 It's time for the Lawn Jean Chronoscope, a television journal of the important issues of the hour brought to you every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, a presentation of the Lawn Jean Wittner Watch Company, maker of Lawn Jean, the world's most honored watch, and Wittner Distinguished Companion to the World Honored Lawn Jean. Good evening. This is Frank Knight. May I introduce our co-editors for this edition of the Lawn Jean Chronoscope? Larry LeSere of the CBS television news staff and Kenneth Crawford, National Affairs Editor for Newsweek Magazine. Our distinguished guest for this evening is Henry J. Mahade, National Commander of the American Veterans of World War II. Mr. Mahade, I understand you just come back from Europe where you've been visiting the World Veterans Federation. Can you tell us how do you as an American veteran feel about these veterans of the European War? Well, I went over as an observer to see what they were doing to consolidate world opinion for peace, and it was interesting to see the veterans of all the world gathered in a convention or Congress of their own without the barrier of government protocol. We talked together. We discussed the issues of international affairs together to see the representative of Israel and the representative of Turkey in the Arab States sit down, friendly, discuss all these matters. It was a source of wonderment to me and of great gratification. What came out of it, Commander? Well, I took from my organization the International Affairs mandates that we had discussed at our convention. Similarly, the veterans of other countries brought the mandates of their conventions into this general Congress of all the world. We discussed the issues of the day and we decided what the veteran of the world would think about those issues. For instance, the veterans from Yugoslavia and the veterans from Italy sat down together just at a time when Trieste was at the boiling point. They decided that they would go home and ask their people and the veterans of their organization to keep the tension at a minimum feeling that some way a proper and a dignified and a solution would be found so that there would be peace in the world and Trieste would not cause war. Well, Miss Mahady, I trust there were no veterans of the Red Army there, but may I ask, are you fellows really pacifists? No, we are not pacifists. We are trying to perfect the brotherhood of man and world peace. We are principled citizens of America who, if our principles of democracy are infringed upon, we'll fight for our country. We will fight for those things that we believe will lead to the dignity of mankind and the brotherhood of mankind. And in that connection, Commander, what's your position on Korea, for example, to get to a specific case? Well, my convention decided that if the talks in Korea failed, that they would advocate all-out war so that the principle of non-aggression that the United Nations has enunciated would be upheld. Well, not a return to limited war. We do not believe in a return to limited war. Oh, Miss Mahady, I gather that the veterans you've visited were members of the free world. That's right, with the exception of Yugoslavia. Yugoslavia had their delegates there, and they were very cooperative. And I believe they are genuinely entering into this world convention of veterans in an attempt to bring the common problem that faces us all together so that we can enunciate a new mode of life for the whole world. There are a germany of Japanese veterans in this organization. There is a German unit, which was just introduced at this latest convention. We feel that we cannot exclude any nation, and we must bring all nations in as rapidly as possible. Otherwise, how can you have world peace with only half the world sitting at the console table? Well, Commander, I gather you learned a few things from some of these European soldiers. Do you think they learned anything from you, American veterans? I think we did America a service in this way. They saw that we just weren't maintaining our own point of view, that we would generously sit down with them in a friendly way and discuss their point of view. I came away with the feeling that there was a tremendous force generated, a tremendous force mobilized for world peace because I was treated as a friend and a neighbor by all of these veterans. Besides having the mission of keeping the peace in this organization, you do some specific things like rehabilitation of veterans themselves, do you know? Yes, we do. There are four million veterans in the world, outside of America, who are disabled and in need of prosthetic devices. For instance, we promised the gentleman from Israel that we would bring one of his men who does not have an arm to America so that he can have the type of prosthetic device that Harold Russell wears. He's being brought here by my organization and will be given a new life with this new prosthetic device. This is a particular contribution you Americans can make, isn't it? Since you're probably ahead in this country on prosthesis. We are the leaders today in the world of veteran rehabilitation and in the use of new prosthetic devices. For instance, when we were in Holland, Harold Russell went in to see a veteran who hadn't been out of his house in over 10 years. The men broke into tears when Harold showed him how he could use his new prosthetic devices and he agreed to take training with the help of our World Veterans Fund in order that he too would have a new life just like Harold had arrived at a new way of life after having his hands decapitated. Well, Commander, I gather that the veterans of Europe didn't get quite as good deal as the veterans of the United States. Were they envious of you, Chaps? Well, of course, you understand we're very well favored economically in this country. There's a very great comparison between our way of life and the way of life of the people in European countries. But I sense no sense of jealousy. I did sense a great need in the hearts of