and joined the young Chinese at his table. This was indicative, I thought, of the kind of democracy our sol- diers are fighting for. And I wondered what those same sol- diers thought when they learned from recent newspaper reports that the beautiful Crystal Pool, of which Vancouver is justly proud, is open to Chinese only on certain “restricted” days; or what they would think if told that although the whole affair was dis- eussed in meetings of city offi- eials in the city hall, the city council has still not acted to PAU TM UUUNUVUIUUUUNAUUAUUUUICU UU HUSUAUTHVUVATULUUTOUSU ERASERS LETTERS from OUR READERS make sure such restrictions are removed, I think these soldiers would greet with a great deal more en- thusiasm the news that the Boil- ermakers Union, renting the 3ool for union swimming classes, op- enly state they are ready to defy such undemocratic restrictions at all times. Books and People by Kay Gregory NTERNATIONAL PUBLISHERS’ fall lists have several books which look very good. Several of them are his- torical, foremost being The Populist Movement in the United States, by Anna Rochester, who can usually be depended on to do a painstaking job of research before presenting her facts in very readable form. Her Rulers of America was an ex- haustive study of monopoly capital, of great value to Ca- nadians because of the links be- tween British and American capi- tal affecting Canadian industry and economic life. Together with Gustave Myers’ History of Great American Fortunes, these two books gaye a complete picture of the economic rulers of the Worth American continent. Three other historical books to be published by International this fall show that public interest in the history of the United States and Canada is increasing. People are now beginning to realise that the nations of this continent had a colorful back- ground, a heritage which is be- ing gloriously lived up to and defended now on foreign soil. The Rise of the American Na- tion, by Francis Franklin, is an account of the United States from the establishment of the Ameri- can federal government in 1789 to the end of Monroe’s second administration in 1824. The Struggle for American Freedom, by Herbert M. Morais, is, as the title suggests, the story of the struggles from the colonial period to Jefferson. Labor Parties—1827-1834, by Alden Whitman, is an account of labor’s inital emergence aS a conscious political force. All of-these books will be just as interesting to Canadians as to Americans since the history of the two countries is so inextric- ably interwoven. Publication of the twenty-third volume of lLenin’s Collected Works is announced for this fall, the volume containing speeches and writings during the critical period from spring 1918 to spring 1919. A biography of Lenin by an anonymous author is also in- cluded in the list. It deals, ac- cording to the publishers, with Lenin’s thirty years of political activity. Maurice Dobb has a book pub- lished by International, Soviet Planning and Labor, dealing with special aspects of Soviet econ- omy. ape digress from political books to the film world,» Pearl Buck’s Dragon Seed will soon go into production. Charles Laughton has accepted the role of Wu Lien, a small-town mer- chant who for years had been selling goods made in Japan, only to find that the war has brought disgrace to his trade. The farmer, Ling Tan, one of the major characters, father-in- law to Wu Lien, will be played by Walter Huston. 3 - rather than modesty might Labor Washington, D.C. Osten’ slogan for it calls itself, 1 It is the official organ U.S. railroad unions. Its” would think that the ma least the editdrials which in it, would refiect only, ar ways, ideas endorsed by unions and in their interest that factual statements mar its pages would bear the cri of truth. But one might be ¥ In fact, one would be wre In an ssue of Labor publ a few days after the cast caesar was ousted irom p the opening lines of the fe editorial referred to that m- maniac ganster as, “the ex munist, Mussolini” Eithe} editorial writer was a colos: } noramus or a slandermonge intentionally wrote that < § lous statement to injure Communist movement. 2 § yi3s = G \ If the editor did not knoy §= Mussolini never was a con § ist he had no right to be 0 ing the position he did. Hf know, he was an impostel had no right to be foistir venomous red-baiting propa on the paper as the consi opinion of American TB workers. It is such instances as th that point the necessity, « workers particularly, to us utmost goes into the progressive an ical press. Such slanders 10 labor papers with gutter rat = Col. MacCormick’s Chicago une and the Toronto Tele disease-carriers in the ye! democracy. Press Drive ECAUSE there are papers it is necessary J to work our heads off to ma_ The People. The unofficii gans of fascism have pler money. Their financial st comes to them without Our press, too, has to | tained by those for speaks, the dispossessed inherited whose largess tributed in nickels and dim That is why we mt semi-annual drives to fin People, as was the case Advocate and the B.C. Wews before it. These twa papers always made the gra a time when breadlines wet outstanding attractions We to show the tourist trade; printing and paper were ch than they are today and the wages of the staff were lower. The readers of this ct have always done their sha {hese press drives. In the drive we raised almost What will we do this time? be we can make it $500. W not competing with any oD Jet us try. Pll send you 4& scription book and a card; you do the rest. How it? discrimination of -§ dor Bs 4