European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - April 10, 1948, Darmstadt, Hesse Hard worked Mills and mines Are the cd patents to this same Fabrique National and the automatic pistol which bears his name is better known to europeans than it is to Possession of the Liege housewife is her collection of Crystal from the renowned Crystall eries do Val. St Lambert in the City s outskirts. It is the Best she will boast knowingly because it is heavier than other Crystal and because St. Lambert s workers Are More the firm insists that worker must serve an apprenticeship of As Long As fifteen years before he can make drinking glasses of top Quality. The latest creation of the Val factory is an especially thin fluted and Gold decorated dinner set produced for the Shah of Iran. But any one can have a duplicate set if he has the necessary sixty thousand francs about Twenty three dollars per Glass. Missing no Chance for world wide publicity the firm sent a Large exquisitely Cut vase to Elizabeth of England As wedding gift Pierre Gellard director general of this the world s largest Crys Tal Plant is sparing no Effort to Recap Ture markets lost in More than sixty countries during the War. All of the More than a dozen suburbs of Liege contribute to the City s Industrial position. There Are Zinc Roll ing Mills and processing plants of Kieffe de Montagne machine tool works engine factories automobile parts and accessory makers and hundreds of smaller " machine and Metal working Job shops. Nearly one Hundred thousand men and women of the metropolitan population of 400,000liege proper has something under half the total work in the industries or in the Coal and Iron mines essential to their operation. Although there Are few close shops in Liege organized labor Isa powerful Force in the life of the City. Yet the unions have the reputation of not throwing their weight around. The two big groups to which the bul of Liege s workers belong the general federation of belgian labor and the federation of Christian unions have a record of conservative action but also one of consistent Progress in improving the labourer s lot. Since the War relations Between labor and management have been smoother than Ever with no Seri Ous disputes in the offing. Both have even collaborated in pressing the gov. Ern ment for social reforms which would certainly Lead to eventual wage demands. A typist or comparable clerical worker still draws no More than eight dollars in pay. A Coal Miner does much v better Between five and seven dollars a Day. Monthly wages of the most highly skilled Glass blowers and cutters gun Smiths and other precision workers Pas the two Hundred Dollar Mark. There is practically no Black Market in Liege today because there Are few shortages. Suspicions persist however As to How Many of the Drivers of late Model american limousines came by their fortunes in the immediate Post War confusion. Bread and sugar Are the Only foodstuffs still rationed and the allowance of these items is More than adequate. Butter beef pork and oils went out from under controls the for St of february this Are no strangers to machine politics american style and the presence of four parties in the picture Ruyf serves to complicate things still further the City proper is run by a popularly i elected Council of thirty nine members who in turn choose a Cabinet of six from their own number. The mayor is also selected from the Council subjects to the approval of the King or the Regent of Belgium. V the socialist party with its heavy labor backing now dominates Liege although its fifteen members on the Council Are matched by the Catholic party representation. Communists to five of the remaining places and the t liberals who Are actually the most conservative segment have the Las four seats having lost much of thetfo 1 former strength in recent tests. Cons to Monist influence has waned from Early postwar Ascendancy an Catholic party has fluctuated but Lite in popularity with the Liege electors i thei among tonal ill to be. Ellhu Moron out gone Cap outright estate in number they Phi that poll and Livin fusible put unlike a belgian to an Ai a policy of the close of a Favot la Ama Irewe flood