those people and I did sense that they wanted our help and would cooperate with us in every way possible to achieve world peace and to help these poor veterans who need help. Well, incidentally, sir, I understand that your AMVET organization favors universal military training. Are you getting anywhere on that? Well, we are making a big fight for universal military training and I'll tell you why. The veterans of the last war have been called back many of them to fight in Korea and we feel that a man who's given four or five years of his life in one war shouldn't be called back and have his family and his life disrupted again. So we're going before Congress on January the 27th to testify and to urge upon them the passage of universal military training. Realistically, Commander, do you have much hope that this Congress will pass that bill? I think that there's great pressure upon Congress to pass a bill, yes, because there's a tremendous manpower need in our armed forces. The last time I discussed this question with the head of our armed forces, he told me that their biggest problem was manpower and certainly we need to set up machinery to get that manpower. There's a objection to this though, isn't it on the ground that this won't work along with the draft and that you must wait until the draft is no longer needed. Do you agree to that? Well, I suppose we'll have to keep selective service until we get a universal military training bill. But so many inequities have arisen under it that certainly they'll have to bring the legislation up to date. Ms. Mehedi, I understand your ambass association favors the non-deferment of college students from selective service, but we're also told now that Russia is training more engineers and scientists than we are. Now, would you favor taking these people out of college and taking them out of the technical services? I agree that we need a trained core of scientists because warfare is now in a highly scientific state. But I also think it's inequitable to distinguish between the man who can afford to go to college and the man who cannot. I suppose some exceptions in universal military training will have to be made to see that we get a proper core of scientists. But I don't like to think that a poor boy has to go to war and a boy who can afford college doesn't have to go. Do you think the deferment of technically trained people is undemocratic? Well, I think there's a point there. I may ask you this. How about these young fellows from Korea? Are they joining up in veterans' organizations? One hears that they're non-joiners. Well, I don't think that's so. I feel that, for instance, we made a terrific fight for the benefits under the GI Bill of Rights so that they would be given to the Korean veteran. And I think they sense that they need the veterans' organizations in order to forward their point of view. The fight that we made for the GI Bill of Rights for Korean veterans certainly has set us out as an organization that will be supported by the Korean veteran, and I think they are joining. I understand that there are a lot of complaints about Korean veterans. They're not getting the same break you fellows got on the GI Bill of Rights on home loans and mortgages and things like that. I don't think that's so. I think that, essentially and substantially, they are getting the same thing that we are. Of course, the interest rate for housing, for mortgages, for guaranteed mortgages for GIs, is higher. But then, interest rates are higher all around, and of course, while we fought against raising that interest rate, we couldn't stand the pressure, and we had to give in because interest rates had risen universally throughout the country. Mr. Mahaney, why several veterans' organizations? You speak of yours particularly naturally. There are several now. Why should there be? Well, it's this way. There are 11 million veterans of World War II are better, and they're all of one age group, essentially. They have something in common. Other veterans' organizations more or less arose from the earlier age groups. Amvitz consists of one age group from one war. We're chartered exclusively by Congress for the veterans of World War II. Well, Mr. Mahaney may ask you as a final question, what do you veterans really want? How do you want to be treated from by the rest of the United States? Well, we don't feel that we're any exception. The only thing that we want to do is to advance the cause of the poor disabled veteran, his widow, and his orphan. There are many veterans who are so disabled that they cannot look after themselves. We want to do that job. We want to look after the mothers of these boys who have been left behind. We want to look after their wives. We feel there's a job to do. We want to do that job. We want to be able to comment on legislation affecting these veterans and their families. We ask no different treatment from any other citizen. Thank you very much, Mr. Mahaney. It's been a great pleasure to have you here tonight. Thank you very much. The opinions that you've heard our speakers express tonight have been entirely their own. The editorial board for this edition of the Lawn Jean Chronoscope was Larry Lisser and Kenneth Crawford. Our distinguished guest was Henry J. Mahaney, National Commander of the American Veterans of World War II. Will there be a Lawn Jean watch in your stocking on Christmas Day? Well, why not a subtle hint to your own personal Santa Claus? Believe me, nothing could give you so much satisfaction and so much pleasure. Now here in these diminutive Lawn Jean ladies watches is beauty for the adornment of the loveliest risk. And more important, dependability to keep the busy hostess or businesswoman precisely on time. For the man in every field of activity, a Lawn Jean watch is a priceless possession. No other name on a Christmas watch means so much as Lawn Jean, for no other watch has won 10 World's Fair Grand Prizes, 28 gold medals, and so many honors for accuracy. 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