We sto* Simpson il&m foasted *V" Groove

Federql Aid Projects . .

Placerville, Calif.The Marsl-rall Hospital Assn. l-ras qu,alified for state ancl federal grants and n<-'w plans to build a $1,085,000 general hospital, the first ne.t" or-te here in more than 50 years. A one-story, 58-room hospital is planned to open in -th-e. _spr-i1g or srlnrnrer of 1959. Of the community's share of $411,692 in the project, the amount was oversubscribed by $51,514.38 in the local fund-raising campaign.

The Stanislaus County, Calif., Planning Comrrrission has received. a $26,200 federal grant approvea ly the Urban Renewal Administration for the second phase of a 3-year study of improvernents tl-rere and in portions of San Ioaquin ancl tr{erced counties inclucling the cities of Ceres, Xlodesto, Ner.vman, Oakdale, Pattersorr, Riverbank and Turlock.

The Itocklin-I-oomis Nlunicipal Utilitv District of placer County, Calif., has received a $SO,OOO CFAclvance to finance preliminary planning of sewerage facilities, with start of construction by October 1958. Re{er: James T. Williams, Secretary ; Project No. 4-P-3048.

The city of Tacoma, Washington, once knorvn as "the Iumber capital of the rvorld," has received approval of its workable program for elimination of slums arid blight frorn Hous_ing Administrator Albert l\{. Cole. The c*ity was founded 100 years ago with the advent of settlers aud rar"mills at Commencemerlt Bay on Puget Sound. The city will designate the Tacoma Housing Authority as official agency rvith responsibility for relocation of famiiies ; the Autioritv has 1,0-13 units.

Housing Administrator Albert It. Cole has recertifiecl u_ntil l.anuary l,1959, San Francisco's workable program for the elimination of slums and blight. Planning areJ studies of 35 neighborhoods already have been made iir a total of 54.

The town of Florence, Oregon, in western Lane county, a thriving lumbering town before W\ /I, has receivecl HHFApproval of its workable prograrn for elimination of slums and blight, with authority io designate a renewal project area of 202 acres in the central city.

The HHFA has certified use of Section 221 nortgage insurance to finance up to 36 units of lorv-cost private h-ou-sing in_ Calexico, Calif., to help rehouse familiis being displaced by governmental action.

California Western university, Point Loma, Calif., received CFApproval of a $270,000 loan to build two dormitories. E,nrollment has risen lrom 76 students in 1954 to 465 , this -yeaj. Refer: Dr. William C. Itust, presiclent; Project No. Calif. 4-CH-23(D).

Westmont college, Santa Barbara, Calif., received CFApproval oJ a $785,000 loan to provide l.rousing ancl clining_facililiei, B.!9lr Dr. Roger J. Voskuyl, presidint; Proj- ect No. Calif.4-CH-6(DS). -

^_University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, N. M., receir.ed CFApproval of a $1,800,000 loan to-finance construction of a clormitory building consisting of three 3-story and one 2-story wings extending from a central 3-story section in the slrape of an "X." ltefer: John Perovich, it-'mptroller : Project No. N. Mex.29-CH-11(D).

-The city of Seaside, Calif., has received HHFApproval of its workable program for the elimination of slums ancl blight and has applied to the URA for an advance to finance planr.ring on a renewal project named Noche IJuerra .il,ith 295 drvelling units.

A $95,000 CFAclvance has been granted San Mateo, Calif., to finance planuing for a county admir-ristration builcling to be erectecl in Redwood City at an estimaterl cost of $1,678,- 100 ancl start construction by Tuly 1961. I{efer: E. R. Stallirrgs, county manager; Projeci No. Calif. 4-P-3205.

The city of Renton, Washington, has receivecl HHFApproval of its workable prograrn for elimination of slnms and blight Toclay, rnore people are working in the Boeing Airplane Company's jet transport plant there than are livino irr fhe eif.r

Hqs'Foir Trqde'Gone Over the Hill?

In the February issue of l)rrrr's Iler-ieu. ancl \Ioclern Inclustrl-, the presetrt clay struggle of fziir tra<1e for srrrr-ir-al is revie'rved in a major article. "Is liair'['ra<le On The \\'av Out?" Although Fair-'fracle lan.s still h:rr.e sonre life iir them, it says,.1to one n'ill clenl-that thel-har-e been losing groutrcl steadily in recent 1-"ni.. 'fhe right of a retailer to sell goocls zrt r,vl'ratever price he u'ishes is becornirrg nrore erncl rnore Iirntly established irr state corlrts. flanrrfa.ctrrrers are either clropping fair-tracle policies or failine- to errforce them a<leclrratel_r'. IIartr- retailers are flouting fair-trade practices. ;\rrd the :r<lvocates of fair-tracle policies lost arrirther r.najor battle l:rst Octuber tvhen the L. S. Srrttrenre Court refuserl to revie'n. a <lecision hancled clou'n br.a circuit corrrt n'l'rich helcl that :r retailer in a norr-fair-tracle state may rlse the n'rails to sell gr-rocls at crlt prices in fair-tracle states.

