All or Else

In Paris last week, the Army-Navy Liquidation Commission issued its first two catalogues, which offered to transplanted Americans (and secondly to Europeans) $11,500,000 worth of everything from aspirin to three-ton Diesel cranes. First taker: the Belgian Government, which got 300 automobiles and 125 tons of steel rods.

First to be disappointed were Europe’s little businessmen. For reasons of its own, ANLC had divided the surpluses into almost prohibitive lots. To be sold in one bunch were: 1) $827,808 worth of auto batteries; 2) $100,000 lots of telephones, radios and medical gadgets; 3) 50 Denhardt mouth gags (a bargain at $3.49 apiece) if the purchaser also agreed to buy a few thousand jar covers, mustard pots and large ladles.