The Journal

Poor Big Rich Cities

Our heart bleeds for the big cities of the nation—the poor things. They surely have their problems trying to provide transportation, schools, water, sewers, utilities, etc. for their teeming hundreds of thousands of sardine packed citizens.

As yet, however, they don't know what real trouble is. But they've lined up to get themselves into a real mess—and here's why:

Despite the fact that our urban centers contain over two-thirds of the nation's entire population and along with that the bulk of our wealth, the mayors of many of our big cities are crying poverty. They are reaching with hands outstretched to Washington for Federal aid to education, for transportation, for water works, for sewers, for civil defense, for public housing, for hospital construction, for airports, for urban renewal, for combatting of air and stream pollution, for highways and many, many other activities and functions.

With all these things are going rules and regulations. Washington calls the tune and the urbanites will have to dance to it.

But sorry as we are for these poor, downtrodden urbanites, we are much sorrier for us poor down-trodden citizens who live in the "sticks" because we are forced to help pay for much of this Federal largesse to our city brothers and sisters.