Fair-trade is not dearl r'et, but it looks as if it is losing its battle (see thc lLcc,rirprrrrl.ing rlate-tabbecl list u,hicii points up the nrain events in the history of the fair tracle battle;.

Here are sorne of the highlights of the argun.rents for and against fair-tra<le lan's u'hich al)l)ear in the article:

Arguments for fair-trarlc 1:rn's ilre stllttlnarizecl bt- the Bureau of E,<lrrcatic.rn orr Ii:rir 'l'rarle. 'l'hc lJrrreau aig,tes

life qnd Times of Fqir Trqde

1931. California lrassecl the Iirst Fair-Tracle larv as a device to protecf the sn'rall retailer from Price cutting. Sponsors of the rneaslrre said its prlrpose u'as to guartl the nranufactnrer's brancl name :rrtrl goocl will.

1933. Caiifornia acloptecl the nonsigner clarrse, u'hich provicles that if one retailer in the state sigrrs a colltract rvitlr a nranrrfacturer agreeirrg to a nrinirrrurrr price for a procluct, all other retailers in the state are borrn<l b1' that contract.

1936. In the Dearborn case, the U. S. Sultreme Corrrt rulecl that California's Fair-Tracle 1arv, .ivith the trotrsigner clause, cloes not violate the "<1ue ltrocess" clause of the F-ortrteentl.r Amenclment to the Constitutic-rn.

1937. The U. S. Congress passed the N{iller-Tyciirrgs '\ct, legalizing fair tracle in intrastate as u'ell as interstate colnlnerce.

1951. ll'he Calr.ert vs. Schu'egn.rann case n'as a rnajor setback for fair trarle when the U. S. Supren.re Court threu' out the rronsigrrer clarrse in interstale commerce. The Court ruled that the lliller-Tydings Act does not specifically cover norrsigners of fair trade agreelnents.

1952. Fair Traclc bouncecl back u'hen Congress passecl the McGuire Act, u'hich rrpliolcls the right of tl're states to pass fair-trade l;ru's n'ith tronsigner clauses. The U. S. SuDrerne Corrrt lias not rulecl on the constitrrtiorralitl oi tlris legislatiorr.

1957. A harcl blou' tofair tra(le \\'as the U. S. Supreme Court's clecision rrpholding the right r,f an or,rt-of-state mail-order colltpan)- to sell ltrorlrrcts in fair tra<le states at less than fair tracle nrirriutrrrn rtrices.

The legal argrlment for fair trade is that tlre inanufacturer has tl.re right to protect his brarr<l lranre. Xlost of the {avorable fair trade clecisiorrs have been prerlic:rte<l otr this argument.

\\'herr fair tracle has been throtvn orrt bv state courts, it has usrralll'been on the gronncl thal it has r-iolatecl the "rlue process" clause of the Constitutiorr, b1-. unlau'frrlll' rlelegating legislatir.e pou.er to irrdi- tiiat price-crrttirrg hrrrts the coltsrlnter because it traps him into brrl-ing unknown, overpricecl nrerchandise and clistrol.s his coufirlence irr the value of establishecl traciemarks. It \\'arns that price-cutting could put the consrrmer at the mercy of "giant retail tnonoltolies," once the con'rpetition of smal1 business is orrt of the u'ar'. Price crrtting also hurts the manufacturer, the llureau rruiirrtains. It points out that lr'heu a product price is cut the seneral prrblic conclrrdes that eitl'rer the ciuality is slipping or the procluct was overpricecl to begin rvitl-r. Another argunreut for fair-tra<le laws is that snrall retailers n'ill often rlrop a branrl that is being kickecl around priceu,ise rather than sell it at a lt-'ss. Thii, tl.re bureau points o11t, calt nrean falling sa1es, ltroclrrction cuts antl rrnemplol'ment {or the tnannfactllrer.

N{any fair-tracle ad"'ocates. hon'ever, arlnrit privately that the present svstem of minimum res:rle price enforcement 'n ill not continue to exist inclefir'ritelv in most fields. Hou.-